Adrian POV
I wake before the sun.
Not because I slept well.
Because control requires preparation.
The city outside the penthouse windows is still dark, towers reduced to silhouettes against a slow gray horizon. For a moment, everything is quiet enough that last night almost feels theoretical.
Almost.
The clinic report sits open on my tablet where I left it.
99.9% probability. Paternity confirmed.
Data. Verified. Irrefutable.
Emotion has no role here. Confirmation removes uncertainty. And uncertainty is inefficiency.
I stand, already dressed, and move toward the kitchen as market alerts begin lighting up my phone.
Our marriage announcement has rewritten the morning cycle.
Cole Industries: rising.
Hale Global: unstable.
Media headlines scroll across the screen.
Strategic Marri
