He tried to ask as calmly as possible, but even to his own ears, the urgency bled through his voice. Of course, there was no way that man would miss it, and sure enough, when his reply came a moment later, it dripped with arrogance.
“That just means I’ve built that strong of a bond with the child.”
“I’m asking you how.”
If the man had been standing right in front of him, Winston would have gladly grabbed him by the throat and screamed, Just get to the damn point! But unfortunately, the other party was far too far away. Swallowing the rising frustration, Winston forced himself to speak.
“How did you build that bond? It couldn’t have been easy.”
He thought he heard a low chuckle from the other side. Had it been someone else’s situation, he would have laughed right along with him. The tragedy was that he was the one living it. As Winston covered his face with one hand, a smug, laughter-tinged voice filled his ears.
“Campbell, bonds are built over time.”
The voice that followed was anything but pleasant.
“My kid climbs onto my shoulders so easily because he trusts me. He knows I’ll never drop him, so he feels safe climbing up.”
Winston could easily imagine the man sitting there with his legs crossed, chin raised high in that arrogant posture. Who would’ve thought the day would come when he’d be the one begging someone else—this man, of all people. Rage burned in his chest, but he had no choice but to ask.
“So what did you do? How did you get the child to trust you that much?”
The answer that came back wasn’t anything impressive. The man replied as smoothly as if gliding across ice.
“You have to spend a lot of time with them. Lots of physical contact, too.”
Under his palm, Winston’s brow furrowed deeply. The other man kept talking, drawing out his words with deliberate laziness, as if mocking him.
“I’ve done everything I could for my kid since the moment he was born. I was the one who got up at dawn to feed him, and the one who held him until he fell asleep. Sure, we had a nanny, but I bet he spent more time in my arms than in hers. I carried him so much, he learned to walk late.”
Keith Knight Pittman, bragging like this—the world would drop its collective jaw in shock. Some might even laugh at him. So that stuck-up guy wasn’t so special after all, they’d sneer.
Ordinarily, Winston would have been among them.
But now, all he could do was bite down his irritation, feeling utterly wrecked. So in the end, there’s nothing he could do? Because he hadn’t been there from the moment Angela was born?
But that had been inevitable. If that incident hadn’t happened—if Winston had never uncovered the truth about his father and Yu-jin—he would’ve gone on believing Angela was his own child, never once doubting it. Naturally, he would’ve been by her side from the start. He wouldn’t be sitting here now, choking on someone else’s ridiculous bragging.
It could have been different.
The nightmare he had fought so hard to bury came surging back. The image of Yu-jin in his father’s arms, looking at him with those wide, unblinking eyes—it was vivid, like it was happening right in front of him again. Even the expression on his face as he laughed at Winston’s stunned, hollow reaction.
Winston clenched his teeth and drew in a deep, slow breath.
“Campbell.”
The man must’ve heard his ragged breathing—his voice came sharp this time, a noticeable shift from his usual tone. He seemed to be gauging Winston’s condition.
“I’m fine.”
Winston answered in his usual low voice.
“It’s not like I’m sick, so don’t worry about that. So, you’re telling me the only thing you ever did was maintain consistent physical contact with the child from a young age? Nothing special beyond that?”
Even as he spoke, he felt pathetic. What else could there be? Wasn’t that the most textbook, obvious method?
Still, clinging to hope like a drowning man reaching for driftwood, he opened his mouth again.
“What about gifts? Have you ever tried giving presents or anything like that?”
The man replied in a flat, indifferent tone.
“That kind of stuff is just part of daily life. You don’t build a bond with a kid just by throwing gifts at them.”
Ignoring the embarrassment creeping in, Winston pressed on.
“I even offered her shares, but she wasn’t interested at all.”
There was a pause before the man responded, voice laced with disbelief.
“How old is this kid, exactly?”
“Three—no, she just turned four.”
For the first time, the man let out an incredulous scoff. As Winston sank into his own feelings of disgrace, the other man replied in a composed, cool voice.
