CHAPTER 8 — The Fiancée’s Lie Begins to Collapse
The Villaseñor mansion had never felt so cold.
Not because of the weather.
Not because of the marble floors or the endless halls.
But because everyone inside knew something had changed.
Diego Villaseñor was no longer the same man who walked through those doors days ago.
Before, he had been a billionaire focused only on business.
A man who trusted very few people.
A man who believed loyalty was earned through years of proof.
But now…
He was a father.
And someone had stolen three years from him.
Three years he could never recover.
At seven in the morning, Diego sat at the head of the dining table.
Usually, this table was filled with executives, investors, and important guests.
Today…
Only three people sat there.
Diego.
Marisol.
And Valentina.
The little girl was happily eating pancakes while swinging her legs beneath the chair.
She had no idea that her entire world had changed overnight.
“Daddy.”
Diego looked up immediately.
Every time she called him that, something inside him broke.
“Yes, princesa?”
“Can I have more strawberries?”
For a moment, the billionaire disappeared.
The CEO.
The businessman.
The man everyone feared.
All that remained was a father.
“Of course.”
He reached for the bowl himself.
Marisol watched silently.
A strange feeling filled her chest.
For years, she had imagined this moment.
Diego knowing.
Diego holding Valentina.
Diego finally being the father her daughter deserved.
But she never imagined it would come with so much pain.
Because now the truth was out…
And the people who wanted to destroy them were closer than ever.
Then the dining room doors opened.
Paulina walked in.
Perfectly dressed.
Perfect hair.
Perfect smile.
The same woman everyone saw at charity events.
The woman who convinced the world she was elegant and kind.
But Diego saw something different now.
A mask.
“Good morning.”
Nobody answered.
Paulina’s smile weakened.
She looked at Diego.
“Are you avoiding me?”
Diego calmly placed his coffee cup down.
“We need to talk.”
Those four words made her heart drop.
Because Paulina knew.
A man like Diego never said those words without a reason.
“About what?”
She sat down beside him.
Trying to appear relaxed.
Diego looked at her.
“About Marisol.”
A small pause.
Then:
“And about my daughter.”
Paulina’s fingers tightened around her cup.
“My daughter?”
She laughed softly.
“You still haven’t accepted that she might be lying?”
Marisol immediately looked up.
But Diego stopped her.
He wanted to hear Paulina.
He wanted her to reveal herself.
“So you think Valentina is not my daughter?”
Paulina tilted her head.
“I think emotions can make people believe things they want to believe.”
A dangerous answer.
Too careful.
Diego noticed.
“Interesting.”
For years, Paulina had studied Diego.
She knew his weaknesses.
His habits.
His reactions.
But she had never seen this version of him.
This protective.
This emotional.
This dangerous.
Because a man protecting his child was different from a businessman protecting his company.
Much more dangerous.
“Diego.”
Paulina reached for his hand.
“You’re letting guilt control you.”
He moved his hand away.
The small movement hurt her more than a slap.
“You weren’t there for three years.”
She continued.
“Maybe you’re trying to make up for that.”
Her voice became softer.
“But don’t destroy your future because of a mistake from the past.”
Mistake.
The word made Diego’s expression change.
He looked toward Valentina.
A little girl eating breakfast quietly.
A little girl who had spent her whole life without knowing who her father was.
“She is not a mistake.”
His voice was cold.
“She is my daughter.”
Paulina realized she had lost.
Not the argument.
The position.
Because Diego had already chosen.
So she changed tactics.
“I’m only trying to protect you.”
Diego stared at her.
“From what?”
“From being manipulated.”
A pause.
“By someone who kept your child from you.”
The room became silent.
Marisol looked down.
Because that accusation hurt.
And Diego noticed.
But instead of turning against Marisol…
He asked:
“Did you investigate her?”
Paulina froze.
“What?”
“You heard me.”
Her face changed slightly.
“I don’t understand.”
Diego leaned back.
“Did you search for information about Marisol?”
The silence answered for her.
A few hours later…
Diego’s legal team arrived.
Three lawyers.
Two investigators.
And a security expert.
Everyone in the mansion watched.
Because this was no longer a family conversation.
It was an investigation.
“Mr. Villaseñor.”
One lawyer handed him a folder.
“We found several irregularities.”
Diego opened it.
Inside were records.
Phone logs.
Deleted files.
Private searches.
And one name appeared repeatedly.
Paulina Robles.
Marisol stood behind him.
Her face went pale.
Because she finally understood.
The person who hated Valentina from the beginning…
Had known more than she admitted.
Diego looked at Paulina.
For the first time since they met…
There was no warmth in his eyes.
No affection.
No trust.
Only disappointment.
“Why?”
Paulina remained silent.
“Why did you investigate Marisol?”
Still silent.
“Why were you searching for my daughter before I even knew she existed?”
Her expression cracked.
Only for a second.
But it was enough.
“Diego…”
She tried.
But he raised his hand.
“No.”
His voice was quiet.
“I want the truth.”
The same words he had asked Marisol.
But this time…
The person standing in front of him was different.
Because Marisol had hidden the truth out of fear.
Paulina had hidden the truth out of control.
Then the security expert stepped forward.
“Mr. Villaseñor.”
Everyone turned.
“We recovered something from the old company server.”
Diego looked at him.
“What?”
The man placed a tablet on the table.
“Messages.”
A pause.
“Between Paulina and Adrian.”
The color disappeared from Paulina’s face.
“No…”
Diego pressed play.
A recording appeared.
A voice.
Paulina’s voice.
Clear.
Cold.
“Make sure Diego never receives anything from that woman.”
The room froze.
Another voice answered.
Adrian.
“And the child?”
Paulina responded:
“She will disappear from his life before he even knows she exists.”
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Valentina stopped eating.
Marisol covered her mouth.
And Diego…
Simply stared.
Because the woman he planned to marry…
Had stolen three years of his daughter’s life.
Three years of his own life.
Paulina finally broke.
“It’s not what you think.”
Diego looked at her.
“Then explain.”
She had no answer.
Because for the first time…
Her lies had nowhere left to hide.
Diego stood.
His voice was calm.
But everyone in the room felt the danger.
“Take off the ring.”
Paulina froze.
“What?”
“The engagement is over.”
Her eyes widened.
“Diego, no—”
“You tried to erase my daughter.”
A pause.
“You tried to erase my family.”
His expression hardened.
“And now you will learn what happens when someone attacks a Villaseñor.”
Paulina looked at Marisol.
Then at Valentina.
And hatred filled her eyes.
Because losing Diego was painful.
But losing to a maid…
Was something she could never accept.
That night…
While Diego finally slept beside his daughter’s room for the first time…
Paulina made one final call.
A call to someone even more dangerous than Adrian.
Someone who had been waiting for years.
“I need your help.”
Her voice was cold.
“I want Marisol destroyed.”
May you like
A pause.
“And I want the girl gone.”
