Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 495

Chapter 495

Madeline’s POV

The room was wrapped in a comfortable half-light, lit only by the soft glow of the bedside lamp. It was one of the hospital’s luxury rooms-almost a suite, really, with a private bathroom, a couch, and most importantly in that moment: a double bed where Marcus and I lay side by side.

My body still ached. Every muscle protested after the superhuman effort I’d gone through just hours earlier. But it was a good kind of pain. A pain that was worth it. Because now, somewhere in this hospital, in a nursery room, my daughter was sleeping.

Our daughter.

I still couldn’t fully believe it was real. That she was here. That it had actually happened.

Marcus was lying on his side, propped up on one elbow, looking at me with that goofy smile that hadn’t left his face since Aurora was born. His fingers played absently with a strand of my hair.

“Did you see how tiny she is?” he said for what had to be the thousandth time, and I laughed softly.” Seriously, Madeline. She’s beautiful.”

“I know, Marcus,” I replied tenderly. “I was there when she came out of me, remember? And honestly… in that moment, she didn’t seem very small.”

He laughed, a low, intimate sound that warmed me from the inside out.

“You were incredible, you know that?” he said, leaning in to kiss my forehead. “I’ve never seen anything so

powerful. So beautiful. You bringing her into the world.”

My eyes burned with tears.

“I didn’t want her to spend the night in the nursery,” I admitted, knowing my voice sounded small, vulnerable. “I wanted her here with us. I don’t want to be away from her for even a second.”

Marcus brushed his thumb gently along my cheek, that comforting gesture he always used when I was

worried.

“I know, love,” he said softly. “But the nurse thought it was better this way. You need to rest after everything you went through, recover from the delivery. And if Aurora starts crying in the middle of the night, you won’t be able to rest properly. You’ll want to get up, you’ll push your body too hard. It’s just for this first night, okay? Tomorrow she’ll be here with us all day.”

I knew he was right. I knew my body needed to recover, that I’d been through an intense labor and needed sleep. My entire body felt like it had been run over by a truck. But still…

“I know,” I sighed, curling closer into him. “I just didn’t want to be away from my daughter. It feels wrong, her being there and me being here. Like I’m already failing as a mother on the first day.”

“Our daughter,” Marcus corrected with a smile, kissing my nose. “And you’re not failing at anything.

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You’re the most incredible mother in the world, and she’s not even twenty-four hours old yet. She’s safe, Madeline. Just a few meters from here, with trained nurses taking care of her. Everything’s okay.”

I wanted to believe him. I wanted to let the worry go and just enjoy this moment-this first day as parents, still dazed and in love and incapable of talking about anything that wasn’t Aurora.

“She’s going to be amazing,” Marcus said with conviction. “Just like her mom.

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My heart tightened with love. How did this man always know exactly what to say?

We fell silent for a moment, simply enjoying the closeness, the warmth of each other.

“Did you ever imagine it?” I asked suddenly, shifting to a lighter, more playful tone, wanting to bring back the warmth we’d had just moments before. “That we’d end up here like this… after some crazy woman invited you to come along on her honeymoon?”

Marcus laughed-that genuine, unrestrained laugh I loved so much, the one that still made my heart race even after everything we’d been through.

“Maybe it wasn’t quite that detailed in my imagination,” he admitted, his eyes sparkling with humor and something deeper. “But when a crazy bride jumped on the back of my motorcycle, still in her wedding dress, running away from her own wedding like she was in an action movie… I knew I was screwed.”

“Screwed?” I repeated, raising an eyebrow, even though I was way too tired to make it look truly threatening. “That’s the word you choose to describe meeting the love of your life?”

He leaned closer, his face just inches from mine, those blue eyes holding me completely captive.

“But… screwed in a good way, right?” I asked softly, almost a whisper.

“The best way possible,” he replied-and then he kissed me.

It was a gentle kiss, careful because of my condition, because of the pain and exhaustion. But it was still full of promise and love and gratitude and all the emotions we didn’t even have words for yet.

When we pulled apart, I rested my head against his chest, listening to the steady, reassuring beat of his heart. His arms wrapped around me protectively.

“I love you,” I whispered against him, feeling his warmth surround me like a blanket. “So much, Marcus. Thank you for this. For her. For everything. For staying. For not giving up on me even when I tried to push

you away.”

“I love you more,” he replied, kissing the top of my head, his fingers tracing slow, soothing patterns along my arm. “You two are everything I ever wanted and didn’t even know I needed. My family. My whole life.”

I closed my eyes, letting myself sink into his warmth, the comfort of his arms, the safety of knowing I wasn’t alone anymore. That we were a family now. A real family-built not just on blood, but on choice.

On love.

I was just starting to drift off, lulled by the rhythm of Marcus’s breathing and the exhaustion finally

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claiming me, when the door suddenly opened.

A nurse I didn’t recognize hurried in, and there was something in her movements that made my eyes snap open immediately. She didn’t knock. She didn’t ask permission. She just came in, her gaze going straight to the empty bassinet in the corner of the room.

There was a strange expression on her face-something between confusion and concern that made my stomach twist.

“Aurora isn’t here?” she asked, and there was something in her voice, a barely concealed urgency, that made me sit up instantly in bed.

I ignored the sharp pain that shot through my body with the sudden movement. Ignored everything except that tone in her voice.

Marcus was already on his feet beside me, fully alert, his entire body tense.

“No,” I said, and my voice was already shaking. “No, they thought it would be better for her to spend the night in the nursery. So I could rest.”

The nurse didn’t answer right away. Her eyes scanned the room again, as if she expected Aurora to magically appear from behind some piece of furniture.

My heart started to race. Faster. Much faster.

“She’s there, right?” I asked, my voice louder now, panic taking hold. “My daughter is okay?”

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