Chapter 1 1

UNITED STATE OF KREECE

YELTA STATE

METRO CITY

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"The stepmother of the princess lied to the prince, accusing the princess of stealing the queen's jewelry... Who is the queen?"

A man in his early thirties asked, glancing at the two boys, each sitting next to him on a couch in a large mansion.

His disheveled dirty blonde hair and bored blue eyes betrayed his lack of enthusiasm as he read from the book in his hands.

One of the boys, both younger versions of the man and identical, eagerly raised his hand and answered, "The Prince's mother."

The other boy rolled his eyes, annoyed. "I was going to say that. The queen is the prince's mother."

The man nodded and marked something for them in their books.

"That's right,"

He exhaled deeply, and continued, "But the prince had had enough of the stepmother and banished her from the palace. Why do you think the prince did that?"

He frowned slightly, wondering if his children could figure the answer to the question out.

He looked at the two of them, and they seemed lost in thought. They're only six, after all.

"Let's backtrack," the man said with a smile. "The stepmother lived in the palace with her stepdaughter, the princess. She accused the princess of stealing the queen's necklace, but in the end, she was the one banished. Why did the prince banish the stepmother when she did nothing but report her stepdaughter?"

One of the boys raised his hand excitedly, "I know, I know! I remember! I bet you can't, Jake!" The boy cleared his throat and answered confidently, "Because the prince didn't want anything bad to happen to the princess."

The man gave his son a blank stare. "Oh, is that right?"

"Dad, you know Vik is wrong! He's always wrong!" Jake shouted with a frown, and said, "The answer is plain and simple. The prince and the princess were together so the princess couldn't have stolen it at the time she was accused of having done that."

Vik shook his head, frowning. "That's not plain and simple, Jake. At all."

The man smiled, marking something in their books before moving on. "Alright, now guess what happens after the stepmother is banished."

"They live happily ever after?" Vik answered, still frowning.

"Exactly!" The man nodded with a grin, ruffling Vik's hair proudly. "I think this is the first time you got a question right, son." Vik nodded, looking very proud.

Jake scoffed, shaking his head. "What's he gonna do without me? Dad, next time, let's do our homework separately."

The man sighed. "That would mean reading this twice, and I'd rather not feel like I'm being punished." He added, "Now, you two can play for two hours, but after that, it's off to bed. I'll check in on you then."

They nodded, and he helped them pack their books into their backpacks before heading to his bedroom.

With a deep sigh, he sat on his king-sized bed, his eyes drawn to the picture frame on the vanity. He picked it up, staring at it-mostly at his wife in the photo.

She had died a year after giving birth to their children in a horrific accident. Her body had been so damaged, it was completely unrecognizable.

He remembered how crazy he'd felt then.

How he wanted to believe his wife wasn't the one in that car.

If it hadn't been for his brother-in-law, he might have lost himself completely, forgetting that he had children to care for and a company to manage.

For the sake of his children, he stopped obsessing and tried to move forward.

But deep down, he hasn't. He missed her. She was the best thing that ever happened to him.

Ring, ring...

He set the frame down and answered his ringing phone. It was Nate, his friend and brother-in-law.

"What's up?" he asked, his tone flat.

"Hey, man! Guess what-I've found someone perfect for you!" Nate said, his voice upbeat and excited.

"Someone perfect? You know there's no one perfect..."

"Eieesh! Come on, Zak, don't start with that," Nate scolded. "It's been five years. You need to move on, at least for the boys. Those boys need a mother, and I'm trying to help you out here."

Zak sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Fine. I'm only free at night tomorrow. I have a long day at work. Work's been brutal-no secretary yet, and it's driving me crazy."

There was a short silence before Nate spoke up, "Hey, Zak, this girl isn't the kind of girl you'd sleep with and forget the next day. She's special-a keeper, I assure you of that. She won't even agree to come to your house. She's like an angel... pure and innocent."

"Then why don't you go for her, Nate?" Zak asked. "You're single, and it's about time you settled down."

Nate scoffed, and replied, "She's more your type. Believe me, she is. You won't regret it. Trust me."

"Alright, what's her name?" Zak asked, his curiosity piqued.

"Leanne Millers."