Chapter 8 - The Family Trip
Six months later.
The summer sun shone brightly over the private coastal estate in the Hamptons that Adrian had bought for us. The massive home overlooked a private stretch of white sand and turquoise ocean waves.
It was a Saturday afternoon, completely disconnected from the frantic energy of Wall Street.
I sat on a wooden lounger on the back patio, wearing a simple white sundress, sipping iced tea while watching Adrian and Mia on the beach below.
The cold, ruthless billionaire had completely transformed whenever he was around my daughter. Right now, Adrian Kane—a man who managed billions of dollars in global assets—was covered in sand, kneeling on a towel, frantically helping a seven-year-old girl construct the "grandest sand castle in North America."
“No, Daddy Adrian!” Mia yelled happily, bossing him around. “The shell goes on the top tower! Like a crown!”
“My apologies, Princess Mia,” Adrian said with mock seriousness, bowing his head as he carefully placed a pink seashell on the wet sand tower. “It shall be done as you command.”
My heart swelled with a happiness so deep it felt continuous and overwhelming. Over the past nine months, Adrian had seamlessly stepped into the role of Mia’s father. He attended her parent-teacher conferences, learned how to braid her hair (after watching twenty YouTube tutorials), and read her bedtime stories every night, no matter how late his business meetings ran.
He didn't just love me; he loved us.
A few minutes later, Mia ran up the wooden steps toward the patio, holding Gerald the elephant, her feet coated in sand.
“Mommy! Look!” Mia cheered. “Daddy built a moat!”
“I see it, baby,” I laughed, wiping a smudge of sand from her cheek. “Go inside and ask Nanny to help you wash up for lunch, okay?”
“Okay!” She sprinted inside the house, her happy laughter echoing through the open glass doors.
Adrian walked up the steps, pulling his linen shirt back on, his dark hair slightly wild from the sea breeze. He walked over to my lounger, leaned down, and planted a sweet, lingering kiss on my lips.
“You look breathtaking today, Mrs. Soon-To-Be-Kane,” he murmured against my mouth.
“You don't look too bad yourself, handsome boss,” I teased, running my fingers through his damp hair.
Adrian pulled a chair up next to mine, taking my hand in his, lacing our fingers together. We sat in comfortable, beautiful silence, watching the waves roll onto the shore.
“I was talking to Jonathan Sterling yesterday,” Adrian mentioned casually.
I looked at him. “Oh? Is there more legal paperwork?”
“No,” Adrian smiled softly, looking out at the ocean. “We’re finalizing Mia’s official adoption papers. By the time school starts in September, her legal name will be Mia Hayes Kane.”
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Tears instantly welled in my eyes. I squeezed his hand tightly, unable to speak for a moment. “Adrian...”
“She’s my daughter, Nora,” he said, his voice heavy with deep, unshakeable emotion. “From the moment she walked into my hallway and told me I was handsome, she was mine. I’m never letting either of you go.”
