The mansion was filled with the echoes of laughter and the soft clatter of decorations as Damien watched Ava unwrap her gifts. For once, the house held an air of peace, a rare moment of quiet in the storm of his life. Luca sat beside Ava, helping her untangle the ribbons, a soft smile playing on his lips. Damien’s sharp eyes caught every detail—the way Luca’s fingers carefully pulled at the knots, the way his lips parted ever so slightly as he concentrated.

His heart swelled at the domesticity of it all. This was what he wanted. This was what he had fought so hard to have—a home with them. His daughter. His Luca.

But the moment of peace shattered when Luca turned to him, resolve firm in his gaze.

“I need to go back to university,” Luca said, voice steady but laced with tension. “I can’t just stop my studies, Damien. It’s my final year. I have to finish.”

Damien’s expression darkened immediately. “No.” His voice was clipped, absolute.

Luca’s jaw tightened. “You can’t just keep me locked away forever. I have a life—”

“This is your life now,” Damien interrupted, his voice dangerously low. His fingers curled into a fist at his side. “You belong here. With me. With Ava.”

Ava, who had been happily playing with her new toys, suddenly looked up, confusion flashing across her face at the raised voices.

“I am not leaving from here,” Luca said, tone softer, trying to reason with him, “but I also want to finish what I started. I want to be a lawyer. It’s who I am, Damien.”

Damien’s fury was barely contained, his possessiveness clawing at his insides. The thought of Luca out there, away from his protection, exposed to dangers—

“No,” he growled again. “You’re staying here. Discussion over.”

Ava suddenly let out a sniffle, her big eyes welling with tears. She grabbed Luca’s sleeve and tugged, her voice breaking. “Please don’t fight,” she whimpered. “It’s my birthday…”

Luca immediately softened, guilt flashing across his face as he pulled Ava into a hug. Damien’s jaw clenched. Seeing his daughter’s distress made something in him twist uncomfortably.

Ava turned to Damien next, her tiny hands clutching onto his sleeve. “Papa, please,” she sniffled. “Let Luca go to school… please?”

Damien’s entire body tensed. His daughter never asked him for anything with such desperation. And it was for Luca. She loved him that much. His heart wavered, a mixture of possessiveness and reluctant admiration coursing through him. He exhaled sharply through his nose, running a hand through his hair.

“Fine,” he finally gritted out. “But with conditions.”

Luca blinked, surprised at the sudden shift, but he knew better than to celebrate yet.

“You go straight to university and come straight back home. No unnecessary conversations with anyone. You don’t tell anyone about your life here. And if I find out someone so much as looks at you the wrong way…” Damien’s tone turned lethal. “They won’t have eyes left to look with.”

Luca swallowed but nodded, knowing this was the best compromise he would get.

Ava beamed and wrapped her tiny arms around both of them, her earlier sadness gone. “Thank you! Best birthday ever!”

Damien sighed, pressing a kiss to the top of Ava’s head, his eyes meeting Luca’s over her shoulder. His gaze was dark, intense, filled with warning and something else—something deeper.

Luca had won this battle. But the war was far from over.

****** That night, after the grand celebration of Ava’s sixth birthday, the house finally settled into a quiet lull. The twinkling lights from the decorations still cast a faint glow over the mansion, and the scent of vanilla cake lingered in the air. In Ava’s room, she sat cross-legged on her bed, her big, bright eyes locked onto Luca as he tucked her in.

“Luca, what are you studying again?” she asked innocently, twirling a strand of her golden hair around her little fingers.

Luca chuckled, adjusting the blankets around her. “Law. I’m studying to become a lawyer.”

Ava’s eyes widened with fascination before she suddenly burst into giggles. “That’s the opposite of Papa!” she exclaimed. “You’re a lawyer, and he’s a mafia boss!”

Luca pressed his lips together to suppress his own laughter as Damien leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed over his broad chest. His piercing eyes watched the scene unfold, amusement flickering in them. “That’s right, sweetheart,” Damien drawled, stepping into the room. “Your Luca is training to put men like me behind bars.”

Ava gasped dramatically, her hands flying to her cheeks. “Does that mean you’re going to arrest Papa one day, Luca?”

Luca smirked, shaking his head. “I don’t think that would be possible.” He shot Damien a knowing glance, feeling the weight of his presence behind him. “Your papa is far too powerful for that.”

Damien chuckled darkly, moving to sit on the edge of the bed. He reached out, cupping Luca’s chin between his fingers and tilting his face up slightly. “That’s right. And besides, he’s mine.” His voice dipped lower, possessiveness dripping from every word. “He’s not going anywhere, even if he does become the best damn lawyer in the world.”

Luca rolled his eyes, gently pulling away from Damien’s grip as Ava giggled at their exchange. “I’ll still finish my degree,” he muttered under his breath, though Damien’s intense gaze told him that this battle was far from over.

Ava yawned, snuggling into her pillow. “I like it,” she murmured sleepily. “Papa’s a mafia boss, and Luca’s a lawyer. It’s like a movie.”

Damien smirked, placing a kiss on the top of her head before pulling Luca up from the bed. “Yeah, sweetheart. A real-life movie.” He wrapped an arm around Luca’s waist, guiding him toward the door. “And in this story, there’s only one ending.”

Luca shivered slightly at the possessiveness in Damien’s tone, but before he could argue, Ava called out sleepily, “And they live happily ever after?”

Damien’s grip on Luca tightened. “Exactly.” He shot Luca a knowing look, his voice dipping into something darker. “Happily ever after—my way.”