Chapter 28 - A Second Spring
He slid the blue diamond onto my finger beside my original wedding band, the cool platinum settling against my skin like an eternal promise.
Rhys pulled me into his arms, lifting me slightly off the teak deck as his lips captured mine. The kiss was slow, deep, and intoxicatingly sweet, full of the warmth of a summer evening, the scent of the open water, and the knowledge that nothing in this universe could ever tear us apart again.
From the upper deck, our family erupted into joyful cheers.
Grace was clapping wildly, perched safely on Miller’s broad shoulders, while Clara and Marcus raised their glasses in a triumphant toast. My mother dabbed her eyes with a lace handkerchief, leaning against my father’s arm as they smiled at us with unreserved pride.
When Rhys finally let me touch the deck again, he rested his forehead against mine, his thumbs gently wiping away my happy tears.
"There is one more thing," I whispered, a playful, breathless smile touching my lips.
Rhys raised an eyebrow, his gray eyes sparkling with intrigue. "More surprises, Mrs. Calder?"
I took his large, scarred hand and moved it down, placing his palm flat against my lower stomach, beneath the soft emerald silk of my dress.
Rhys froze. His breath caught in his throat, his gaze dropping to his hand, then flying back up to my face in stunned, wide-eyed wonder.
"Isadora...?" he choked out, his voice cracking with emotion.
"Elena confirmed it yesterday morning before we boarded the boat," I laughed softly, my eyes shining. "Grace is going to be a big sister in seven months. It’s a boy, Rhys. We're having a son."
For a moment, the man who had faced down assassins without blinking looked completely overwhelmed. Then, a radiant, magnificent laugh broke from his chest—a sound so full of pure, unrestrained happiness that it seemed to light up the entire bay.
He swept me off my feet, spinning me around in the cool evening air, burying his face in my neck as he whispered prayers of gratitude against my skin.
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"A son," he murmured, his voice thick with tears as he kissed my cheeks, my lips, and my hair. "We are going to give him a world where he will never need to carry a gun. I swear it to you, Isadora."
"We will build it together," I promised, tangling my fingers in his hair, holding him as tight as my arms could manage.
