Sienna swallowed at Riley’s warning.

"Thank you for reminding me, Riley."

But Riley wasn’t finished. In fact, his tone became even more serious.

"Sienna, if you marry my uncle, you’re not only dealing with the mystery surrounding Skylar’s mother."

Her grip tightened around the phone.

"You’ll also become part of the Sterling family."

A soft laugh escaped her lips despite the tension. Settling deeper into the sofa, she asked, "What’s wrong with the Sterling family?"

"You really want me to answer that?"

"Yes."

Riley let out a humorless chuckle.

"It’s complicated."

The amusement slowly disappeared from Sienna’s face as she listened.

"If you become my uncle’s wife," Riley continued, "everyone in that family will be watching you constantly. They’ll judge everything you do and everything you say. They’ll compare you to standards that are impossible to meet."

His voice hardened as he continued.

"And knowing my family, some of them won’t even try to hide it."

Sienna felt her chest tighten. The fear she had been trying to push aside slowly resurfaced. She had always known there was a huge gap between her world and Zachary’s. The difference in status, wealth, and influence had never been a secret. She had chosen not to focus on it because she trusted him. Zachary had always made her feel safe, protected, and accepted.

But now, hearing these warnings from someone who had grown up inside that family made the confidence she had been holding onto begin to crack.

"Sienna?" Riley sounded impatient now. "Why aren’t you saying anything?"

She remained silent.

"Sienna, are you there? By the way, where are you right now?"

Her fingers curled tighter around the phone.

"At home."

"Good. Stay there."

She frowned.

"What?"

"Actually, uh, no." Riley immediately corrected himself. "Let’s meet."

"Riley—"

"No, listen to me." His tone became unusually firm. "We need to talk about this in person."

Sienna opened her mouth to answer. However, at that exact moment, the bedroom door suddenly swung open.

A small head peeked inside.

"Aunty..."

Skylar stood in the doorway, rubbing his stomach dramatically. His big eyes looked completely miserable.

"I’m starving."

The tension that had filled the room instantly disappeared.

Sienna looked at the little boy standing there, and for some reason, the sight of him immediately pushed all her worries aside.

"I have to go now," she whispered quickly into the phone.

"Sienna, wait—"

"Talk to you later."

Before Riley could stop her, she ended the call.

The room fell quiet as Skylar looked up at her hopefully.

"Aunty..."

"What happened to the ice cream?" she asked.

"I finished it," Skylar answered proudly.

"And now you’re hungry again?"

"Yes."

Sienna checked her watch. It wasn’t even lunchtime yet, and he was already hungry again. She stared at him for several seconds, and almost immediately, her heart softened at the sight of his warm, innocent smile.

"Okay. What do you want to eat?" she asked as she gently took his hand and led him into the kitchen.

For now, Sienna decided to set aside everything Riley had just told her because Skylar’s empty stomach clearly wasn’t willing to wait another minute.

"Anything, Aunty. I’ll eat whatever you cook for me."

Skylar answered without hesitation, his eyes bright with anticipation as he looked up at her.

Sienna couldn’t help smiling.

For some reason, every time she asked him what he wanted to eat, he always gave her the exact same answer. It was simple, sweet, and strangely familiar. The more she thought about it, the more she realized Zachary often responded the same way whenever she asked him that question.

The similarity made her heart soften even more. Father and son truly were alike in ways neither of them seemed to notice.

"Alright then," she said with a laugh. "Wait for me in the living room. I’ll make us a delicious lunch."

"Can I watch?"

"Absolutely."

The little boy followed her into the kitchen like a loyal shadow. He stood nearby while she prepared a simple meal, occasionally asking questions and occasionally stealing pieces of fruit whenever he thought she wasn’t looking.

"Sky."

"I didn’t take anything," he said before quickly running back into the living room.

Sienna shook her head, trying not to laugh.

It didn’t take long before everything was ready. She arranged the food neatly on the table and called out his name.

"Sky, your brunch is ready."

The moment he reached the dining table, his eyes widened.

"Wow, Aunty..."

His gaze immediately locked onto the fried chicken and French fries. For several seconds, he simply stared at the food before turning toward her with an expression that looked as though she had just performed magic.

"This is my favorite food."

"It is?"

"Yes." He quickly grabbed a drumstick. "But our chef never makes it for me."

"Why not?"

Skylar sighed dramatically.

"He always says it’s not healthy."

Sienna watched him happily bite into the chicken and immediately felt a little guilty. Only then did she realize she probably should have considered his usual diet first.

’Gosh, I need to be more careful with Sky’s food from now on,’ she silently reminded herself.

Meanwhile, Skylar looked completely unconcerned. He was already enjoying his meal as though he had been waiting his entire life for that moment.

Sienna picked up her bowl of fruit salad and was about to take a bite when Skylar suddenly spoke again.

"Thank you, Aunty."

She looked up and saw him still chewing while giving her a thumbs-up.

"You are the best."

A warm feeling immediately spread through her chest.

"You’re welcome," she replied with a smile. "But you can’t eat food like this every day."

"I know."

"And don’t tell your chef I made this."

Skylar’s eyes widened.

"A secret?"

"A small secret."

He immediately nodded. "I can keep secrets."

The serious expression on his face made her laugh, and the rest of lunch passed pleasantly. They talked about food, favorite desserts, and the snacks he secretly wished he could eat more often. Skylar seemed to have an endless number of stories to tell, and Sienna found herself listening far more than talking.

The hours slipped by much faster than she expected. By evening, the apartment felt surprisingly lively despite there being only two of them.

Eventually, however, the busy day finally caught up with both of them.

Skylar fell asleep first. After spending nearly ten minutes insisting he wasn’t tired, he promptly drifted off on her bed the moment his head touched the pillow.

Sienna tucked the blanket around him before quietly leaving the room.

Back in the living room, she stretched out on the sofa and picked up her phone.

Her worries arose when she saw no new messages from Zachary.