Emma’s POV We decided to escape the noise. Between Belle & Hue’s relaunch plans, Xander’s expanding empire, and the whispers that somehow kept circling our names — it was time to breathe. Just for a moment. We booked a week in Santorini. Xander said it would be our baby moon, a celebration before life changed forever. I didn’t argue. The thought of walking sunlit cobblestone streets with him, waking up to ocean views, and being just...us, felt like the exact kind of magic I needed. When the plane touched down, I felt my soul exhale. The sky was too blue, the sea too endless, and Xander looked unfairly good in vacation mode — sunglasses, linen shirts, that smug grin that always made me forget my name. “First stop,” he said, helping me into the car, “the villa. Then gelato. Then a nap. In that order.” I laughed, resting my head on his shoulder. “You make everything sound like a mission.” “Everything involving you is a mission. One I fully intend to win.” --- The villa was perc
Emma's POV I woke up before the sun rose, cocooned in the warmth of our bed. Xander’s arm was slung protectively around my waist, his breathing soft and steady. For a moment, I didn’t move. I simply stayed there, letting the quiet wrap around me. A soft fluttering in my belly pulled a smile from me. The baby. Our baby. It still felt unreal. There were moments I’d touch my stomach and wonder how something so small could already feel so monumental. Like everything I thought I was had shifted — expanded. I wasn’t just Emma anymore. I was someone’s future. I gently shifted, trying not to wake him, but of course, he stirred. “Where are you going?” His voice was thick with sleep, raspy and low. “Nowhere far,” I whispered, brushing my lips against his cheek. “Just wanted to watch the sunrise.” He tightened his hold for a second, then released me with a groggy nod. “Come back soon.” “I always do.” --- The balcony was cool, the sky streaked with gentle shades of gold and pink. I wr
Emma's POV Sometimes love isn’t in the grand gestures. Not in the roses or candlelit dinners or dramatic declarations. Sometimes love is silence. A knowing glance. A warm hand resting over your belly as you fall asleep. That was the kind of love Xander and I were growing into. We didn’t always say everything. We didn’t need to. We were learning to read between the lines, to find safety in the quiet. And after all we’d survived, that kind of safety felt revolutionary. The world outside our penthouse buzzed with noise—media rumors, corporate transitions, social invites we mostly declined. But inside? We built a bubble. One filled with light meals, long walks, late-night conversations, and laughter that came easily now. This particular Saturday morning, I woke up to the smell of waffles and cinnamon. I padded into the kitchen barefoot, wearing one of Xander’s oversized shirts. My hair was a mess, but he still smiled like I was the best thing he’d ever seen. “Is that cinnamon?” I
Emma’s POV The world outside was loud—interviews, articles, support flooding in like a tidal wave after the storm. My phone wouldn't stop buzzing. Messages from people I hadn’t heard from in years. Some were apologies. Some were praise. Most were just noise. But inside our penthouse, everything was… still. And for the first time in what felt like forever, I craved that stillness more than anything. No fighting. No proving. Just existing—with Xander. --- I was sitting by the window in the nursery, rocking gently in the chair he’d insisted we get. The soft white walls, the quiet music playing from a wooden mobile, the faint smell of vanilla and lavender—everything felt like a dream I hadn’t let myself believe I could have. Xander walked in holding two cups of tea. He’d been different since the reveal. Protective, yes—but also softer. Like watching me fight the world had awakened something in him. Like he’d realized that maybe I didn’t need armor—just a safe place to land when
Xander’s POV I came back earlier than scheduled. Something just didn’t sit right. I couldn’t explain it—just a weight in my chest, like I was needed at home. Emma sounded okay on the phone, but I knew her. I knew the way her voice tightened when she was trying to hold herself together. And the fact that she didn’t mention anyone visiting made me all the more certain. When I walked into the apartment and saw her asleep on the couch, curled up like the weight of the world had finally pressed her down, I knew I’d made the right choice. She was clutching one of the baby’s onesies in her sleep. My heart clenched. Quietly, I moved to sit beside her and brushed a strand of hair off her cheek. Her breathing hitched slightly, like she knew I was near, even in sleep. “Hey,” I whispered. She stirred. Blinked. “You’re back?” “Couldn’t stay away,” I smiled gently. “You okay?” She nodded. “Just tired. Been a weird day.” “I know,” I murmured. “Your father stopped by.” Her eyes widened.
Emma’s POV I was folding tiny baby clothes on the living room couch when the doorbell rang. Xander was out of town for a 48-hour investor retreat, and the apartment felt unusually quiet. Danielle had offered to stay with me, but I told her I needed the silence—to nest, to breathe, to just exist without a million voices pulling me in different directions. But when the bell rang again—persistent, sharp—I knew something was off. I wasn’t expecting anyone. I padded to the door, pressed the intercom. “Yes?” “Emma,” came the voice I never thought I’d hear again. “It’s… it’s your father.” My breath caught. No. No way. I stared at the speaker, frozen. “I—I know I shouldn’t have come here,” he continued, “but I just… I heard about the baby. And I needed to see you.” I didn’t open the door. Not right away. Instead, I stood there, my hand trembling over the lock, my thoughts a mess of betrayal, confusion, anger… and something else I didn’t want to name yet. --- When I finally l