Weekends were Xavier's days to spend with his daughter.

Celine, bubbling with excitement, had changed into her Elsa dress early in the morning, eagerly anticipating a day at the amusement park with her father. However, Xavier called to say something had come up and he wouldn't be able to make it.

Distraught, Celine was inconsolable and later that night developed a high fever.

Thea, by herself, drove her to the emergency room. There, at the hospital, she ran into Xavier.

He explained that Addilyn wasn't feeling well and was also at the hospital.

...

While Thea was cradling a sleeping Celine and supervising her second IV drip, Xavier approached.

For the first time since the divorce, he expressed some semblance of regret. "Thea, I'm sorry. This must be really hard for you."

Thea looked down at Celine nestled in her arms, willing herself not to cry. "It's Celine you should apologize to. She's been counting the days to see you, and then you didn’t show."

Xavier knelt beside them and reached out to touch Celine's face. But as he did, she stirred and instinctively moved closer to Thea.

His hand lingered in the air for a moment before he let it fall, defeated.

"Have you eaten?" he asked Thea. She shook her head.

Just then, Xavier’s phone went off—Addilyn was calling. Whatever she said made his expression grow increasingly somber.

Eventually, as if worn down by her persistence, he said, "Just get some rest. I'll join you after I finish up here, okay?"

The cycle had turned. There was a time when Thea had called Xavier, urging him to come home, only to be met with excuses about work. But back then, his tone with her was anything but gentle, filled instead with irritation.

After hanging up, Xavier looked at Thea awkwardly. "Addilyn wasn't like this before. Maybe it’s the pregnancy making her extra clingy. Don’t take it personally. I'll go find you something to eat."

"No need," Thea replied with an air of grace. "She's pregnant; you should go be with her. I can handle things here."

Her deliberate show of understanding left Xavier racked with guilt, something evident in the way he looked at her.

"Thea, you've really changed," he remarked.

She smiled. "When you don't have a safe harbor, you learn to grow up."

His hands clenched into fists at his sides, avoiding her gaze.

"Thea," a voice called from behind Xavier. He turned to see a man in a white lab coat, holding a takeout container, approaching them.

Kian Reynolds, a young doctor who was three years younger than Thea Gonzales, was serving his internship at the hospital. As children, they were neighbors and grew up together until Kian moved abroad with his parents for his studies, which broke their connection. It wasn't until three months ago that he unexpectedly reached out and they reconnected.

Given the long wait times at the public hospital's emergency room and the fact that Celine's fever wouldn't go down, Thea sought Kian for help. Running into Xavier Ford there was unexpected.

Xavier watched as Kian approached Thea with obvious concern in his voice. "I went to several stores to find beef ravioli for you. Eat them while they're still hot."

Since Thea's hands were full holding Celine, Kian even offered to feed her himself. Xavier’s expression grew tense as he asked, "Do you work here?"

Kian replied nonchalantly, "You could say that. To be precise, my family owns this hospital." He wasn’t exaggerating; his father was the primary shareholder of the private hospital.

Xavier looked between Thea and Kian, asking, "And what’s the relationship between you two?"

With a mischievous grin, Kian raised an eyebrow, "Isn’t it obvious, ex-husband?"

The term "ex-husband" made Xavier's expression change through a range of emotions, like a kaleidoscope of colors. Then, Addilyn Freeman's call diverted his attention.

Once Xavier had left, Thea let out a sigh. "Kian, please be a bit more subtle next time. You almost gave us away."

Kian laughed, offering her another ravioli. "Don't worry; practice makes perfect. The more we do this, the better we’ll get at it."

A week later, Celine had fully recovered.

Thea returned to the office to wrap up her leave paperwork.

That evening, as she was leaving work, she bumped into Xavier in the elevator. Their colleagues, sensing the tension, tactfully left the two of them alone.

The elevator descended. Thea watched the numbers on the panel decrease to the first floor.

Xavier stood beside her, hands in his pockets, and asked, "Was the guy I saw with you at the hospital your boyfriend?"

The elevator doors opened.

Thea slung her bag over her shoulder and said, "That's none of your business, Mr. Ford."

With that, she exited the elevator.

Xavier followed her, remarking, "But your relationship choices affect my daughter. I don’t want her calling someone else 'Dad.'"

Thea stopped abruptly and turned to face him. "Did you think about our daughter when you cheated? When you pushed me to divorce because of Addilyn, did you think I wouldn’t find someone else?"

Xavier was left speechless and unable to respond.

Passersby glanced curiously at the scene.

Just then, Kian appeared, almost as if it were planned.

He walked up to Thea, casually draped an arm around her shoulders, and said with a teasing tone, "I've been waiting ages—I'm starving."

He tapped his wristwatch and addressed Xavier, "The workday’s over. Are we free to go?"

Xavier clenched his jaw in frustration.

With a smirk, Kian tightened his hold on Thea, and together, they confidently walked away right in front of Xavier.