The Bond Between Us (Anastasia and Herman)

Caterina's face lit up as she took the cash, her grin stretching ear to ear. By her guess, it was a solid ten grand. Now that's what you call generous.

Autumn was desperate to see her grandson and build a real connection. So, on the sly, she slipped the nanny some extra cash to sneak Daria out and set up these "accidental" meetings.

"Thank you, Mrs. Walker," Caterina beamed, nearly losing her face in all that smiling.

Autumn leaned in, voice low and secretive. "Keep this between us, alright? Just you and me. And trust me, stick with this and there's plenty more where that came from."

"Don't worry, my lips are sealed." Inside, Caterina could barely contain her excitement. Easy money for doing almost nothing? Who would say no to that? "Go on and spend time with Daria. I'll just make an excuse to use the restroom.”

Caterina had a knack for reading situations. She didn't know exactly what Autumn was after, but as far as she could tell, Autumn adored Daria and meant him no harm. And the money was too good to pass up.

She waved at Daria. "Sweetie, I'm just popping to the restroom. You play here, and I'll be right back."

Daria was a confident, social kid. Even without an adult glued to his side, he could entertain himself just fine.

Before leaving, Caterina checked in with the play area manager and made sure Autumn was allowed to stay and watch Daria. Only then did the manager let Autumn in to join them.

Autumn's excitement was impossible to hide-it was her first time bringing her grandson to a play center. Wanting to win him over, she'd come prepared with gifts.

"Daria!" she called, smiling as she approached. "Remember me? I brought you a present. Want to see what it is?"

Knowing how boys loved cars and robots, Autumn pulled out a limited-edition Transformer from her bag.

Daria's eyes lit up at the toy, but as soon as he looked at Autumn, his little face turned stubborn and he spun away. "I don't want anything from a bad person. Go away."

Autumn froze, confused and hurt. Why did this kid dislike her so much? She'd never done anything to deserve it.

She crouched down, voice soft. "Daria, I'm not a bad person. I really like you. I can get you anything you want. Why don't you call me Grandma Walker, just once?"

She didn't dare call herself his grandmother outright.

"No way," Daria shot back, arms crossed, lips pressed into a pout.

Autumn had never met a kid this hard to win over. She tried everything-snacks, toys-but nothing worked.

Finally, out of ideas, she tried a different approach. "Daria, do you miss your mom?"

That got his attention. "You know my mom?"

He'd asked his dad before, but Dad always said he didn't have a mom. Lots of pretty ladies wanted to be his mom, but he'd never taken to any of them.

"I do," Autumn said, gently taking his hand. "Let's go sit in the café. I'll tell you all about your mom."

Daria's longing for his mother had always been there-he saw other kids with their moms and wanted that too. This time, Autumn's words struck home, and he followed her to a nearby café.

Autumn pulled out her phone and showed Daria a photo. “See? This is your mom. Isn't she beautiful? She was so kind and so lovely."

The picture of Julie, smiling, was one Autumn had gotten from Devin.

The moment Daria saw the photo, something inside him lit up. "Mom!" he called out instinctively.

"Is that really my mom?" he asked, his eyes bright with hope. "Where did she go? Why doesn't she come see me? Did she not want me anymore?"

He was nearly three, but he understood more than most realized.noveldrama

Seeing how much Daria missed his mother made Autumn's heart ache. She blinked away tears. "Sweetheart, your mommy had to go somewhere really really far away. She didn` leave because she wanted to She's off fighting monsters. When she's finished being brave, she'll come back for you."

Autumn wanted to protect his little heart, so she spun a gentle story.

"My mom's a hero? She fights monsters?" Daria asked, face lighting up.

In a child's world, nothing was braver than fighting monsters.

"That's right," Autumn said, her smile wobbly. "Your mom is a real hero She loves you very, very much. She sent me to check on you and bring you gifts. This Transformer? She wanted you to have it."

Daria hugged the toy tight, a little comfort finally settling into his heart.