Updated Nov 23, 2025 • ~8 min read
“Singapore,” Damon said over breakfast. “Three days, maybe four. Board meeting and contract negotiations that I really can’t delegate.”
My stomach sank. “When?”
“Next week. I’m sorry—I tried to push it back, but the investors are getting antsy.”
Three days without him. It shouldn’t have been a big deal. People traveled for work all the time. But we’d been in this bubble together for weeks now, and the thought of him leaving felt wrong.
“I’ll be fine,” I said, trying to sound more confident than I felt. “Lily and I will hold down the fort.”
“Or…” He set down his coffee cup. “You could both come with me.”
I blinked. “To Singapore?”
“Why not? I’d be in meetings during the day, but we’d have evenings together. Lily’s young enough that the time change won’t matter much. And—” He reached for my hand. “—I don’t want to be apart from either of you. Not if I don’t have to be.”
The idea was tempting. Singapore. With Damon. Like a little family trip.
But the practical side of my brain kicked in.
“What about Macy? And Lily’s doctor appointments? And—”
“Macy can come too if you want the help. We’ll reschedule any appointments. Keira—” He pulled me into his lap, and I went willingly. “—I want you there. Please come.”
How was I supposed to say no to that?
“Okay,” I agreed. “We’ll come.”
His smile was brilliant. “Yeah?”
“Yeah. But you’re dealing with all the travel logistics. Passports and car seats and whatever else we need.”
“Done. I’ll have my assistant handle everything.”
Of course he would. Because that was Damon’s world—problems solved with a phone call, logistics handled by staff, travel arrangements made seamlessly.
My world was so different from his.
Was still different, even living here.
But I was learning. Adapting. Finding my place in this strange new life.
The private jet was obscene.
“This is too much,” I said, staring at the leather seats and fully stocked bar and what appeared to be an actual bedroom in the back.
“It’s practical,” Damon countered. “Commercial flights with an infant are a nightmare. This way, Lily can nap in the bedroom, we can spread out, and you won’t have to deal with crying-baby glares from fellow passengers.”
He had a point.
Lily seemed to agree, gurgling happily in her carrier as we boarded.
Macy had opted to stay behind—”You three need family time,” she’d said knowingly—so it was just us. Me, Damon, and Lily, thirty thousand feet above the Pacific.
“This is surreal,” I murmured, watching clouds drift past the window.
“Good surreal or bad surreal?” Damon asked, settling beside me.
“I haven’t decided yet.” I leaned into him. “A month ago, I was eating ramen in my studio apartment. Now I’m on a private jet to Singapore with a billionaire and a baby. It’s a lot to process.”
“Do you miss it? Your old life?”
I thought about it honestly. The freedom, yes. The simplicity. The lack of scrutiny and judgment and complicated family dynamics.
But also the loneliness. The wondering what if. The years of loving someone I thought I could never have.
“No,” I said finally. “I don’t miss it. This is better.”
“Even with the media circus and my difficult mother and all the complications?”
“Even with all of that.” I kissed him softly. “Because I have you. And Lily. And a future I actually want to live.”
His arms tightened around me. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
Lily chose that moment to fuss, and we both sprang into action—Damon grabbing a bottle from the warmer while I checked her diaper.
“Tag team,” he said with a grin.
“Best team,” I agreed.
We settled into a rhythm for the flight—taking turns with Lily, dozing while the other one handled baby duty, stealing kisses when she slept.
It was domestic and ordinary and perfect.
Exactly what I’d always wanted.
Singapore was stunning.
The hotel suite was bigger than my entire New York apartment, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city and a separate nursery for Lily.
“This is insane,” I breathed, taking it all in.
“This is standard,” Damon corrected, unpacking his laptop. “For work trips anyway.”
“Your normal is not normal.”
He laughed. “Fair enough. But you’ll get used to it.”
Would I? Get used to penthouses and private jets and a lifestyle I’d never even imagined?
I wasn’t sure. But I was willing to try.
