“Hello, Curtis,” she said.
“Laura? What is this?” he stammered.
“I thought it was time we caught up,” she replied.
“You travel on private jets now?” he asked.
“Occasionally,” Laura said smoothly. “It’s easier with three little ones.”
His chest tightened. “Three… what?”
“Triplets,” she said evenly. “Two girls and a boy. They’re six.”
She handed him a photo of three children beaming in a balloon-filled garden. His mind reeled. “But you… couldn’t…”
“You assumed I couldn’t,” Laura corrected gently.
“All I needed was to believe in myself when you stopped believing in us.”
“Are they mine?” he muttered.
“Yes,” she said calmly. “You signed the papers. They’re mine in every way that matters.”
Curtis’s voice cracked. “Why invite me here?”
“To show you the ending you gave me wasn’t an ending at all,” Laura said softly. “It was the beginning of something greater.”
At that moment, the jet door opened and three children rushed in, calling “Mom!” as they embraced her. Curtis stood frozen.
“This is Mr. Curtis,” Laura told them warmly. “An old friend.”
After greeting him politely, the children scampered off. Laura turned to him. “I never needed revenge. What I wanted was peace. And I found it in motherhood and in creating a life you never imagined.”
Curtis’s throat tightened. “They’re… beautiful.”
“Thank you,” Laura said gently.
“But your journey ends here. Mine is just taking off.”
As he stepped off, Curtis watched the jet soar into the sky, carrying Laura and the children. He realized he hadn’t just lost a wife—he had lost the proof that love and persistence can bloom even in the harshest soil.
And this time, there would be no second chance.
