All Chapters of Mafia Boss's stolen sperm: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

ALEXANDRA The garden was perfect.Not in a magazine way. In a real way. The flowers we had planted together, some blooming, some still waiting. The vegetable beds Liam had built, slightly crooked but sturdy. The path where Ella had taken her first wobbly steps last week, falling more than walking but laughing the whole time.Jenna had helped me string lights through the trees the night before. Tiny white bulbs that would glow as the sun went down. A table covered in yellow cloth held food I'd spent two days preparing. A small cake sat in the center, homemade, slightly lopsided, decorated with strawberries.Ella's first birthday.I couldn't believe it. A whole year. Three hundred and sixty-five days since she had fought her way into the world, tiny and struggling and so fierce. Now she was walking. Almost. Saying words that sounded like real words. Mama. Dada. More. No that one she had mastered completely.Liam appeared in the doorway, Ella on his hip. She was wearing the yellow dress

LIAMI took Alexandra's hands. They were warm. Real."Alexandra," I said. "I have done many things in my life. Some good. Most not. I have built empires and destroyed them. I have made enemies and buried them. But nothing I have ever done matters as much as this moment. As much as you."Her eyes were wet."Before you, I didn't know what love was. I thought it was possession. Control. Loyalty bought with fear. You taught me differently. You showed me that love is a choice. Daily. Hourly. In every moment, choosing each other over fear, over doubt, over the ghosts of the past."I squeezed her hands. "I choose you, Alexandra. Today. Tomorrow. Every day after. Not because I have to. Because I want to. Because you are my family. My home. My heart."She was crying now. So was I.ALEXANDRAI had not prepared vows.I had tried. Dozens of times. But every word felt wrong. Too small. Too big. Too something.So, I spoke from my heart."Liam. I was broken when I met you. Not in a poetic way. In a

ALEXANDRAIn the morning, I woke sore and happy.Liam was already up. I found him in the kitchen, making coffee, Ella on his hip."Morning," he said."Morning."I kissed him. Kissed Ella. "Someone's up early.""Someone wanted breakfast." He handed me coffee. "Also, someone's mother wore her out last night."I felt heat rise to my cheeks. Ella grabbed my nose."Still with the nose.""She's consistent."We sat at the table, the three of us. Ordinary morning. Perfect morning."So," Liam said. "Research continues tonight?"I laughed. "Research continues tonight.""Good. I have hypotheses to test.""You're ridiculous.""You love it.""I do."Ella banged her spoon on the table. "More!""Yes, baby. More."We ate breakfast. The sun rose over the lake. The day stretched ahead, full of possibility.LIAMA month passed. Then two.We tried. Often. Enthusiastically. With laughter and passion and the kind of joy I had never expected to find.But nothing happened.Alexandra tried not to show her dis

ALEXANDRA The lab was in a quiet office park. Discreet. Professional. We waited in the small waiting room, Ella on my lap, Liam beside me.Two to three hours, they'd said.Ella grabbed my nose. "Mama nose!""Yes, baby. Mama's nose."She laughed. She had no idea that this visit would answer questions we'd carried since her birth.Liam checked his watch. Then his phone. Then his watch again."You're pacing internally," I said."I'm not pacing.""Your knee is bouncing."He looked down. His knee was, in fact, bouncing. He stopped."I don't like waiting," he said."I know.""I especially don't like waiting for something that will tell me if my daughter is actually my daughter.""She's your daughter. That test won't change that.""I know. But I want to know. I need to know."I squeezed his hand. "We will. Soon."LIAMMarcos called at the one-hour mark.I stepped outside the waiting room. "Tell me.""The lab that did Ella's test. Regional Diagnostics. It was owned by a shell company. That s

That night, after Ella slept, we sat on the porch.The lake was dark. The stars were bright. The world was still.Alexandra leaned against me, her hand on her stomach."Do you think she'd like me?" she asked. "My mother. If she could see us now."I thought about it. "I think she'd be proud. Of the woman you became. Of the choices you made.""She chose love. Even knowing it might kill her.""Yes.""I'm choosing the same thing.""I know."She was quiet for a moment. "Carlo is my uncle. My blood. And he tried to kill me. Tried to kill our children.""Yes.""That's not family. Blood isn't family.""No. It's not."She looked up at me. "You're my family. Ella is my family. This baby is my family. Marcos. Kaela. Jenna. The people who chose us, who stayed, who loved us.""That's family."She nodded. Then she smiled. Small, but real."I'm okay," she said. "I didn't think I would be. But I am.""Good."We sat there, watching the stars. The past was in the trash. The future was unwritten. And we