Chapter 1
Four little boys walked into a restaurant bathroom just hours before I was supposed to announce my engagement. Five minutes later, I was staring at four identical versions of myself, and everything I thought I knew about my life began to fall apart. Before the night was over, I would cancel the proposal, confront the woman I never stopped loving, and uncover a secret someone had buried for six long years.
That afternoon, every detail of my future had already been decided.
My black suit had been tailored in Manhattan.
My grandfather's cuff links gleamed beneath freshly pressed sleeves.
In my pocket rested an engagement ring that had been approved by my mother, my attorneys, and nearly everyone except me.
By seven o'clock, I was expected to propose to Brielle Cartwright at my family's conservatory overlooking Central Park.
It wasn't a love story.
It was a business merger disguised as an engagement.
Before heading to the venue, I stopped at a restaurant.
As I washed my hands, four little boys in matching navy uniforms crowded around the sinks.
At first, I barely noticed them.
Then one of them brushed his wet hair back with his fingers.
The other three copied him.
My heart nearly stopped.
Forehead to crown.
A slight shake.
Then the left hand resting against the back of the neck.
It was the nervous habit I'd had since childhood.
My father always laughed and said, "That's how you know a Whitaker man is worried."
One of the boys caught me staring.
"Mister... why are you copying us?"
"I'm not," I whispered.
We all looked into the mirror.
The same gray-blue eyes.
The same sharp jawline.
The same dimple in the left cheek.
"I've always done that."
The boys smiled.
"So have we."
The boldest one stepped forward.
"I'm Milo. These are Mason, Max, and Micah. We're quadruplets."
My throat tightened.
"Where's your mom?"
"She works here," Milo answered. "She's asking the manager if we can stay here tonight because we don't have anywhere else."
I followed them into the dining room.
Then I saw her.
Mara.
The woman I had loved more than anyone.
The woman my mother swore had abandoned me six years earlier.
She stood in a server's apron, pleading with the restaurant manager.
"My boys just need somewhere safe until morning."
"That's not my problem," he replied coldly.
Then she looked at me.
Her face drained of color.
"Boys... come with me."
Outside, the freezing February wind whipped through the street.
Two worn duffel bags rested beside the children.
Without saying another word, I handed Mara the key card to my empty Tribeca apartment.
"No questions tonight," I said quietly. "Just get them somewhere warm."
She hesitated until Milo tugged gently on her sleeve.
"Mom... I'm tired."
She accepted the card.
Before getting into my SUV, she turned toward me.
"You don't disappear for six years and suddenly decide to be their father."
Her words hit me harder than any punch.
I looked at the four little boys waiting beside her.
"I'm not deciding anything," I said. "I'm trying to understand why they all have my face."
At exactly 4:18 p.m., I called my assistant.
"Cancel tonight."
"You mean the engagement announcement? Your mother's already welcoming guests."
"I don't care."
I ended the call.
I still didn't know whether those boys were truly mine.
May you like
But I knew one thing with absolute certainty.
I would never marry another woman until I uncovered who stole six years of my life... and why everyone I trusted had lied to me.
