HE CAME HOME TO FIND HIS SIX-YEAR-OLD WASHING EVERYONE'S DISHES — THEN HER MOTHER'S NAME CAME OUT OF AN ENVELOPE

The pancakes were burnt on the edges, but Renata ate them with a massive, syrup-covered smile anyway. Mauricio watched her from across the table, his mind racing through a hundred different disastrous scenarios. He needed a lawyer. He needed better security for the townhouse. He needed to get them both out of the city.

Before he could finalize a single plan, a heavy, aggressive pounding rattled the front door.

It wasn't a polite knock. It was the sound of someone demanding entry.

Mauricio stood up quickly, gesturing for Renata to stay seated at the kitchen table. He walked down the hallway, peering through the small glass pane beside the door.

Standing on his porch, holding a designer umbrella against the morning drizzle, was his older sister, Paola.

She looked furious. Her expensive makeup was perfectly applied, her designer coat immaculate, but her eyes were wild with entitlement and rage.

Mauricio unlatched the deadbolt and pulled the door open, blocking the threshold with his broad shoulders.

"What do you want, Paola?" Mauricio asked coldly.

"You are going to let me inside right now," Paola hissed, attempting to push past him.

Mauricio didn't budge an inch. He stood like a stone wall, looking down at his furious sister. "You aren't coming inside. Say what you have to say from the porch."

Paola gasped, genuinely shocked by the blatant disrespect. "You ruined my daughters' party yesterday! You stormed out like a petulant child and caused a massive scene in front of my husband's business partners! I demand an apology!"

"I am not apologizing to you or anyone else in that house," Mauricio replied smoothly. "Your daughters watched my child scrub dishes while they ate candy. Your mother treated her like a servant."

"She is a servant!" Paola shrieked, losing her temper completely. "She's some charity case you picked up to feel good about yourself! She isn't real family, Mauricio! She's street trash!"

The urge to violently slam the door in her face was overwhelming, but Mauricio forced himself to remain calm. He leaned down, bringing his face level with his sister's.

"If you ever speak about my daughter like that again, Paola," Mauricio whispered, his voice dripping with lethal intent, "I will personally ensure your husband's firm loses every single contract they currently hold with Jacobs Enterprises. I will bankrupt you by Friday."

Paola froze, her eyes widening in pure shock. "You wouldn't dare."

"Try me," Mauricio challenged.

Paola swallowed hard, stepping backward off the porch. She pulled her coat tightly around her trembling frame.

"Dad is preparing a lawsuit," Paola spat, throwing her final, desperate weapon. "He’s calling his lawyers today. He says you're mentally unfit to raise a child. They are going to take her away from you, Mauricio. And when they do, I'm going to make sure she washes my floors."

Mauricio stared at her, feeling absolutely no familial connection to the woman standing in the rain.