Chapter 10 - The Warmest House in New York
Six months later, the spring rain drifted across Manhattan in thin silver sheets, exactly as it had a year ago. But the marble courtyard of the Moretti estate no longer reflected the iron gates like black brushstrokes on glass.
Inside, the mansion was alive with sound.
There was the sound of Sophia laughing as she chased a golden retriever puppy down the vaulted east corridor, her dark curls bouncing with every energetic leap. There was the sound of Mrs. Higgins humming cheerfully in the kitchen while baking a batch of chocolate chip cookies—with actual chocolate chips this time.
And upstairs, in the grand conservatory where tall ferns grew in imported terracotta pots, there was the sound of running feet.
Lily sprinted across the stone floor, her small legs moving with total freedom, her canvas braces long since locked away in a drawer upstairs. She wasn't using a walker. She wasn't holding onto furniture.
She ran straight toward Gabriel, who was kneeling on the grass-green carpet with his arms wide open.
Gabriel caught her effortlessly, swinging her up into the air as Lily shrieked with pure, unadulterated childish delight. He pressed a loud, exaggerated kiss to her cheek, making her giggle so hard she buried her face in his neck.
A few feet away, Emma stood leaning against the marble railing, wearing a soft cream-colored sweater and a smile that reached all the way to her eyes. Her dark blonde hair was no longer pinned in a rigid, practical knot; it fell in soft waves around her shoulders.
Gabriel set Lily down gently, watching as she scampered off to join Sophia and the puppy, then walked over to where Emma stood. He didn't wear his dark suit jacket today; he wore a simple white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, looking less like a feared syndicate boss and more like a man who had finally found his peace.
He wrapped his arms around Emma’s waist, pulling her flush against his chest, resting his chin comfortably on top of her head.
"You know," Gabriel murmured, pressing a soft kiss to her temple, "Jonathan is still complaining that I haven't checked the domestic camera logs in over three months."
Emma leaned back against him, smiling as she watched Sophia and Lily tumble onto the rug together in a tangle of laughter and puppy fur.
"And what did you tell him?" she asked, her voice warm and teasing.
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"I told him," Gabriel replied, tightening his arms around her with absolute, unshakeable certainty, "that the cameras were installed to watch over my daughters. But they accidentally captured the exact moment our family finally came home."
The cameras on the wall blinked quietly, their tiny green indicator lights glowing in the warm, sunlit room. But nobody was watching the screens anymore. They didn't need to. For the first time in New York City, the coldest house in Manhattan was the warmest place on earth.
