Page 25 of Off Limits (Alpha Billionaire)

When I met the two of them in the dining room for breakfast later, I was a bit disappointed she wasn’t in a shark dress. But I wasn’t wearing anything with fish on it either. Max, however, had on shark shorts and a shark T-shirt.

“I figured he more than made up for my lack of enthusiastic dressing,” Jessica said as she set a plate in front of my son and then began filling a plate with eggs for herself. “Are we spending the entire day at the aquarium, or did you have other plans?”

“You haven’t taken Max there yet, have you?” I asked.

She shook her head.

“We will either be there all day long, or we’ll look at two or three exhibits and then he’ll be done. We have a family membership. Remind me to stop by guest services so we can make sure your name is on the plan. That way, you can take Max there at any time,” I explained.

“I had no idea about the membership. That’s great. I haven’t been inside the place for years. I’m really looking forward to this. Thank you for including me,” she said as she sat with her breakfast.

“I plan on including you in my life. This is just the beginning.”

A charming blush highlighted pink across her cheeks.

12

JESSICA

Ididn’t know who was more excited for the day at the Aquarium, Max or Dylan. They both seemed overly enthusiastic. Maybe Max was more excited to see the fish and the exhibits, and Dylan was just happy to have a day free of work to spend with his son.

But I was included. This wasn’t simply Dylan taking time away from work. This was Dylan including me in a family activity. Every time he smiled at me, I felt a flutter of excitement in my middle.

I hadn’t realized how much Max loved the place. No one had told me we could have spent hours here and he would have been entertained, all while learning at the same time. If I had known, we definitely would have been making weekly visits. I already had plans forming in my head. Max needed more to do during the day than hang out and read stories with me or play with his cars and dinosaurs at his grandmother’s feet while she watched him play.

“I want to see the otters!” Max called out as soon as we got there. He grabbed my hand and started to pull me along.

“I’m coming, I’m coming.” I pretended to let him feel like he needed to drag me. “Hey!”

I said when he dropped my hand. I was afraid he was going to abandon me and run off toward the exhibit. But I had nothing to fear.

Max made a concerned, concentrated expression and balled up his little fists. He marched in a big circle around me.

Dylan was laughing as Max stomped around behind me and put his hands on my butt and started pushing.

“You’re too slow,” he complained.

I couldn’t stop laughing. And then Dylan grabbed his son and hurried past me. He wasn’t running, since the place was entirely too crowded for him to get away with that. “See you there, slowpoke.”

Dylan carried the giggling Max off toward the otter exhibit.

Otters, sharks, starfish, and more types of fish than I ever really thought about. We ate lunch in the cafe. I found it a bit ironic that the menu had so many seafood options. It seemed a bit weird to watch and admire all the fishy friends, only to eat their cousins for lunch. But I wasn’t complaining. My fish tacos were delicious.

After lunch, I expected Max to slow down and maybe start whining. After all, it was his typical nap time. But that boy was full of all the energy, and we had to go back and see his favorite exhibits for a second time. When we returned to the otters, he wormed his way up front to the glass.

As I reached for him, not wanting him to cut some other excited kid off, Dylan stayed my motions with a hand on my arm. “You don’t have to be holding on to him the entire time.”

“In a crowd like this, aren’t you worried?” I asked.

“It’s not that crowded, Jessica. Besides, I can see him just fine. You have to trust him,” Dylan said.

Dylan absolutely loves his son, but this felt a little too lax for my anxiety levels.

“I do trust Max. It’s everyone else that I’m wary of,” I said. “One little distraction, and Max could decide to run off, or worse, get nabbed.”

“Are you watching Max or are you watching the people and the otters?” Dylan asked.

“What do you mean?” I asked. Of course I was watching Max.

---