His Son. Her Secret.

Chapter 22

Completely confused, Jen stopped and looked over at Santiago for an explanation, but he was just as lost. It wasn’t the first time Kaleth had said he wanted beeeth in the last four days, and he was no closer to figuring out whether that was a person or an item.

What he did know, however, was that he didn’t want his son out of sight. “Leave him be. He’s fine. I will get him in a bit for his nap.”

His assistant frowned. Lachlan blinked. Kaleth shoved another stuffed animal through the bars.

Then Jen cleared her throat and spoke tentatively. “Santiago, you haven’t been apart from him since he came back.”

“And?” Santiago couldn’t see the problem, but apparently the woman did.

She looked to Lachlan and then back at him. “You need to work, sir.”

“I am working.”

“With a baby beside your desk.”

“He’s fine there.”

Jen opened her mouth again.

Santiago arched a brow. She must have seen he wasn’t going to change his mind because she sighed and gave a nod. Still, she had to have a final word. “Fine. But when he starts eating paperwork, that’s your problem.”

Lachlan smirked as she left. The office door clicked shut behind her.

Silence settled briefly. Then Lachlan slowly turned toward him. He clasped his hands together, one leg draped over the other. “You’re spiraling.” It was a statement, not a question. One Santiago wasn’t willing to admit.

“I’m not spiraling.”

“You put a playpen in your office.”

Santiago looked offended. “Temporary precaution.”

“Huh-uh.” Lachlan stood and walked over to the playpen, where he crouched. Kaleth immediately held up a car like an offering.

“Well, at least one Burns likes me. Thank you, little man.”

Santiago snorted. “He is bribing you to do his bidding.”

Laughter burst out of his friend. “It must run in the blood.” Lachlan then straightened and studied Santiago for a moment longer before speaking again. “So,” he said casually. “Tell me about the lunatic who broke into your house.”

Santiago’s expression darkened slightly. “There’s not much to tell.”

“That’s not what Derrick said.”

Of course, Derrick had talked. “Since when do you talk to my brother? I thought you two couldn’t stand each other?” That was an understatement. The two never saw eye to eye on anything and thought it best to just avoid each other.

Lachlan leaned back against the edge of the desk. He shrugged, purposely ignoring the comment. “He said the intruder fought you, escaped, stole your drive, and somehow still managed to leave you looking confused.”

Santiago said nothing.

Lachlan’s eyes narrowed slowly. “Oh boy.”

Santiago already hated that tone.

“Oh boy,” Lachlan repeated, now sounding delighted. “What happened?”

Teeth clenched, Santiago felt a fresh wave of irritation wash over him. “Nothing.”

“That’s a lie.”

Leave it to the bastard to read him like a book. Really, he shouldn’t have been shocked, given how long they had known each other. Santiago rubbed a hand over his jaw. Unfortunately, that alone was enough to encourage Lachlan further.

“What happened?”

Santiago sighed, knowing he wasn’t going to get his friend off his back. “The intruder kissed me.”

For a beat, Lachlan just stared, his expression blank. Then he burst out laughing. Not a dignified laugh either. It was full-bodied. Loud. With tears spilling at the corners of his eyes. Completely unhelpful.

Santiago glared at him. “Are you done?”

“Absolutely not.” Lachlan was still laughing. “You got ambushed by a criminal Cinderella?”

“It was a distraction,” he gritted out.

The man waggled his eyebrows. “Oh, I’m sure it was.”

Santiago’s glare sharpened. “You’re annoying.”

“And you got kissed by a burglar. Or kidnapper. Wait, do we still call them a kidnapper if they return the kid?” Lachlan wiped at one eye dramatically. “God, I wish I’d seen it.”

“It wasn’t funny.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “That depends entirely on perspective.”

Santiago leaned back in his chair with a look of deep regret for this friendship.

Lachlan finally calmed enough to straighten. “Wait.” His amusement faded slightly. “The intruder was female?”

Santiago went still for half a second. “Uhm… I don’t know if it was a woman.”

Lachlan blinked once. Then slowly grinned again. “Oh, this just keeps getting better.”

Santiago already wanted him gone. He regretted telling him about the kiss.

“You fought them,” Lachlan said. “Couldn’t tell?”

“They were masked.”

“But you kissed her. Him?”

Santiago’s jaw tightened. “Technically, I was kissed.”

“Details.” Lachlan folded his arms. “So? What do you think?”

Santiago felt a headache brewing. “About?”

“You must have gotten something. Was it a guy or a chick? What does your gut say?”

The memory came back immediately. Soft lips crashing against his. They had definitely been soft. His expression shifted slightly before he could stop it.

Unfortunately, Lachlan saw it instantly. “Oh my God,” he breathed. “You’re actually thinking about it.”

Santiago looked irritated now, mostly because it was true.

“The lips were…” He stopped.

Lachlan’s grin widened dangerously. He was almost giddy. “Were what?”

Santiago gritted his teeth, knowing he was going to regret telling him more. “Soft,” he admitted reluctantly.

Lachlan stared. Then he absolutely lost it again. It was like being in the office with a hyena; even Kaleth looked irritated by all the cackling.

“Soft?” he repeated between laughs. “That’s your big observation?”

Santiago threw a pen at the i***t’s head. “Shut up.”

Lachlan laughed harder. “You liked it!”

“I did not.”

“You described the lips, Santiago.”

“You asked me what I observed.”

“Oh, that’s tragic,” Lachlan wheezed. “You’re either obsessed with a female criminal or attracted to some guy with excellent lips.”

Santiago threw the half-empty bottle of water this time; sadly, his aim was shitty since he was trying not to laugh himself. “You know what? Get out of my office.”

“Not until you admit this is the most interesting thing that’s happened to you in years.”

“It absolutely is not. My life is interesting every day.”

Lachlan arched a challenging brow, then he looked toward the playpen where Kaleth had fallen over dramatically while wrestling the bars keeping him caged. The boy was clearly tired of being confined and was making a show of it.

Amusement lifted the corners of Santiago’s lips, but he knew what his friend saw. His life centered around Kaleth, and the most excitement he got came from his son learning a new word. Santiago couldn’t even remember the last time he’d bothered to be with a woman on a date or just s*x to release some tension. The last time he kissed a woman was when his wife was alive.

Until an intruder in a ski mask had kissed him, that is.

Okay, so maybe his life looked boring and stagnant, but he wasn’t going to admit it out loud to Lachlan or anyone else, for that matter.

Not that Lachlan needed him to admit anything. The man returned his gaze to Santiago.

“Yeah. Super exciting. I am so jealous right now.”

Even Santiago cracked then. A reluctant laugh escaped him before he could stop it. And for the first time in days, the tightness in his chest eased a little. “Fine. Maybe it was a little exciting, the k********g part aside,” he admitted.

Lachlan’s grin was wicked. “Now you are talking. Does that mean you are going to hunt down the mystery kisser?”

Santiago’s brows furrowed. “That was the plan. They stole from me and had my son. They have to pay for that.”

“So no more kisses?”

Santiago gave his friend an exasperated huff. “Sometimes I forget what a crazy i***t you can be.” And one whose words hooked into his brain like poison, because now Santiago did wonder if he wanted to know who the intruder had been because of the kiss. But that was ridiculous.