Almost immediately after Aiden was born, we were urged to move back to the city where Aiden could be raised in Ace’s family estate with an army of servants at his service. Naturally, I was against the idea right from the start. Surprisingly, Ace was even more against the idea and made sure that we were not disturbed as we continued to raise our young baby in the comfort of our own home. My mother moved into the house with us to help take care of baby Aiden.

Ace fell in love with being a father and couldn’t wait to expand our family even further. Just when Aiden turned one year old, we began another baby-making project which resulted in another pregnancy not so long after. Roughly nine months later, Aiden became a big brother to baby Katie. Having two children to take care of increased our fun exponentially. By that time, we had our hands really full with the children and struggled to keep up with work at the office.

“Maybe I should stop working to take care of the children…” I mumbled my suggestion.

After thinking it through, I honestly didn’t see any other solution. I wanted to be there to take care of the children myself and Katie was nothing but a big and happy baby that required help. She was also clearly very attached to me while Aiden had become a very curious and demanding boy. It was regrettable that I couldn’t continue pursuing my career, but I had realized that nothing could be done without some sacrifices.

“No, I think you should continue working. Don’t stop, Rina. Even if you do a little less at work, that’s a whole lot better than just quitting and staying home. Why don’t I get you some extra help at work? I’ll add someone to your team to help offload some of your work, and at home, let’s hire some professional nannies to help out with the kids. My father’s been nagging us to get professional help for a while now anyways,” Ace replied with a smile.

“Do you think that it will work out?” I asked as some hope started blooming in my chest.

“You don’t really want to stop working, right? Let’s give this a try first before you think of doing something that you may regret later on. I’m sure the kids won’t be happy if their mother isn’t happy and I surely won’t be happy unless you are,” he said before pulling me into his arms.

“I bet Katie will start crying in less than ten seconds…” I murmured against his chest.

We both ended up giggling when we found out very soon after just how accurate my prophecy was.

…

Time and time again, I found out that Ace was right about almost every single thing. Since marrying him, there wasn’t a single moment that I regretted my decision. That didn’t mean that everything was smooth sailing and happy-go-lucky for us all the time; however, the fact that Ace always stood by my side no matter what never changed. I learned many times over just how reliable he is and just how precious he is to me.

The me that once felt so helpless and useless started to feel better about myself. Although it took me time, I could confidently say that I was catching up to him in my own way. With his help and the help of my own determination, I had progressed so much at work while still being true to my professional goals and desires. As I’ve matured, I never stopped trying to grow into the best version of myself that I could be for our sake and also the sake of our children now that I am not only a wife but also a mother of two very beautiful children.

It is an unchangeable truth that I made many mistakes in the past and that I’d made decisions that I wasn’t proud of. However, it is also undeniable that I have learnt so much and had so much to gain from making the mistakes and the decisions that I made. Meeting Ace and getting to spend my life with him was definitely a result of a series of unfortunate events, misunderstandings, and wrong decisions.

To say that I am proud of myself would be an overstatement, but I have learnt through time to embrace my emotional battle scars and to appreciate the past versions of myself. Throughout it all, Ace had been nothing but accepting of who I was and who I was turning out to be. Now that we have been married for many years, I had started to feel like I had grown to be on equal grounds with him. It wasn’t just about him leading me and guiding me anymore because I already have so many things that I could offer and do for him too.

As time came for Aiden to go to school, we eventually made the difficult decision to move back into the big city for the sake of living close to his school. Naturally, we moved our business, our employees, and my mother along with us. It was a big move and a very big decision that we prayed endlessly would be the right one. Moving back surprised me on many levels, most of which was the way that Aiden connected so naturally with his grandfather.

Ace’s father obviously had the inclination to get close to Aiden who was his only grandson and his heir. What I didn’t see it coming was for the two of them to naturally get along with each other. Aiden loved spending time with his grandfather and the two of them went out together very often.

“Your father is taking Aiden on a fishing trip again. Isn’t he too young for that or something?” I told Ace before rolling my eyes.

“We should be glad that they get along,” Ace said while faking a shiver.

“I don’t know why they get along so well when you don’t even get along with your own father,” I pointed out with narrowed eyes.

“He can inherit the family fortune and save us the trouble of dealing with the old man. Isn’t that just great?” Ace said with a laugh.

“I guess…” I murmured.

Honestly, there was nothing wrong with Aiden forming such a close bond with his grandfather. Neither was there anything wrong with him inheriting such a large fortune when the time came. I just hoped that the Chairman wouldn’t put him through what he put Ace through. Seeing that crushing level of expectation being placed on the shoulders of my son would be more than enough to kill me. I grinned to myself while thinking that this was probably the closest that we would ever come to being one family and that felt like more than enough compared to where we first started.

“Katie here will always be daddy’s sweetheart!” Ace said as he picked up Katie and raised her above his head.

Katie loved it when he did this, so she started giggling gleefully. I watched the loving scene of Ace playing with our daughter unfold. There were times like these that made me wish that we could have another child. Maybe when these two have grown a little older and we had a little more time to raise another one. Not that I wasn’t satisfied with the family that I had now.

“Come here, Katie…” I said sweetly as I held out my arms towards her.

Ace placed her in my arms, and I hugged her tight before planting a kiss on her soft cheek. Ace wrapped his arms around me, and I felt so enveloped in warmth and love. Katie started giggling again and I couldn’t resist the urge to plant another kiss on her cheek. Ace kissed my cheek and then our daughter’s cheek before smiling at me.

“Do you know what is coming up?” Ace asked with a look of excitement in his eyes.

“Umm…No?” I replied questioningly.

I didn’t recall that there was anyone’s birthday coming up anytime soon. Unless something had slipped my mind completely, then I didn’t quite know what he was referring to.

“The Ashford competition…” Ace whispered his answer into my ear like it was some kind of dirty little secret.

My eyes widened before I gasped in shock.

He can’t really mean…

“You can’t be serious…” I gasped.

Ace just grinned and then winked meaningfully at me.

“Watch your dad, Katie. He’s going to win something so awesome for you!” Ace told our daughter excitedly.

I could tell that he was more than serious about it. It was a big deal for sure and a surprising turn of events, but just like always, I found myself cheering him on and willing to support him in anything that he wanted to do.

“Ace…” I called his name softly.

“What is it?” he asked with Katie once again lifted above his head.

He turned to face me when I didn’t immediately give him the answer that he was looking for. I quickly closed to distance between us before wrapping my arms around him to hug him tightly from behind.

“I love you…” I confessed simply.

Once again, I felt thankful and proud that whenever I said those words to him, it always sounded and felt so truthful and genuine to me. I might have been unlucky in many aspects of my life but at that moment, I could confidently say that I have found the love of my life.

“I love you too, Rina,” Ace replied with a small chuckle as his eyes held my gaze.

See?

He even loves me too…

–The End

Thank you for reading this book right until the end. I truly enjoyed writing this story and sincerely hope that you have enjoyed it as well.

Please check out my other books: Forbidden Heat, Love Slave to the Mafia Boss’s Passion, Substitute Wife for the Mafia King, Conquering the Emperor, Lust Contracts, and The Alpha Prince’s Purchased Maid.

Wishing you and your family the best of everything!