Chapter 80

Liam

The park was buzzing with weekend life, children laughing as they chased each other, parents chatting on benches, the faint creak of swings swaying in rhythm with the breeze. Anastasia darted ahead, her tiny hand clutching her teddy bear like it was a shield against the world.

There was a prize that she won and it amazed me how happy she was to get it. It was as if it was the one toy that she always wanted, though I knew that she had others.

“Look, that's a big tree!” Anastasia cried out as she kept running. “And it has a bench under it.”

I had to fight back chuckling, watching as her small legs carried her as fast as she could go.

I kept close behind her, my eyes tracking her every movement with a possessiveness I didn’t bother to hide. She was the brightest spark of joy in my life, though she still didn’t know who I truly was to her. I was just thankful to be around her, to get to know her, to at least have a moment to experience by h