That first night, after Lily was asleep, Damon and I had dinner on the suite’s private terrace, the city lights spread out below us like scattered diamonds.
“Thank you for coming,” he said, refilling my wine glass. “I know it’s a lot—the travel, being in a new place, adjusting to all of this.”
“It’s worth it,” I said simply. “Being together is worth it.”
“Even when I have back-to-back meetings tomorrow and you’ll be stuck in the hotel with Lily all day?”
“Even then. Though I might explore a bit. See the city. Lily needs to develop her cultural appreciation young.”
He grinned. “My girlfriend, the art historian, giving our daughter culture. I approve.”
“Your girlfriend,” I repeated, testing the word. “That sounds so… normal. Not complicated or scandalous. Just… girlfriend.”
“Would you prefer something else?” His eyes were dancing. “Love of my life? Future wife? Mother of my child?”
“All of the above eventually,” I said, my cheeks warming. “But girlfriend works for now.”
He leaned across the table and kissed me, slow and deep and full of promise.
“I can work with that,” he murmured against my lips.
The disaster struck on day two.
I was exploring a local market with Lily in her carrier, Damon’s security team trailing discreetly behind, when my phone rang.
Damon’s assistant, her voice tense.
“Miss Sterling? Mr. Vale asked me to call. He’s been taken to the hospital.”
My heart stopped. “What?”
“Nothing serious,” she rushed to assure me. “An allergic reaction during a business lunch. He’s stable, but they’re keeping him for observation. He asked that you not worry and definitely don’t bring Lily to the hospital.”
Don’t worry. Right. Because that was possible.
“Which hospital?” I demanded.
She gave me the name, and I was already moving, security scrambling to follow.
I found him in a private room, looking annoyed more than sick, an IV in his arm.
“Keira—” he started.
“What happened?” I demanded, setting Lily’s carrier down and moving to his bedside.
“Shellfish. Apparently the sauce had shrimp paste. I didn’t know.” He reached for my hand. “I’m fine. Just have to stay here a few hours while the Benadryl works through my system.”
“You scared me.”
“I know. I’m sorry.” He pulled me down for a kiss. “But I’m okay. We’re okay.”
Lily made a sound from her carrier, and I retrieved her, holding her close.
“See?” Damon said to her. “Daddy’s fine. Just had some bad food.”
“Don’t do that again,” I said, my voice shaking.
“Have an allergic reaction? I’ll do my best to avoid it.”
“Scare me like that. I thought—” I couldn’t finish.
His expression softened. “Hey. I’m not going anywhere. It’s going to take more than some shrimp paste to get rid of me.”
I laughed despite the tears threatening. “Promise?”
“Promise.”
A nurse came in, checked his vitals, and confirmed he’d be released in a few hours.
“We should cancel the rest of the trip,” I said once we were alone again. “Get you home where you can rest properly.”
“The meetings are done. Contracts signed. We could leave tomorrow.” He pulled me to sit beside him on the bed, careful of his IV. “But honestly? I’m okay. And I’d rather spend a few more days here with you and Lily than rush back to the chaos.”
“You almost died from shrimp.”
“I got a rash and my throat swelled a little. I didn’t almost die.” His arm came around me. “But I appreciate the concern.”
Lily gurgled between us, grabbing Damon’s hospital gown.
“She’s not impressed either,” I noted.
“Neither of my girls are impressed with my dramatic seafood incident. Noted.”
We sat like that for a while, just the three of us in the sterile hospital room, and I realized something.
This was real. Not the glamour of private jets or penthouses or Singapore. This—sitting in a hospital because someone you love had an allergic reaction and being grateful it wasn’t worse.
This was real love. Real life. Real family.
Messy and scary and absolutely perfect.
“I love you,” I said.
“I love you too.” He kissed my hair. “Both of you. So much.”
Lily yawned, completely over the drama.
And despite everything—the hospital, the scare, the lingering adrenaline—I smiled.
Because we were together.
And that was all that mattered.
Reader Reactions