Page 112 of It Must Be Fate

He tips his chin at the door. “After you.”

“Okay…” I move past him and grab the handle. With one last suspicious look over my shoulder at him, I push the door open and walk in.

“Congratulations, Mummy!”

Someone blows into a party horn at the same time as a confetti cannon erupts, both of them startling me.

My hand goes to my mouth in surprise as I see all four of my children before me, with Rachel smiling just off to the side. They’re honking their party horns or holding up signs as they clap excitedly for me.

Next to them, the table is laid out with trays and trays of food and more bottles of champagne than I’ve ever seen.

Rogue wraps his arms around me from behind, his chin coming to rest on my shoulder as he holds me.

“Congratulations on your milestone business anniversary, sweetheart. Ten years ago today, you started Sinclair Royal. Look at everything you’ve accomplished in that time.” He presses a kiss to my cheek. “I’m so incredibly proud of you.”

Tears pool in my eyes as I watch the scene before me, overcome with emotion. “The kids?”

“They wanted to be a part of this. They’re as proud of their mum as I am. Except Rowan, I’m not sure she understands what’s happening quite yet, but she’s happy as a clam to be on party horn duty. We might have a musician on our hands. Or a tone-deaf daughter, it’s hard to know which at this point.”

It still shocks me that Rogue ever doubted himself as a parent. He was born to be a father and he’s embraced that role like a second skin. If anything, he’stooprotective of a parent. We routinely have to have conversations about how he’s not allowed to ‘get rid of’ anyone who so much as blinks wrong at one of his children.

“This is amazing,” I tell him, wiping my tears away and going up to my kids with a big smile on my face. “You guysareamazing. Thank you so much for the surprise,” I say, gathering them all up in a hug.

“Are you happy, Mummy?” Riot asks. It still bewilders me that my kids have British accents and call me “Mummy”, but somehow it makes them even cuter than they already are.

“Sohappy.”

“Can we join the party?”

I look over my shoulder to find Sixtine and Phoenix hovering at the door with equally big smiles on their faces.

Well,Sixtine’sface. Phoenix’s is set in his usual mask of cool disinterest.

“Of course! This isouranniversary after all.”

Rogue grumbles grumpily from behind me. “Not sure I like you sharing an anniversary with my wife, Sinclair.”

Phoenix shrugs but avoids giving me a celebratory hug nonetheless.

We stay in the conference room for hours, inviting the rest of the London employees to join us and cheers to the last ten years and the next ten. When it comes to the second half of the toast, I hold back my glass and glance over at where my husband is now standing on the opposite side of the room.

He senses my gaze. His eyes find mine immediately and an arrogant smirk curls his lips when he sees that my glass isn’t lifted with the others’.

He knows that having played the long game may well pay off for him very soon and that victory is near.

Only time will tell how much longer I stay at Sinclair Royal and when I leave to go join him at CKI.

***

Eighteen years after graduation

Chapter Twenty-Six

Nera

“What time is the event tonight?” I ask Tristan.

He and I are sitting alone around our vast dining table, having just finished a late lunch. The kids are all out of the house — Cato is at a movie with his friends, Kiza is at Thayer’s with Hayes, Suki is at gymnastics practice, and Juno and Hana are both at Bellamy’s to hang out with Riot and Rowan.

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