Page 126 of Modern Romance March 2025 (5-8)

I glance at my dive computer. Signal to her that we’re okay to surface. She nods and we slowly ascend together. We break the surface of the water, pulling our masks down as we fill our vests with air and float.

“It never gets old,” she says with a laugh.

“Never will.”

I reach out, grasp her hand in mine and bring it to my lips. Her eyes darken as she smiles at me, the curve of her lips promising decadent things.

A soft coo reaches my ears. I turn and smile up at my daughter.

My daughter, I marvel as Adessa smacks the railing of the yacht with a chubby hand. Her Ttheía Katie keeps one arm around her waist. Her Theíos Nathan snaps a photo.

Even after ten months, it doesn’t seem real. To have a beautiful little girl who looks exactly as I pictured her: dark-haired with caramel-colored eyes and the most incredible smile.

Tessa and I had taken our first year together to just be. Waking up in Paris on Saturday mornings and making love before going out to explore the city. Traveling back to Santorini so she could visit her father and make amends with her past while redecorating the villa where Gavriil and I had spent so many horrible years.

On our second anniversary, we’d decided to try for a family. The year that had followed had brought numerous joys, including Tessa’s business expanding to include another decorator that handled some of the higher-end designs and gave Tessa more time to devote to her passion projects, including designing accessible suites for a luxury hotel along the southern coast of France.

We’d needed every one of those joys as each month the test had read negative. As we’d had long discussions about how to proceed. Her doctor had been optimistic, but even her words couldn’t fully erase Tessa’s fears.

Until two months after our third anniversary when she’d sent my heart pounding with a scream that filled the villa on Corfu. I ran into our suite to find her sitting on the bed, a test clasped in her hands. She’d looked at me, eyes shining, her face lit up with her smile.

We’re pregnant.

The pregnancy had thankfully gone almost perfectly, aside from the usual exhaustion and morning sickness. The wait to get pregnant had brought about an unexpected blessing, too. As we’d passed the year mark trying to conceive, we’d explored other options for expanding our family. When Adessa turned two, we planned to give her a sibling through adoption.

Tessa glances over the deck.

“Where’s Mom and Dad?” she calls.

Katie grimaces. “Don’t ask.”

Tessa makes a retching sound as I grin. It took a solid year of counseling, but Tessa’s mother and father managed to work through years of guilt, anger and misunderstandings. The unfortunate side effect is that they have become notorious for slipping off to catch up on “lost time.”

“You got a call, Rafe,” Nathan calls down. “Another client.”

I shake my head. “Great.”

Tessa playfully splashes me as we paddle toward the yacht. “Hey. At least people like you.”

True. Shortly after Tessa and I reunited, I sold my shares of Drakos Development to Gavriil. Michail, predictably, wanted nothing to do with them. Within months, Gavriil had a CEO lined up, one who agreed with Gavriil’s vision for the direction of the company and jumped into the fray without hesitation.

Leaving me to set up my own consulting business doing what I specialize in as well as enjoy: organizing, planning, scheduling. It also gave me the freedom to join Tessa wherever she needed or wanted to be: the States, Paris, London and beyond.

Including what I’ve come to think of as “our cove” just a few miles away from our villa on Corfu. A place that has become a gathering for Tessa’s family and mine. Once a place I loathed and now feel like I’m coming home every time I walk in the door.

“Da-da!”

My head snaps around. Adessa is grinning at me, her beautiful little face lit up with a cheeky grin.

“Did she just…?”

“Sorry,” Katie says to her sister with a slight laugh. “I think she did. Baby girl’s first word!”

As Katie and Tessa exchange jokes, my eyes drift between my wife and my daughter. A few years ago, I never would have imagined such happiness was possible. But now, as I reach the back of the boat and help Tessa out of her vest before she pulls herself onto the back of the boat, I can only think about how grateful I am that Tessa came back.

“What are you thinking of?”

She’s sitting on the edge of the platform, her gear next to her, legs drifting in the water.

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