His Son. Her Secret.

Chapter 21

The toy car hit the wall before it landed upside down on the carpet away from the playpen. The sound pulled Santiago away from his work. He looked up from his computer toward the toy and then his son.

Seemingly surprised that the toy he had thrown was now out of his reach, Kaleth blinked at it. Then looked at Santiago like this was somehow his problem to solve.

Santiago sighed quietly, already pushing back his chair. “You are a menace."

Unsurprisingly, Kaleth grinned. “Papa, give car.” He made grabby hands.

Santiago snorted. “Absolutely no shame.” He walked around his large desk to the sitting area of his office, where he’d set up the playpen for Kaleth. Santiago bent to retrieve the toy and handed it back over the edge of the playpen. Tiny fingers grabbed it immediately.

The joy on Kaleth’s face at his own antics was enough to make Santiago chuckle and shake his head. He didn’t even mind that this was the fourth time he was standing to retrieve something the boy had tossed. No. Santiago was just glad to have his son back, and even after four days, he wouldn’t allow Kaleth out of his sight.

Which was the reason his office had turned into a daycare center. It wasn’t just the playpen. Santiago had a cot installed in case Kaleth needed a nap. There was a stroller, a changing table, and an entirely new chest of drawers with everything the boy would need while they were there.

Preferably, Santiago would have preferred to stay home with Kaleth, but with the theft of the drive, he needed to be in the office.

Standing, his gaze shifted back to the reports spread across the desk. There were security updates, internal audits, and cyber investigations. Frustratingly, all of it was uselessly clean.

There were no problems or alerts to tell them someone was trying to break his empire down. True, it had only been a few days, and it was probably too early to expect anything. After all, Santiago was sure that whoever was behind everything had planned things down to the last letter and wouldn’t act recklessly, but the wait was eating at him. He wanted to know the damage and figure out how to fix it.

And as much as he hated to admit it, he needed the person to make a move so he could hopefully have more clues to figure out who was behind this and deal with them. Santiago wouldn’t rest until he’d buried whoever had taken his son and stolen from him.

Santiago turned back to the playpen just in time to see Kaleth throw a stuffed giraffe over the edge of the playpen with great determination.

“Really?”

Santiago had to hand it to the child; Kaleth didn’t look the slightest bit fazed that he’d been caught in the act this time around. He met his father’s gaze head-on as though daring him to make a fuss about it.

“I’m not going to get it,” Santiago warned.

A crease formed between Kaleth’s brows. Then, in his typical entitled tone, he stretched out his hands and made grabby fingers. “Papa give,” he stated.

Santiago snorted. “I don’t think so.”

Oh, Kaleth didn’t like that. He shot Santiago a glare. “Mine! Want play.”

“Then you shouldn’t have thrown it, buddy.”

Hoping to get a lesson across, Santiago ignored the whine his son let out, walked back to his chair, and sat down. He purposely didn’t look at Kaleth even though his full attention lingered on him. After a long beat without a cry of complaint from the playpen, Santiago leaned back in his chair, eyes narrowing slightly as he stared at the latest report.

What were they planning? He hated not knowing. The waiting felt suffocating. Like standing in a dark room waiting for something to lunge at him.

A soft knock at his door interrupted his thoughts. As soon as he answered, the office door opened, and Jen stepped inside carrying her usual tablet against her chest like a vital limb she couldn’t do without.

She was barely three steps into the office when she was stopped by a loud squeal from the playpen.

Santiago watched as his assistant’s expression softened despite herself. “Well, someone’s energetic today.”

Kaleth responded by throwing a stuffed lion in the same direction as the giraffe.

Jen blinked, clearly perplexed by the action. Instinctively, she moved toward the gathering of stuffed zoo animals on the floor. Santiago shook his head. “Leave it.”

His assistant’s forehead creased. “But…”

“He threw it. He can live with the consequences.”

