She usually woke early, fussing over Griffin by now.Why hadn’t she changed?And where was their son?
Panic punched through his chest.
Spinning around, he yanked the apartment door open, startling the guards.
“Where’s my son?”he barked.
The one on the left straightened.“Your Highness, your mother took him to the nursery.”
Zayn exhaled, relieved but still edgy.“When my wife wakes up, tell her I’m with Griffin.And that I’ll bring him back here after breakfast.”
The guards nodded.Zayn hesitated a beat longer, glancing back at Azlyn’s bedroom door, then strode down the hallway, each step charged with purpose.
He found them exactly where the guard said: his mother and Griffin sitting on the floor, a colorful sea of toys around them.Griffin was attempting to chew on a plastic giraffe.
“I’m stealing my son,” he declared, folding his arms.
His mother didn’t even blink.“Fine.But I want him back when Azlyn needs another break.”
“Fine,” he grumbled.“Why is she so tired?”
His mother leaned back against the sofa, looking far too stunning for someone in leggings and a sweatshirt.When Tasha Al-Sintra wanted to channel royal grace, she could turn every head in the room.But when she was off-duty—no press, no staff, no expectations—comfort won.And she still looked annoyingly gorgeous.
“She’s doing some kind of research,” Tasha said, reaching for a toy as Griffin babbled happily between them.“I don’t know the details, but she seemed...”She tilted her head, studying her son.Then she smiled, warm and approving.“She looked happy, Zayn.For the first time since you brought her here, Azlyn finally looked happy.”
Zayn stilled.His hand froze in midair, the toy dangling from his fingers, forgotten.“Happy?”he repeated, his chest loosening in slow, hesitant increments.
“I mean it,” his mother said, nodding.“She looked...invigorated.”
“That’s strange,” Zayn muttered, frowning.“I just saw her passed out on top of the covers, fully dressed.”
Tasha laughed, a low, rich sound.“Probably because she was in the security office until three in the morning.”
Zayn blinked.“The what?”
Tasha gave a dramatic sigh and tried to tempt Griffin away with a squishy lion.It failed.Griffin was locked in on Zayn like a heat-seeking missile.
Zayn smirked.He’s mine.
Unfazed, Tasha tried a different toy.“Maybe ask your wife?”
“I would, but she’s sleeping—”
“I’m up,” came a voice from the hallway.
All three turned.Azlyn walked in, looking adorably rumpled and gloriously alive.There were shadows under her eyes, but there was also something else—a sparkle.Something he hadn’t seen in her eyes since...that first weekend.
She bent to greet Griffin, who responded with wild arm flails and a thrilled squeal.“There’s my handsome boy,” she cooed, brushing a kiss to his forehead.Then she glanced up at Tasha.“Thank you for watching him.”
Zayn’s eyebrows lifted.“I could’ve watched him.”
Azlyn froze.Her smile faltered.A blush crept up her neck.
“Yes, well...you were sleeping,” she said quickly, rubbing the back of her neck.“And your mom’s an early riser and...I didn’t want to bother you and she was already...I mean...”She trailed off, looking both flustered and guilty.
Tasha rose smoothly, scooping Griffin into her arms like a woman who knewexactlywhen to exit.“I’m going to interrupt your father,” she said airily.“He hasn’t seen Griffin in—” She paused, realizing no one was listening.“Right.Never mind.”Then she vanished, her grin barely suppressed.
Azlyn shifted on her feet.
