Chapter 4 The Name Game

The lawsuit papers hit Serena like a freight train. I didn't deliver them myself-too classy for that-but I made sure the process server caught her at her fancy new "creative agency" downtown during peak morning coffee rush. The photos Mark sent later were gold: Serena in a cream pantsuit, mouth open in shock, papers clutched like they were burning her hands. The headline on the legal docs was simple and brutal:

Voss Designs v. Serena Voss a/k/a Serena Caldwell

Infringement of Trademark, Unfair Competition, Tortious Interference, and Fraudulent Transfer

She'd stolen my name. Literally changed hers to Voss six months ago, right around the time Ethan started funneling money her way. Voss Creative Group. Same color palette I'd built my brand around-deep emerald and gold. Same tagline vibe: "Design that moves mountains." She even had a website up with mock portfolios that looked suspiciously like early drafts I'd once shared with her over wine nights. The bitch had been planning this for longer than the affair.

I stared at the screen in my tiny home office while the twins napped in the next room. My fingers hovered over the keyboard, itching to post something petty on LinkedIn. But no. I'd learned the hard way: quiet knives cut deepest.

Damian arrived that evening with takeout-Thai, extra spicy, the kind that makes your nose run and your eyes water. He set the bags on the kitchen counter like he'd done it a hundred times, then crouched to peek into the nursery where Ava was gnawing on her own fist and Noah stared at the ceiling fan like it held the secrets of the universe.

"They're getting bigger," he said softly.

"Every damn day." I leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. "You didn't have to come. I could've emailed you the updates."

"I wanted to see your face when you told me how it felt." He straightened, eyes meeting mine. "To finally hit back."

I exhaled a shaky laugh. "Feels good. And terrifying. What if she countersues? What if Ethan bankrolls her defense?"

"He's tapped out. Assets frozen. Lawyers on contingency only at this point." Damian opened containers, steam rising with lemongrass and chili. "And even if he tries, we have the paper trail. Wire transfers. Emails where he calls her 'my little Voss empire.' Poetic, really."

I snorted. "Romantic."

We ate on the couch, paper plates balanced on knees, TV muted on some nature documentary about wolves. Fitting.

Halfway through pad thai, my phone buzzed. Unknown number. I almost ignored it, but something made me answer.

"Elena?" Serena's voice-small, cracked, nothing like the confident laugh I used to love. "We need to talk."

"You're being served. Talk to my lawyer."

"Please. Just... five minutes. I'm outside your building."

I froze. Damian's eyes flicked to me, questioning. I put the call on speaker.

"You're where?"

"Downstairs. In the lobby. I just... I didn't know it would blow up like this. I thought-"

"You thought you could steal my name, my husband, my future, and I'd just roll over?" My voice rose despite myself. Ava stirred in the monitor. I lowered it. "Stay there. I'm coming down."

Damian stood. "I'm coming with you."

"No. Watch the babies. Please."

He hesitated, then nodded. "Door stays locked. You yell, I'm there in ten seconds."

I grabbed my coat, heart hammering. The elevator ride down felt endless. When the doors opened, Serena was standing by the mailboxes, arms wrapped around herself like she was cold even though the lobby heat was blasting. No makeup. Hair in a messy bun. Eyes red-rimmed.

She looked... small.

"You look like shit," I said.

"So do you." A weak attempt at our old banter. It died fast.

We stepped outside into the chilly night air. Streetlights buzzed overhead. A car honked somewhere down the block.

"I'm sorry," she started.

"Don't."

"I mean it, Elena. I didn't think-I was stupid. Jealous. You had everything. The ring, the penthouse, the man. And I... I wanted a piece."

"You took more than a piece. You took my best friend. My trust. And now my goddamn name?"

She winced. "The name thing... it was Ethan's idea. He said it would be funny. A fresh start for us. I didn't realize how much it would hurt you."

