The park was buzzing with people—bright, lively, full of chatter and music.
Sophia sat on a bench with little Faye in her lap, enjoying the breeze. A few minutes later, Damien ca back with the other five kids, all holding ice cream cones.
"Here," he said, handing one to her. "Vanilla—your favorite."
Sophia blinked in surprise. "How did you know I like vanilla?"
"Because I told him!" Charles grinned proudly, his little chest puffed out.
Sophia chuckled. "Alright then, let’s go."
As they walked past a historic building, Damien stopped. "Hey, I used to study photography. Want to take a few shots of you?"
"You? Seriously?" she teased, one brow arching.
"Absolutely," he said, grinning. "I’m not joking."
She smirked, stepped closer to the old brick wall, and casually slipped one side of her jacket off her shoulder. The sunlight caught the edges of her hair as she put on her sunglasses and licked her ice cream, effortlessly stunning.
Damien adjusted her pose—sotis verbally, sotis by gently moving her hand or shoulder.
Hidden not far away, Lucas arrived just in ti to see that exact scene.
"Alex!" he hissed, voice tight.
Alex winced. "Boss, please—whatever you’re thinking, I can’t fix it this ti."
Lucas’s jaw clenched so hard it looked painful. "It’s been three days. Three damn days! And she’s already out there—flirting! Look at his hand! On her shoulder!"
His glare practically burned a hole through Damien’s arm.
"Boss, breathe! Chill!" Alex whispered.
"Chill? You want to chill while my woman’s out there letting another man touch her?"
"Uh—sir, you said you didn’t like Miss Morgan anymore. You literally said you wanted to get even with her."
Lucas shot him a lethal glare.
Alex imdiately shut up.
Just then, Damien glanced around, feeling a prickling sensation—as if soone were watching him.
"What’s wrong?" Sophia asked, following his gaze.
"Nothing," he said lightly, glancing down. "Your ice cream’s lting."
Then—he took a bite.
Of her ice cream.
Sophia froze.
In the shadows, Lucas nearly exploded.
He lunged forward, but Alex grabbed him from behind.
"Don’t!"
"Let go of !"
"Mr. Hilton, please! If you storm over there now, she’ll just get angry and run straight into Brown’s arms!"
Lucas’s eyes locked on the ice cream in Sophia’s hand. If she dared take another bite, he’d lose it completely.
Damien smiled casually. "Not bad. It’s sweeter than I expected."
Sophia forced a smile, like soone trying to defuse a bomb, then quietly swapped cones with Faye.
Faye frowned. Mommy, is this really a good idea?
Charles shot her a look, grabbed the cone, and handed her another. No way his sister was eating ice cream touched by that guy.
Sophia turned back to the cara, pretending everything was fine. "These are great. I didn’t know you were actually good at this."
Damien laughed. "Stick around. You’ll discover more surprises." He looked at the ti. "We’ve still got daylight. Let’s head to the flower fields."
"Sure," she said, smiling faintly.
She took a small bite of ice cream—completely unaware that, from the shadows, Lucas saw it.
And lost it.
He grabbed Alex by the collar. "You saw that, right?! She ate it! They shared the sa ice cream!"
"Mr. Hilton, please—calm down! It’s just an ice cream cone!"
"Just? Alex, do you want to throw you into a dumpster?"
"Boss, listen," Alex stamred. "You know Miss Morgan. She’s not the type to fall for a guy that easily."
Lucas’s mind flashed back to the ti Sophia had laughed and said she liked "beautiful won" too. His face darkened even more.
"She’s not just into n—she’s into won too!"
Alex coughed, eyes darting to the path ahead. "Uh—boss? They’re leaving!"
The mountain path was steep and winding, crowded with tourists and the soft hum of chatter.
Sophia walked a few steps behind, watching her six children climb ahead—each one holding the railing with one hand and the next sibling’s hand with the other, a little chain of laughter and balance.
Then suddenly—
A squirrel darted out of the bushes.
"Ah!"
Sophia gasped, her foot slipped on a loose stone—
"Sophia!"
Damien caught her just in ti, one hand gripping hers, the other steadying her by the waist.
Hidden not far behind them, Lucas nearly exploded from the shadows, ready to storm forward—until Alex grabbed him by the arm.
"Mr. Hilton, please! Patience now, or you’ll ruin everything!"
Lucas froze, his fists curling so tightly his knuckles turned white.
"Are you okay?" Damien asked softly.
Sophia steadied herself, still catching her breath. "I’m fine. That was close. Thank you."
"There are squirrels all over the hill," Damien said apologetically. "They like to co close to people. I should’ve warned you."
He took all the bla without hesitation.
"Mommy, be careful!" Angela’s small voice ca from ahead, filled with concern.
Angela pulled a water bottle from her tiny backpack and ran back to offer it. "Do you want to rest a little?"
Sophia smiled faintly, took a sip, and shook her head. "No need. Mommy’s not that fragile. Let’s keep going."
They continued their climb.
Damien’s hand brushed near hers more than once—close enough to almost touch—but each ti, he pulled it back.
If looks could kill, Lucas would’ve murdered him a hundred tis over.
...
At the summit, the scenery changed.
A breathtaking sea of cherry blossoms blanketed the hilltop, their petals drifting like pink snow in the breeze.
Sophia stood still, montarily speechless. It was the first ti she’d seen sothing so beautiful since coming back ho.
"It’s incredible," she whispered.
"These cherry trees," Damien said, "were all transplanted here by hand."
She turned to him. "How do you know that?"
He smiled gently, resting his hand on a nearby trunk. "Because I planted them myself."
Her eyes widened. "You did?"
He nodded. "Co on—I’ll show you one that’s supposed to be magical."
He reached for her hand and led her deeper into the grove, the other hand instinctively holding onto the children behind them.
Sophia glanced down at their joined hands, montarily lost in thought.
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