ETHAN'S POV
If building the greenhouse was a whisper of love, then what I was planning next needed to be a declaration.
Something that didn't just belong to Ava and me in the quiet corners of our home, but something that said to the world: We are building a family, and it means everything.
We had crossed oceans of doubt, survived storms of betrayal, and found peace in each other.
Now, as the days ticked by and Ava's belly began to swell just enough to cup with my palm, I wanted to honor what we had grown. To do something that would last.
I sat in my study late one night, flipping through old photographs, from our wedding, the foundation's launch, her first major public speech.
Ava had always carried herself with this effortless grace, but when I looked closely, I could see it: the armor she wore. A kind of strength that had been earned, not inherited.
And now she was going to be a mother.
