"Aunty Sienna, I heard from Daddy that you’re going to be my mommy..." Skylar paused briefly before continuing. "Is that true?"

Sienna smiled and returned to the seating area.

The apartment suddenly felt warmer than before, perhaps because of the little boy sitting on the couch, or perhaps because of the news they were finally able to share.

She sat down next to him, close enough that their shoulders almost touched.

Skylar immediately turned toward her, his bright eyes shining with excitement that he could barely contain.

But instead of answering his earlier question, Sienna gently asked, "So, your daddy already told you about it?"

Skylar nodded several times without hesitation. The happiness on his face was impossible to miss.

"Yes," he said eagerly. "Daddy said... You will move to our house."

However, as soon as the words left his mouth, the excitement in his eyes faded. A trace of worry appeared there, as though he feared she might suddenly tell him it was not true after all.

He stared at her carefully, then asked in a quieter voice, "Is that true, Auntie?"

Sienna reached for his small hand, and the moment his fingers curled around hers, an unexpected warmth spread through her chest.

"Yes," she answered softly.

Skylar’s eyes widened.

"Your daddy and I are getting married," she continued, unable to suppress the smile that spread across her face, "and, of course, I will move into your house."

For a brief second, Skylar stared at her as if he needed to make sure he had heard correctly.

Then his entire face lit up.

"Yay!" he shouted, nearly bouncing off the couch. "I’m so happy! I finally have a mommy!"

The pure happiness in his voice touched her deeply.

"I’m happy too," she said. "We will finally live together as a family in the same house..."

Skylar grinned from ear to ear. "Then we can eat breakfast together every day, right!?"

"We can."

"And dinner too."

"Hmm... We can do that."

"And movie nights."

She nodded.

"And weekends."

"Yes."

"And holidays."

Sienna laughed. "Sky, I think you’ve already planned the next ten years."

"Maybe," he admitted proudly.

The two of them sat together for a moment, enjoying the happiness that filled the room. Yet despite her smile, there was still something weighing on Sienna’s mind. It had been bothering her ever since Zachary told her about their future together, and she found herself needing to know how Skylar truly felt.

Her fingers tightened slightly around his hand before she asked, "Sky," she said carefully. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, aunty..." He blinked at her curiously. "What is it?"

For a moment, she hesitated.

Then she quietly asked, "If I marry your father, won’t you be concerned about your birth mother?"

Instantly, the smile slowly disappeared from Skylar’s face. His cheerful expression faded into something thoughtful and distant, and seeing that change alone made Sienna instantly regret asking.

A wave of guilt washed over her.

"I’m sorry, Sky," she quickly said. "I didn’t mean to make you sad."

"No, Auntie." Skylar shook his head almost immediately. "I’m not sad."

His expression softened again, though he still looked confused.

"I just don’t know how to answer." He said.

Sienna frowned slightly.

"Why?"

Skylar lowered his eyes for a moment before quietly saying, "Because... I never knew her."

The answer caught Sienna completely off guard.

"You never met your mother?" She asked.

Skylar slowly shook his head.

"No."

He released a long sigh that seemed far too heavy for a child his age.

"Daddy never talked about her," he explained. "And he never allows anyone at home to talk about her either. So I don’t really know anything."

He shrugged lightly, trying to appear unaffected.

"I don’t know what she looks like. I don’t know her name. I don’t know anything."

Sienna felt her heart tighten.

She had searched the internet for Zachary’s past. She had read countless articles about him, his businesses, his achievements, and his family. Yet she had never found anything about the woman who was supposed to be Skylar’s mother. It was almost as if that person had never existed.

The realization only deepened her confusion.

Still, she did not want to push him further. Whatever the reason was, it clearly wasn’t something a little boy should carry alone.

Before she could change the subject, Skylar suddenly looked up at her.

"Auntie?"

"Yes?"

His voice softened. "You’ve been like a mother to me ever since we met at Pine Villa."

Sienna was completely stunned.

Skylar continued before she could respond.

"When Dad told me you were going to live with us, I was really happy."

"Really?"

He nodded.

"Because I already wanted you to stay with us..."

His smile returned, small but sincere.

"Like when we were on vacation together. It felt amazing. It felt like we were already a family."

The words hit her harder than she expected. For several seconds, Sienna could not speak.

Her eyes slowly filled with tears as emotion swelled in her chest. She had not realized how much those words meant to her until she heard them spoken aloud.

She gently placed both hands on his shoulders, turning him toward her.

"Sky," Sienna whispered, her voice trembling, "thank you so much."

The little boy smiled.

"I’m very happy too," she continued honestly. "More than you know."

Before she realized what she was doing, she pulled him into a hug.

Skylar immediately wrapped his small arms around her and hugged her back.

For a few long seconds, neither of them spoke.

They simply stayed there, holding each other in silence as a feeling neither could fully explain settled between them. It was warm, comforting, and strangely familiar.

Eventually, Sienna pulled back and wiped the corner of her eye before he could notice.

Skylar tilted his head.

"Why are you looking at me like that, Auntie?"

She laughed softly.

"Because you’re very sweet."

"I know."

His serious answer was delivered with his cute kiddy face, and it made her laugh even harder.