Mated to My Fiancé’s Alpha King Brother

72 Chapter 72

72 Chapter 72

Seraphina’s POV 1

The elevator ride down from Damien's office felt surreal, like | was moving through a dream that might shatter at

any moment. My hand

was clasped firmly in his, our fingers intertwined in a way that felt both completely natural and impossibly

precious. Every few seconds, |

found myself stealing glances at his profile, searching for signs of the masked stranger from that magical night

five years ago.

Now that | knew, | could see it everywhere. The strong line of his jaw, the way his hair caught the light, the

confident set of his

shoulders. But most of all, it was his scent-that intoxicating blend of sandalwood and masculine power that had

haunted my dreams for

years. How had | not recognized it immediately?

“Are you okay?” Damien asked softly as we stepped out into the parking garage, his thumb tracing gentle circles

on the back of my hand.

| looked up at him, this man who was simultaneously a stranger and the most important person in my world, and

felt tears threaten

again. “I don’t know,” | admitted honestly. “This is all so overwhelming. Five years, Damien. We missed five

years.”

“But we have now,” he said, stopping beside his car to facefully. His free hand cup to cup my cheek,

and | leaned into his touch

instinctively. “We have now, and we have Adrian, and we have the rest of our lives to make up for lost time.”

“What are we going to tell Adrian?” | asked suddenly, the practical concerns finally catching up with the

emotional whirlwind. “How do

we explain this to a five-year-old?”

Damien's smile was soft and wondering. “We tell him the truth. That his daddy has been looking for him and his

mommy for a very long

time, and now we're finally together.”

When we pulled up in front of my building, | could see Adrian's face pressed against the third-floor window, his

breath fogging the glass

as he waited forto chome. The moment he spotted us, he disappeared from view, and | knew he'd be

racing down the stairs to

meet us.

Sure enough, the building's front door burst open before we even reached it, and Adrian launched himself into

my arms with the kind of

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fierce enthusiasm that only children possessed.

“Mommy!” he exclaimed, wrapping his small arms around my neck. “You're home! And Mr. Damien cwith

you!”

“Hi, sweetheart,” | said, breathing in his familiar little-boy scent of soap and sunshine. Over his head, | caught

Damien's eyes, and the

expression on his face-wonder, love, and a fierce protectiveness-made my heart skip a beat.

“Mr. Damien, Adrian said, pulling back to look at both of us with those distinctive silver-blue eyes, “are you

staying for dinner? Ophelia

made spaghetti, and there's plenty.”

“Actually, buddy” | said, setting him down but keeping hold of his hand, “Mr. Damien and | need to talk to you

about something very

important”

Adrian's expression grew serious, the way it always did when he sensed something significant was happening.

“Am | in trouble?”

“No, baby, you're not in trouble” | assured him quickly. “It's good news. The best news ever.”

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72 Chapter 72

We made our way upstairs to the apartment, where Ophelia was waiting in the doorway with a knowing smile on

her face.

“Well, well,” she said, taking in our joined hands and the emotional residue that probably still showed on both

our faces. “Looks like

someone had an interesting morning at the office.”

“Ophelia,” | said, my voice thick with barely contained emotion, “you're not going to believe what happened.”

But first, | needed to talk to Adrian. The three of us settled on the small couch in my living room, Adrian perched

between Damien and

me, his attention focused entirely on our faces.

“Adrian,” | began, my voice gentle but serious, “do you remember how you've always askedabout your

daddy?”

He nodded solemnly. “You said he didn’t know about me.”

“That's right,” | said, glancing at Damien, who was watching our son with such intensity it took my breath away.

“Well, sweetheart, it

turns out that your daddy has been looking for us this whole time. He just didn’t know where to find us.”

Adrian's eyes widened. “Really? He was looking for me?”

| took a deep breath, choosing my words carefully. “Do you remember how you always said Mr. Damien had eyes

like yours?”

Adrian looked back and forth between us, his quick mind already putting pieces together. “And Mommy, you said

my daddy had special

eyes too...”

