THE FORGOTTEN HEIRESS-Chapter 444: An Eplosive Beauty

"Her name is Georgia," she said quietly. "She’s seven years old. And she’s the best thing that ever happened to me."

George’s breath caught, and for a second, he couldn’t find his voice. His mind raced with the realization that he had a seven year old daughter who was named after him despite being an asshole.

"Georgia..." he whispered so affectionately that it brought a frown onto Ariel’s face. He was yet to meet their daughter, but seemed so in love with just her name. Is he for real? Or was it because she had named her after him, despite how he wanted nothing to do with her?

"Georgia... Georgia... My Gia," George repeated the name as if he was already obsessed with it.. it sounded so precious on his tongue and all of a sudden, he just couldn’t wait to see his daughter with such a beautiful name.

He was sure she would be the most beautiful princess in the world even if he took after any of her parents. He has the best gene and Ariel was a beauty... a combination of both in their daughter would be an explosive beauty. "I want to meet her, Ria. I want to be her father."

Ariel’s eyes glistened with unshed tears as she bit down on her lip, trying to keep her composure. "Do you have any idea what you’re asking, George? Do you know how many times I’ve had to explain to her why her father isn’t around?"

George’s face crumpled, and he reached out to touch her arm, but she flinched away, making his heart twist with regret.

"I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry, Ria. For everything. I know I’ve missed out on so much, but I want to make it up to Gia. I want to be there for both of you. Even if you hate me, let me at least be there for our daughter... Our sweet Gia."

Ariel was speechless. She knew George had a knack for coming up with strange nicknames, but directly giving their daughter whom he had never met, a nickname, and being already so obsessed with it was way above board.

For a long moment, she said nothing but just let the night air fill the silence between them.

George’s breath was held as he waited, and hoped that maybe... just maybe, there was a chance she would let him in.

Finally, she spoke in a voice barely above a whisper. "If I let you meet her, it’s not because I’m doing it for you, George. It’s for Georgia. She deserves to know who her father is, even if he wasn’t there when she needed him the most."

George nodded, his throat tight with emotion. "Thank you, Ria. I know it’s more than I deserve, but I promise... I won’t let her down. I won’t let either of you down."

Ariel shot him a look that was filled with an equal amount of skepticism and lingering anger even though somewhere in her heart, a faint ray of hope hovered above the anger.

"Don’t make promises you can’t keep, George. If you hurt her, if you hurt us again, there won’t be another chance. Do you understand?"

George swallowed hard and nodded. "I understand. I won’t hurt her and I won’t hurt you again..."

"Wait... does that mean you’ve given us a second chance?" he asked animatedly and before Ariel could respond, did what he’s been dying to do since the last time he laid eyes on her.

Ariel, who was getting ready with a sharp retort, suddenly found it unable to utter the words as her lips were sealed in a passionate kiss that sent her eyes reeling.

Her first instinct was to push George away as soon as their lips met, so her hands flew up, pressing against his chest as she tried to remind herself of all the years of pain and heartbreak he had caused.

But instead, she froze and her resistance faltered as the warmth of his lips and the sudden rush of memories overwhelmed her.

The familiar way he kissed her, with the same intensity and care he had back then, stirred something deep within her.

The hurt, the anger, and the love she had buried so deeply... all surged to the surface in a dizzying, chaotic wave.

And for a moment, she found herself kissing him back, and her hands loosened their grip on his shirt as she leaned into him.

As they kissed, it was like they had stepped back in time, to those days when it was just the two of them ... hopelessly in love and wanted nothing but each other.

But unfortunately, reality came crashing in as Ariel’s mind caught up with her body, and she broke the kiss.

"Ria," groaned George in protest and Ariel’s hands that were still holding onto the fabric of his shirt, trembled as she pressed them against his chest, creating space between them.

Her cheeks were flushed and her breath came in short, ragged gasps as she stared at him with wide, conflicted eyes.

"What are you doing?" she whispered as she struggled to regain control of her emotions. She could feel her heart pounding wildly in her chest and her lips still tingling from the kiss they had just shared.

George’s eyes were equally wide, his chest heaving as he caught his breath, but he didn’t let her go. Instead, he cupped her face and gently brushed his thumb across her cheek in a way that was maddeningly tender.

Ariel’s eyes darted away when she was unable to bear the deep longing in his eyes.

"What... what do you think you’re doing?" she repeated, in a voice with an equal blend of shock and anger and wrapped her arms around herself defensively, as if trying to build a wall between them again.

When George saw this, he took a shaky step back, running a hand through his hair, clearly flustered by his own actions.

"I’m sorry, Ria," he blurted out and held his hands up as if to show he meant no harm, when Ariel just sneered. "I... I got carried away. I shouldn’t have kissed you. I’m sorry."

Ariel drew in a deep breath, trying to steady herself, but her heart was still racing and swirling widely with inexplicable emotions.

She pressed her lips together, wiping them with the back of her hand as if she could erase the moment. "You can’t just... do that, George. You can’t just.. up and kiss me like nothing’s happened, and expect it to be okay."

George winced at the coldness in her voice but nodded nonetheless, accepting the scolding. "You’re right. I crossed the line. I just... I couldn’t help myself. Seeing you and being this close to you again. I got carried away and I’m sorry, Ria."

Even though he was apologizing, he didn’t regret the kiss. Brief as it might have been, it had confirmed to him that Ariel still had feelings for him and for a moment he felt it was more of a reconnection of their souls than just the connection of lips.

He could tell without Ariel admitting to it that she also felt it and with this realization, the little hope he had nursed before the kiss had received a major boost.