“My kid’s about the same age, but Spence can’t even count properly yet. Ten’s the highest he gets. And you’re out here offering stock options? You should’ve just bought her a puppy or something.”
“She’s not your average kid.”
For the first time, a hint of confidence slipped into Winston’s voice.
Angela can count all the way to a hundred. She reads tons of books, and when she speaks, she sounds at least seven or eight years old. She’s incredibly bright. A full-on prodigy. If we got her IQ tested, I bet the results would be through the roof.”
A wave of pride washed over him, as if he were bragging about his daughter—which he was. Riding the high, he went in for the finishing blow.
“Oh, right—your kid still can’t read yet, can he?”
The man didn’t respond. His silence—his first real silence—put a smug grin on Winston’s lips. But then came a dry, nonchalant reply from the other end.
“But my kid climbs onto my shoulders.”
Winston fell quiet again. In the heavy silence that followed, the man offered a breezy piece of advice, as if pacified.
“Why don’t you start trying now? It won’t be easy, sure. But she’s still a child, right? Might not be too late.”
Maybe that would work. If Angela were just a normal kid.
“Thanks for the advice. Not that it helped.”
Winston shot back with biting sarcasm, then hung up before the other could reply. Listening any longer would only make his blood boil. Thankfully, the man didn’t call back.
Why the hell did I even call?
He’d heard nothing but clichés—and to top it off, stuff that made him want to rip his hair out.
Maybe it was because Angela was so intelligent that things were taking longer.
If that were the case, then everything made sense. Angela and that dumb Pittman kid weren’t even in the same league.
That thought brought a flicker of satisfaction, but tearing down someone else’s child didn’t do a damn thing to improve his own situation.
Is this what having a kid does to you—makes you this petty?
Winston sat, lost in thought, his expression serious. In any case, if he wanted to earn the child’s affection, he had to meet her on her level. Instead of offering stock options, he probably should’ve just bought her a puppy, like Pittman said. That would’ve had a much better effect.
…Yeah. Just like Pittman said.
Winston brought the whiskey to his lips again. Something brushed faintly across his mind. Not bad. He narrowed his eyes without thinking, unable to hold back the sigh that escaped as he knocked back the rest of his drink in one go.
Let’s try that.
Resolving himself, Winston stood up and strode out of the dining room. The mansion was deathly still. The only sound was the crashing of the waves. The staff had already gone home, but two others were still here besides him. Even so, he felt utterly alone. Just as he had ever since parting ways with Yu-jin.
Get it together. Don’t give up.
He deliberately widened his stride as he walked. He’d decided to start over, hadn’t he? They’d promised to bury the past. If he could just win the child’s heart, Yu-jin would have no choice but to accept him. The future with Yu-jin he once dreamed of—he could finally make that real.
Yeah. This time for sure.
At the end of the hallway, he quietly opened the door to the room. Moonlight spilled through the gap in the curtains, casting a soft glow into the dark space. As he stepped inside, the room remained utterly silent. Standing beside the bed, Winston kept his gaze still for a long moment.
On the bed, Yu-jin lay sound asleep, wrapped around the child in a close embrace. There couldn’t have been a more peaceful scene. And yet, instead of calm, Winston felt a stronger pang of bitterness… and dread.
Never again.
In the dark, he clenched and unclenched his fist, staring intently at Yu-jin.
I will never let anyone take you away from me again.
***
“That’s it, Angie. You’re doing great. Now, hold your breath, and exhale—hold—breathe again…”
Winston’s voice echoed all the way into the living room. Yu-jin reclined on a lounge chair, silently watching them.
Right outside the large sliding glass doors was the pool. There was no more luxurious vacation than soaking in warm water with a view of the ocean. And right now, Winston was in that very pool, teaching his daughter how to swim.
Of course, he had no idea it was his daughter.
Yu-jin watched them quietly, a strange feeling brewing in his chest.
What the hell is that man up to now?
Lmao watching these 2 bragging about their kids to eachother is hilarious
Lmaoo did bro really ask pitman for advice 😭🙏