Morning Shadows

**Sofia's POV:**

I woke to sunlight streaming through the curtains and the smell of coffee—which immediately made my stomach turn. Pregnancy had ruined coffee for me, turning something I once loved into something that made me nauseous just thinking about it.

Ace's side of the bed was empty but still warm. I ran my hand over the sheets, wondering how long he'd been up. Probably not long, judging by the lingering heat.

I struggled to sit up, my belly making every movement an awkward negotiation with gravity. Jaxon was awake too, doing what felt like somersaults against my ribs. I pressed my hand to the spot where he was kicking.

"Good morning to you too," I muttered. "Could you maybe not use my internal organs as a punching bag?"

Another kick, more insistent this time.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. You're definitely your father's son."

The bedroom door opened and Ace walked in, carrying a tray. He was already dressed—black dress pants and a crisp white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Mafia boss casual. His hair was slightly damp from a shower, and I caught the scent of his cologne mixing with the smell of... pancakes?

"You're awake," he said, a smile tugging at his lips. "I was trying to surprise you with breakfast in bed."

"Pancakes?" I asked hopefully, eyeing the tray.

"Pancakes, fresh fruit, orange juice, and—" He paused, looking almost shy. "I attempted bacon. It might be a little burnt."

My heart squeezed. "You cooked for me?"

"Don't sound so shocked. I'm capable of more than just killing people." But his tone was teasing, and I saw the pleasure in his eyes that I'd noticed his effort.

He set the tray carefully on the bed and helped me adjust the pillows so I could sit up more comfortably. The pancakes looked perfect—golden brown, stacked high, with butter melting between the layers. The bacon was indeed a little crispy, but the gesture made me want to cry. Damn pregnancy hormones.

"This looks amazing," I said, my voice thick with emotion.

Ace sat on the edge of the bed, watching me with that intense focus he usually reserved for interrogations. "Eat. You barely touched your dinner last night."

"Because someone rushed me out of the restaurant in a panic," I teased, cutting into the pancakes.

"You had contractions. What was I supposed to do, finish my steak?"

"They were fake contractions."

"I didn't know that at the time." He reached over, his hand automatically going to my belly. "All I knew was that you were in pain and scared."

I softened, putting down my fork to cover his hand with mine. "I know. And I love you for it, even if you were being completely overprotective and ridiculous."

"Get used to it. Once Jaxon's here, I'm going to be ten times worse."

"Terrifying thought." But I was smiling as I resumed eating. The pancakes were delicious—fluffy and sweet, exactly what I'd been craving without even knowing it.

Ace watched me eat, and I could see something working behind his eyes. That look he got when he was thinking about something serious but hadn't decided whether to share it yet.

"What?" I asked between bites.

"Nothing."

"Ace."

He sighed, running a hand through his still-damp hair. "I have to go to the main base today. There's a situation that needs my attention."

My stomach dropped. "What kind of situation?"

"Nothing dangerous," he said quickly, probably seeing the fear flash across my face. "Just some territorial dispute with a smaller gang. They've been encroaching on our territory, and I need to remind them why that's a bad idea."

"Remind them how?"

His expression went cold, the warmth draining out of his eyes in that way that used to terrify me. Now I just found it sad—this mask he wore, this persona he'd been forced to adopt. "However necessary."

I set down my fork, my appetite suddenly gone. "You promised you'd be here. That you wouldn't leave as the due date gets closer."

"I know, baby. And I will be. But I can't completely abandon my responsibilities." He cupped my face gently. "This is important. If I don't handle it now, it could escalate into something much worse. And I need everything stable and secure before Jaxon arrives."

I understood the logic, but that didn't make it easier. The thought of him out there, in danger, while I was here alone—it made my chest tight with anxiety.

"How long will you be gone?"

"A few hours. Five at most." He pressed his forehead to mine. "Ice will stay here with you. And I'll have my phone on me the entire time. If anything happens—anything at all—you call me immediately and I'll be back in fifteen minutes."

"Promise?"

"I swear on my life." He kissed me softly. "You're my priority. Always. But I need to handle this so we can have peace when our son arrives."

I nodded reluctantly. He was right, even if I hated it. "Okay. But be careful. Please."

"Always am."

That was a lie and we both knew it, but I let it slide.

---

**Ace's POV:**

Leaving Sofia was getting harder every day. I'd made it halfway to the door before I turned back, unable to resist one more kiss, one more touch. She laughed against my lips, pushing me away gently.

"Go. Handle your business. I'll be fine."

But I lingered, my hand on her belly, feeling Jaxon move beneath my palm. "Call me if—"

"If anything changes, I know. You've told me seventeen times."

"I'm serious, Sofia."

"So am I." She softened, covering my hand with hers. "We'll be okay for a few hours. I promise."

Ice was waiting in the foyer when I finally made it downstairs. He took one look at my face and smirked.

"Hard to leave, isn't it?"

"Shut up."

"Never thought I'd see the day when Ace Hernandez was whipped by a pregnant woman."

"I will shoot you."

"No, you won't. Sofia would be pissed, and you're terrified of making her upset." His grin widened. "It's actually kind of adorable."

I glared at him, but there was no real heat behind it. He wasn't wrong, and we both knew it.

