The villa was quiet as Nathan sat on the rug with Mateo. They were playing with the toy cars again. Nathan kept looking at the boy's face. He saw his own eyes and his own smile in the child. He knew from the DNA test that Mateo was 99.9% his son. It gave him a deep sense of peace to be near him, but it was also a heavy secret to keep.
Viktoria sat nearby, reading a book. She looked more relaxed since she talked to Nikolai, but her phone was still off.
"You're very quiet tonight, Nathan," she said, looking up.
"Just thinking," Nathan replied. He looked at her and wanted to tell her the truth. "I was thinking about how much life changes in just a few years."
Viktoria nodded. "I know. Sometimes I feel like I've lived two different lives, even if I don't remember the first one."
"Do you ever want to remember?" Nathan asked.
She looked at Mateo, then at Nathan. "I used to. But now I have Nikolai and Mateo. I have a family who loves me. Maybe the past is better left in the dark."
