CHAPTER TWELVE: A FRAGILE BEGINNING
Aria barely slept.
Every time she closed her eyes, Damien's voice echoed in her mind—low, steady, impossibly sure.
Then let me earn it.
Her heart refused to settle, her thoughts spiraled, and her chest wouldn't loosen no matter how many deep breaths she took.
Eli slept peacefully in the next room.
Damien had left only after she practically pushed him out, because he had looked ready to stay and talk until sunrise.
Aria finally drifted to sleep around four in the morning.
And by seven, Eli was awake.
By eight, Damien was knocking on the door again.
"Good morning," he said when she opened the door, holding two cups of coffee and a warm paper bag that smelled like cinnamon.
Aria blinked, hair still messy from sleep, brain not fully functioning.
"You're early," she said, rubbing her eyes.
Damien lifted a brow.
"You didn't give me a time."
She frowned. "Most people would wait."
"I'm not most people," he said calmly.
"And I told you—I'm not missing another day."
Before she could reply, Eli came running out of his room, literally launching himself at Damien.
"Daddy!"
Damien caught him with a reflex that surprised even him, lifting Eli effortlessly.
"Well," he murmured, amusement warming his voice, "someone's awake."
Eli peeked into the bag Damien was holding.
"What's that?"
"Breakfast," Damien said.
"And coffee for your mom, because she looks like she hasn't slept."
Aria stiffened.
"Excuse me?"
Damien smirked slightly.
"Relax. It was an observation, not an insult."
She rolled her eyes but took the coffee.
She needed it more than she wanted to admit.
They sat at the table again—Eli munching happily on cinnamon rolls, Damien watching him with growing fascination, and Aria watching both of them with confusion, fear, and something dangerously close to hope.
"So," Damien said after Eli ran off to play, "I want to spend the day with him."
Aria froze.
"Damien—"
"You can be there," he continued.
"I don't expect you to leave him with me alone. Not yet. But I want time. Real time. Not ten minutes or breakfast."
She hesitated.
"Where?" she asked.
Damien shrugged.
"Anywhere he likes. A park, a bookstore, the aquarium… you tell me."
Eli popped back into the room at the perfect moment.
"Mommy, can we go to the big park? With slides? And the ducks?"
Damien turned to Aria with the softest look she'd seen from him.
"Let's take him," he said quietly.
Her heart thudded.
"Okay," she whispered.
The park was crowded but lively, filled with squealing children, barking dogs, and parents trying to keep track of everything at once.
Eli had Damien by the hand before Aria could even lock the car.
Damien looked slightly overwhelmed at first—but in a good way, like the chaos was new and strange, but welcome.
Eli dragged him to the swings.
"Push me!" he demanded.
Damien obeyed, gently at first, then a little stronger when Eli begged for "higher, higher!"
Aria watched from a few feet away.
Damien—powerful, controlled, businesslike Damien—looked completely undone by the tiny boy laughing on the swing.
He pushed again, and Eli squealed with joy.
Aria's heart softened against her will.
The tenderness, the awe on Damien's face…
This man—this man she had once loved in silence—was falling for his son with the force of a wildfire.
And she had no idea what to do with that.
After swings came slides, then ducks, then a meltdown because the ducks wouldn't come closer, then a race on the grass.
Damien let Eli win.
Aria pretended not to notice him pretending.
By noon, Eli was exhausted and hungry, so they found a bench under a tree. Aria unpacked the snacks she had brought, and Damien sat beside her while Eli munched happily on crackers and apple slices.
"He's amazing," Damien said softly.
Aria smiled without meaning to.
"He is."
"Funny. Smart. Stubborn." Damien smirked. "Definitely mine."
She shoved him lightly with her shoulder.
"Don't get ahead of yourself."
He leaned back, eyes drifting to Eli, then returning to Aria.
"I mean it," he said quietly.
"I want to be here. I want to be involved. I want to make this work."
Aria swallowed.
"Damien, this isn't just about showing up for a day. Parenting is—"
"A lifetime," he finished.
"I know."
"No," she said, voice tightening.
"Do you? Because once Eli gets attached, he's attached for good."
Damien's expression softened, grew serious.
"I'm already attached."
Her breath caught.
Then, slowly—hesitantly—he reached for her hand.
She stiffened but didn't pull away.
"Aria," he murmured, voice low and steady, "I'm not asking you to trust me today. But I'm asking for the chance to earn it."
Her heart twisted painfully.
His thumb brushed her knuckles softly, gently, deliberately.
"And I'm asking," he added, "for the chance not to lose you a second time."
Aria looked away, breathing uneven.
"I don't know what this is," she whispered.
"I don't know where it leads."
Damien leaned closer.
"Then let's find out," he said.
And for the first time since this began—
Aria didn't say no.