Chapter 9 - THE LEGACY
Olivia stared at the glowing screen of the phone. The DNA results were clear.
Leo shared no genetic markers with David Sterling.
She looked up at Alexander, her mind spinning. “If David wasn't his father… then who is?”
Alexander looked at the boy, who was resting his head sleepily on Olivia’s shoulder. He thought about the rare autoimmune disease Leo had. A disease that was exceptionally rare, but ran prominently in one specific family.
His own.
“Elias,” Alexander realized aloud, his voice thick with shock. “Elias Vance is his grandfather. Sarah didn't have an affair with David. She had an affair with Elias’s son, Thomas. Thomas died of the exact same condition three years ago.”
Olivia gasped. “Elias knew. That’s why he risked his life to find me. That’s why he told me to protect the boy.”
A profound silence settled between them in the elevator. The pieces had finally fallen into place. Sarah had lied to everyone, using David as a wealthy cover for her pregnancy, manipulating both families for her own gain.
But as Olivia held the sleeping boy tighter, she realized it didn't change a single thing.
“He’s still my boy,” Olivia whispered fiercely. “DNA doesn't change that. I raised him.”
Alexander reached out, gently placing a hand on Leo’s back. “No one is taking him from you, Olivia. I promise you that.”
---
Three months later.
The winter sun shone brightly through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows of Alexander’s upstate estate. Outside, the snow covered the rolling hills in a blanket of pristine white.
Inside the warm, cedar-scented living room, Elias Vance sat by a roaring fire. He looked healthier, the color returned to his cheeks, laughing as little Leo showed him a crude crayon drawing of a lighthouse.
“That’s a mighty fine lighthouse, Leo,” Elias chuckled, slipping a tarnished silver pocket watch into the boy's small hand. “You keep that safe for me, okay?”
Olivia watched them from the doorway, holding a steaming mug of coffee. She wasn't wearing scrubs. She wore a thick, comfortable cashmere sweater. The dark circles under her eyes were completely gone, replaced by a radiant, peaceful glow.
She felt a warm presence behind her.
Alexander wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder.
“The hospital board called,” Alexander murmured softly in her ear. “They formally approved your appointment as the Director of the new Pediatric Foundation.”
Olivia leaned back into him, a soft smile on her lips. “I’m a nurse, Alex. Not a director.”
“You’re a leader, Liv,” he corrected gently. “You fought a war for that little boy and won. The foundation needs someone with your heart.”
She turned in his arms, looking up into the eyes of the man who had changed her life on one exhausted, rainy night.
“I didn't win it alone,” she whispered.
Alexander brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear, leaning down to press a soft, lingering kiss to her forehead.
May you like
“You got into the wrong car, Olivia,” he said, a ghost of his signature smile playing on his lips.
“No,” Olivia smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck as they watched Leo laugh by the fire. “I think I got into exactly the right one.”
