ACCIDENTALLY MARRIED TO THE BILLIONAIRE SINGLE DAD (Gabrielle and Damon) novel Chapter 30

GABRIELLE’S POV

I sat in the living room with my phone clutched in my hand, staring at the screen even though it remained dark.

The door opened and a guard rushed inside.

“They’re here, ma’am,” he said, a rifle hanging from his shoulder.

I stared at him, shocked.

After everything that had happened tonight, my mind refused to believe it could end this way.

Fiorella grabbed my arm. “Gabrielle.”

I blinked and looked at her.

Her eyes were bright with relief. “Go.”

My legs finally moved.

I rushed out of the living room and stepped outside just as four black cars drove through the gates.

My heart pounded harder with every second.

The cars rolled to a stop in front of the house, armed men stepping out first.

I kept looking past them, searching for my children.

The second car opened.

Susan stepped out first with Aria sleeping in her arms.

A broken sound left my throat.

Lila climbed out after them holding an ice cream cone in one hand.

Another man opened the door on the other side and lifted Mrs. Marlow into her wheelchair.

Lila looked up.

The second she saw me, her eyes widened.

“Mummy!”

She ran toward me.

I hurried down the short stairs and dropped to my knees when she reached me, pulling her against my chest.

Her body shook in my arms.

There were dried tear streaks on her cheeks.

“Mummy,” she cried again, hugging me tightly.

“I’m here,” I whispered, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “I’m here, baby.”

My hands trembled as I touched her face, checking her over like I needed proof that she was really standing in front of me.

Susan reached us a moment later.

I took Aria from her arms, careful not to wake her.

My baby shifted against my chest but stayed asleep.

Relief hit me so hard my knees almost gave out.

Mrs. Marlow was rolled past us in her wheelchair and into the house while the staff took over around her.

She looked exhausted and was mumbling under her breath.

I turned to Susan with tears burning in my eyes. “I’m sorry,” I choked out. “I dragged you into our family’s problems again.”

Susan shook her head before pulling me into a hug. “As you said, Mrs Gravari, it’s our family’s problems.”

We both broke down on each other's shoulders.

When we pulled apart, I wiped my face and looked down at Lila. “Are you hurt?”

She shook her head.

I held her hand firmly as if she might disappear again while carrying Aria against my chest as we walked back into the house.

“I’ll run the bath, Mrs Gravari,” Susan said, already moving towards the stairs.

“Susan.”

She stopped and turned to me. “Yes?”

“Don’t do anything,” I said. “Just get some rest.”

“But—”

“No,” I insisted. “You’ve been through a lot. We’ll talk later.”

She smiled warmly, then nodded once and went upstairs.

Fiorella stepped into the house, her eyes wet as she looked over the girls. “I tried to reach Rhys but I couldn’t. Can you call Damon and check in on them?”

“Sure.”

I handed Aria over to her, and she took them upstairs.

Then I reached for my phone and dialed Damon’s number.

It went straight to voicemail.

That wasn’t a good sign, but I ignored the heavy feeling in my chest.

I stepped out of the house and beckoned to one of the guards.

He rushed over to me. “Yes, Mrs Gravari?”

“Have you heard anything from your boss?”

The guard looked unsure for a moment before answering. “We got word that the bomb inside the warehouse was neutralized.”

I gripped the railing beside me, relieved that they had neutralized the bomb in time.

“Where are they now?” I asked.

The guard’s expression changed. “There was a shootout inside the warehouse after that.”

My stomach twisted.

“What do you mean?”

“My boss and the Don were inside alone with several armed men,” he explained. “The team with them hasn’t reported back since then.”

I could feel fear creeping up my spine.

I shook my head. “No.”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Gravari,” he continued. “But nobody has heard directly from the boss yet.”

A painful knot formed in my throat.

I looked back toward the house.

The children were upstairs and safe.

Damon had brought them home as he promised, but he was still out there.

Panic surged through my chest again.

I looked at the guard. “Get me a car.”

He shook his head. “Mrs. Gravari—”

“Now.”

He hesitated. “The boss would never allow you near an active shootout.”

“I don’t care!” I snapped, slowly losing my patience. “Take me to the warehouse.”

“I can’t, ma’am,” he replied.

My voice rose. “Then call someone who can. Call him.”

“Mrs. Gravari, I can’t allow that,” he said. “He gave strict instructions. None of us can disobey his instructions or we’re dead.”

I buried my face into his neck and cried harder. “I thought I lost you.

“It’s okay,” he whispered. “I promised you I’d come back, didn’t I?”

I nodded against him.

I didn’t care that the entire staff had come out to watch us. And I didn’t care that his men were standing next to us.

He was alive and holding me again.

My family was safe.

That was all that mattered.

“If something happened to you…” My voice broke. “I would have lost my mind.”

“I’m here now. And you know I don’t like seeing you cry, cara,” he said, then lowered his voice. “Except it’s from pleasure.”

I laughed through the tears and wrapped my legs around him as he carried me into the house.

“I love you too much to leave you,” he said, walking upstairs. “You should know that by now.”

I closed my eyes and held onto him tighter. “I love you too.”

He pushed open the children’s bedroom door and walked inside.

Aria was still asleep in the middle of the bed and Lila had fallen asleep too beside her.

I watched Damon’s expression falter the moment he saw them.

He lowered me onto the bed, then knelt between my legs and placed his head on my lap.

There were no words between us, but there didn’t have to be.

I knew what he wanted.

My hands began to move through his hair gently when I caught sight of the blood on his neck.

As if he read my mind, he lifted his head and said, “It’s not my blood, wife. Don’t worry.”

That relaxed me a little.

Damon reached up to touch my face. “Antonio was behind this. I’ll tell you about it later.”

My jaw dropped.

I remembered how uncomfortable I felt when he spoke to us at the party last night, like I could almost read his bad intent.

But it still surprised me.

I wanted to speak but he spoke first.

“I was mad at you,” he said, reminding me of our fight. “But I was more angry at myself for failing to protect you. I was mad at myself for pushing you to that point.”

His eyes turned vulnerable.

“And now I’m angry at myself for failing to protect our children,” he continued. “Will you ever forgive me?"

Warmth bloomed in my heart.

I reached out to hold his face with both hands. “Damon… there’s nothing to forgive. You wanted to be better, there’s nothing wrong with that.”

Damon pulled one hand away from his face and kissed my palm.

“I will never hesitate again,” he said. “I swear that to you.”

I thought I had cried everything out already, but fresh tears still filled my eyes.

“Can we stay here with the kids for a little while before we all clean up?” I asked.

"I'd love that."

He stood up and lifted me into his arms again before kissing me slowly.

Then he pulled back and lowered me onto the bed beside Lila before lying beside Aria.

Our hands reached across the children until our fingers locked together.

And we stayed there like that, holding each other's gaze as he told me everything that happened.