My Love Until the Last Goodbye (Mary and Maximus)

While she was preparing or overseeing breakfast, Serenity and her little family

were walking along the beach, occasionally playing with Ethan, who darted in and out of the water's edge.

Alden would lift him up and pretend to throw him into the sea. The boy just laughed and begged for more. While her two favorite boys played on the beach, Serenity sat down in the sand, and naturally, Isabelle did too. She was just starting to take her first steps-not quite walking yet, but with a little help, she could go a few paces.

Serenity looked at her family and felt happy-though not completely. She knew her brother would be arriving today.

He was bringing his daughter with him, and she wouldn't be there to greet him, though Frederick and Camille would be they were in charge of showing him his new home.

She felt a deep sorrow for him. She didn't know what kind of karma he was paying off, but losing the only woman he'd ever cared about had been painful. Seeing how he had to make such tough decisions with wisdom and strength had truly impressed her.

Lucius was nothing like the man who once kidnapped her and acted like he ruled the world. The young man she saw now was alone, with a baby, a sad look in his eyes, a scared look. He had no clue how to care for a baby, but he wasn't asking for help either. On the contrary, he kept to himself.

Serenity wished she could be there to welcome him, but what her mother was about to do today needed all the support she could get-it was the end of a chapter that had been open for many, many years.

"Serenity..." said Alden, approaching with Ethan in his arms.

"Yes... Tell me..."noveldrama

"Let's go back home. The sun's starting to come up, and Isabelle's going to get sunburned..."

"Yeah. Can you help me up?"

"Of course!"

"Ethan, sweetheart, what do you think of the beach? Do you like it?"

"It's amazing! It's so beautiful! I wish we could live here all the time!"

"Hmm... There's a season when it's not that nice," Serenity said, thinking back to the summer.

"Hmm... I'd still like to live here all the time."

"Maybe someday we could, but I think you'll need to grow up a bit more first," Alden said, hugging his son.

"Well... But next vacation we have to come back here."

"Alright! When I was a little girl, I loved it too. But sometimes it got so hot I couldn't even go outside, so my mom and dad decided it was better to live in Hesperia."

"You lived here?"

"Yes, when I was a kid. My dad loved the beach, so we lived here."

"Well, well... Let's head home. Besides, right now Mommy can't live at the beach, remember she's studying at the university. We can plan to live here when she finishes her degree. What do you think?"

"Yes!!! I'd love that! And Isabelle will be bigger by then too."

"Alright, let's go home. They're probably waiting for us..." said Serenity, taking Ethan's hand.

Living as a small family had brought them closer together. Ethan saw Serenity as his mom. It was clear she wasn't his biological mother, but she was there when he needed someone the most. His real mom hadn't abandoned him, but most of their contact was through video calls, while Serenity was the one who was always there.

"Mom! We're back!" Serenity called out as they walked in.

"Yes, sweetheart, we're in the dining room. Go wash up and let's eat..."

Valerie watched as her daughter and her family joined the table. The past few months had been a bit of a tug-of-war, but the relationship. between Marcus and Alden had improved a lot—almost back to how it was before her daughter married him.

To Marcus, Serenity was his life, just like all his children. That little two-year-old girl had pulled him out of the hell he was in with his own demons, and he cherished every single one of the children life had given him.