Chapter 63 Chapter 63
Setting her phone aside, she turned back to her design project, but found her attention wandering to the silver iris pin secured to her sweater. The small object had travelled with her from the Lawson nursery to the Maxwell home, the only physical connection between her two lives. Now it seemed to carry even more significance, a talisman bridging past and present, linking the families that loved her.
Across town in his apartment, Tony stared at Iris's message, a smile playing at his lips. Despite the chaos of the day, his confrontation with his mother, the photographers outside the restaurant, and the constant awareness of security personnel, he felt more centred than he had in years. Pursuing Iris had started as simple admiration for her talent, but had evolved into something far deeper, something worth defying his mother's expectations for.
His phone rang, displaying his father's name. Tony answered with some trepidation, bracing for another round of Kennedy family politics.
"Antony," Julius said, his voice unusually gentle. "I saw the news footage. Are you both alright?"
"We're fine," Tony replied, surprised by his father's concern. "The security team was prepared."
"Good." Julius paused, then continued in a more careful tone. "Your mother is... processing this situation in her own way. She may need time to adjust to your choices."
Tony sank onto his sofa, running a hand through his hair. "Dad, I'm not making choices to spite Mother. This isn't about the Lawsons or their position. It's about Iris, who she is, what she creates."
"I know," Julius said simply. "I've seen her work."
The admission caught Tony off guard. His father rarely took an interest in anything outside the Kennedy business empire. "You have?"
"I had my assistant compile a portfolio," Julius explained. "The girl has extraordinary vision. I can see why you were drawn to her, even before you knew her connection to the Lawsons."
In the Lawson mansion, Theodore sat in his office long after the rest of the household had retired, reviewing security protocols for Iris's campus movements. His analytical mind, so similar to his sister's, methodically identified potential vulnerabilities and solutions. Unlike his emotional younger brothers, Theodore processed his feelings through action, through problem-solving.
Finding Roxanne had fulfilled a mission that had defined half his lifetime. At twelve years old, he had promised his devastated parents he would help find his baby sister someday. That childhood vow had shaped his educational choices, his career path, and even his decision to remain living at the estate rather than establish his own life outside his family's duty as heir.
Now that Iris was found, Theodore faced an unexpected reality: the mission was complete, but his role was only beginning. As head of the family's legal interests and heir to the business empire, he would be responsible for guiding his sister through the complex world she had suddenly inherited. This thought occupied his mind as he added another layer of security protocols to Iris's schedule.
A soft knock at his office door interrupted his concentration. Bryce stood in the doorway, his usual boundless energy subdued by the late hour.
"Can't sleep either?" Theodore asked, gesturing for his youngest brother to enter.
Bryce dropped into the chair across from Theodore's desk, his lanky frame sprawling with the casual confidence of youth. "I keep thinking about tomorrow. About meeting Iris's other brothers properly." He hesitated, an unusual moment of vulnerability crossing his features. "What if they don't like me?"
Theodore smiled at his brother's concern, so different from his own methodical worries. "The Maxwell boys seemed to respond well to you this morning. Jakob was particularly impressed with your description of the game room."
"Yeah, but that was just a quick visit," Bryce countered, running a hand through his perpetually dishevelled hair. "This weekend is different. It's...it's real. We're all going to be here together, and everything has to be perfect for Iris."
Theodore recognised the pressure Bryce was putting on himself, the same pressure they all felt to make this unprecedented family reunion a success. "Perfect isn't possible, Bryce. But it is genuine. The Maxwells will appreciate authenticity more than perfection."
At the university, Iris finally closed her design portfolio, too exhausted to continue working. Tomorrow would bring new challenges, more curious stares, more whispers, and more adjustments to her new reality. But it would also bring Tony, her family, and the continued development of her exhibition with Dianne.
As she prepared for bed, she found herself thinking of the Lawson estate's studio where she and Dianne had examined their designs side by side. There had been a moment, brief but profound, when Iris had felt a creative connection that transcended their years of separation. It wasn't just genetic resemblance or similar aesthetic preferences; it was something deeper, a shared artistic language that needed no translation.
That connection felt like solid ground amid the shifting landscape of her identity. Whether she was Iris Maxwell, Roxanne Lawson, or some new integration of both, her creative vision remained uniquely hers.
In the Kennedy penthouse, Julius Kennedy was still awake, reviewing the portfolio of Iris's designs he had compiled. Her work showed remarkable sophistication for someone so young, clean lines that somehow conveyed emotion, and practical considerations seamlessly integrated with artistic vision. There was something refreshingly authentic about her approach, a quality the Kennedy empire's design subsidiaries often lacked despite their technical excellence.
Helga appeared in the doorway of his office, her silk robe cinched tightly around her waist, her face watching her husband with calculated interest as he was going through the file.
"I see you're still reviewing the Maxwell girl's portfolio," Helga observed, her tone deliberately neutral despite the curiosity burning within her.