“That's right, baby.” The tears were coming again, but these were tears of pure joy. “Adrian, Mr. Damien isn’t just

Mr. Damien. He's your

daddy. Your real daddy.”

For a moment, Adrian just stared at us both, his small face cycling through confusion, wonder, and finally, pure

delight.

“Really?” he whispered, as if speaking too loudly might break the spell. “Really really?”

“Really really,” | confirmed, using our special phrase.

Adrian launched himself at Damien with such force that he nearly knocked him off the couch. Small arms

wrapped around Damien's

neck as tightly as they could manage, and | heard my son’s muffled voice say, “I knew it! | knew you felt like my

daddy!”

Damien’s arms cup to wrap around Adrian, and the expression on his face-overwhelming love mixed with

five years of grief finally

being healed-madebreak down completely, | buried my face in my hands and sobbed, releasing all the pain

and longing and

desperate hope I'd carried for so long.

“Mommy, why are you crying?” Adrian asked, pulling back from Damien to look atwith concern.

“Happy tears, baby,” | managed through my sobs. “These are the happiest tears ever.”

“Are you happy too, Daddy?” Adrian asked, trying out the word with obvious delight.

Damien's voice was so thick with emotion he could barely speak. “I'm the happiest man in the world, son.”

Ophelia, who had been watching from the kitchen doorway with tears in her own eyes, finally joined us on the

couch.

“So,” she said with a watery smile, “I guess this means | need to upgrade my ‘World's Best Godmother’ mug to

include ‘and Family Friend

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72 Chapter 72

to Royalty.”

“You'll always be the best godmother,” | assured her, reaching over to squeeze her hand. “And Adrian will always

need his Aunt Ophelia,

no matter what changes.”

“Does this mean we're rich now?” Adrian asked with the blunt curiosity of a five-year-old, making all three adults

laugh.

Around three o’clock, there was a knock at the door. | opened it to find Caleb standing in the hallway, a small

duffle bag slung over his

shoulder and a slightly awkward expression on his face.

“Hi,” he said, his smile warm but hesitant. “I hope I'm not interrupting anything, but | wanted to say goodbye

before | headed back north.”

“Caleb!” Adrian’s voice called from the living room. “Csee! | found my daddy!”

Caleb's eyebrows shot up, and he looked atwith surprise and growing understanding. “Found your daddy?”

“It’s a long story,” | said, stepping back to let him in. “But yes, everything makes sense now.”

We gathered again in the living room, where Adrian enthusiastically explained to Caleb how Mr. Damien was

actually his real father and

how they’d been looking for each other for years and years.

“Well,” Caleb said when Adrian finished his explanation, “that’s the most amazing story I've ever heard. I'm so

happy for all of you.”

There was a moment of awkward silence before Damien stood up, extending his hand toward Caleb.

“I owe you an apology,” Damien said, his voice formal but sincere. “I was... less than welcoming last night. I let

jealousy cloud my

judgment.”

Caleb accepted the handshake with a genuine smile. “No apology necessary. | would have reacted the sway

if | were in your

position.” He paused, then added with a hint of humor, “Though I have to admit, it's kind of ironic that my

bringing Sera his what led

to you all figuring out the truth.”

“More than ironic,” Damien replied, and there was real gratitude in his voice now. “If you hadn't toldabout

seeing Anna with the

pendant... we might never have put the pieces together. I'm in your debt, Caleb.”

When it ctfor Caleb to actually leave, the goodbye was harder than I'd expected. Ophelia’s goodbye

with Caleb was even more

emotional, though she tried to hide it behind jokes and teasing. | believe they have changed phone number

already.

“You better cback to visit soon,” she told him, her voice artificially light. “Someone needs to keepfrom

getting too bored with all

this domestic bliss.”

Caleb's smile was gentle and knowing. “I wouldn't dream of staying away too long. Besides,” he added with a

wink, “I need to make sure Damien is treating my girls properly.”

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