Page 195 of Delilah In Discretion

Her mother laughed softly.

“As if I would ever miss this, my love.”

The man closed the door behind them, and Killian descended the steps as the children followed eagerly. Pulling away as she wiped her tears, Brielle smiled as the twins waited patiently to say their hellos as well.

“Hi, Nana,” they said, hugging her.

She bent down to kiss their foreheads. “Hello, my loves. Your mommy is putting on quite the show this year, hmmm?” She giggled as Killian rubbed Brielle’s upper back comfortingly.

“It’s good to see you, Genevieve,” he said, and she nodded.

“It’s good to see you too, Mr. Russel. I see you’re faring well, accepting Brielle’s creativity this year,” she remarked playfully, and Killian could only chuckle in response, knowing well notto comment as Brielle looked over to him, her gaze filled with warnings and compassion.

“Tis her season, so need not worry. My complaints have been rather minimal,” Killian assured, ignoring the glares the twins sent his way as Brielle absentmindedly caressed their faces to ease the growing tension between them.

Genevieve nodded knowingly before she cooed softly as Brielle’s youngest lay sleeping in Killian’s hold.

Meanwhile, Brielle’s eyes landed on the man beside her mother, who seemed to have his eyes fixated on her already. She sent him a small smile, though he remained an enigma to her. The warmth in his gaze was unmistakable, but his reserved demeanor left her with lingering questions. As her children spoke, excited to tell their grandmother about the decorations, Brielle accidentally cut them off.

“I’m sorry… I don’t think I caught your name.” She spoke gingerly, though there was a slight hesitation in her voice.

“My apologies, Brielle. I’m Reid Kaufman. I was sure Genevieve would have mentioned me to you.”

Brielle shook her head, her eyes going over to her mother, who seemed indifferent all of a sudden.

“No, she didn’t mention you before,” Brielle muttered.

Killian narrowed his eyes slightly as he tilted his head. “Kaufman? Reid Kaufman?” he asked, and the man clenched his jaw as Brielle looked over to her husband.

“You know him, Killian?”

“Everyone who grew up with a gold or silver spoon in their mouth knows the famous West Coast billionaire who runs Silicon Valley… Up until now, I believed the rumors that he fell off the face of the earth.”

“Just because you fall doesn’t mean you can’t still call the shots,” the man replied, and Brielle nodded silently, still noticing her mother, who was rather silent. It was a slightsurprise to know her mother was with such a wealthy man, however, it wasn’t a complete shock given her family history of being tangled with money.

“I don’t suppose you’d want to share how that happened or how you came to know my mother over cookies and milk this evening?” Brielle asked lightheartedly.

Reid chuckled in response. “It’s a rather long story, but to keep things short, I was essentially the family castaway… Genevieve was by my side through those hard times.”

“There was a famous article inThe Timesmore than twenty years ago about him changing his last name and rebuilding his entire identity,” Killian continued.

Brielle crossed her arms almost protectively as her mother’s features seemed to grow into a guilty expression.

In contrast, Reid’s face remained stoic, oddly reminding her of how her older brother would do the same when tensions seemed to grow. Come to think of it, the man had many uncanny resemblances to her older brother—similar yet somehow distinctive and much more mature in contrast.

It could’ve been a coincidence, but something in the pit of her stomach told her otherwise.

“What was your last name before?” she asked, forcing her voice not to crack as she waited impatiently to hear the name come out of his mouth.

Genevieve looked up at him for a moment, but Reid’s eyes never left Brielle’s as he took notice of every detail on her face the same way she did his.

He watched as her face grew a bit red like Genevieve’s, from the wind of the brisk weather, and her eyes looked up at him in the same way he remembered decades ago.

With reluctance in his sigh, he spoke, his heart pounding in his chest as he prepared for the worst.

“Newman.”