For some reason, his words made Jen snort, but she kept her opinion to herself on the matter. Kaleth, on the other hand, frowned deeply at the betrayal. Santiago ignored him, fighting back a chuckle.

Jen just shook her head before straightening again and giving Santiago her full attention. “Anyway, I came to tell you that the cyber team finished another sweep.”

That got Santiago’s full attention. All traces of humor and lightness vanished like a puff of smoke. “And?”

“No breaches.” She walked closer, offering him the tablet. “They’re confident the company servers weren’t compromised. Not even a failed attempt.”

Taking the tablet, Santiago scanned the report quickly. Since his personal laptop had all the access codes for the company, there had been a fear that the people who stole the drive would have just waltzed into their system and had a party. The first immediate move had been to change all passwords and prevent external access, but they still had to check.

“They’re sure?”

“As sure as people in cybersecurity ever are,” Jen replied dryly. “Apparently, they’d bet their careers on it.”

“That’s comforting.”

“It’s supposed to be.”

Santiago’s jaw tightened slightly as he handed the tablet back. “That still won’t give me sweet dreams tonight. The drive was stolen for a reason.”

Jen shifted on her feet, the furrow between her brows deepening. “Maybe it was personal. Someone just trying to stress you and not really planning to ruin the company.”

His eyes flicked up sharply.

Jen lifted one shoulder carefully. “I’m just saying… If this were corporate espionage, wouldn’t we have seen movement by now?”

Santiago didn’t respond as he had no answer. But before she could say more, another knock came at the door, followed by a familiar voice.

“Tell me you haven’t become one of those billionaires who schedule appointments with friends.” The door opened wider, and Lachlan walked in without waiting for permission.

Santiago immediately felt a smile tug at the corners of his lips. Tall, handsome, and broad-shouldered with a dark coat slung over one arm, Lachlan carried himself with the lazy confidence of a man who rarely worried about consequences. He certainly didn’t apologize for strolling into Santiago’s office without invitation.

In true Lachlan fashion, his eyes wasted no time scanning the office. He stopped when his gaze landed on the playpen. “Damn, it’s true.” He looked at Santiago then, who stood from his chair to greet his friend. “I left you alone for two weeks, and you misplaced an entire child? Man, I have heard of men being hopeless when left alone, but that’s extreme even for you.”

Santiago glared, but it had no heat. He moved around his desk until he was in front of the i***t and gave him a hug. “Shut up.”

Lachlan laughed. He slapped Santiago on the back twice and then turned to face the playpen again and a curious-eyed Kaleth. “So… You resolved to install a tiny prison in your office? Your prisoner doesn’t look too pleased, I must say.”

Kaleth’s head tilted to the side immediately, brows furrowed as though he was struggling to comprehend what Lachlan had said. In the next minute, the kid bent, picked up the ostrich this time, and sent it flying to join the others.

Lachlan barked out a laugh. “Oh, that’s definitely your kid.”

Scoffing, Santiago returned to his seat. “What took you so long?”

“I was out of the country, remember?” Equally ignoring Kaleth’s expectant look, Lachlan crossed the room and sat in one of the visitor’s chairs facing Santiago’s desk. “I booked a flight home the second I heard what happened. I would have been here sooner if someone had bothered to call me.” He arched a brow in question, all amusement gone from his face as he glanced toward Kaleth again. “You okay?”

Santiago grimaced. “Ask me again in a month.” He drew in a deep breath and exhaled. “Look, I know I should have called, but s**t just got real so fast I was losing my mind.”

Lachlan nodded once like he understood exactly what that meant.

Right then, Jen cleared her throat softly, reminding Santiago she was till in the office with them. “I should leave you two to talk.”

Not waiting for a response, she moved toward the playpen. “Come here, little man. Let’s give your father ten minutes of peace.”

Before Santiago could speak, Kaleth let out a loud screech and stepped back from the wall of the playpen he’d been holding. “No! Beeeth! Want Beeeth.”

That stopped everyone.