Chapter 35: Hidden Heir: Chapter 35

“It says Happy Birthday, right?”

I lift the piping bag away from the cake and squint down at my rather wobbly handiwork before looking at Rik who pauses on his way past with a tray full of drinks.

“Uh… sure, if I squint really hard,” he replies.

“Really?”

“Like I said, if I squint really hard it totally does.” Rik chuckles. “Just tell the guests to squint and you’ve absolutely nailed it.”

“Argh,” I whine. “It says Happy Birthday!”

“Can she read? She’s only four, right?”

“Of course she can read.” I sigh and lower the piping bag. “Maybe I should cover it all up and try again.”

“You’re thinking about it too much,” Rik says. “It’s things like this that we will be laughing about for years to come. It’s part of what makes birthdays fun. Besides, as long as the cake tastes good, I’m sure she won’t care.”

“You’re right. She’ll definitely want to eat it more than read it.”

“Exactly.” Rik winks at me. “Trust me, it’ll be fine.” He hurries away with the drinks, leaving me with my horribly decorated cake.

Tiffany’s fourth birthday crept up out of nowhere. With everything that’s happened these past six months, it had slipped my mind mostly because I’d lost track of time. Until I woke up one night drenched in a cold sweat, fearing I was the worst mother on the planet because I’d forgotten my daughter’s birthday. Luckily, that was a couple of weeks ago and I’ve been planning every detail of her birthday ever since.

It started small until Leon pointed out that I had infinite resources at my fingertips now and could spoil our daughter in unimaginable ways. Which, given the horrors of this year, I am absolutely doing. Except for having the cake professionally done which I now wish I would have agreed to do.

It’s been the sweetest thing, watching Leon bond with our daughter. Telling her that Leon was her father was relatively smooth given her young age. Watching him care for her, play with her and spend every second of his free time with her brings tears of joy to my eyes.

Being able to celebrate her birthday as a family is the cherry on top of my badly decorated cake.

Vibrant music drifts through from the patio where the party is in full swing. Through the window, I see Tiffany laughing and cheering as she bounces back and forth on Leon’s shoulders while they chase after Selina and her bubble machine. A few other guards mill around, keeping an eye on the hired entertainers. We have multiple Disney Princesses and a local animal enthusiast, who brought a pony for Tiffany to ride around on.

She’s being spoiled and I love it.

The most surprising guest at the party is Ronan. I invited him out of politeness and both Leon and I were shocked when he agreed to come. He’s currently deep in conversation with Kreik about some old sporting event that happened fifteen years ago, and despite the harsh words I overhear as I walk by, it’s all in good fun.

Even the Italians sent birthday greetings along with several gifts, including a new bike for Tiffany. It was an extravagant gift though Leon suspects also a way for them to reach out.

The deal Leon secured with the Italians went through a dramatic change when it became known throughout the private sector that the Russians were no longer dealing in people. With no blood money changing hands, the Italians lowered their cost requirement, which made Leon happy and even impressed Kreik.

I suspect our relationship with the Irish also played a part in the Italians playing nice but I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

I reach the banquet table and set the cake down, attempting to hide my terrible decorating with celebration the candles. Four is such a small number and yet it blows my mind how quickly we’ve gotten here. I close my eyes and Tiffany is still a baby in my arms. Now, she’s a fully-fledged, independent and sassy little human. Everyone warns you about how quickly the time goes though you don’t really believe it until you become a parent yourself.

With the final candle in place, I turn back to the celebration. Tiffany is now having a very important tea party with the Princesses while Selina and Rik pet and feed the pony. Leon walks toward me with a bright smile on his face though it wavers when he gets closer.

“Brooke? What’s wrong?”

It’s not until he touches my cheek that I realize I’m crying. “Oh god.” I turn away, quickly dabbing at my eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

“Tell me what’s wrong.” He slides one arm around my waist and cups my face with the other. “What’s happened?”

“Nothing,” I insist. “Nothing at all. It’s just… well, I guess I’m a little overwhelmed.”

“Do you need me to wind the party down?” His eyes flood with concern as he wipes my tears with his thumb.

“No, no it’s not that. It’s just…” I close my eyes and turn into Leon’s hand, soaking up his contact for a moment. Then I look him in the eye. “For her first birthday I did nothing because I couldn’t afford to. I figured it was okay because she wouldn’t remember so it was just me singing to her in my apartment. We spent her second birthday in the hospital because Ant was so high out of his face that he crashed his car and I had to wait for him to get stitches. By the time we got home, it wasn’t her birthday anymore. For her third, I tried really hard and Hannah…” I pause, swallowing back the emotion. “Hannah helped me and we tried to throw her a party but Ant was sick. He got her sick too so she spent her birthday feeling crummy and opening two presents because that’s all I could afford.”

Leon’s brow knits together in mild anger.

“I kept telling myself that once my business took off I’d be able to spoil her but look at her now.” Tiffany’s squeals of delight and laughter carry on the breeze toward us.

“This is more than I ever thought I could give her. She has more presents than I can count, more food than we’ve ever had. I am able to get her the things that she dreams about. She’s surrounded by people who adore her, not a drug-addicted uncle who cares more about his next fix than her safety. It’s all just so overwhelming because I can’t believe it’s real. Does that make sense?”

Leon smiles softly and pulls me closer, wrapping me up in a big bear hug. He kisses the top of my head. “It makes perfect sense. You should be proud, Brooke. You’ve done incredible things to keep her safe and she’s happy and healthy. She’s having the time of her life. Because of you.”

Leon pulls back and cups my face. “She might not remember but I’ll know. And I’ll always be proud of you.”

“You’re just saying that because I’m good in bed,” I tease, sniffling through my happy tears.

Leon laughs and kisses my forehead. “Maybe. But in all seriousness, look around you, Brooke. Our daughter is blossoming. Ronan Murphy is here and let me tell you, the Russians and the Irish haven’t been in the same room in decades. You’re unintentionally building bridges between families that have been quiet enemies for longer than anyone can remember. So believe me when I say that you are incredible. As a woman and as a mother.” He casts his gaze around at the party. “You don’t need to look any further to see that.”

“You have such a way with words,” I chuckle, nudging against his chest. “But thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

“Mommy!” Tiffany suddenly yells, running toward us at a full sprint. “Daddy!”

My heart swells each time I hear her say that and when I glance at Leon, he looks like he’s the one who’s about to cry.

“Hi sweetie!” I catch her when she launches into my arms and scoop her up.

“Is it cake time?” she asks.

“It can be.” I smile, kissing her warm cheek. “Daddy, will you do the honors?”

“Gladly!”

Selina calls everyone around to watch as Leon lights the candles. Once they’re lit, he squints down at the cake. “Harry birdie?” he questions quietly, glancing up at me. I narrow my eyes and he laughs.

“You can decorate next year.” I murmur.

“Oh no,” Leon smirks. “I want you to decorate every year.”

I set Tiffany down in front of the cake and then look around. It’s hard to believe that I now have this insane, dangerous family around me to help raise and protect Tiffany but I love it. I never anticipated my life taking such a dramatic turn. It might have been painful but it was incredibly worth it.

A chorus of Happy Birthday rises up from the crowd. Selina and Rik link arms and sway together while Ronan and Kreik raise a glass. Tiffany grabs Leon’s hand as she leans forward to blow out her candles.

This is the family she deserves.