Chapter 17 - The Westchester SunriseThe sun was just beginning to peek over the tree line of the Westchester estate, painting the sky in brilliant shades of gold and amber.
Gabriel walked up the grand front steps, exhausted, his shoulders heavy with the weight of the war he had just won. He pushed open the heavy front door and stepped into the foyer.
The house was quiet.
He walked slowly toward the kitchen, expecting it to be empty. Instead, he found Claire sitting at the island counter, holding a mug of coffee. She was still wearing her emerald evening gown, her eyes dark with exhaustion and lack of sleep.
When she heard his footsteps, she looked up immediately.
Her gaze swept over him—checking for blood, for injuries, for any sign that he hadn't made it back.
“Is it over?” she whispered.
Gabriel stopped a few feet away, dropping his car keys onto the marble counter.
“It’s over,” Gabriel said softly. “Sterling is gone. Europe is locked out. Nobody will ever threaten you or the boys again.”
Claire stood up from the stool, walking slowly toward him. The fear that had defined her life for five years—the terror of hiding, of running, of carrying a secret burden alone—finally melted away completely.
She reached out, her hands resting softly on his chest, feeling the steady, strong beat of his heart.
“You came back,” she whispered.
“I told you I wasn't going anywhere,” Gabriel replied, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her flush against his chest, burying his face in her chestnut hair.
Footsteps padded softly down the grand staircase behind them.
Gabriel and Claire turned to see three small figures in dinosaur pajamas padding into the kitchen, rubbing their sleepy eyes.
Leo, the youngest, walked right up to Gabriel’s knee, looked up with those exact gray-green eyes, and held up a brand-new, perfectly folded paper airplane.
“ Dad,” Leo announced solemnly. “We waited up for you. Does this one fly?”
Gabriel smiled—a warm, genuine, unconditional smile that no magazine, no rival boss, and no empire had ever been able to buy.
May you like
He knelt down, scooped his youngest son into his arms, and tossed the paper airplane across the grand kitchen, watching it soar high into the air.
“Let’s go find out,” Gabriel said.
