Sunlight streamed through the bedroom curtains as Damien woke, earlier than usual. For a moment he lay still, blinking at the golden light and trying to recall why his chest felt lighter than it had in weeks. Then it hit him: Aria's gentle kiss on his cheek the night before, the feel of her small hand trustingly in his, and the look in her eyes when she'd whispered "Good night." A slow, unbidden smile curved Damien's lips. It had been a simple gesture, but coming from Aria – cautious, guarded Aria – it felt like a breakthrough.
He raked a hand through his hair and exhaled, an unfamiliar excitement stirring in him. He wanted to keep that softness in her eyes around, to see her truly happy and carefree, if only for a day. The past weeks had been harrowing for her; she deserved a respite.
Making up his mind, Damien slid out of bed and headed for the adjoining bathroom to freshen up. He dressed down in casual jeans and a navy polo – a far cry from his usual tailored suits – and quietly made his way toward the kitchen. It was barely 7 AM; Noah would likely be up soon, and with any luck Aria might catch a bit more rest.
In the kitchen, he decided to attempt something he hadn't done in a long time: make breakfast himself. The household staff usually handled meals, but Damien waved off the chef who appeared, assuring her he had things under control. She left with a knowing smile that made him chuckle under his breath. Word would no doubt spread among the staff that the boss was in a rare cooking mood.
He found a recipe on his phone for blueberry pancakes – Noah's favorite – and gathered ingredients as quietly as possible. Soon, the scent of melting butter and sweet batter filled the air.
"Daddy?" a small voice piped up from the doorway.
Damien turned, flipping a pancake neatly onto a plate as he did. Noah stood in the doorway in his dinosaur-print pajamas, rubbing sleep from his eyes with one hand and clutching Mr. Bear with the other.
"Morning, champ," Damien greeted softly. "Did the cooking wake you?"
Noah nodded, perking up as he recognized the smell. "It smells good! Are you making pancakes?" he asked, padding into the kitchen eagerly.
"I sure am." Damien set the plate of finished pancakes on the table and lifted his son into his arms for a good-morning hug. "Blueberry pancakes, just for you. But let's keep it a secret – I want to surprise Mommy."
Noah's face lit up at the idea of a secret mission. He placed a finger to his lips and nodded seriously. "Okay! I won't tell."
Damien bit back a grin. "Good man. Now, how about you help me with the next batch?"
A few minutes later, Aria wandered into the kitchen, drawn by the enticing aroma. She was still in her robe, her hair loosely braided over one shoulder, and she looked adorably puzzled at the sight that greeted her: Damien standing at the stove carefully pouring batter onto a skillet, and Noah on a stool beside him, face smudged with a bit of flour as he concentrated on scattering blueberries into the batter.
Aria blinked as if unsure she was truly awake. "What's all this?"
Noah was the first to notice her. "Mommy!" he squealed. "We're making a 'prise for you!" He quickly corrected himself, remembering the plan. "I mean… Daddy's making breakfast!" He giggled.
Damien turned, spatula in hand and a bit of batter on his wrist. He suddenly felt slightly self-conscious, but the delighted surprise on Aria's face put him at ease. "Good morning," he said, voice warm. "Have a seat. The chefs have the morning off – I'm taking requests."
Aria laughed, a light, musical sound that made Damien's heart skip. "This is a surprise." She moved further into the kitchen. "Need any help?"
"I think we've got it under control," Damien replied, flipping the pancake on the griddle. "Though our junior chef here might be eating more blueberries than he's adding."
Noah looked up with an exaggeratedly guilty expression, blue stains around his mouth betraying him. Aria smiled fondly and reached over to wipe a tiny smear of flour from Noah's cheek. "I can see that."
She then stepped over to Damien. On impulse, she went on tiptoe and used her thumb to gently swipe at the smear of batter on his wrist. The casual touch sent a pleasant jolt through them both. "I have to say, Mr. Blackwood, I'm impressed," Aria teased softly. "You in an apron flipping pancakes is not something I ever expected to see."
Damien chuckled, pretending to be affronted. "I'll have you know I used to be quite the pancake expert in my college days. Of course, back then the stakes were lower – no tiny food critic to impress." He nodded toward Noah, who was happily munching on a stray berry.
Aria leaned against the counter, relaxed. "Well, I'm impressed regardless. And touched." Her voice softened on the last word. "Thank you."
Their eyes met, and for a moment the kitchen fell away. Damien's pulse quickened at the openness he found in her expression. "You're welcome," he said quietly. "I thought we all deserved a lazy morning."
Noah's impatient tug on Aria's sleeve broke the moment. "Mommy, come sit! Daddy made lots of pancakes!"
