The Don's babygirl. のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 41 - チャプター 50

Massimo chose a neutral location for the meeting in an abandoned warehouse on the edge of the city that had once been Valentino territory. Now it belonged to neither family, a no-man's-land perfect for a conversation that could end in bloodshed. He arrived early, flanked by two of his most trusted men who waited outside. This conversation needed to happen face-to-face, brother to... brother. The word felt foreign in his mind, like a language he'd never learned. Mikal arrived exactly on time, also alone except for his security detail that remained at a distance. The Russian Pakhan walked in with the same predatory grace Massimo had noted before, but now he saw it differently. Now he looked for similarities, the height, the build, the set of the jaw. They were different in coloring. Mikal had those distinctive green eyes and lighter hair, while Massimo had inherited the dark Valentino features. But the way they moved, the way they carried themselves there was something undeniably similar

Dr. Patricia Chen's office was designed to be calming—soft gray walls, comfortable chairs, a white noise machine humming in the background. But Julia felt anything but calm as she sat across from the therapist, Massimo rigid in the chair beside her. Dr. Chen was in her fifties, with kind eyes and an air of having seen everything. She didn't seem shocked or judgmental as Julia and Massimo outlined the situation. She simply listened, taking occasional notes, nodding at appropriate moments. "So," Dr. Chen said when they'd finished the basic facts, "Julia, you discovered you were pregnant a couple of weeks after sleeping with a stranger. You met Massimo the night after that encounter, began a relationship with him, and told him the baby was his. He married you, raised Isabella as his daughter, and only recently discovered that his stepbrother Mikal is the biological father. Is that accurate?" Put so baldly, it sounded even worse than it was. Julia nodded miserably. "And Massimo, you're

The DNA testing facility was deliberately nondescript—a small office in a medical building, the kind of place you could walk past a hundred times without noticing. Julia supposed that was the point. Privacy. Discretion. No one wanted their family drama advertised. Isabella held Julia's hand as they walked through the parking lot, Massimo a few steps ahead. He hadn't said more than three words since they'd left the house that morning. His silence was worse than his anger. "Where are we going, Mamma?" Isabella asked, her voice small. "Just to see a doctor, sweetheart. For a quick check-up." "Am I sick?" "No, baby. Nothing like that. It's just... routine." The lie tasted bitter, but how else did you explain to a three-year-old that you were about to scientifically prove her father wasn't her father? Inside, the waiting room was empty except for one other person: Mikal. He stood when they entered, his eyes immediately finding Isabella. The longing on his face was palpable. "You didn't ha

The email arrived at 9:47 AM on a Tuesday. Julia was making breakfast when Massimo's phone chimed. Then hers. Then his again. She watched the color drain from his face as he read, watched his hand tighten around the phone until his knuckles went white. "They're here," he said flatly. "The results." Julia's heart stopped. "And?" "My lawyer is sending over the full report. But the summary..." he looked up at her, his eyes hollow, "99.9% probability that Mikal Smirnov is Isabella's biological father. 0% probability that I am." Even though they'd known. Even though it had been obvious. The scientific confirmation still hit like a physical blow. Julia sank into a chair. "Massimo—" "Don't." He stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor. "I need to... I need a moment." He walked out of the kitchen, leaving Julia alone with the email notification glowing on her own phone. She didn't open it. Didn't need to. The truth was already written on Massimo's face, already confirmed by the

Julia found solace in the familiar surroundings of her and Massimo's apartment, a space they had created together over the years, filled with memories of laughter, love, and the everyday moments that defined their family. But even within these walls, the weight of the legal battle, the uncertainty of the future, pressed down on her. The revelation of Isabella's paternity had not only shaken her relationship with Massimo but had also stirred up a hornet's nest of emotions and anxieties that she struggled to contain. She thought of Mikal, his earnest face, his desperate desire to connect with Isabella. She understood his longing, his need to be a part of his daughter's life. But she also knew the potential damage that could be inflicted if he pushed too hard, too fast. Isabella was a sensitive child, deeply attached to Massimo, and the thought of disrupting her world, of confusing her sense of family, filled Julia with dread. And then there was Massimo, his pain palpable, his anger simme