Chapter 23
Nathan handed him the bag. “Take this to the labs. Run a full DNA analysis.”
The man nodded without a word and disappeared just as quietly as he had come. Nathan turned back toward his house, his expression unreadable.
XXX
The days that followed were a blur of quiet, shared meals and simple companionship. Nathan and Bianca fell into an easy rhythm -one she hadn’t realized she needed. Nathan’s reserved demeanor softened as they spent more time together and Bianca began to see past the stoic facade. Beneath his stern exterior, Nathan revealed
glimpses of a dry wit and surprising
attentiveness.
One afternoon, after they returned from a walk along Ridgeview’s winding trails, Bianca presented Nathan with a small box of handcrafted flower tea. “A thank–you for all the meals,” she said, her voice tinged with gratitude.
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Chapter 23
Nathan accepted the gift with a slight nod, his lips curving into a faint smile. “You didn’t have to. But thank you.”
Bianca found herself wondering what it was about Nathan that made her feel so at ease. For someone with such an imposing presence, he was unexpectedly kind in small, quiet ways.
Unbeknownst to her, Nathan was poring over two DNA reports in the privacy of his study. The first confirmed a maternal relationship, while the second confirmed a paternal one. His eyes darkened as he read the results and his jaw tightened. His suspicions had been correct.
Nathan made a call, his voice sharp and decisive. “I have the confirmation. Contact the family immediately.”
***
Three days later, Bianca was tidying her house when a knock sounded at the gate. Expecting Nathan, she wiped her hands on
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primal stir within her, an unexplainable pull deep in her chest. Blood ties, she thought, her mind reeling. So this is what they ins
The woman stepped forward, her eyes
wimming with tears Bianca
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n’t look
familiar, yet completely foreign. “Is it really you, Aubree?” the woman whispered, her voice trembling with emotion.
Bianca froze. The name was one she had
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Chapter 23
adopted when she arrived in Ridgeview, a small act of reinvention. She nodded hesitantly, her eyes welling up as the truth began to dawn on her.
The woman broke into sobs and rushed forward, enveloping Bianca in a tight embrace. “My daughter,” she cried, her voice breaking. “I’m so sorry.”
Bianca felt her own tears spill over, her body trembling as decades of longing and unanswered questions came rushing to the surface. The other men in the group stood silently, their eyes misty as they watched the emotional reunion.
Nathan, who had been observing quietly, chose this moment to speak. “Aubree, why don’t you invite everyone inside?”
The shift in how Nathan addressed her startled Bianca, but she was too
overwhelmed to question it. She quickly wiped her tears and ushered the group into her home.
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Once they were all seated, Nathon handed Bianca two documents. Her hands shook as she took them, her vision blurring as she scanned the DNA test results. The words “mother and daughter” and “father and daughter” leaped out at her. She looked up at the group, her voice barely a whisper, “You’re really… my family?”
The woman nodded, her expression both joyous and heartbroken. “Yes, my darling. We’ve been searching for you for so long.”
Over the next hour, the truth unfolded. Decades ago, Martha and her biological mother had given birth at the same hospital. After Martha’s baby, Sabrina, was kidnapped, Edward purchased another newborn from a desperate woman at the same hospital. That child had been Bianca.
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