Obligingly, Aria let Noah lead her to the breakfast nook. Damien soon joined with a fresh stack of golden pancakes. He even attempted a little flourish, setting the plate down with a playful bow that made Noah giggle and Aria applaud teasingly.
They lingered over breakfast far longer than usual. The pancakes were fluffy and delicious, though Aria insisted Noah's enthusiastic blueberry placement was the secret ingredient. Conversation flowed easily – Noah babbled about a cartoon he loved and insisted on feeding Aria bites of his pancake, which resulted in syrup on her chin and more laughter. Damien felt a swell of contentment as he watched Aria laugh, really laugh, with their son. Her guard was down, eyes sparkling in the morning light. And every now and then, she'd catch Damien's gaze across the table and her smile would turn a touch shy, as if she couldn't quite believe this was real.
After breakfast, Noah dashed off to play with his toys in the living room, leaving the adults to tidy up. Aria stacked plates while Damien wrapped up the remaining pancakes. As she reached past him to set a dish in the sink, their shoulders brushed. Neither moved away immediately.
"That was a wonderful breakfast," Aria said, breaking the comfortable silence. "You and Noah make a good team."
Damien looked down at her, noting the way a loose strand of her golden-brown hair had escaped her braid. Without thinking, he lifted his hand and gently tucked it behind her ear. "We do," he murmured. "But it's even better with you here."
Aria's cheeks warmed at the compliment, and she ducked her head with a soft smile. "I could get used to mornings like this," she admitted. "It felt… normal. In a good way."
"Maybe we should declare today a family day," Damien suggested on impulse. Work could wait; he rarely took days off, but nothing at the office was as pressing as nurturing what was blooming between them. "No meetings, no work calls – just us. We could take Noah to the park or anywhere you two want."
Aria looked up, pleasantly astonished. "Really? You'd take the whole day off?"
He shrugged with a small grin. "My company won't implode in 24 hours. And I can't think of a better reason to play hooky."
Her face brightened, the hesitation melting. "In that case… I think a family day sounds perfect."
Half an hour later, the three of them piled into one of Damien's cars for a trip to the city zoo – one of Noah's favorite places, and conveniently somewhere paparazzi were less likely to lurk early in the day. The sun had climbed higher, promising a warm, clear day. Noah chattered excitedly from his car seat about all the animals he wanted to see, while Aria turned in her front seat to engage with him, asking questions and laughing at his enthusiastic answers.
Damien drove with one hand on the wheel and the other resting on the center console near Aria. Several times, her hand drifted over to touch his when she reacted to something Noah said – a natural gesture that sent a pleasant warmth through him each time.
At the zoo, they strolled along tree-lined paths, an ordinary family among many. A few people recognized Damien – he was a prominent figure, after all – but one look at the carefree little boy perched on his shoulders and the beautiful woman holding his hand was enough to dissuade most from intruding. They looked like a happy family out for a day of fun, nothing more.
Aria was mindful at first, scanning the surroundings now and then for any prying eyes. But as Noah tugged her excitedly toward the lion enclosure and Damien cracked a rare silly joke about not letting the lions eat his tie, she found herself relaxing. They laughed at the antics of the monkeys, took photos by the elephant habitat (Noah insisting on climbing on Damien's back for a better view, which made Aria snap a candid shot of her two "big boys"), and shared a messy popsicle when Noah's began to melt faster than he could lick.
At one point, while Noah was busy pressing his face to the glass of the penguin exhibit, Aria and Damien stood side by side, close enough that their arms brushed. Aria tilted her head up to murmur, "I can't remember the last time I heard Noah laugh this much."
Damien's eyes stayed on their son's delighted form. "I can," he said quietly. "It was the day we took him to the amusement park, remember? The day he rode on my shoulders nearly the entire afternoon and refused to let me put him down."
Aria's lips curved. "I do remember. He talked about that for weeks."
"He still brings it up whenever he sees a merry-go-round," Damien chuckled. A comfortable silence fell as they watched Noah mimic the waddling penguins by shuffling his little feet.
After a moment, Damien gently brushed the back of Aria's hand with his fingers. "Thank you," he said softly.
She looked at him in surprise. "For what?"
"For giving me this," he replied, nodding toward Noah, then encompassing the day with a glance around the sunny courtyard. "Moments like these. I never imagined myself doing any of this a couple of years ago."
Aria's expression grew tender. "You're a natural at it. At being a father… and –" She hesitated, her heart fluttering as she added, "– and a husband."
His breath seemed to hitch. Slowly, he turned to face her more fully. The din of other families and children around them faded as his grey eyes searched hers. "I'm still learning the husband part," he said, voice gentle. "But I meant what I said last night – this stopped being just an arrangement to me a long time ago."
