CHAPTER FIFTEEN

 Adrian’s Hale POV

It was Saturday morning, and the whole house was quiet. Sarah had popped in earlier to check on me, but I shooed her off back to bed. I told her I wanted to do something special for Damien.

So here I was, standing in the kitchen, mixing waffle batter like some wannabe chef. I know it sounds silly, but I’d been feeling… well, useless lately. Everyone in this house had a role: Damien ran the empire, Sarah helped manage things, even the staff had daily routines. Me? I felt like I was just sitting around, looking pretty, eating snacks, and occasionally making Damien laugh. That’s not nothing, sure, but still I wanted to contribute. So, breakfast-in-bed it was.

As I whisked the batter, I hummed along to Ed Sheeran playing softly from my phone. My humming turned into actual singing, and pretty soon I was belting out lines in my terrible voice. Honestly, I should have shut up because every note probably carried at least a drop of spit. I cringed at the thought: Damien might end up eating waffles seasoned with  Adrian’s saliva.

I chuckled at myself, poured the batter into the waffle iron, and watched the lid steam up. “Technology, you beautiful thing,” I muttered as if the waffle iron was my best friend.

By the time the first waffle finished, I felt ridiculously proud of myself. It looked golden and perfect, like something straight out of a commercial. Maybe I wasn’t useless after all.

Then I heard a low, sleepy mumble behind me.

I froze, spatula in hand, and turned around.

Damien stood in the doorway, rubbing his eyes, hair sticking up in all directions. His pajama bottoms hung low on his hips, and his chest was bare, showing off abs that probably deserved their own museum. My face instantly went hot, like I’d stuck my head in the oven.

And then oh no. My eyes dropped lower.

The tent in his pajama bottoms was… undeniable. My mouth went dry.

Oh. My. God.

Did he seriously not wear underwear to bed?

I panicked, trying not to stare, but it was like my eyes had turned traitor. They were glued there.

Damien caught me, of course. His lips curled into a smirk. “Enjoying the view, my wife?” His voice was still rough from sleep, which somehow made it worse. “I could get used to waking up and finding you checking me out every morning.”

“I-I wasn’t !” I squeaked, fumbling with the waffle iron like it might save me.

Before I could escape, he strode over and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me back against his chest. His warmth swallowed me whole. He buried his face into my neck, nuzzling like a giant cat.

“I hate waking up alone,” he murmured, his voice vibrating against my skin. “The bed’s cold without you.”

My breath hitched as I felt exactly what pressed against my backside. Oh no. Ohhh no.

“I w-was just making you breakfast in b-bed…” I stammered, already regretting my life choices.

“Hmm,” Damien hummed, lips brushing my neck. “Breakfast in bed would’ve been perfect. With you as the main course.”

I shivered. Why was he always so horny this early in the morning? Wasn’t there, like, a schedule for this kind of thing?

“L-let me go,” I whispered, squirming weakly.

“Nope.” He tightened his grip like a trap. “Besides, why are you even making breakfast? Isn’t that Sarah’s job at this hour?”

I turned to face him, palms landing against his firm chest. My fingers brushed the light trail of hair leading downward, and my cheeks burned hotter. His heart pounded under my touch, just as fast as mine.

“I just…” I pressed my cheek against him, trying to steady myself. “I wanted to do something. I’ve been feeling… useless. So, waffles.”

Damien tilted his head, about to say something reassuring, but a sudden shriek split the air.

“Damien!”

We both jumped.

Standing in the kitchen doorway was a woman with bouncing curls and a glowing smile. She looked like she’d stepped straight out of a rom-com. My heart nearly stopped when I realized who she must be.

Damien groaned under his breath. “Mom.”

Oh. My. God.

This was Damien’s mother. And she had just walked in on me in her son’s arms.

“Hi, Mom,” Damien said through gritted teeth. “You know, we have this amazing invention called a doorbell.”

“I couldn’t wait!” she squealed, ignoring him completely. Her eyes flicked to me, and she gasped like she’d seen a puppy in a teacup. “Oh my God! You’re adorable! Who’s this? Is this your… oh my goodness, Damien, you never told me!”

Before I could react, she shoved Damien aside like he was a feather and seized my hand. “I’m Bianca, his mother! You’re so cute, so tiny how old are you? Never mind, don’t answer, just tell me everything!”

“Uh hi  Adrian,” I managed, feeling like a deer in headlights.

Damien yanked me protectively back against him. “Mom, you’re scaring him.”

But Bianca was already snapping a photo of us on her phone. “Smile, lovebirds!”

“Mom, delete that!” Damien whined, sounding like a teenager.

“No way,” she chirped. “Also, Damien, gross cover yourself. You’re walking around half-naked with a you know.” She gestured at his pajama tent.

“Mom!” Damien yelped, red-faced.

Before I could sink into the floor from secondhand embarrassment, another voice entered the chaos.

“What’s with all the yelling?”

A tall, broad-shouldered man walked in, looking effortlessly handsome. He had the same sharp jaw as Damien, the same commanding presence. My jaw dropped a little oh, so that’s where Damien got it from.

Bianca lit up. “Honey! This is  Adrian Damien’s fiancé!”

The man raised a brow. “Fiancé?”

My heart skipped a beat. Wait Damien hadn’t told them?

Bianca clutched her chest dramatically. “Can you believe he hid it from us? Our son is engaged and didn’t say a word!”

The man crossed the kitchen and shook my hand firmly. “Daniel. Damien’s father. Good to finally meet you.”

I tried not to melt under his intense gaze.

But then Bianca leaned in, grinning. “So… did you two use protection last night?”

“Mom!” Damien’s voice cracked.

Daniel shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. It feels better without one anyway.” He winked at me.

I nearly died on the spot.

“I didn't ! Nothing happened last night!” I blurted, face flaming.

Bianca just squealed again. Daniel’s expression turned serious, his smile fading. He looked me dead in the eyes.

“Do you love him?” he asked, his tone sharp and commanding.

The air grew heavy.

I swallowed. “Yes. With all my heart.”

He held my stare for another moment, then nodded. “Good. Because if you don’t, I’ll destroy you and your entire bloodline.”

Bianca giggled. “Oh, darling, stop scaring him!”

Was she kidding? He wasn’t joking.

Before I could recover, Damien re-entered the kitchen, freshly dressed, with Sarah trailing behind him. He spotted the tense atmosphere immediately. “Alright, enough terrifying  Adrian.” He walked over, pulled me into his lap as he sat, and pressed a kiss to my temple.

“I love you,” he said simply, in front of everyone.

“I love you too,” I whispered back, smiling despite my embarrassment.

Bianca and Daniel clapped like they were at a wedding.

But then Daniel’s phone buzzed. He checked it, and his expression darkened.

He stood abruptly, slipping the phone into his pocket. “Bianca, we need to go. Now.”

She pouted. “But I just met him!”

Damien’s eyes narrowed. “Dad. What’s going on?”

Daniel hesitated, glanced at me, then at Damien. “We’ll talk later.”

They left quickly, too quickly.

Damien frowned, tightening his arms around me.

“Something’s wrong,” he muttered. “And my parents are hiding it.”

My stomach twisted. Breakfast-in-bed had turned into something else entirely.