Chapter 1 - The Door in the Sun
“What the hell are you doing?”
The heavy oak nursery door didn't just open; it slammed back against the wall, sending a shudder through the quiet room. Soft daylight, filtering through the tall, multi-paned windows, caught the dust motes dancing in the air as Ethan Vance stepped into the sanctuary. His broad, towering frame occupied the doorway, clad in a tailored black three-piece suit that seemed to absorb the room’s natural warmth. He had a rugged, square jaw, a short dark beard, and eyes that burned with a dangerous, protective intensity. Low at his side, his large hand gripped a black handgun, the metal dark and cold against his dark trousers.
He froze.
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In the center of the cream-and-gold nursery, sitting in a velvet armchair next to a white canopy crib, Emma Watson-inspired British maid, Emma, stared up in absolute terror. Her warm brown eyes, framed by stray chestnut waves slipping from a loose bun, were wide and glistening with unshed tears. She wore her modest black-and-white maid uniform, and in her lap, beneath a draped white nursing blanket, she was cradle-feeding Ethan's four-month-old son, Leo. The baby’s head was tucked securely against her, his tiny hand gripping the collar of her blouse, entirely covered by the blanket.
Ethan’s chest rose and fell beneath his black shirt. The weapon in his hand remained low, but his voice was like iron, demanding an answer that Emma was almost too frightened to give.
