Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance

Naomi and I went to see him, and he's doing just fine. Anya's really sweet to him too, worried he'll feel lonely, so she visits him every day.

Bruce knew his brother always worried about his son, so he quickly reassured him, not wanting his brother to fret. While playing with his little bundle of joy, Andre asked, "Bro, do you resent me for sending him away?" Bruce thought for a moment, "Naomi and I were initially upset, but we never held a grudge against you." With a significant age gap between him and his brother, Bruce had always been part brother, part father to Andre. Outside, the little one was busy giving his dad face cuddles, alternating between nibbling and kissing him. Their soft, mushy affection melted everyone's heart. Holding his son felt like embracing a bundle of cotton, only this bundle was heavier than any cotton. It was getting late. Naomi called from the window, "Supper's ready; you can come back in now." The brothers then carried Henry back to the living room.

After Henry returned, Mia and Anya were comparing notes. When Henry approached, Andre let him down, watching him toddle over to Mia, tugging at her clothes, asking to be picked up. Mia picked him up, continuing to chat with Anya while Henry playfully interrupted. Watching this scene, Andre couldn't help but smile.

"Mama, mama." Henry, noticing something different about his mom's scent, wrinkled his little nose and proceeded to nibble on her face. Mia leaned back, diverting his attention with her pencil case, which worked as Henry grabbed it and began to explore it with his mouth. They didn't head to bed until half-past ten. The next morning, Mia was dropped off at the parking lot by her husband, with Henry still asleep in the living room. Mia, holding her newly bought kitten-themed water bottle, reminded her husband, "Honey, make sure our son uses the 'little tiger' cup I bought for him. I've sterilized it, so don't forget. Auntie is in the hospital, and Naomi and Dad are visiting her today, so there's no one to watch the kid. Remember to take him to your office, okay?"

Andre nodded. After dropping off his wife, he returned home, took a picture of his still sleepy son, and then headed to the office with his little lazy bum. Bringing kids to work was no longer a novelty at Cedillo Inc.

In the morning, he appeared in his office, his son dozing off in his arms while he wiped the little one's face and instructed Noah about the discussions he had with his brother the night before, "Contact Mr. Calder, Aiden Ashford, and all other division heads of Cedillo Inc.; we'll have a video conference at ten. At three, I want the finance and legal departments to meet with me."

"Yes, sir," came the prompt reply. The early hours saw the company bustling with activity. Andre had an extra task-waking his son.

"Henry? Wake up, time to stop sleeping." But Henry was not having any of it, continuing to snuggle in his dad's arms. "My little rascal, you're asking for it, aren't you?" Still, the boy slept.

Looking at his son, Andre weighed his options. Waking him up by force would only lead to tears, but letting him sleep would result in the same outcome when he eventually woke up wanting attention. Either way, there would be crying.

Andre lightly spanked his son. "Waaah. Waaah." As soon as Henry opened his eyes, he found himself sitting on his dad's lap, burying his face in his dad's chest, sobbing out of sheer confusion and sleepiness. It was just a lazy nap, and he had no idea why he was being scolded, wanting to complain to his dad.

Andre, holding his little bundle, played the comforting wolf, "Henry, how about I make you some milk?" By the time of the meeting, Noah had already taken Henry away.

The meeting unfolded with

representatives from various

branches of the Cedillo Group, some known to the public and others not with Calder Corporation appearing as both a dependent and an independent entity under the Cedillo umbrella. In the video, everyone seemed to rush into the meeting, looking somewhat hasty. Andre started, "Let's begin the reports,

starting with Calder Corporation."

Mr. Calder, having planned to spend the morning with his wife for a prenatal checkup, rushed to the office due to Andre's last-minute meeting request, appearing via video. After Mr. Calder reported, it was the next executive's turn.

Outside, Noah was keeping Henry

entertained, which was easy for a

while, but as time went by, Henry tried to crawl towards his dad's office. Uncle Noah scooped him up, "Henry let's go to the snack area. What do you want to eat?" Henry, stiffening his little chubby body and reaching out his arms, called out,

"Daddy."

Noah managed to pry Henry's hands off the doorknob amidst a chorus of wails filling the secretarial office. During the meeting, Andre glanced outside, his focus drifting at the sight of his little one's teary face.

Noah took him to the break area,

trying to distract him with things his

mother used to love, "Henry, look,

this is coffee, and this is a coffee machine. Your mom loved making coffee with this." With tears still glistening on his eyelashes, Henry curiously watched the coffee

machine. Eventually, wanting to try it himself, he leaned in, "Ah, ooh,

uh-oh."

Noah stepped back, letting Henry have a go. The secretaries admired Noah's approach, "How did you know Henry would be curious about this?"

"The new ones might not know, but ask the veterans what the lady used to do when she visited the office." Curious, a secretary asked, "What did she like to do here?"

"Grab drinks, snack, bring love-packed lunches for the boss, and play with the coffee machine," the veteran replied with practiced ease. The first three tasks were beyond Henry's capabilities, but playing with the coffee machine was still somewhat amusing. The newcomer wanted to know more, "Did the lady often come to the company? I've hardly seen her around." The veteran nodded, "Not just visits, she even brought flowers to the CEO." The newcomers were even more curious and eager to listen. Meanwhile, from the direction of the break room, crying could be heard again. It was one thing not to see his dad for half an hour, but now it was almost an hour, and his patience had long worn thin. Even the coffee machine couldn't distract him anymore. Andre grew increasingly anxious as he could no longer see his son on the surveillance screen as time passed.