-CELINE POV-
:
<b>89 </b>
55 vouchers
Hunter kept his word. Breakfast was ready before I even managed to change out of my robe. The smell of coffee and butter drifted through the air, warm and homey, and when I walked into the kitchen, Hunter was standing by the stove in sweats and nothing else, flipping something on the pan with that passion he carried into boardrooms.
“You cook now?” I teased, leaning against the doorway.
He nced over his shoulder, deadpan. “Don’t sound so shocked. I can handle eggs and pancakes. I’m a man of many talents.”
“Mm,” I hummed, taking a seat at the ind. “I’ve seen your talents, Mr. Reid. Some are… questionable.”
That earned me a smirk. “Careful, Mrs. Reid. You keep talking like that, we won’t make it to breakfast.” I bit my lip, heat curling low in my stomach, but before I coulde up with a reply, a familiar voice shrieked from upstairs.
“Mommy!”
Both our heads turned just as Caesar came barreling down the stairs in his school uniform, his tiny backpack bouncing, hair sticking out like a baby chick. He skidded into the kitchen and threw himself at me first, clinging to my waist.
“You’re up early,” I said, kissing the top of his head. “Excited for school again?”
He pouted, shaking his head. “No. I don’t like it. They make me color in lines. Lines are boring.”
I hid augh in his hair. “Coloring in lines helps you learn control, sweetheart.”
“Control is boring too.”
Hunter finally turned off the stove and set a te of pancakes on the counter, raising a brow. “You hear that, Celine? Our son thinks rules are boring. He’s definitely my kid.”
Caesar scrambled off me and ran to Hunter, tugging on his sweatpants. “Papa, I told Tommy about you! He didn’t believe me when I said you can buy the whole school!”
Hunter crouched, keeping a straight face. “And what did you say?”
“I said, my papa is Hunter Reid. He can buy all the toys in the world.”
I groaned, covering my face. “Oh no. Don’t turn him into a miniature version of you, Hunter.”
Hunter’s lips curved in pride. “Toote. It’s gic.”
Caesar giggled, tugging Hunter toward the table. “Papa, sit! We eat pancakes together!”
11:04 <b>Sun</b><b>, </b><b>Oct </b>5 …
55 vouchers
Hunter carried him easily with one arm, setting him on a chair, before sliding a te in front of me. “Eat, wife. Doctor’s orders.” I rolled my eyes but obeyed, cutting into the fluffy stack. Caesar, meanwhile, was trying to pour syrup on his own te, nearly drowning his pancakes.
“Caesar,” I warned, grabbing the bottle before it toppled.
“Mommy, it’s not enough!” he protested, cheeks puffing.
Hunter leaned back in his chair, sipping his coffee like the picture of calm. “Let him. If he gets sick, it’s a lesson.”
I shot him a re. “And who’s cleaning it up?”
He smirked. “The maid.”
I kicked him under the table, which only made him chuckle. Caesar, oblivious to our bickering, stuffed his cheeks full and talked at the same time. “Papa, today my teacher said I can be anything I want. So I told her I’ll be a super boss like you.”
Hunter’s expression softened, pride shing in his eyes. “That’s right, little man. Super boss.”
I reached across the table, brushing my fingers against Hunter’s hand, grounding myself in the moment….my husband sipping coffee, my son giggling with syrup on his chin, sunlight streaming through the tall windows.
It was loud. Messy. Imperfect.
But it was ours. And when Caesar leaned over and whispered…far too loudly….. “Papa, kiss Mommy again likest night!” I nearly dropped my fork.
Hunter choked on his coffee, while Caesar dissolved intoughter. I swatted my son lightly on the head. “Caesar!”
“What?” he said, blinking innocently. “Kissing is love!” <fn84eb> Fresh chapters posted on find?novel</fn84eb>
Hunter recovered fast, his mouth twitching. He leaned toward me across the table, his eyes gleaming with mischief. “Out of the mouths of babes…” Before I could stop him, he pressed a slow, lingering kiss against my lips. Caesar squealed in delight, pping his sticky hands.
“Eww! You’re kissing like in movies!”
I broke away,ughing breathlessly, and shook my head at both of them. “You two are impossible.”
Hunter’s voice dropped, low enough only I could hear. “And you love us anyway.”
And damn it, he was right.
-HUNTER POV-
I leaned back in my seat, the ss of water in my hand emptied in a single swallow. The liquid did nothing to
11:04 Sun, Oct <b>5 </b>
89
55 vouchers
wash away the sour taste in my mouth, the kind of bitterness that came from trying to control the storm. inside me. Losing my temper here would make for a spectacr headline. I could already see it on every tabloid and news crawl:
“BILLIONAIRE HUNTER REID CAUSES CHAOS IN FIVE–STAR RESTAURANT.”
Vincent wouldugh his ass off, of course…he lived for drama….but Celine? Celine would hate it. Thest thing I wanted was for her to wake up tomorrow with my face stered across every screen in New York.
Across from me, Senator Webb Brighton leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table like we were old friends catching up. His salt–and–pepper hair was too neat, his smile too practiced.
