Chapter 47 Falling In Love
KARA’S POV
Night arrives slowly, like the sky itself doesn’t want the day to end. The resort staff prepares the dinner exactly as we requested, right by the sea. A small wooden table waits for us on the sand, decorated simply but beautifully. Two lanterns glow softly on either side, their golden light dancing with the breeze. The scent of grilled seafood fills the air, warm and mouthwatering.
Crabs glazed with butter, grilled shrimp glistening under lemon slices, and fresh fish wrapped in banana leaves with a bowl of steaming rice that somehow smells better when you’re beside the ocean.
Finnian pulls my chair back before I can even reach it.
“Your seat, Miss Adventurer,” he says with a teasing bow.
I laugh softly and sit down.
“Thank you.”
The ocean stretches endlessly before us, dark blue slowly fading into silver as the last traces of sunlight disappear. We sit quietly for a moment while watching the sea water. The sun sinks lower and lower until the sky bursts into colors I can barely describe, burnt orange, soft pink, and deep violet. And then the moon appears slowly and calmly as it replaces the sun like a silent ruler taking over the sky.
I exhale softly.
“That’s… beautiful.”
Finnian glances at me instead of the sky.
“Yeah,” he murmurs. But again, I feel like he isn’t talking about the moon.
I pick up a shrimp, peeling it slowly.
“I think this might be the best day I’ve had in a long time,” I admit.
Finnian leans back in his chair as the lantern light reflects against the tattoos along his neck.
“Island hopping, jet skiing, and nearly drowning during snorkeling.”
“I did not nearly drown.”
“You panicked for three seconds.”
“I was adjusting!”
He chuckles, deep and amused.
“Sure.”
I shake my head, laughing quietly as I take a bite of the grilled fish. It’s delicious, warm, fresh, and slightly smoky from the grill.
“Thank you for today,” I say softly.
Finnian looks at me, his expression suddenly gentler.
“You’re welcome.”
A pause settles between us.
Then he adds quietly,
“I told you I wanted this day to be memorable.”
I meet his gaze.
“You succeeded.”
And for a moment, neither of us looks away. After dinner, the beach becomes quieter. Most tourists have returned to their rooms, leaving only the sound of waves and distant laughter drifting from the resort bar. We decide to take a walk. The sand is cool beneath my feet now as the tide brushes softly along the shore. Finnian walks beside me, hands tucked casually into his shorts pockets. For a while, neither of us speaks, until he finally breaks the silence.
“I’m close,” he says suddenly.
I glance at him.
“Close to what?”
His gaze stays on the horizon.
“Finding my real father.”
The words make me slow my steps.
“Oh.”
The ocean wind lifts a strand of my hair across my face.
“You already know who he is?” I ask gently.
“Not exactly.”
He kicks a small shell along the sand.
“But I have a very strong hint.”
I hesitate before asking the question that’s been quietly sitting in my mind.
“How did it happen?” I ask carefully. “That you’re not… actually a Stewheinz?”
He exhales slowly.
“A baby switching.”
My brows knit together.
“At the hospital?”
“Yeah.”
He runs a hand through his hair, the moonlight catching the lines of his jaw.
“The problem is,” he continues, “I still don’t know if it was an accident… or if someone planned it.”
A chill moves through me despite the warm night air.
“That’s… terrifying.”
He shrugs lightly, though his voice carries something heavier beneath it.
“It’s also fascinating.”
I look at him.
“How?”
Finnian glances down at the sand.
“Because somewhere out there,” he says quietly, “there’s a man who has no idea that I might be his son.”
The thought lingers between us like a fragile glass and I don’t know what to say. So instead, I gently bump his shoulder with mine.
“You’ll find him.”
He looks at me.
“You sound very confident.”
“I am.”
“Why?”
I smile faintly.
“Because you’re the kind of person who doesn’t stop until he gets answers.”
For a second, he just stares at me.
Then he smirks.
“You make me sound dangerous.”
“You are dangerous.”
He laughs softly.
“Fair.”
Sensing the heaviness in the air, I decide to change the topic.
“So,” I say casually, “I still have a lot of work waiting for me back at the office.”
Finnian raises a brow.
“Oh?”
“Yeah. My last task before the next project starts.”
He hums thoughtfully.
“Well… enjoy it while you can.”
I glance at him.
“Why?”
“Because I’m flying to Spain on Monday.”
My eyes widen slightly.
“Spain?”
“Business matters.”
He shrugs.
“I’ll be there for a week.”
“And you’re telling me this now?”
He grins.
“I could bring you with me.”
I roll my eyes dramatically.
“Oh yes. Because I can totally abandon my job and fly to Spain just like that.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m a responsible adult.”
Finnian bursts out laughing.
“Responsible?”
“Yes!”
“Jet-ski screaming Kara is responsible?”
“Excuse me—”
He keeps laughing, the sound warm and contagious.
“I’m kidding,” he says, raising his hands in surrender.
But the idea lingers in my mind for a moment. Another week, another place, another adventure, and then reality settles back in.
Later, as we continue walking along the shoreline, I fall quiet. Finnian walks slightly ahead of me now as the moonlight outlines his tall frame. The waves roll gently against the sand while I am watching. And something inside my chest begins to ache in a way I don’t fully understand.
Because today was perfect, too perfect. The kind of day that feels like it belongs in a memory already and that thought scares me. I wrap my arms around myself lightly as the breeze brushes against my skin.
What exactly is happening here?
Between us, between me and Finnian, as it started as something simple, an unexpected meeting, and a few conversations.
A strange connection I couldn’t quite explain, But now, now he’s the man who bought a little girl’s last anklet without hesitation, the man who held my hand underwater like he was afraid to lose me, and the man who planned an entire day just so I could smile.
And the worst part is, I don’t know what this means for me and for us, because people like Finnian don’t stay, they move from city to city, country to country, and probably from woman to woman. Men like him belong to the world and women like me belong to routines like offices, deadlines, and responsibilities. Two completely different lives.
I look up at the moon again. It is bright, distant, and unreachable. And somehow, it reminds me of him. Beautiful, magnetic, but not something you can ever truly keep.
My heart tightens at the thought so, instead of saying anything, I take a quiet breath and keep walking beside him enjoying the sound of the waves, the warmth of the night, and the fragile, fleeting happiness of a moment that I know because I am aware that deep down, this won’t last forever.