Ariyah's POV
Forest Cottage
Eight months after Lucian's birth
---
"Mama."
The word stops my heart.
I'm sitting on the floor with Lucian, trying to teach him simple words. Apple. Tree. Moon. He's been babbling for weeks, making sounds that almost mean something. But this time, it's different.
He looks at me with those impossible silver-blue eyes, and he says it again.
"Mama."
The tears come before I can stop them. "Yes," I whisper, pulling him into my arms. "Yes, baby. I'm your mama."
He pats my face with his chubby hands, giggling at my reaction. He doesn't understand why I'm crying. He just knows he made me happy.
"What's going on?" Elara bursts through the door, her face alarmed. "I heard crying. Is everyone okay?"
"He said Mama." I laugh through my tears. "Lucian said Mama.
