Page 74 of Masked Intentions

Further conversation was cut off by Vanessa’s strangled scream. He wished he could bear this pain for her. It did not seem fair that she was in there writhing in agony while he stood out here. He wanted to be in there holding her hand and telling her everything was going to be all right, even if he wasn’t sure he believed it.

He stared transfixed at the door, fear washing through him until, moments later, another distinctive sound cut the air—a baby’s cry.

Lucien gave a soft laugh of unmistakable relief. “See. I told you it would be fine.”

Morgan got to his feet and came forward to clap Adrian on the back. “Congratulations, brother! I’m so happy for you.”

Adrian shared a relieved smile with his brothers, then decided the doctor be damned. He’d showed remarkable patience so far, but now he wanted to see his child and make sure his beautiful wife was okay.

“I’m going in there,” he said emphatically. Without waiting to hear his brothers’ opinions, he strode toward the door that connected his room with Vanessa’s and flung it open. Though he was vaguely aware of the doctor’s protests and the clucking of the women who’d been present for the birth, he ignored them all, his gaze locking on Vanessa’s.

Though she looked exhausted, her dark eyes glowed with happiness. “Adrian. We have a daughter.”

“A daughter,” he breathed, crossing the room to Vanessa’s side. They’d just placed the freshly swaddled baby in her arms, and he stared down at his two beautiful girls, his heart swelling with love. The baby was wrapped in a pink blanket and had a tiny, scrunched-up face and a tuft of dark hair.

“She’s so perfect,” Vanessa whispered. She blinked up at him, tears suddenly welling in her eyes. “I thought that perhaps we could name her Anne.”

He realized suddenly, that Anne’s death had to have been on her mind perhaps even more than his and Morgan’s. She’d been the one to deliver Felicity, after all. She’d been the one to watch Anne die. “Of course,” he said helplessly. “Of course, we can name her Anne.” Perhaps Morgan would draw some comfort from that.

Adrian sank onto the bed beside her, vaguely aware that things were still happening around them, though his entire focus was on his wife and daughter. He’d never expected to find love, never thought he’d have a family of his own, but fate had smiled down on him the night he’d snuck into Vanessa’s flat with Gabriel in his arms. Against all odds, she’d seen past his mask, past his scars, and loved him anyway.

Now he and Gabriel both had a family, and they had this incredible woman to thank for it.

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to Vanessa’s cheek, overwhelmed with love and emotion. “Thank you, my darling. You’ve given me everything I ever dreamed of.”

“That was always my intention,” she said with a smile.

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THE END