The house was quiet that night.
Jessy had finally drifted off, tucked into his crib with his soft blanket curled around him. Arabella had fallen asleep in Bella's bed, her sketchpad still open beside her, little flowers half-finished in purple crayon.
Bella lingered at the door for a moment, watching them. Her heart ached and glowed all at once. Two children, so different, yet hers both hers. She closed the door gently and padded down the hallway toward Chris's study.
The light was on, spilling faint gold across the polished floor. Chris was there, jacket off, sleeves rolled up, his tie loose around his neck as he flipped through documents on his desk. But his eyes flicked up the moment she entered, like he had been waiting for her all along.
"You should be resting," he said softly.
"I could say the same to you." Bella crossed the room, the click of her heels quiet in the hush of the night. She leaned against the edge of his desk, her eyes locking with his. "Always working. Always carrying the weight of the world."
Chris leaned back in his chair, his gaze roaming over her face. "I only carry what I can't afford to lose."
Something in his voice made her pulse quicken. The way his eyes softened only when they rested on her, the way his shoulders eased like he was only truly home when she was near.
Bella's breath caught. "Chris..." She hesitated, her heart racing. "After everything... after Canada, the court, Cassandra, Vera's past do you ever wonder if we're strong enough to make it?"
He stood slowly, his chair scraping back. He stepped closer until the space between them disappeared. His hand lifted, brushing a strand of hair from her face, his touch lingering against her cheek.
"Strong enough?" he murmured, his voice low. "Bella, you are the only thing I've never doubted."
Her throat tightened. "Even when I thought you abandoned me?"
His jaw clenched, his eyes dark. "Especially then. I was chained in ways you couldn't see. But I never stopped fighting for you. And I'll spend the rest of my life proving it, if you'll let me."
The heat in his gaze left her trembling. She had waited months to hear those words, to feel that fire burn past the walls between them.
Her answer was wordless. She reached up, her fingers tangling in his tie, pulling him down until her lips found his.
The kiss was fierce, hungry, all the distance and silence igniting in one spark. Chris groaned against her mouth, his arms sliding around her waist, lifting her onto the desk. Papers scattered as her legs wrapped around him, pulling him closer.
"Bella..." he whispered against her lips, his voice ragged. "God, I've missed everything about you."
Her hands slid into his hair, tugging gently as she kissed him deeper. "Then don't stop," she breathed.
His mouth trailed down her jaw, her throat, each kiss leaving her shivering. His hands gripped her hips, firm and desperate, as if he was anchoring himself to her.
Bella gasped when his lips brushed the sensitive hollow at her collarbone. Her fingers fumbled at his shirt buttons, needing to feel his skin, to remind herself this was real, that after all the storms they had survived, they were here. Together.
Chris pulled back just enough to look at her, his chest heaving, his pupils blown wide with want. "Tell me to stop, and I will. But if you don't..."
"I don't want you to stop," Bella whispered, her voice trembling but sure.
That was all he needed. His lips crashed back onto hers, and the study filled with the sound of their mingled breaths, the soft thud of files falling, the heat of two people giving in to everything they'd been holding back.
And when Chris lifted her into his arms and carried her upstairs, Bella knew this wasn't just survival anymore. This was love, fierce and unyielding, rekindled in fire.
A lot had happened in 9 months.
The court trials were behind them now, though the echoes of them lingered. Cassandra Hampson, once untouchable, was finally sentenced. Guilty of everything stealing Arabella, falsifying documents, attempting to have her granddaughter killed, ordering Bella and Jessy's kidnapping in Canada. The judge's words had rung through the courtroom like a hammer: life imprisonment without parole.
It was the final nail in her reign of terror. For the first time, the Hampsons could breathe.
Their father, Fred Hampson, had filed for divorce quietly during the proceedings. The last straw for him was learning Cassandra had plotted against Jessy his grandson. He could accept ruthlessness in business, but not in blood. He told his children later, voice low but raw, "She forgot the line we never cross. Blood is blood. She tried to destroy it."