"She calls, you call me immediately," I said. "I don't care if I'm in the middle of a meeting or an interrogation. Understood?"

"Understood, Boss." Ice's expression turned serious. "I'll take care of her. You know I will."

I did know that. Ice had become almost as protective of Sofia as I was. It was one of the reasons I trusted him to stay with her.

Dante was already in the car, engine running. The drive to the main base took twenty minutes, and I spent most of it reviewing the information Dante had compiled on the gang causing problems—the Iron Serpents. Small-time operation, barely twenty members, but they'd been getting bold lately. Dealing drugs in our territory, shaking down businesses we protected, generally making nuisances of themselves.

Normally I'd send someone else to handle it. But their leader, a punk named Marcus, had apparently been talking shit about the Hernandez family. Saying we were weak, distracted, that I'd gone soft since getting a woman pregnant.

That required a personal response.

"Marcus is already at the base," Dante informed me as we pulled through the gates. "We picked him up an hour ago."

"Alone?"

"With two of his top guys. They're in the holding cells."

Perfect.

The base was buzzing with activity when we arrived. Training exercises in the yard, guards patrolling the perimeter, the usual organized chaos of running a criminal empire. Men nodded respectfully as I passed, but I could see the curiosity in their eyes. Word had spread about Sofia's pregnancy, about my upcoming fatherhood. They were probably wondering if I really had gone soft.

Time to remind them who they were dealing with.

Marcus was in Cell Block Three, hands cuffed behind his back, flanked by his two lieutenants who looked considerably more nervous than their boss. Marcus himself was all bravado—young, maybe mid-twenties, with the kind of cocky expression that came from not yet learning the hard lessons life had to teach.

"Ace Hernandez," he said when I entered, his voice dripping with false confidence. "Finally decided to show your face?"

I didn't respond immediately. Instead, I pulled up a chair, sitting down slowly, deliberately. Let the silence stretch. Let him feel it.

"You've been causing problems in my territory," I said finally, my voice calm. Controlled.

"Your territory?" Marcus laughed, though I noticed his lieutenants didn't join in. "Last I checked, you were too busy playing house with your pregnant bitch to actually run your empire."

The room went dead silent. Dante's hand moved to his gun, but I held up a hand, stopping him. I stood slowly, walking toward Marcus with measured steps.

"Say that again," I said quietly.

Something in my tone must have finally penetrated his bravado because I saw fear flicker in his eyes. But he'd committed now, couldn't back down in front of his men.

"Everyone knows you've gone soft. That you're distracted. That you care more about your little family than—"

I moved before he could finish, grabbing him by the throat and slamming him against the wall. His eyes went wide, his bravado crumbling as he struggled to breathe.

"Let me make something very clear," I said, my voice deadly quiet. "My family is off-limits. You don't talk about them. You don't even think about them. Because if you do—if you so much as breathe wrong in their direction—I will make you wish you'd never been born."

I tightened my grip, watching his face turn red, then purple. His lieutenants started forward, but guards appeared from the shadows, guns trained on them.

"Having a family hasn't made me soft," I continued. "It's given me something to protect. Something worth burning the entire world down for. Do you understand what that means?"

I released him and he dropped to his knees, gasping and coughing.

"It means I'm more dangerous now than I've ever been. Because I have something to lose. And I will eliminate any threat to them without hesitation or mercy."

I pulled my gun, pressing it against his temple. He froze, tears streaming down his face now, all bravado gone.

"Please," he choked out. "Please, I didn't mean—"

"Your operation is done. You leave my territory today. You don't come back. You don't sell here, you don't recruit here, you don't even drive through here. If I see you or any of your people in my territory again, I will kill you all. Slowly. Painfully. In ways that will make you beg for death long before I grant it."

I pulled the trigger. The gun clicked empty—I'd removed the bullets before entering, a psychological tactic—but Marcus didn't know that. He collapsed completely, sobbing, a dark stain spreading across his pants.

"Get them out of my sight," I told the guards. "Drop them at the edge of the territory. If they're smart, they'll keep running."

As they dragged the broken men away, Dante approached me, his expression carefully neutral.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"No." I holstered my gun, my hands shaking slightly—not from fear, but from rage. "But it was necessary."

My phone buzzed in my pocket and my heart stopped. Sofia. I answered before the second ring.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she said, sounding amused. "I just wanted to hear your voice. Is that a crime?"

The tension drained out of me so fast I almost staggered. "Christ, baby. You scared me."

"Sorry. Should I not call?"

"No, you should always call. Always." I stepped away from Dante, seeking privacy. "How are you feeling?"

"Fat. Uncomfortable. Missing you." I heard the smile in her voice. "But otherwise fine. Jaxon's been kicking up a storm. I think he misses you too."

My chest tightened with emotion I couldn't name. "I miss you both. I'll be home soon."

"Take your time. Handle what you need to handle. We're okay here. Ice made me lunch and is currently losing at poker to his own reflection in the mirror."

I couldn't help but smile. "That sounds about right."

"Ace?"

"Yeah, baby?"

"I love you."

"I love you too. So damn much."

After we hung up, I stood there for a moment, just breathing. This was my life now—balancing violence and domesticity, brutality and love, the monster I'd been raised to be and the man Sofia made me want to become.

It was exhausting. But it was mine. And I wouldn't trade it for anything.