“It’s a surprise to see you took the time to honor this lunch invite,” he said smoothly.
“The invitation came as a surprise to me too,” I replied, my voice even, almost cold. I turned my gaze to the woman sitting beside him, the woman responsible for this ridiculous setup. “Isn’t that right, Mother?”
Eleanor Reid smiled, that delicate, poised smile she had perfected decades ago–the one she thought made her look like society’s queen. To me, it was nothing but a mask stretched over ambition and delusion.
When she had called me earlier, requesting “a chance to talk,” I had entertained the thought….briefly…that maybe she was finallying to her senses. After all, she had run out of pawns. Or so I thought.
But Eleanor Reid always found a way to sink lower.
The proof was sitting right in front of me: a young woman in a cream silk dress, her chestnut hair styled to look effortless, her painted lips curved into a smile that did not reach her eyes. Anya Brighton. Twenty–four years old. And staring straight at me like she thought this was some kind of game she could win.
I let my gaze linger on her just long enough to make her shift in her seat, then I looked back at my mother. “You wasted no time in finding a new pawn, Mother. I suppose Mia’s failure taught you nothing.”
Senator Brighton’s smile faltered. Anya’s fingers tightened around her champagne ss. But Eleanor? She only tilted her chin higher.
“This is not a pawn,” she said, her voice as smooth as honey, rehearsed and false. “This is a respectable young woman from a respectable family. Something your… wife could never be.”
The table went silent.
A vein pulsed at my temple, but my voice was ice when I spoke. “Careful.”
Anya nced nervously between us, but Webb Brighton cleared his throat, forcing bravado. “Hunter, I think you misunderstand the intention of this meeting….”
I cut him off, my tone harsh enough to draw blood. “I don’t misunderstand anything, Senator. I see a politician looking to tie his name to mine. I see a desperate daughter hoping her father’s connections will buy her a crown she hasn’t earned. And I see my mother….yet again….using strangers to try and dismantle my marriage.”
Eleanor leaned forward, her mask cracking for just a second. “Your marriage is a mistake, Hunter. That girl
<b>11:05 </b>Sun<b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>5 </b>
<b>89 </b>
65 vouchers.
has dragged you into scandal after scandal. She’s beneath you. She doesn’t understand this world…..”
“Stop.” My voice cracked like a whip. Even Webb froze.
I set my ss down carefully, deliberately, because if I didn’t, I’d shatter it in my hand. My gaze locked on my mother’s, and I let her see it….. let her see the darkness she had created, the son she had raised into steel and
fire.
“You think this world belongs to you?” I said slowly. “Then let me remind you what happens when people get involved in your schemes. Do you remember Mia ckwood? Do you remember what happened when you pushed her into my life? That family is ruined. Their name is dirt. And that is because of you.”
Senator Brighton shifted ufortably in his seat. Anya lowered her eyes, finally realizing the ground she was standing on was not stable but a minefield.
“If you two have any sense,” I continued, turning my cold stare on both Brightons, “you’ll take Mia and her family as a cautionary tale. You’ll take today as your warning. Get up, walk away, and never let my name cross your lips again. If you don’t, I promise you….your reputations won’t survive whates next.”
Webb paled. Anya gripped his arm like she wanted to disappear. They understood. They weren’tplete fools.
Eleanor, however, never knew when to quit.
As the Brightons scrambled to excuse themselves, she reached across the table, her hand moving toward mine like she thought she still had some hold over me. Like I was still the obedient son she could maneuver.
I moved faster.
My hand shot out, fingers wrapping around her wrist first, then sliding up until they closed around her neck. Not hard enough to hurt—but enough to make her breath hitch, enough to force her to look at me.
Gasps erupted around the restaurant. Heads turned. A waiter froze mid–step, a tray of winesses trembling in his grip.
I didn’t care.
I leaned across the table, my face inches from hers, my voice so low only she could hear it. “This is thest warning you will ever get from me, Mother. Thest. If you ever–ever–bring another woman into my path, if you ever insult my wife again, if you ever attempt to control the life I’ve built… I will cut you outpletely. No allowance. No connections. No Reid name to hide behind. You’ll be nothing. Do you understand?”
Her eyes were wide. I had never seen fear there before. Not like this.
For a moment, I let her see it…..the darkness, the absolute certainty that I would do exactly what I said. Because Celine was worth it. My family was worth it.
Slowly, I released her, sitting back in my chair as if nothing had happened. The room around us buzzed with whispers and tension, but I only straightened my cuffs, calm and unbothered,
89
E55 vouchers
Eleanor coughed lightly, smoothing her blouse, trying to gather whatever scraps of dignity she had left. But her hands trembled.
“This is who you are now?” she whispered, voice shaking.
I leaned forward onest time, my gaze cold enough to burn. “No, Mother. This is who you made me. All for one woman you can’t control.”
And with that, I stood, tossed my napkin onto the table, and walked out—leaving her to choke on the empire she had tried to use against me.
The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and
continue reading tomorrow, everyone!