Page 121 of His Stolen Bride

“I promise,” he says calmly.

Oisin nods once, satisfied, and flops backward so hard, the mattress bounces.

“Okay,” he declares. “Breakfast.”

I push myself up and brush Oisin’s hair back. “You don’t even say please in the morning.”

“It’s morning,” he says, like that explains everything.

Mikhail’s mouth twitches. “He gets that from you.”

“I do not,” I reply.

Mikhail looks at me. “You do.”

Oisin points at both of us. “Stop talking and get breakfast.”

I laugh under my breath. It’s quiet, real, and it doesn’t come with a sting.

There’s no guard outside the bedroom door.

There are no raised voices in the hallway, and no one is waiting to deliver a message that turns the day into a crisis. The house still has security, I know it does, it has to, but the room itself is calm. Safety isn’t borrowed. It exists.

In the kitchen, Oisin climbs onto his chair and starts narrating his own life like he’s a commentator, and Sofia is already there making coffee, still pretending she doesn’t live here even though she does. She looks at Oisin and sighs. “You’re awake,” she says.

Oisin points at her. “You’re late.”

Sofia stares at him. “I was here before you woke up.”

He narrows his eyes. “Then why didn’t you bring me breakfast?”

Sofia looks at me. “He’s getting bold.”

“He’s five,” I say. “It’s his job.”

Mikhail walks in behind us with his sleeves rolled and his phone left somewhere else for once, and he doesn’t grab the room with his presence. He just enters it. He sets a plate down in front of Oisin, not with a flourish and not with a command. Just food. Just care.

Oisin stares at it. “Eggs.”

Mikhail nods. “You like eggs.”

“I do,” Oisin confirms, then he frowns. “But I wanted pancakes.”

Mikhail doesn’t threaten him, and he doesn’t shut him down. He asks, “Do you want pancakes tomorrow?”

Oisin’s eyes widen. “Yes.”

Mikhail nods once. “Then you eat eggs today.”

Oisin considers this like it’s a negotiation. Then he nods too. “Okay.”

Sofia mutters, “Who are you and what have you done with him?”

Mikhail doesn’t glance at her. “Drink your coffee.”

Sofia grins. “Yes, Boss.”

I watch the whole thing like my brain is still catching up.