Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance

"Henry, what are you doing kissing Daddy?"

Henry wrapped his little arms tightly around his dad's neck, snuggling in. "Daddy, book!"

"You want to read a book?" Andre asked, pulling one from the nightstand and letting his son flip through the pages.

Henry shook his head, "Book, Daddy."

Andre still didn't catch on: "What's up, buddy?"

Henry's anxious little voice struggled to explain, but his mom, who was lying next to them engrossed in her phone, translated, "He's asking about his brother Ash."

Henry repeated himself, and this time Andre got it, "Ash has gone to bed, and it's about time you did too."

Before bed, Andre had to put his own book aside. He cuddled his son, helping him flip through his picture books, while his wife, tired from scrolling on her phone, drifted off under the covers.

Their family of three was sometimes loud, sometimes surprising, but always wrapped in warmth.

In the calm of everyday life, it never gets old.

At night, father and son had their little chats.

Andre asked, "Are you Tiger's little cub, sweetie?"

"Yes! Daddy's treasure."

Andre kissed his son's forehead, affirming, "You and Mommy are both Daddy's treasures."

Henry snuggled into his dad's arms and fell asleep.

The next morning, Mia woke up to find the bed empty of her boys.

She stretched and headed downstairs, "Where's my little rascal?"

The housekeeper immediately caught on, "Mr. Cedillo took Henry."

Mia guessed where her son had gone. Enjoying the rare peace at home, she realized it had been ages since she'd worked out. She wandered into her husband's gym, eyeing the treadmill. "Hmm, how does this thing work again?" Not having a clue, she moved on.

She gave the stationary bike a spin, "Wow, this is exhausting." Not fun, next.

She lifted the weights slightly, "Too heavy and boring." Not interested, next.

...

After randomly fiddling with gym equipment for ten minutes, Mrs. Cedillo's "workout" was over.

Meanwhile, in the CEO's office at Cedillo Inc.

Henry was having his own version of "exercise" in his dad's office.

He refused to let his dad sit in the executive chair, insisting that Andre work while standing. If his demands weren't met, he'd throw a full-on tantrum on the floor.

The business titan ultimately let his "throne" be commandeered by his son for playtime.

Henry climbed up onto the chair and then set his sights on the windowsill.

Andre sighed, "Henry! Get down from there!"

In the office, Noah came in twice, each time finding Andre with a little crying bundle in his arms.

"Mr. Cedillo, how long has he been at it?"

Andre stood up, balancing his son with one arm and grabbing his car keys. "Leave the project files on my desk; I'll handle them when I get back."

"Mr. Cedillo, the Hernandez Group has switched CEOS. Mr. Patrick stepped down, and his wife, Ms. Aimee, is now in charge."

Andre, glancing at the little human "bomb" about to go off in his arms, replied,

"We'll discuss it later." Right now, he had more pressing matters.

Andre's way of handling things was always a bit unconventional.noveldrama

They headed to the climbing gym.

Henry, perched in his dad's arms, looked up with wide eyes at the towering climbing wall.

"André, what a surprise! What brings you here? Come on in," the manager said, coming out to greet them.

Andre skipped the tea invitation, "I need a set of safety ropes."

"André, we still have your old set..."

"New ones, for my son."