Chapter 438
Alexander
The elevator doors opened onto Hazel’s floor, and I stepped out, the weight that had been pressing on my chest for months finally lifting. I knocked on the door, hearing the muffled sounds of cartoons playing inside.
Hazel answered, her expression curious. “That was fast.”
“I don’t waste time.”
“Clearly.” She stepped aside, letting me in. “They’re in the living room. Well, Ethan’s in the living room. Madison’s been stress-cooking in the kitchen for the past hour. I think she’s made enough food to feed a small army.”
I walked down the hallway, following the sound of animated characters and the smell of something savory. Ethan sat cross-legged on the floor, his eyes glued to the television, surrounded by his new dinosaur collection. The T-Rex stood guard over the smaller dinosaurs like a prehistoric sentinel.
“Hey, buddy.”
His head whipped around, and his face lit up. “Dad! You came back!”
“Told you I would.”
He scrambled to his feet, running over to grab my hand. “Come see! I set up the whole habitat. The T-Rex is the king, and the velociraptors are his army, and the triceratops are trying to fight back, but they’re losing because T-Rex is the strongest.”
I let him pull me toward his dinosaur battlefield, crouching down to examine his setup. “Looks l thought this through.”
“Yeah! And when the pteranodon flies over, everything stops because they’re all scared of him even though he’s not technically a dinosaur.”
“Smart strategy.”
“That’s what I thought!” He picked up the T-Rex, making it stomp toward the Triceratops. “You wanna
play? You can be the velociraptors.”
“Maybe in a minute. I need to talk to your mom first.”
His face fell slightly. “Okay. But you’ll come back, right?”
“Promise.”
I stood, ruffling his hair before heading toward the kitchen. Madison stood at the stove, stirring something in a large pot. Her hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail, and she’d changed into comfortable jeans and a loose sweater that somehow made her look more approachable than any
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Chapter 438
+25 Bonus
designer dress ever could.
She glanced over her shoulder as I entered, her wooden spoon pausing mid-stir. “You came back fast.”
“Told you I would.”
“I know, but still.” She turned back to the pot, resuming her stirring with deliberate motions. “That was what, an hour? Where did you go?”
I leaned against the counter, watching her work. Steam rose from whatever she was cooking, carrying the scent of tomatoes and herbs. “I canceled the engagement. It’ll be published online soon.”
Madison’s hand froze. The spoon clattered against the side of the pot, and for a second, she just stood there, completely still.
“You what?”
“The engagement. It’s over. I ended it.”
She turned slowly, her eyes wide. “Alexander, you—”
“Dad!” Ethan burst into the kitchen before she could finish.
Madison’s mouth snapped shut, whatever she’d been about to say dying on her lips.
“What’s up, prince?” I asked, turning my full attention to him.
“Can we go to your house again? You said we could visit!” His eyes were enormous, filled with hope that made refusing impossible. “I wanna count all the floors! And see the view! And maybe take a bath in that giant shower!”
“Ethan.” Madison’s voice carried that gentle warning tone mothers perfected. “We can’t just invite ourselves to Alexander’s place.”
“But he said we could!” Ethan grabbed my hand, tugging insistently. “You said anytime, right? That’s what anytime means!”
“He’s right,” I said. “I did say anytime.”
Madison’s eyes narrowed. “Alexander.”
“What? I’m just being consistent.” I looked down at Ethan, whose face had lit up like Times Square. “You want to see my place again?”
“YES!” He bounced on his toes. “Can we go now? Please, please, please?”
“We should probably ask your mom first.
Ethan whirled toward Madison, his hands clasped together in prayer position “Please, Mom? I promise I’ll be good! I won’t touch anything!”
Madison’s mouth opened, and I braced for resistance For logical arguments about needing to get back
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to Connecticut, about imposing on my space, about all the reasons why letting Ethan see my penthouse again was a terrible idea.
Instead, she said, “Okay.”
I blinked. “Okay?”
“Yes. Okay.”
Ethan’s whoop of victory probably violated noise ordinances across three zip codes.
“YES! Thank you, Mom! You’re the best!” He grabbed both our hands and swung them like pendulums.” This is gonna be so cool!”
“Aunt Hazel, you should come too!” Ethan bounced on his toes, looking at her with those enormous eyes. “King Alexander’s house is super tall and has everything!”
Hazel set down her coffee mug, her expression amused. “That’s sweet, kiddo, but I’ve got work to finish. Boring adult stuff that would put you right to sleep.”
“But Aunt Hazel-”
“No buts. You go have fun with your mom and dad.” She ruffled his hair. “Tell me all about it later, okay?”
Ethan’s face fell slightly, but he recovered fast. “Okay! I’ll take lots of pictures in my brain!”
“You do that.” Hazel glanced at Madison, something passing between them that I couldn’t quite read.
Have fun.”
We headed down to the Bentley, Ethan chattering nonstop about what he wanted to see first. I helped him into the backseat, watching as Madison settled in beside him.
Ethan pressed his face against the window the entire time, counting buildings and pointing at landmarks he recognized from picture books.
“That’s the Empire State Building! I know that one!” His finger left smudges on the glass. “And that one’s really tall too! What’s it called?”
“Chrysler Building,” I said, glancing at him in the rearview mirror.
“Chrysler like the cars?”
“Exactly like the cars.”
‘Cool!
We pulled into my private garage, the Bentley’s engine purring to a stop
Ethan scrambled out the moment I opened his door
He grabbed Madison’s hand, tugging her toward the elevator bay I followed, pressing my palm against the biometric scanner The doors slid open immediately
Chapter 438
We stepped inside. Ethan’s reflection stared back from the polished steel walls as we ascended.
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