Billionaires Dollar Series

“Lucas?”

“Just woke up from his nap. Look who’s here! It’s your uncle!”

I reach over and run my fingers over my nephew’s back. He’s so tiny, the little thing-smaller than I remember his big sisters being at this age. Or perhaps I didn’t notice back then, living in New York and detesting Ethan’s ex-wife.

“Oh, will you? Thanks.” Bella thrusts the bundle into my arms and I hold him awkwardly, my shoulder cradling his neck. Big green eyes look up at me with the intense curiosity only a small child is capable of.

“Hi,” I whisper.

“Ethan is in the backyard,” Bella calls over her shoulder. “I’ll be right back-the dog needs feeding!”

I close the front door behind me with a grin. So I’ve managed to arrive on one of the rare weekends when they’re staff-less, both housekeeper and cleaners off-duty.

I find my brother lying on his stomach on the grass, his daughters on either side of him. Haven puts a foot on his back and he grunts.

Giggling, she steps onto him, balancing with her arms out wide.

“What, exactly, are you guys doing?”

Haven jumps off Ethan. “Liam!”

“Hey, kid.”

“We’re giving Daddy a massage!” Evie scrambles onto Ethan’s back as he struggles up on an elbow.

“Do you need to be saved? You look like you do.”

Haven grips a hold of my shirt and tugs, standing on her tiptoes. “Let me see him.”

I lower Lucas and she gazes into his face. His eyes are just as curious as he stares at his big sister.

“Good morning,” she says brightly, pressing a kiss to his forehead. The baby squirms, wide-eyed.

Ethan gets to his feet. “They saw something on TV where a man got a massage by getting walked on.” Is that embarrassment on his face?

“And you volunteered as the test subject.” I nod. “Makes sense. What did you say once? No dignity for dads.”

“Exactly.” He glances from me to Lucas, as if he’s about to ask to take him from me. My fingers tighten around the tiny bundle.

“Uncle Liam?”

“Yes, Haven?”

“Have you started working on our cousins yet?”

Ethan laughs, and I can’t help but grin. “Not really. Sorry, kid.”

“He’d be just as surprised as you if any cousins showed up.” Ethan ruffles her hair. “One day, perhaps.”

“Everything’s one day,” Haven complains.

Ethan extends a hand to the patio chairs and I sit down in one of them, stretching out my legs. “Wasn’t expecting you today, Liam.”

“I didn’t expect to be here.”

He clears his throat, his gaze resting on me with a weight I can feel down to my toes. I meet it just as gravely.

“Girls,” Ethan says. “How about you go play in the treehouse for a bit?”

“But Uncle Liam just arrived!”

“I’ll play with you soon,” I say. “I just need to talk to your dad.”

Evie sighs but agrees, skipping toward the treehouse in the distance. Haven stops by her dad on the way.

“Make him give us cousins,” she stage-whispers in the comically stern voice only a six-year-old is capable of.

Ethan shakes his head when we’re alone. “They’re obsessed.”

“I hope you’re doing your best to keep their expectations low.”

He lifts a shoulder in a shrug. “Not my very best, perhaps. I might not nag you about it, but I wouldn’t mind my kids having cousins, either.”Please check at N/ôvel(D)rama.Org.

I groan, resting my head against the chair. “Not you too.”

“Me too,” Ethan confirms. He leans forward, arms on his knees. “How did it go yesterday? You told me something about it.”

“I drove up to Albert’s cabin,” I say, looking from him to Lucas, still in my arms. My nephew is busy trying to fit his entire fist in his mouth. “We spoke briefly. He wasn’t impressed by the ruse.”

“He’ll call me again later this week, but I think it’s safe to assume the investment is over.”

“I thought we already had the paperwork drawn up.”

“I told him he was free to tear it up if he wished-we wouldn’t hold him to it.”

Ethan’s eyes widen, like he hadn’t expected me to make such a concession. “Good.”

“I expect Cole and Nick will be disappointed, but I’ll have a new strategy to present at our next meeting. There are already a few companies I believe will yield extraordinary results in the coming years, ones I-”

“That’s not what I meant, you know. When I asked how yesterday went.”

My jaw tightens. “Right.”

“Didn’t Maddie have that cooking competition yesterday?”

Ah.

Here comes the guilt.