76

As soon as Nathan left the house, Suzanne felt an emptiness in her chest. The increased security couldn't dispel her unease; she only felt completely safe with Nathan.

Looking out the window, she began to miss him deeply and, dreamily, wondered if a relationship with him would be possible, as it always should have been.

Her heart beat with excitement at the simple idea.

The next day, while gazing at the landscape, she received a message from Nathan.

He was summoning her to the company, and although she was puzzled by the invitation, he assured her that it was something about the two of them and the renewal of their agreement, which they needed to discuss in person.

Suzanne blushed, sensing that Nathan wanted to formalize their relationship.

She dressed in a beautiful dress and carefully applied her makeup for the occasion. She was happy to receive news from Nathan that same afternoon, and excitement bubbled in her stomach.

After leaving the babies with the nurse and the nanny, she headed to Strong Enterprises.

…

The car stopped in front of the imposing façade of the company. Suzanne remembered the first time she was there and her encounter with Nathan, smiling nostalgically.

"Who would have thought we'd end up like this," she thought, sighing resignedly and ignoring the astonished looks from the employees as she crossed the lobby.

"Suzanne? Is it really her?" she heard some whisper.

The employees seemed surprised, as the news of her death had spread. Suzanne didn't understand their amazement and attributed it to the fact that she was returning to the place where she had started to fall in love with her boss.

She smiled, thinking that soon she would be Nathan's wife and that people would be astounded to learn that they had twins.

"It'll be fun to see their faces," she thought as she pressed the elevator button.

When the door opened, she waited for a group of people to exit before entering.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't realize she wasn't alone in the elevator.

She frowned and opted for a defensive position upon seeing the person there. It was the last person she wanted to see that day.

"Just what I needed," Suzanne thought with a grimace of displeasure.

"Suzanne..."

"Don't talk to me, please," she demanded through clenched teeth, trying not to look at her. "I know you wanted to meddle in my relationship with my husband, and I'll just make it clear that I'm going to fight for Nathan. I won't let you keep screwing up our lives."

She didn't hear the woman's response and quickly looked up, surprised to see that her eyes were filled with tears.

"I'm so sorry..." she whispered, looking at her with pity. "I'm sorry, Suzanne."

"But, what?" Suzanne frowned, not understanding.

"You need to get out of here," the woman whispered, looking upwards. "At any moment, it's going to happen..."

"What are you talking about?" Suzanne was confused, but her eyes widened when the redhead grabbed her arm without care. "Hey! What the hell are you doing?"

"We need to get out of here! Now!" she screamed hysterically, leaving Suzanne in shock. "Don't be stubborn, move!"

"Why? What's going on?" Suzanne swallowed hard when Valery pressed a button, and the elevator stopped on a lower floor. "I need to go to Nathan, let me go!”

"He's not there!" she exclaimed impatiently, pushing her nervously when the doors finally opened. "I didn't see him, he wasn't in his office... He didn't come in today!"

"What?" Suzanne turned around, freeing herself from her grip. "That's impossible, he summoned me first thing!"

"It's a lie, it's all a lie!" Valery was beside herself, still insisting on taking her along. "There's... there's a bomb on the top floors of the building, Suzanne."

"What?!" Suzanne exclaimed, her eyes wide with panic.

She felt the air leave her lungs and touched her large belly in fear. The girl noticed and grimaced, regretting having been part of such an absurd plan.

Suzanne was paralyzed, looking around without moving, as if frozen.

"Let's go!" Valery screamed, leading her down the stairs or practically dragging her with difficulty because of her large belly.

At that moment, they heard an explosion, and Suzanne's heart stopped in her chest as she realized everything Valery had said was true.

But perhaps it was already too late...

***

Nathan had no desire to go to the company that day; he had even considered taking the whole day off and doing anything else.

He was thinking about calling his grandfather and arranging a meeting to talk about Suzanne and his desire to make her his wife again, this time without absurd rules or conditions.

Just love, happiness, and peace for both of them.
He picked up his phone to call him when he received an urgent call from the directors, which left him pale and urgent, causing him to drive like a madman.

When he arrived at the company, he was stunned for a few seconds as the floor where his offices were located was engulfed in flames.

Suddenly, the sound of an explosion was heard, and the fire increased dramatically, causing the building to start collapsing, accompanied by cries of anguish and orders from police and firefighters.

It was chaos. People were running and screaming in terror, and of course, the media and journalists from all over the country were arriving to cover the news of his misfortune.

A huge ball of black smoke covered the entire area, and Nathan knew it was another attack, like the ones that had occurred in France, Italy, and Mexico.

He cursed under his breath and looked at the flames with tears in his eyes, thinking about the possible victims in his own headquarters.

The firefighters were doing everything they could to put out the fire, but it was difficult, especially considering that the top floors of the building were collapsing.

One of the security guards approached him. The man seemed agitated and very scared.

"Mr. Strong! Is your wife... is your wife okay?" the man asked, extremely nervous.

"Yes, she’s perfectly fine," Nathan said, puzzled by the question. "She should be at home, resting peacefully."

It was only 8 in the morning, and he told himself that at that hour, Suzanne must be sleeping.

"T-that’s impossible, sir," his face was pale as a sheet. "Just a few minutes ago, before the bombs went off, I saw her go up to your office."

For a moment, Nathan was left breathless, his head spinning, and he felt like vomiting.