"Kieran had never seen a stranger feel like his reflection—until today. He had an heir?"
The afternoon sun glared off the hood of the Mercedes, a minor annoyance to Kieran D'Angelo. He was driving himself—a rare necessity—and his mind was on the logistics of the Japanese deal, not the mundane world outside his car window.
He was passing a public park, a splash of green in the urban landscape, when a flicker of movement on a solitary bench caught his attention. He didn't just look; he observed. That was his nature.
A young boy sat there, swinging his legs, a whirlwind of small energy contained in a tiny, bright shirt.Kieran's foot hit the brake, hard. The luxury sedan stopped abruptly.
Bloody hell.
It was like staring at a ghost. Or rather, a mirror image of himself, plucked from a black-and-white photograph of his own solitary childhood.
The same chaotic dark hair, the exact same defiant chin, and even from this distance, a startling, familiar intensity in the eyes.
He didn't think. He acted on instinct, a drive he hadn't felt since closing his first major takeover deal. He cut the engine and crossed the quiet street, his focus entirely consumed by the child.
A scruffy blonde man was at the ice cream counter, back turned, busy with his order. Kieran ignored him.
The world narrowed to this bench and the boy who looked unsettlingly D'Angelo.He bent down slowly, a movement that felt alien to his tightly controlled body.
Their eyes met. They were identical: a shocking, crystalline blue that seemed to cut through the haze of the afternoon.
"Hello," Kieran said, his voice rougher than he intended, the powerful CEO persona completely forgotten.
"Hello, stranger," the little boy said, unfazed, those identical blue eyes wide with innocent curiosity.
Kieran didn't know what to say. Where to begin? He was looking at his childhood self, a tangible piece of his past sitting in front of him, entirely unbidden.
The silence stretched, heavy and profound.
"Are you lost, stranger? Should I play with you?" the boy, full of life, asked.Lost? Kieran suppressed a humorless chuckle.
"Where's your mommy and daddy?" Kieran asked, needing answers, a strange, fierce possessiveness already taking hold in his gut.
"I don't have a mommy and daddy. I only have a mommy. My mommy said I'm special. I'm different from others. I came from her heart."
The child's words hung in the air, a peculiar blend of innocence and something unexpectedly profound
. Came from her heart. The phrase resonated in a way that Kieran couldn't immediately decipher, but it deepened the unsettling sense of recognition. He had encountered countless people, navigated complex negotiations, and always maintained a formidable control over his emotions. Yet, this small boy, this mirror of his past, had utterly disarmed him.
A cold, sharp possibility began to form in the corners of his mind, a scenario he had never allowed himself to consider.
He had been with many women over the years, relationships fleeting and compartmentalized. Could one of them have kept a secret? The thought was jarring, unwelcome, yet undeniably present. He needed to see this child's mother. The need was sudden, overwhelming – a mix of professional calculation and a fierce, unexpected paternal urge.
"What's your name, child?" Kieran asked again, his voice still rough, demanding an answer that felt increasingly crucial."Adrien," the boy replied, the name a simple sound that nonetheless struck Kieran like a physical blow.
Adrien. It was his middle name, a name he rarely used, a private marker. The coincidence, if it was one, was too profound to dismiss.
Before Kieran could process this new layer of shock, a shout pierced the relative quiet of the park.
"Hey! Who are you!"A man was running towards them, an ice cream cone clutched in his hand, his face a mask of protective fury. He was scruffy, blonde, and his eyes, as they met Kieran's, were filled with immediate suspicion.
"Are you his father?" Kieran asked under his breath, almost to himself.
The man glanced up, momentarily startled. "Yes. Let's go, Adrien," he said, scooping the boy into his arms.
"Bye, stranger," Adrien's soft voice drifted back as the man hurried away, shooting one last, venomous glare over his shoulder.Kieran remained frozen by the bench, the weight of the last few minutes settling upon him.
Was this real? The intensity of the connection, the shocking resemblance, the name... it was too much to be a mere coincidence.
The world, which moments ago had been about Japanese deals and logistical challenges, had irrevocably shifted on its axis.
He looked at his hands, strong and capable, hands that had built an empire. Had they, unknowingly, also created a legacy he knew nothing about?
He had an heir. The thought was staggering, exhilarating, and terrifying. And he intended to find the mother who had kept him a secret. Immediately.
He pulled out his phone, his fingers moving with a renewed, ruthless efficiency. This changes everything. Absolutely everything.