is with trembling hands. She let out a loud

uted, unable to con

hotel. "Oh my goodness, Heidi! I got it! I got the job!" she

passion and going after what you want. You're gonna rock this job!" Mal

ing part of the team that made The Azure Oasis

y thought. "This is

asis for her debut, she was taken ab

a woman with long, brown hair

n eye. She learned how to run the front desk op

zed her with people from different cultures. Every day in the oasis brought a new experience that taught her something about the world. An

nge hue across the city skyline. His thoughts were a tangled mess, but one name continually resurfaced: Mallory

alled through the intercom, "th

he sighed, setting d

features and an air of authority about her. Harris recognized her immediately as Ja

Harris stood and extended a

her eyes never leaving his. "I have some n

stured to the chai

ds in her lap. "I'm here to talk about Mallory

leaned forward, i

's living here now, and there's something else you should know." She paused, searching

s, his heart pounding against his

the desk. It was a candid shot of Mallory at a park, her radiant smile eclip

ued, watching Harris's reaction cl

ncanny resemblance to himself. His thoughts raced, questions crashing into each

ged to say, his voice rough with emotion.

have people in the city that I could talk to, unlike in the small town where Mallory transferred," Grace stood, smooth

on. "Hold on," Harris got his check and wrote a specific number be

; you paid me the righ

you; I won't take

walked out of the office, leaving him alone with his thoughts and

and her daughter. The child, Harriet, was laughing with abandon, her blue eyes sparkling with joy as they

ng that something about the girl seemed... familiar. Her unruly curls, the same shade as h

s impossible, wasn't it? Five years had passed since he'd last seen Mallory, and she'd left without a word. He'd searched for her and tried to fin

at compartmentalizing, keeping his emotions in check. But now, faced with the possib

ter and love they'd shared. Deep down, he knew she was the only woman who had ever truly understood him, the only one h

staring at the photograph again. The similarities were u

nching the photograph tightly, "I need to know th

out the truth, no matter what it took. And if Harriet was indeed his daughter, he vowed to m