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DOMINIC

I walked into the boardroom that morning knowing exactly what I had to say. Vanessa glanced up from her laptop as I took my seat at the head of the table. The others fell silent, watching me closely. Once again, I had not been invited to this board meeting, but here I was interrupting.

“I want to address the discussion surrounding David Bennett,” I told them as a few members shifted uncomfortably in their chairs.

One cleared his throat, leaning back with a scowl on his face.

This topic had become the bane of their existence for weeks.

Once we figured out who was behind the leaks and hacks, they moved swiftly to terminate Marla. But David presented a problem.

“We’ve all read the reports; we know what he did.

But going public with it doesn’t make us look strong.

It makes both Raven it’s about?—”

“Everything is about appearances. We work in a glass house. If we throw a stone, we better be prepared to get cut.” Heaving a sigh, I said, “And you’re right.

What’s right and wrong is always the most important, but right now, going after him will tank us.

We can handle this without a media frenzy. ”

Vanessa leaned forward. “So what are you suggesting? We sit on it?” She scowled at me, throwing daggers with her eyes. She, of all people, knew what the press storm would do to our optics.

“I’m suggesting we don’t stoop to his level. We protect the integrity of this company, and we do that by not aligning ourselves with personal vendettas, even if they’re justified. We let the silence speak louder than scandal.”

There was a pause. Then a slow ripple of nods.

“We don’t go public,” Richard confirmed, though his tone was more begrudging than agreeable.

It was just what I needed to hear. Saving David from himself was the last thing on my mind.

I had a company to protect, and I knew this was the best option.

The fact that it spared him was a silver lining for Savannah’s sake, not mine.

“Good,” I said. “Then I have somewhere to be.” Standing, I accepted the few words of gratitude and a few scowls, then I headed out, set to meet Savannah across town at the boys’ school they’d be attending come August.

The school looked small from the outside.

White stone, red shutters, a little playground already scattered with colorful plastic toys.

Inside, the air smelled like something sweet from the cafeteria.

I found Savannah waiting near the front office, her hands folded in front of her, toes tapping the tile.

She looked up and smiled. “They just finished their tour. They’re obsessed with the library.”

“I’ll take your word for it.” Chuckling, I reached out for her hand and she took it, standing to wrap me in a brief hug.

We walked together down the hall, past murals painted by students and classroom doors covered in bright paper shapes.

“Thank you for coming,” she said. “I was hoping come the time school starts you’ll be able to help with some of this.

” Her expression shifted to hesitancy. “Thea is going to take on a few more classes and with my work schedule I?—”

“I want to be more than just a co-parent, Savannah.”

She stopped walking and turned toward me. Her voice was quiet as she said, “I want that too. But the boys need stability. We have to go at their pace, Dom. I don’t want to rush into anything and then have it all fall apart…” Her face drooped a little, head dipping.

I used a finger curled under her jaw to pull her eyes up to look at me.

“Then we go at their pace. But I needed you to know I’m all in.

I am not here out of obligation. When you came back into my life, I knew that first searing kiss that you were what I wanted.

The boys are icing on the cake, Van. You’re my future. ”

She looked relieved at first, her shoulders easing and her mouth softening into a smile. But then her expression changed—brows pulling together slightly, her gaze dipping to the floor before flicking back to mine. Something else was on her mind, something she hadn’t decided whether to say.

“What?” I asked, feeling the familiar swirl of uncertainty in my chest. If I had to jump one more hurdle to make this woman mine…

Savannah hesitated, then laughed under her breath. “There might be more news coming.” When her eyes swayed up to meet mine, she looked apprehensive.

I frowned. “What do you mean?”

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I made a doctor’s appointment—just to check—because…after everything…I missed my period.”

For a second, I forgot how to breathe. “You think you’re?—”

She nodded, watching me carefully, but the smile stretching over her lips made me feel instantly giddy. I closed the distance between us and wrapped my arms around her. “Savannah. That’s the best thing I’ve heard all year.”

She let out a breathy laugh against my chest. “You’re not panicking.”

“I’m thrilled. I want it. All of it. You. Them. This.”

And for the first time in a very long time, I felt the future right within my reach, and I couldn’t be happier.