Chapter 179
Audrey's POV:
I couldn't wait another second.
I had spent five years believing my child was gone forever, and now I'd discovered he had been right here with me all along.
The miracle of it was almost too much to bear.
"Audrey, wait," Caspar called softly as I rushed toward Noah's room.
I paused, my hand already on the doorknob.
"He's sleeping."
"I know," I whispered, tears threatening to spill again.
"I just need to see him, Caspar."
Caspar's expression softened. He stepped closer and placed his hand over mine on the doorknob.
"Alright," he said quietly. "Let's go see our son."
Our son. The words sent a warm flutter through my chest.
We entered Noah's room together, moving silently across the plush carpet.
The nightlight cast a gentle glow over his sleeping form.
His dark curls fell across his forehead, and his long eyelashes rested against his cheeks.
I carefully sat on the edge of his bed, just watching him breathe. The rise and fall of his small chest. The slight twitch of his fingers as he dreamed.
All this time, I had been drawn to him, felt connected to him in a way I couldn't explain. Now I knew why. A mother's instinct had recognized what my mind couldn't possibly know.
"Noah looks so much like you," Caspar whispered, sitting beside me.
"The way he tilts his head when he's curious, how he bites his lip when concentrating... so many little things. I should have noticed it sooner."
I couldn't speak.
Words seemed wholly inadequate for this moment. Instead, I reached out and gently touched Noah's cheek, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath my fingertips.
He stirred slightly but didn't wake.
"I want to hold him," I murmured.
Without hesitation, I slipped off my shoes and carefully lay down next to Noah on his small bed.
Caspar watched us for a moment, his eyes reflecting a complex mix of emotions, before removing his own shoes and joining us on the other side.
The bed was far too small for three people, but somehow it felt perfect.
"We're quite a sight, aren't we?" Caspar whispered over Noah's head.
"The best kind of sight," I replied, unable to stop the tears that slid down my cheeks.
We fell asleep like that, an impossible family brought together by fate or chance or something I was starting to believe might actually be love.
---
I woke to the sensation of being watched.
Opening my eyes, I found myself staring into two pairs of identical dark eyes—one belonging to a man, the other to a child.
Both Caspar and Noah were awake, their heads propped up on their hands, watching me with matching expressions of curiosity.
"Good morning," I said, my voice still rough from sleep.
"Good morning, Audrey," Noah said sweetly, his little voice full of warmth.
"Dad told me you missed me so much last night that you had to come sleep here."
I reached out and pulled Noah into a tight hug, burying my face in his soft hair. "Yes, I did miss you. So, so much."
Noah wiggled slightly in my embrace, then pulled back just enough to look at my face.
His small fingers reached up and touched my cheek, where I hadn't realized a tear had fallen.
"Don't cry," he said softly, patting my back with his little hand. "It's okay. I'm not going anywhere. I'll always be right here with you."
"Noah," Caspar interrupted gently, "you need to get up now. You're going to be late for school."
Noah's eyes widened. "Is it that late already?"
He quickly planted a soft kiss on my cheek, his small lips warm against my skin, then scrambled off the bed with surprising speed.
"I'll be super quick!" he called over his shoulder, already halfway to his bathroom, his little feet padding across the carpet.
I looked at Caspar questioningly.
"I didn't tell him everything," Caspar assured me quietly.
"I think you'd want to speak to him personally."
I nodded, feeling a rush of gratitude for his thoughtfulness.
After Caspar left for work and I'd dropped Noah off at school, I practically raced back to the car and pulled out my phone.
I needed to share this incredible news with someone who would understand the magnitude of it.
Emma answered on the second ring.
"Emma," I said, my voice trembling with excitement. "I found my baby."
There was a beat of silence.
"What? Audrey, are you serious? How—"
She was interrupted by another call coming through—a video call from Jasper. "Hold on, Emma. It's Jasper. Let me conference you both in."
Soon, both their faces appeared on my screen, Emma's expression stunned, Jasper looking curious.
"Emma, Jasper, I found my child! " I repeated.
The words still felt miraculous on my tongue.
"The baby I was told died after birth five years ago. He's alive."
"Oh my God," Emma gasped. "How? Where?"
"It's Noah," I said, watching their reactions carefully. "Noah is my son."
Emma's mouth fell open. Jasper's expression shifted to something more guarded, more calculating.
"Your contract husband's son is actually your biological child?"
Emma said incredulously. "That's... that's beyond coincidence, Audrey."
"I know. It sounds impossible, but we did a DNA test. It's confirmed."
"How did this happen?" Jasper asked, his voice carefully neutral.
I explained what Caspar had discovered—how Amelia's brother had orchestrated the entire thing, stealing my baby and giving him to his sister to pass off as her own.
"This changes everything," Emma said when I finished.
Jasper remained unusually quiet, his expression thoughtful.
"Have you told Noah yet?" he finally asked.
"No," I admitted. "I'm waiting for the right time."
"But why wait?" Emma asked, frowning.
"You adore him, and he clearly adores you. Why not tell him immediately that—" She stopped suddenly, her eyes widening as realization dawned on her face.
The three of us fell into a heavy silence. The unspoken reality of my condition hung in the air between us.