"Funny?" I laughed, sharp and ugly. "You changed your last name to mine. You built a company on my back while I was puking my guts out pregnant with his kids. That's not funny. That's sociopathic."

Tears spilled down her cheeks. "I'm pregnant too."

The words landed like a slap. I stared at her stomach-still flat under the coat.

"How far?"

"Fourteen weeks." She touched her belly protectively. "It's his."

Of course it was.

I felt something crack inside me-not heartbreak, exactly. More like the last thread of whatever sisterhood we'd had snapping clean.

"Does he know?"

"Yes. He's... excited. Scared. He wants us to be a family."

"A family." I repeated the word like it tasted bad. "He has two newborns he's never even held. And now another one on the way. With you."

"I didn't plan this, Elena. None of it."

"But you chose it. Every step."

Silence stretched between us. A taxi rolled by, headlights cutting across her face.

"I'm dropping the countersuit threat," she said quietly. "I'll change the name back. Shut down the LLC. I just... I need help. Medical bills. Rent. Ethan's money is tied up. I'm scared."

I looked at her-really looked. The woman who'd braided my hair before prom. Who'd held me when my parents died. Who'd stood beside me in white lace and sworn to love me forever as my maid of honor.

And I felt... nothing.

Not hate. Not pity. Just empty.

"Go home, Serena."

"Elena-"

"Go home. Change the name. Close the company. And don't ever contact me again. Not for money. Not for forgiveness. Not for anything."

I turned and walked back inside without waiting for her reply. The elevator doors closed on her standing there, alone under the streetlight.

Upstairs, Damian was rocking Noah in the glider, big hand gentle on the baby's back. Ava was already asleep again. He looked up when I entered.

"You okay?"

I nodded. Then shook my head. Then sank onto the couch and let the tears come-quiet, ugly sobs I hadn't allowed myself since the night I found the messages.

He didn't say anything stupid like "it'll be okay." He just sat beside me, close enough that his shoulder brushed mine, and waited.

When I could breathe again, I wiped my face with my sleeve. "She's pregnant. His."

Damian exhaled through his nose. "Jesus."

"Yeah."

He reached over, thumb brushing a tear from my cheek. The touch was light, careful. I didn't pull away.

"You're not alone in this war," he said. "Not anymore."

I looked at him-really looked. The scar along his jaw from some old fight he never talked about. The way his eyes held steady, no pity, just resolve.

"I know," I whispered.

He leaned in slow, giving me every chance to stop him. I didn't.

The kiss was soft at first-tentative, like we were both testing cracked ground. Then deeper. Hungrier. His hand cupped the back of my neck, mine fisted in his shirt. Heat bloomed low in my belly, chasing away the cold.

We broke apart when Noah fussed. Damian rested his forehead against mine, breathing hard.

"Not tonight," he murmured. "Not like this."

I nodded, grateful. "Yeah."

He kissed my temple instead. "But soon."

"Soon," I agreed.

After he left-promising to call in the morning with lawsuit updates-I stood at the nursery door, watching my babies sleep. Ava had kicked off her blanket. Noah's little mouth moved like he was dreaming of milk.

I pulled the blanket back up, tucked it around her. Whispered to them both:

"Your mama's got claws now. And she's learning how to use them."

The next morning, headlines broke: Harrington Enterprises Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection. Ethan's empire-crumbling. Stock worthless. Board scrambling.

My phone lit up with a text from Mark:

Serena signed the settlement. Name change filed. LLC dissolved. She walks away with nothing but a gag order and a promise to never use "Voss" again.

I stared at the message for a long time.

Then I opened a new document on my laptop.

Voss Designs – Expansion Plan: Year One.

First line: Hire three more designers. Open satellite office in New York.

Second line: Secure Damian Black's full investment round.

Third line: Build something unbreakable.

Something no one can steal.

Not Ethan.

Not Serena.

Not even the ghosts of who I used to be.

I hit save. Smiled for the first time in what felt like forever.

Game on.