Page 48 of The Orc Protector's Secret Baby

I look at my father and sister, their faces creased with unrestrained joy. Father's deep, bellowing laugh shakes his broad frame like thunder. Sharog's melodic giggles dance like music across the room.

This is how it should have been all along. Not the callous indifference and strict expectations my father showed me, forcing me to become his rigid vision of the perfect chieftain. Not the sadness lingering behind my sister's eyes whenever she looked at the two of us and our fractured bonds. Just...family, together in love and laughter.

There will still be challenges ahead. But now, we have hope. However long and winding the road, we will walk it as one. I close my eyes, etching this blissful moment into my heart and soul forevermore.

Together, we will walk into a new dawn. The past is behind us, and the future looks brighter with each coming day. The sun of hope rises, banishing the icy darkness that once gripped our hearts.

I feel a lightness in my spirit that I have not known. The world seems painted in vibrant hues, no longer the bleak shades of gray that clouded my eyes for so long

With my family by my side, I can achieve anything. The broken bits of our past can create a new mosaic. We have been gifted a second chance - one I vow not to squander. Each coming day, we will heal and thrive together.

28

HAYDEN

Another day has come and almost gone, again. I simply cannot bear much more of this never-ending waiting, this unshakeable longing for Cagan to return home to us. The little ripple of doubt and anxiousness I felt inside of me when he left has now grown into a raging sea of endless worry and hopelessness.

I pace the length of our small home, my steps echoing off the barren walls. How many more sunsets must I watch alone, staring endlessly at the horizon for any sign of his hulking form lumbering towards home? He said he would only be gone for a very short time, yet many days have already passed since his departure.

I know Cagan has always put his family and people first and I always understood his sense of duty. But now he's been gone longer than either of us expected. What if something happened to detain him against his will? What if he doesn't come home at all? My chest starts to tighten as my mind races uncontrollably with these horrible thoughts.

Or worse yet, what if he simply doesn't want to be a father and this lengthy absence is his way out? No, I shake my head against that notion. He was overjoyed when he discovered he was a father. I still remember the sparkle in his golden eyes when he first held Amira in his arms. He would never abandon us.

Yet, my paranoia continues to fester as the hours drag on. What if he never returns and I am left alone to raise Amira without him? What if some ill fate has befallen him out there in the wilderness? I shake my head sharply once more, banishing those dark thoughts. I cannot travel down that bleak path right now. I must keep faith that he will come back to us. To consider anything else would break me entirely.

The sun finally sinks below the horizon, vanishing from sight. I am beyond distraught as I stare out the window into the empty darkness – still no sign of Cagan. He was meant to be home yesterday! As night slowly descends, enveloping our home in shadow, the knot in my stomach twists even tighter.

With each minute that passes, my hope diminishes. Where is he? Why has he not returned? Ominous possibilities creep into my thoughts, like tendrils of smoke seeping through a cracked window. I try to push them away, to keep faith, but it grows harder as the blackness of night closes in.

Cagan, please come back to me, I plead silently, blinking back tears. I do not know how much longer I can endure this agonizing wait.

Just as hopelessness threatens to swallow me whole, the wooden door suddenly swings open. I gasp as Cagan's massive frame fills the entryway. He's home! In an instant, I am in his arms.

"You're back, you're finally back! Welcome home!" I gasp excitedly, burying my face into his chest. I start sobbing uncontrollably as relief floods my entire being.

Cagan strokes my hair tenderly. "I know I worried you, my love. The journey took longer than expected. But I am here now."

I cling to him, afraid if I let go, he might disappear again. "I thought...I thought something dreadful had happened. When you didn't return on time..."

Cagan cups my face in his hands, staring intently into my eyes. "Hayden, nothing could ever keep me from you and Amira. No matter the obstacles or distances between us, I will always find my way back to you. You are my heart, my guiding light. And our daughter is the most precious gift I could dream of."

He pauses, his golden eyes boring intensely into mine.

"I told my father and sister outright that you and Amira will always come first for me. Our little family is my priority now."

His voice rings with such conviction and I feel the truth of his words resonating to my core. My lingering doubts and fears seem to melt away under his ardent gaze. We are his home now - nothing will keep him from us.

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. "Come now, you must be famished," I say, taking his hand and leading him to the table.

As we eat, he recounts his travels to visit his family and ensure their safety.

Between mouthfuls of stew, he continues, "I know my place is here with you and Amira now. But I owed it to my family to ensure their safety after everything we endured."

I nod, understanding his sense of duty. Cagan has always put his family first. It's one of the qualities that drew me to him, despite my wariness of his kind.

Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Cagan goes on, "I told my father he could come meet his granddaughter.” He searches my face. “But only if you are comfortable with it, my love."

My eyebrows raise in surprise and uncertainty. "He...wants to meet Amira?” I hesitate. “But your father..."