Aria's throat tightened with emotion. She lowered her gaze, overwhelmed by the sincerity in his tone. In the bright light of day, with Noah's laughter in the background, those words felt even more real. She had no witty response, only the truth tumbling from her lips. "It stopped being just an arrangement for me, too," she confessed in a near whisper.
Damien's fingers found hers and interlaced without hesitation. Her heart stuttered at the simple yet intimate gesture. He moved their joined hands slightly, as if to say I'm glad.
Neither dared speak for a moment, but everything important had been said in those quiet admissions. Aria felt a thrill of certainty – whatever label their marriage had started with, it was now something genuine. The trust and affection between them were real.
The spell was broken by Noah skipping back toward them, impersonating a hopping kangaroo now. "Mommy, Daddy, did you see the baby penguin? It was so fluffy!"
Grateful for the adorable interruption, Aria laughed and bent to scoop Noah into her arms. "I saw, sweetheart! Maybe we should take one home, hmm?"
Noah's eyes went wide. "Can we?!"
Damien chuckled, ruffling Noah's hair. "I think the zoo would miss their penguin, champ. But maybe we can get you a stuffed toy one from the gift shop instead."
Noah accepted this readily with a cheer. He then noticed his parents' clasped hands and wiggled in Aria's arms to get down. Once free, he grabbed both their hands in his, effectively making them all connected in one line. "Let's go see the giraffes now!" he declared, tugging them forward.
They obliged, strolling hand-in-hand (and hand-in-hand) toward the next exhibit.
By early afternoon, Noah was yawning and leaning heavily into Damien's arms as he carried the boy back to the car. The excitement of the morning had finally caught up with him. Aria walked beside them, one of Noah's small hands clasped around her finger as he fought to keep his eyes open.
"That was the best day ever," Noah mumbled drowsily as they buckled him into his car seat, a new plush penguin tucked in with him.
"It was pretty great," Aria agreed, smoothing his hair and planting a kiss on his forehead.
Damien started the engine, glancing in the rearview mirror to see Noah's eyes already closed, his head lolling to the side in sleep. He felt a swell of pride and happiness. This was what life was truly about – these moments of peace and love.
On the drive home, Aria rested her hand on the console. This time Damien covered her hand with his, palm to palm, fingers weaving together. No words were needed; the gentle squeeze he gave her said enough. She leaned back, closing her eyes briefly and smiling.
When they arrived home, Noah was still fast asleep. Damien carefully carried the boy inside and up to his bedroom, while Aria trailed behind, quietly pulling back the covers so Damien could lay Noah down without waking him. Once Noah was tucked in, Aria stood by the doorway watching Damien gently remove their son's shoes and tuck Mr. Bear under his arm. Her heart swelled at the sight of this powerful man handling their child with such tenderness.
They tiptoed out of Noah's room, easing the door nearly shut. Back in the hallway, Aria turned to Damien. "Thank you for today," she said earnestly. "I can't remember the last time I felt this… light."
Damien reached out and took her hand, his thumb brushing over her knuckles. "Me too," he admitted. "We should do it more often."
Aria smiled, warmth blooming in her chest. "I'd like that."
They made their way downstairs, still hand in hand. The afternoon sun cast a cozy glow in the living room where they settled side by side on the couch, both a little tired from the outing but content.
As Aria curled up against the cushions, a thought struck her. "You know, we might have to venture back into the real world eventually," she said, half reluctant. "We can't hide at the zoo forever."
Damien tilted his head, studying her. "True. But we'll face it together, remember?"
She nodded, heartened by his confidence. "I do remember."
He hesitated, then continued carefully, "Actually, about the 'real world'… I have a charity gala coming up tomorrow night. I usually make an appearance, for the company's sake. I was wondering… would you come with me?"
Aria bit her lip. A gala meant press, society people, possible whispers about her. "Damien, with everything going on… do you think it's a good idea for me to be there?"
"I think," he said slowly, "that we should live our lives without giving in to fear. Let them whisper if they want. We have nothing to be ashamed of. And I would love to have you by my side."
His sincerity melted her reservations a bit. Truthfully, the idea of dressing up and going out as his partner – truly being at his side in public – stirred both excitement and nerves within her. But after the unity they'd forged, she found herself wanting to take that step.
"Okay," Aria agreed softly. "I'll go with you."
Damien's face lit up in a smile that made her stomach do a little flip. He lifted her hand to his lips, an old habit that always made her breath hitch, and pressed a kiss there. "Thank you."
As the sun began to dip, they stayed close on the couch, quietly enjoying the last peaceful moments of their family day. Both knew that tomorrow would return them to the wider world of responsibilities and watchful eyes. But for now, in the soft hush of their home, it was enough that they had each other.
In the calm before the next storm, their hearts beat in unison – full of quiet hope that whatever came next, they truly were a team in every sense of the word.