Fred had surprised them all by softening in Cassandra's absence. He asked his children for forgiveness, not as a businessman, but as their father. His reunion with Andrew was the most emotional. Andrew, who had disappeared at sixteen, now returned after eighteen years with a wife and three children of his own. Fred had confessed something no one expected: that he had tracked Andrew down years ago but, seeing that his son had built a life in Australia, quietly funded his account without Andrew ever knowing. "I didn't want to drag you back into this prison," he said. "But I never stopped being your father."
Now Andrew had moved back to the UK with his family, living close to Hailey, who had also returned from New York with her two young children. The Hampson siblings once fractured were finally together again.
And in the center of it all was Chris. Stronger, more grounded, with Bella at his side.
The Romero was filled with noise that afternoon. Laughter, chatter, children's shrieks of joy. They were celebrating Arabella's eight birthday, and the house was alive in a way Bella had never seen before. It was the first time she was witnessing her daughter's birthday. She had missed out eight years out of her life and she wanted to celebrate her daughter.
Jessy sat on the rug with Arabella and Hailey's eldest, both of them stacking blocks and knocking them down again. Every time the tower fell, Jessy squealed with delight. Arabella, now more confident and carefree, clapped for her little brother, her violet eyes shining.
On the sofa, Bella sat with Bianca and Alexis, the three women deep in conversation while Liam sprawled nearby, scrolling through his phone but chiming in with sarcastic remarks every now and then.
"You look happier," Bianca said, her eyes soft on Bella. "It's like the weight's gone."
Bella smiled faintly. "It feels like it. For the first time, I'm not running anymore."
"And you're surrounded by love," Alexis added, Prince sat across the room, laughing with Joe and Andrew. "We've been waiting for this, Bella. You deserve it."
Bella squeezed both their hands. "I don't know what I would've done without you two. Or Liam."
Liam smirked. "Finally some credit. About time."
They all burst out laughing.
At the dining table, Andrew's three children sat with Raquel and the twins, Kayden and Jayden, who were home for the weekend. The cousins bonded instantly laughter, teases, the twins showing off their "medical tricks" and Andrew's eldest rolling his eyes but secretly impressed.
Joe leaned against the wall, watching it all, his eyes soft. He caught Vera's gaze across the room and smiled, the kind of smile that spoke of healing. After everything, after years of scars, this was family.
Chris walked in then, carrying a tray of drinks with Hailey's husband. He set it down and immediately scooped Jessy into his arms. The little boy giggled, tugging at his father's shirt. Arabella climbed onto Bella's lap, her small hand clutching her mother's.
For a moment, Bella just looked at them Chris with Jessy, Arabella curled against her and her heart swelled. This was what she had fought for.
Fred arrived last, entering with his usual quiet authority. The room fell silent for a beat as everyone looked up. But instead of the cold patriarch they once feared, he walked over to Andrew first, placing a hand on his son's shoulder. Andrew stiffened, then slowly nodded. It wasn't forgiveness, not yet, but it was something.
Fred looked around at his gathered family children, grandchildren, in-laws, friends and for once, his face softened. "Cassandra tried to break us. But we are still here. Stronger."
Chris's arm slid around Bella's waist. She leaned into him, Jessy's small fingers clinging to hers, Arabella nestled on her other side.
Bianca raised her glass. "To Arabella's eight birthday."
"To family," Alexis added.
"To survival," Jayden said with a grin.
And Bella, looking at everyone around her, whispered to herself: To love.
That night, as the house finally quieted, Bella sat by Jessy's crib, watching him sleep. Arabella was curled up nearby, her little chest rising and falling in peace. Chris walked in, resting a hand on her shoulder.
"9 months ago, everything was chaos," Bella whispered. "Now look at us."
Chris kissed the top of her head. "Now look at us," he echoed.
And in that quiet, Bella knew storms would come again, shadows might rise but together, this family would always find the light.