Then, in an instinctive gesture, Gabriel lifted her into the air and spun her around the garden, laughing like a boy who had just received the greatest gift of his life.

“My God, Ava…” he murmured, unable to hold back his tears. “You’ve made me the happiest man in the world.”

He kissed her intensely and then knelt before her, gently running his hand over her still discreet belly.

“I dreamed of this moment for so long,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I waited for you for so long, my chi