My Love Until the Last Goodbye (Mary and Maximus) novel Chapter 1065

After almost four hours on the road—where Alden's driver wasn't so much driving as flying—he finally arrived. He didn't even wait for the car to park. As soon as he saw the hospital, he jumped out and ran inside.

Alden was sprinting down the hallway looking for the room number, his heart pounding in his chest. In that moment, he wished he had superpowers just so he could appear there instantly.

He felt a bit calmer knowing Serenity's mom and dad were already with her, and he had already told Peter and Celeste—she had gone too.

He needed to see his wife. He needed to meet his daughter.

Even Laura had already made it to the hospital. Technically, he was the only adult who hadn't arrived yet, along with the other men in the family like Maximus and Peter, who had stayed behind to finalize the union of the three families with the notary.

When he saw the room number, he finally felt a wave of relief. He opened the door—and walked into a slightly surreal scene. Lucius was sitting on the couch holding the baby, while Serenity chatted with her mom.

Celeste had gone with Laura to grab a coffee. She was a little sleep-deprived since she had just finished her final exams.

"Serenity! My girl!" Alden said as he saw his wife.

To him, she looked beautiful. Despite the tired look in her eyes, she was still the most beautiful woman in the world. Lucius realized it was time to hand the baby over to her dad.

"I think she should meet her father…" Lucius said a little nervously.

Alden looked at him, instinctively sizing him up. He had no idea why the guy was with his wife, but since Marcus and Valerie were both there and seemed fine with it, Alden didn't object.

"Let's see… My angel, my little one… Hi, baby! Hi, sweetheart! I'm your dad! My beautiful girl… It's okay now, Daddy's here, Mommy's here… Welcome to the family, my little one," Alden said as he held and admired his beautiful daughter, who had inherited Serenity's dark hair, but Alden's skin tone and gorgeous eyes.

"She's beautiful!" Valerie said as she came over to see the baby in Alden's arms.

Lucius, seeing the scene, figured it was time to go. He planned to check in on Laura and see if she wanted to leave. If not, he'd order an Uber—he was exhausted, and honestly, welcoming his niece hadn't exactly been a walk in the park.

Having made up his mind, he walked over to Serenity, took her hand, and said.

"I think it's time for me to head out. I need to see Laura, and Amanda must be worried…"

"Oh, right! Thank you, Lucius! Really, thank you so much! You have no idea how much it meant to me to have you there during such a tough moment—giving birth to my daughter. Just having you there helped a lot. I didn't feel so alone… I'm always going to tell Isabelle about that."

"She's going to be called Isabelle?" Lucius asked with interest.

"Yeah… but now that I think about it, maybe we could go with Lucy Isabelle… or Isabelle Lucy…" Serenity said, still thinking about how to combine the name.

After a round of goodbyes, Lucius and Marcus left the hospital. And just as Lucius expected, Marcus was looking for a moment alone with him—a chance to talk and clear the air.

"Lucius, I don't know what you and Serenity were doing when she started feeling bad. But knowing my daughter, I know she wants to be a good sister. I'm just asking that you honor that trust.

"I can't make decisions for her, but what I will say is this: she has a huge heart. And like it or not, you two are part of the next generation—the ones who'll carry on our family names.

"Nothing makes me happier than seeing my daughter smile. That's why I've decided to leave the past where it belongs—in the past.

But I'll tell you this: Lucius, Serenity is a good person, a good daughter, and most of all, she's my little girl—the light of my life. I'd hate to see her hurt someday… because if she gets hurt, I'd end up hurting whatever you love most.

"And you know I'm not speaking figuratively. I believe deep down you're a good kid, just caught up in a lot of bad circumstances. But I'm asking you—before you ever think about hurting my daughter, think about the example you're setting for your siblings. Every move you make, they're watching."

"Don't worry, Mr. Bartz. I'm not here for anything but to make peace with Serenity. I know how important she is to my other sister, Laura, and I—neither of us would ever want to hurt Serenity. Not now.

"I know I got wrapped up in the wrong kind of games in the past… but that's behind me now."