Page 16 of The Forbidden Billionaire Attorney

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Later that afternoon, I stride into the neon-lit arcade, Caleb’s hand in mine, my mind still a tangled mess from the morning’s fiasco. He’ll be spending the weekend at my mom’s, though, and I want to get a little father-son time in with him before he leaves.

The place is buzzing with the sound of video games and children’s laughter, a welcome distraction from the endless paperwork and bruised pride waiting back at the office.

“Can we play the racing game first?” Caleb’s eyes are wide, his excitement contagious.

“Sure thing, speed demon,” I reply, ruffling his hair as we make our way through the maze of arcade cabinets.

We spend the next hour jumping from one game to another, sinking tokens into machines like they’re going out of style.

Eventually, we land in a booth with a greasy pizza between us. Caleb takes a bite, cheese stretching comically from his mouth to the slice. He says through a mouthful, “Dad, my tooth still hasn’t come out.”

“Let me see.” I peer into his mouth, noting the stubborn angle of the baby tooth. “It’s just taking its sweet time because it knows you’re tough. But if it starts acting up, Dr. Gomez can show it who’s boss.”

He nods, looking slightly reassured, then hits me with a question that has me choking on my pepperoni slice. “Are you gonna be okay by yourself this weekend? You always say grown-ups get lonely too.”

“Lonely?” I chuckle, masking the sting of truth in his words. “I’ll have my hands full with work all weekend anyway. I’ll miss you like crazy, but I won’t have timeto be lonely.”

He tilts his head, frowning. “But my friends’ dads have wives. Don’t you want someone to hang out with?”

“Kid, I’ve got you. That’s all the company I need.” I grin, but there’s an ache in my chest that wasn’t there before.

Caleb smiles, and I feel a little less adrift.

“Okay, let’s finish up. We still have to pack before I drive you to Grandma’s for the weekend.”

Caleb nods. “Okay, Dad.”

As he devours the last of his slice, I watch, my heart swelling. This boy is the best thing I’ve ever done, even if I’m flying solo on the whole parenting gig.

Life might be a complicated mess of work and responsibilities, but moments like these—they’re pure and simple. Just me and my boy against the world.

A half an hour later, we pull into the driveway. Mom’s car is already parked, of course.

“Grandma’s here!” Caleb calls out as I kill the ignition.

Before I even open the car door, Caleb’s already unbuckled and halfway out of his seat, eager to run inside.

When we step into the living room, Mom’s sitting on the couch, already surrounded by Caleb’s weekend bags like she’s gearing up for a full-scale military operation.

“Hey, Mom,” I say as we step inside, my voice echoing off the walls of the house that suddenly feels too big, too empty. “I told you I was going to drive him to Pasadena.”

“I was already in the area. Went shopping on Rodeo.”

I breathe out a laugh. “Then why don’t you just move back to Beverly Hills?” But I know her answer is already no. She’ll never move from the house she and my father lived in for over thirty years. “Thanksfor packing his stuff, Mom. We were going to do that before you got here.”

“Of course, honey,” she replies, her eyes scanning my face with that unnerving parental x-ray vision. “Wanted to save you some time.”

“Appreciate it.” I peer down at Caleb. “Ready to go, little man?”

“Yep!” He beams, and we walk outside where I help him into the backseat of Mom’s car, my hands lingering a second too long on the seatbelt.

“Adrian,” Mom starts, leaning against the car door as if bracing herself, “I’ve been talking with Margie—you remember, my friend from bridge club? Her daughter, Elise, just got back from competing. She’s single now, quite a catch …”

“Mom—” I start, but she barrels on.

“25, an Olympic gymnast, and she thinks you’re handsome!” She looks at me expectantly, as if she’s just handed me a winning lottery ticket rather than a potential dating disaster.

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