My Sister Stole My Mate And I Let Her (Seraphina) novel Chapter 85

Chapter 85: Chapter 85 LIKE A FAMILY

SERAPHINA’S POV

I woke to the muted hush of the ocean. The sound was steady, rhythmic, as though the entire island breathed in and out in sync with me.

For a moment, I lay still on the wide, soft bed, the gauzy curtains swaying with the salt-tinged breeze that slipped in through the open balcony doors.

Beyond them, Musha Cay glowed with early sunlight, the horizon painted in coral and rose.

Daniel’s laughter from the night before lingered in my head, clear and bright like windchimes.

The memory pulled me upright, shoulders heavy with sleep yet warmed by the thought of spending the day with my baby.

Dinner last night had been...awkward—Kieran’s parents trying too hard to make small talk, Kieran himself brooding behind polite restraint.

The only light—as usual—had been Daniel, chattering about surfing, about the villa, about how much better coconuts tasted here than anywhere else in the world.

If Daniel was happy, then I was happy. That mantra had carried me through worse nights than last.

Still, the air in the dining room had been thick, and I had felt Kieran’s eyes on me too many times, a heat that pricked the skin at the nape of my neck.

I’d forced myself to focus on Daniel’s joy, telling myself that his smile mattered more than my discomfort.

I slipped from the bed, pulling a silk robe around me, its fabric cool against my skin as I headed into the bathroom. After a shower, I braided my damp hair loosely over one shoulder and changed into pale blue linen shorts and a white loose blouse before stepping out into the hall.

The villa was extravagant in every corner—polished teak floors, whitewashed walls, orchids blooming in vases—but its beauty didn’t hide the coldness that lingered in its halls.

“Where’s Daniel?” I asked one of the Omegas, a young woman who carried a tray of fresh fruit past me.

She smiled, bowing slightly. “At the beach with Alpha Kieran, Ma’am. They went out just after sunrise.”

Something inside me flickered—equal parts relief and unease. Daniel was safe, yes, but with Kieran.

If I wanted to spend any time with my son, I’d have to spend time with his father, too.

Lovely.

I followed the winding path lined with hibiscus until the sand warmed my feet. The morning light glittered across the sea, waves rolling in a hypnotic rhythm.

Then I saw them.

Daniel, standing unsteady but determined on a surfboard, Kieran steadying him with a firm hand on his back.

Daniel whooped with laughter as he wobbled, nearly falling before regaining his balance. Kieran laughed too, the sound startlingly warm, echoing across the water.

I froze at the edge of the palms, my breath caught. They looked...like a family.

I should have felt nothing but gladness, but envy twisted sharp in my chest. Not of Daniel’s joy—that was mine, too—but of the ease Kieran seemed to find with him.

The ease he’d never had with me.

Daniel spotted me first. “Mom!” His voice cracked with excitement, his arm shooting up in a wave that nearly toppled him into the surf. “Come see! I’m showing Dad my surfing moves!”

Someone needed to come up with a different term for kids to refer to divorced parents. Hearing Daniel call us ‘Dad’ and ‘Mom’ as if we were one happy family scraped raw at me.

Kieran turned then, his gaze meeting mine across the water.

For a heartbeat, the world narrowed to just his eyes, the memory of his mouth on mine on the yacht still seared into me.

I tore my gaze away, forcing a smile as Daniel hopped off the board and splashed toward me.

“You have to try,” he insisted, water streaming off him as he tugged my hand. “Come on, Mom, you’ll love it. I can teach you!”

I laughed, though my stomach fluttered with nerves. “You? Teach me?”

“Of course,” Daniel said proudly, puffing up his chest. “Dad says I’m a natural.”

Kieran’s voice carried over the waves. “He’s not wrong.”

I ignored the way my skin prickled at his carefree tone and allowed Daniel to drag me into the surf.

The water surged cool around my ankles, then my knees.

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify