Mia didn't remember how she got out of the classroom. Adrian had said, "I'm not letting her go," and the next thing she knew, she was walking quickly down the hall, almost running, with Luna's gentle weight bouncing against her shoulder.
Her breath was weak. Her hands shook. Her mind was scattered.
She had lived there for four years.
Four years of hiding.
For four years, she prayed that she would never see him again. If she did, she would have to explain why she had taken his child.
And now he got it.
Her legs shook more.
"Mom? Luna whispered as she rubbed her tired eyes. "Are we going home?"
"Yes," Mia said softly, fighting the urge to cry. "We're going home, baby."
But when she pushed the door open and stepped outside, she stopped.
Adrian was already leaning against her car.
Very tall. Not moving. Waiting.
He didn't look cold. It wasn't mad. It was awful.
It was decided.
He whispered softly, "Mia," as she got closer. "We're not done."
She hugged Luna even tighter. "Please. Not now."
But Adrian stood up straight, his jaw tightening as he looked at the little girl in her arms: his daughter. There was a twitch in a muscle near his cheek.
"Please give her to me," he said in a soft voice.
Her whole body shook. "Not at all."
"Mia—"
"No."
Adrian took a breath and moved closer, but slowly and carefully, like he was getting close to a wild animal that was about to run away.
He said, "I'm not taking her." "I just want to hold her."
His voice broke up.
It almost broke her.
She shook her head anyway. "Not tonight." She's too tired. She doesn't know you.
Something flickered—pain, regret, frustration—but he stayed still.
"Then I'll drive you," he said. "Both of you."
"No."
She said, "Mia, the press was already sniffing around today." "When I get there, people notice." People will be suspicious if you come out with a kid who looks just like me.
Her stomach hurt a lot. He was right. Not at all.
But do you trust him to drive his car?
Are you willing to let him drive her home?
Telling him where she lived?
Not ever.
"I'll be fine," she said softly.
"Mia—"
"Don't," she yelled, her voice shaking. "Don't do it."
He stopped talking.
The air between them was too thick, too full of what she had been hiding for four years.
She started to unlock her car door, but Adrian stepped forward and gently put his hand on the frame to stop her.
He said softly, "Mia, you can hate me. But please don't take her away from me.
She had trouble breathing. "I didn't take her away from you. You pushed us away."
Adrian clearly flinched.
"That night," he said in a hoarse voice, "I was scared."
"You stressed that you didn't want a family."
"I didn't say that."
"No," she said in a cold voice. "You didn't have to."
His jaw tightened, and shame spread across his face like a bruise.
"I never thought—" he said, his voice shaking as he swallowed. "—that you were pregnant with my child."
She suddenly turned her head away. "What if I told you?" So, what's next? Adrian, you were engaged. "To Seraphine."
A shadow went over his eyes. "That engagement didn't mean anything."
"It meant everything," Mia said, her voice shaking. "This meant that I didn't belong in your world. "There's no place in your future." And she wouldn't either.
She lightly brushed her cheek against Luna's hair and swallowed the lump in her throat.
"So I went."
Adrian leaned his forehead against the top of the car, and his chest moved up and down in an awkward way.
"That choice destroyed me," he said quietly.
Her eyes hurt. "Think about how it ruined me."
Be quiet.
He slowly raised his head, and when their eyes met, she saw a rawness she had never witnessed before.
"You're right," he said softly. "I've hurt you. I let you both down. I broke everything.
She looked at him, and her heart broke. She hated him. She cared about him. She was afraid of him. She needed him to stay away. She wanted him to be close by so he could understand Luna.
There was no safe place for her emotions; they were like a battlefield.
Adrian took a step back, unsure of what to do next.
"But Mia," he said softly, "I'm here now, no matter what I did or didn't do four years ago." And I'm not going anywhere.
Her heart raced. "Don't—"
He said again, "I'm not leaving." "I'll be there for her." I will be her dad. "You can't keep me out."
She shuddered.
She wanted to fight. She wanted to yell. She wanted to ask him to go away again and go back to the world she had escaped from.
But just one look at Luna's sleeping face.
Another glance at Adrian's face, which was filled with pain, disabled her. ain, disabled her.
Disabled her.
He spoke more softly. "I want to know her."
Mia shut her eyes tight.
He slowly and gently moved closer and put his palm over the hand she was using to hold the car door.
"Please, Mia."
She was out of breath. His touch was careful and unsure, not like the strong, in-control man she remembered. He held her hand gently, his thumb brushing over her knuckles as if he was afraid she would pull away.
"Let me be her father," he said softly into the quiet night.
Her heart almost stopped.
Almost.
But fear won out.
She shook her head and stepped back. "I can't do this."
Adrian stepped back, as if he was physically respecting her space but not emotionally.
He asked softly, "You can't or won't?"
She didn't say anything.
He nodded once and moved his jaw around. "Okay. You are too much. "I'll give you space."
She blinked in disbelief.
"But tomorrow," he said, his voice stronger, "I'm coming to your place."
She felt panic coursing through her veins. "Adrian—"
He said softly, "I'm not barging in." "I am not taking her." I don't hire lawyers. But I'm really meeting her. I'm talking to her. "And to you."
Mia held Luna tightly to keep her safe. "You can't make us let you in."
"I'm not forcing," he said softly. "I'm taking back what is mine."
Her knees almost gave out.
He looked at Luna one last time, full of shock, sadness, confusion, and a feeling close to love.
Then he moved out of the way.
She watched him go, and his shadow disappeared into the dark parking lot like a ghost she couldn't get away from.
Her legs finally gave way when she couldn't see him anymore.
She was shaking as she leaned against the car.
Luna moved in her arms. "Mom? "Why are you shaking?"
Mia kissed her forehead softly. "It's okay, baby. You're safe."
But as she strapped her child into the back seat, she finally allowed herself to breathe—
She knew she wasn't safe anymore.
Her secret was gone.
Her peaceful life was over.
Adrian Black wants his daughter.
Adrian Black always reached his goals.