Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 491

Chapter 491

Marcus’ POV

“It’s a beautiful baby girl!” Dr. Carlisle announced, lifting a tiny little being still slick with vernix and blood, the umbilical cord attached. She was wriggling, her tiny fists clenched, her mouth wide open in a cry that filled the entire room. “A beautiful, healthy baby girl!”

Tears burned in my eyes, blurring my vision. Aurora. My daughter. Our daughter. Real. Alive. Perfect. After so many months of waiting, worry, and fear, she was truly here.

The doctor placed the baby quickly on Madeline’s bare chest, and Madeline immediately brought her trembling hands to that tiny body, sobbing and laughing at the same time. Tears streamed down her face, mixing with sweat, but she had never looked more beautiful.

“Hi, little one,” she whispered, her voice breaking with emotion as she kissed the dark-haired head. “Hi, my love. My love, my love… you’re here. You’re finally here.”

I was vaguely aware of the doctor stepping closer, offering me a pair of surgical scissors, asking if I wanted to cut the cord. I did it with shaking hands, still unable to believe this was real. That this perfect child was truly here. That I wasn’t going to wake up from this moment.

The nurses approached gently, explaining that they needed to take the baby to be cleaned, weighed, and checked. Reluctantly, Madeline let her go, her eyes following every movement as they carried our daughter to the small station on the other side of the room. I stayed beside Madeline, kissing her face, her hands, murmuring how much I loved her, how incredible she had been, how grateful I was for this gift she had given me.

“You were perfect,” I whispered against her forehead. “So perfect, my love. I’m so proud of you. So in love with you.”

“Mr. Kensington?” one of the nurses called. “Would you like to hold your daughter?”

“Your daughter.” The words echoed in my mind as I crossed the room with careful steps, as if the floor might vanish beneath me at any second.

The nurse placed the tiny bundle in my arms with a warm smile. Now clean and wrapped in a soft pink blanket, she was so light, so small, so absolutely perfect that I was afraid to breathe too hard. Her tiny fists were still clenched, her mouth making little sucking motions even with her eyes closed.

“3.2 kilograms,” the nurse said, jotting something down on a clipboard. “19 inches. Completely healthy and perfect.”

I went back to Madeline, holding our daughter with all the care in the world, as if she were made of the most fragile glass imaginable. Every step was measured, deliberate, as though I were carrying something more precious than any treasure on earth. Because I was.

Madeline smiled through her tears, reaching out, wanting to see her better. I sat carefully on the edge of the bed, adjusting the baby in my arms so Madeline could see her clearly, so we could both admire this

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small miracle.

The blanket slipped away from her little face, revealing tiny, perfect features-a small upturned nose, rose -colored lips shaped like a heart, chubby cheeks begging to be kissed. She had so much hair, dark and slightly wavy, and I wondered if it would stay that way or change with time.

“She’s perfect,” I whispered, unable to take my eyes off her, in awe of every tiny detail. “Absolutely perfect. Look at her. Look at what you did. What we did.”

“She has your nose,” Madeline whispered, delicately tracing the baby’s face with her finger. “Look, Marcus. She has your nose.”

My heart tightened. Did she? Or were we just seeing what we wanted to see? It didn’t matter. Not right now. Right now, she was ours-and that was all that mattered.

And that was when it happened.

As if she felt our intense gaze on her, as if she somehow knew she was being watched by her parents for the first time, the baby shifted in my arms. Her tiny fists opened and closed, searching for something. Her little mouth moved slightly, making a small sound that was almost a sigh.

And then, slowly-like it was the most important movement in the world-her eyelids began to open.

My heart stopped. The entire world stopped.

I held my breath as I watched, hypnotized, incapable of doing anything but stare. Beside me, I felt Madeline do the same, her fingers tightening around my arm, both of our eyes locked on that tiny face.

Her eyelids continued to open, millimeter by millimeter, revealing-

She looked at me.

Our daughter looked at me for the first time, her eyes now fully open, fixed directly on mine with an intensity that shouldn’t have been possible for someone only minutes old. She didn’t look away. She didn’t blink. She just… looked.

And I looked back.

I looked into the eyes that had just opened for the first time. I looked at the color that said everything. I looked at the answer I had avoided for months, pushed to the back of my mind, pretended didn’t matter. I would have loved her no matter what-there had never been any doubt about that.

But now, I knew the answer.

My heart stopped.

The entire world stopped.

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