UCSF Children's Hospital, 11:42 p.m.
Rowan's phone buzzed again—this time an unknown number. She almost silenced it, but maternal instinct stabbed harder than caution."Rowan Vale."
"Ms. Vale, this is Dr. Kwan on Four West. Leo's fever's climbing. We need consent to run a rapid spinal tap."Her knees buckled. "I'm coming."She spun—and found Lachlan still blocking the hallway, gray eyes unreadable.
"Problem?" he repeated, softer."My son needs me." The word son slipped out before she could cage it.Lachlan's gaze sharpened like a line of code compiling.
"I'll walk you.""No.""Rowan—"The use of her old name froze her. She hadn't heard it from his mouth in five years."That's not me anymore," she whispered."It's the name on the hospital bracelet you're still wearing."
He pointed to the plastic band she'd forgotten to cut off after a volunteer checked her in.Rowan swallowed. "Stay away from us."She pushed past him, sprinted to the elevator, punched 4.
The doors were almost closed when a hand jammed between them. Lachlan stepped in, six-foot-three of stubborn determination."You can hate me," he said, "but let me make sure your kid's okay. Then we talk."The elevator lurched upward.
Rowan's pulse hammered so loud she barely heard the soft chime at 4.Pediatric ICU was aquarium-quiet, monitors beeping in syncopated lullabies. Marisol stood outside Leo's glass bay, arms hugging herself."He's asking for you," Marisol said, then noticed Lachlan. Her eyes widened. "Oh.
"Rowan slipped past the curtain. Leo lay on the bed, cheeks flushed crimson, curls plastered to his forehead. A nurse adjusted an IV."Mama," he rasped, holding out dinosaur stickers like they were gold.Rowan's heart cracked open.
She kissed his hot skin. "I'm here, baby."Dr. Kwan appeared. "We need to rule out meningitis. The tap is routine, but we need your signature."Rowan's hand shook over the consent form. Behind her,
Lachlan's presence was a silent thunderstorm. She signed.The team moved with choreographed calm. Rowan stepped back, bumping into Lachlan's chest—solid, steady.
Without asking, he curled a hand around her elbow. She let him.Ten minutes that felt like ten years. Then:"Clear," Dr. Kwan announced. "No meningitis. Powerful ear infection.
We'll start stronger antibiotics."Rowan exhaled so hard her ribs hurt. She turned into Lachlan's shoulder before she could stop herself. He smelled like cedar soap and panic. His arms came around her—careful, asking.
She pulled away first.Marisol mouthed, He knows?Rowan gave a tiny shake of her head.Lachlan's voice was low.
"Coffee. Both of you. I'll watch him."Rowan started to protest, but exhaustion overrode pride. She and Marisol trudged to the family lounge.Marisol hissed, "He looks like Leo's photocopy."
"Keep your voice down.""Ro, you can't hide this.""I've hidden it for four years."Across the lounge TV, a financial channel flashed breaking news: PIERCE INDUSTRIES STOCK TANKS ON RUMORED IP DISPUTE.
A photo of Lachlan appeared—taken that same evening outside the hospital, hair disheveled, eyes wild.Rowan's stomach flipped. Paparazzi. Meredith Shaw, his CFO, stood beside him in the photo, hand on his arm like a claim.
Marisol read the ticker aloud. "Sources say ex-partner Rowan Vale seeks injunction over Helix AI code… You're trending, sis."Rowan closed her eyes. The secret was hemorrhaging faster than she could stitch it.She marched back to Leo's bay.
Lachlan sat bedside, reading Green Eggs and Ham with dramatic inflection. Leo giggled, fever finally dipping.Rowan tapped the glass. Lachlan met her gaze.
For the first time, he looked unsure.They stepped into the corridor."My lawyer will contact you tomorrow," she said. "Rowan—""No. You threatened custody—"
"I didn't know he existed." His voice cracked. "Give me thirty days. One roof. I want to know my son."Rowan folded her arms. "Your fiancée might object.""Meredith is not my fiancée. She's a headline I never corrected."Rowan's laugh was brittle. "You let the world think about it. Same difference.
"Lachlan shoved a hand through his hair. "I'm not the same kid who chose an IPO over you. Let me prove it."Rowan glanced through the glass at Leo, who was now attempting to feed a dinosaur sticker to Lachlan's expensive watch.
She exhaled. "Thirty days. Written rules. You break one, you're out.""Deal.""And you stay ten feet away from me unless Leo is between us."His mouth twisted.
"I can work with ten feet."As she walked back to her son, Rowan felt the first hairline fracture in the wall she'd spent four years building.The countdown had begun.