2- The Boy With His Eyes
1277 Words
Six Years Later
“And with that, Your Honor, the defense respectfully requests that all claims against my client be dismissed.”
Parker Taylor stood tall at the center of the courtroom, her voice steady and confident as she delivered her final argument.
She didn’t rush.
She didn’t stumble.
She didn’t even glance at her notes.
Every person in the room was watching her.
Waiting.
Listening.
Exactly where she wanted them.
Across the aisle, opposing counsel looked exhausted.
Good.
He should.
Parker had spent the last three months dismantling his case piece by piece.
The judge adjusted his glasses and reviewed the documents before him.
The courtroom fell silent.
A tense beat passed.
Then another.
Finally, the judge looked up.
“After reviewing the evidence presented, this court finds in favor of the defense.”
Relief visibly washed over her client.
The judge continued.
“All claims are hereby dismissed.”
The courtroom erupted into murmurs.
Parker released a slow breath.
Won.
Again.
Her client grabbed her hand.
“Thank you.”
She smiled warmly.
“That’s what you hired me for.”
The man laughed.
His wife looked seconds away from crying.
Moments like this were why Parker loved her job.
Not the recognition.
Not the money.
Not the prestige.
Helping people.
Winning when it mattered.
Protecting those who couldn’t protect themselves.
That was everything.
As people began filing out of the courtroom, Parker gathered her notes and slipped them into her briefcase.
Another case closed.
Another battle won.
And for once, she intended to celebrate.
At least until her five-year-old demanded pizza and dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets.
The thought made her smile.
Luca.
Her heart.
Her reason for everything.
Her greatest joy.
And her biggest secret.
Twenty minutes later, Parker stepped through the courthouse doors into the bright afternoon sunshine.
The summer heat wrapped around her immediately.
Reporters lingered near the steps.
Attorneys hurried past.
Traffic hummed in the distance.
Then she heard it.
“Mommy!”
A grin spread across her face instantly.
Luca.
The small figure launched himself across the sidewalk like a missile.
Parker barely had time to lower her briefcase before he crashed into her.
Laughing, she caught him easily.
“There he is.”
“You won!”
His excitement was contagious.
Parker pressed a kiss to his forehead.
“I did.”
“I knew you would.”
“Did you?”
“Yep.”
He nodded confidently.
“Because you’re the smartest person ever.”
Parker laughed.
“That’s a pretty big claim.”
“It’s true.”
“Even smarter than your teacher?”
“Way smarter.”
“What about astronauts?”
He considered this.
“Okay. Maybe tied with astronauts.”
She gasped.
“Tied?”
Luca grinned.
“Maybe.”
Parker pulled him closer and kissed the top of his head again.
The simple act settled something inside her.
No matter how stressful life became.
No matter how many cases she handled.
No matter how hard she worked.
This was what mattered.
Him.
Always him.
Sophia stood nearby holding an iced coffee.
“Are you done flirting with your son yet?”
Parker rolled her eyes.
“Never.”
Sophia snorted.
“Fair.”
Luca immediately turned toward Sophia.
“Aunt Sophie.”
“Hey, troublemaker.”
“I only got one note from school this month.”
Sophia blinked.
“Only one?”
“Mom said that’s progress.”
Parker sighed.
“I did not say that.”
“You did.”
“You manipulated my words.”
“I learned from you.”
Sophia laughed so hard she nearly dropped her coffee.
Parker opened her mouth to respond when the unmistakable sound of tires crunching against pavement interrupted her.
A vehicle pulled toward the curb.
Large.
Black.
Expensive.
The kind of SUV that screamed power.
Something inside her tightened instantly.
The feeling came without warning.
Without reason.
Without logic.
Her smile disappeared.
The SUV came to a stop.
The driver’s side door opened.
And suddenly Parker couldn’t breathe.
No.
No.
No.
The world seemed to tilt beneath her feet.
A tall figure stepped from the vehicle.
Dark suit.
Broad shoulders.
Dark hair.
A face she hadn’t seen in six years.
A face she had spent six years trying to forget.
Maxton Sutton.
Her pulse stopped.
Then exploded.
The noise around her disappeared.
The traffic.
The courthouse.
The people.
Everything faded.
There was only him.
And her.
For a second, neither moved.
Neither spoke.
Neither looked away.
Time collapsed.
Six years vanished.
And she was seventeen again.
Standing beneath a sky full of stars.
Making promises she never intended to break.
Maxton looked exactly the same.
And completely different.
Older.
Harder.
More dangerous.
The softness she remembered had been replaced by something sharper.
More controlled.
More powerful.
But his eyes—
Those eyes hadn’t changed at all.
The same dark gaze she’d spent years dreaming about.
The same eyes she’d once loved.
The same eyes she still loved.
God help her.
Maxton stared back.
Shock flashed across his features.
Gone almost immediately.
Hidden behind the cool mask he’d mastered long ago.
But she’d seen it.
She’d seen all of it.
The disbelief.
The confusion.
The hurt.
The questions.
Questions she had spent six years avoiding.
Neither spoke.
Neither seemed capable of it.
Parker felt Luca shift in her arms.
The movement snapped something loose inside her.
Reality rushed back.
She wasn’t seventeen anymore.
She wasn’t just Parker.
She was a mother.
And the little boy in her arms changed everything.
Her grip tightened instinctively.
Protectively.
Maxton noticed.
His gaze dropped briefly.
Not to Luca.
To her hand.
To the way she held him.
Something unreadable crossed his expression.
Then his eyes lifted again.
Straight to hers.
A challenge.
An accusation.
A thousand unanswered questions.
Sophia stepped forward slightly.
Protective.
Ready.
Parker barely noticed.
Because Maxton was walking toward her.
Each step felt deliberate.
Measured.
Dangerous.
Her heart hammered harder.
Closer.
Closer.
Closer.
Until he stopped only a few feet away.
Too close.
Not close enough.
The silence stretched.
Neither seemed willing to break it.
Finally, Maxton spoke.
His voice was deeper than she remembered.
Rougher.
“Hello, Parker.”
Six years.
And somehow two words nearly destroyed her.
She swallowed.
Forced herself to breathe.
“Hello, Maxton.”
His jaw tightened.
As if hearing her voice affected him just as much.
Good.
She wasn’t the only one suffering.
Neither looked away.
Neither could.
And then—
A small voice interrupted.
“Mommy?”
Parker froze.
Luca shifted again in her arms.
The movement finally pulled Maxton’s attention away from her.
His gaze dropped.
Slowly.
Casually.
At first.
Then everything changed.
Parker saw it happen.
Saw the exact moment his eyes landed on Luca’s face.
The exact moment his expression faltered.
The exact moment confusion appeared.
Because Luca was staring right back at him.
Curious.
Unafraid.
Completely unaware that his entire world was standing three feet away.
The little boy tilted his head.
Studying Maxton.
And Maxton studied him right back.
Silence settled once more.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
Dangerous.
Then Maxton’s gaze sharpened.
His eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly.
As if noticing something.
As if seeing something he couldn’t quite place.
Something familiar.
Something impossible.
Parker’s pulse thundered in her ears.
Please don’t.
Please don’t see it.
Please don’t—
Maxton’s stare lingered.
Longer.
Longer.
Then his expression darkened with confusion.
Because the boy standing in front of him had dark hair.
A stubborn chin.
A fearless stare.
And eyes.
His eyes.
The exact same eyes staring back at him.
And for the first time since stepping out of that SUV—
Maxton Sutton looked completely shaken.
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