All Chapters of One pregnancy, two babies : Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

The rain started unexpectedly.Not heavy—just enough to soften the world.It tapped against the windows as May stood at the sink, sleeves rolled up, washing the last plate from dinner. The house behind her was unusually calm. Too calm.She turned.Aiden and Aria sat on the living room rug, legs tangled together, building something out of blocks. Not a tower. Not a castle.A house.“Why is the roof so big?” May asked casually.Aria didn’t look up. “So everyone fits.”May swallowed.Damien watched from the doorway, something unreadable passing through his eyes. Moments like this caught him off guard—not because they were rare, but because they felt earned. Like peace you didn’t realize you’d been fighting for.The thunder rumbled low.Aria flinched.Aiden noticed instantly. He shifted closer. “It’s just noise. It can’t come inside.”Damien stepped forward without thinking. “He’s right,” he said. “This house is safe.”Aria glanced up at him, eyes searching.“You promise?” she asked.Dami

The late afternoon sunlight poured through the tall living room windows, turning the scattered cushions, storybooks, and the children’s small art projects into patches of gold. It was quiet in a way that felt deliberate, like the house itself had learned to hold its breath and wait.May sat cross-legged on the floor, her hands tucked neatly in her lap as she watched Aiden and Aria play with a new building set they’d received for Family Day. Aiden carefully lined up the miniature bricks, his concentration absolute, while Aria zigzagged between tasks, adding her own artistic touches with a flair only she could manage. Damien leaned against the doorway, one hand in his pocket, the other casually resting on the doorframe. His gaze was fixed on May, but not with desire. Not exactly. It was something quieter—admiration mixed with ease, as if he had finally stopped searching and just… found.May noticed it, of course, but she didn’t react. Instead, she smiled softly, watching the children. “

The conspiracy began at dawn.Aiden was the first to wake, slipping quietly out of bed with the careful precision of someone on an important mission. He padded down the hallway and stopped outside Aria’s room, tapping twice—soft, deliberate.Aria’s door creaked open almost immediately.“I couldn’t sleep,” she whispered. “Too excited.”Aiden nodded. “Good. We don’t have much time.”They tiptoed into the kitchen, climbing onto stools like tiny generals planning a campaign. Aiden unfolded a piece of paper—neatly written, carefully numbered.Operation: Best Day Ever.Aria clasped her hands. “I still can’t believe they don’t know.”“They won’t,” Aiden said confidently. “As long as we stick to the plan.”May woke later than usual.The house was… quiet. Suspiciously so.She blinked, stretching, then froze when she smelled something sweet drifting through the air.Pancakes.She sat up just as Damien stirred beside her. “Do you smell that?”“Yes,” he said slowly. “And I don’t trust it.”They f

The idea began with a question.“Mum,” Aria said from the backseat, swinging her legs against the leather, “have you ever driven somewhere without knowing exactly where you’re going?”May glanced at Damien through the rearview mirror. He raised an eyebrow, amused.“Usually,” Damien replied, “people like to know where they’re headed.”“But what if the point isn’t the place?” Aria pressed. “What if it’s just… going together?”Aiden, sitting beside her, considered this carefully. “That would still count as a plan,” he concluded. “Just a flexible one.”Damien laughed. “I like how you think.”And just like that, the day shifted.They left the city behind an hour later.No schedules. No meetings. Just the open road, windows cracked, sunlight pouring in like permission. May sat in the passenger seat, her arm resting comfortably on the door, her fingers tapping softly to the music playing low in the background.Damien drove with one hand on the wheel, relaxed in a way that still surprised him

The city was already awake when May stepped out of the car.Glass towers caught the early sun, reflecting ambition and urgency in equal measure. The Stone Group headquarters rose ahead of her—unchanged, imposing, familiar.But she wasn’t the same woman who had once walked through those doors with careful restraint.She adjusted her blazer, lifted her chin, and walked in.The lobby reacted immediately.Conversations paused—not out of shock, but recognition. Heads turned. Whispers followed, low and curious.May Austin had returned.Not as a guest.Not as an experiment.But as a decision-maker.She acknowledged the attention with a calm nod, her heels clicking with measured confidence across the marble floor.Upstairs, Damien was already in the executive wing.He stood by the glass wall of his office, sleeves rolled up, tie abandoned on the desk. The moment he saw her step off the elevator, something settled in his chest.This was right.She belonged here.“Good morning,” he said as she