CHAPTER TWO

Claire’s pov

Lucas's eyes were soft but insistent as he said, "Go. I'll be here when you need me." 

I gave a small, curt nod, then turned and rushed through the hospital's sliding doors before he could see the sheen of tears blurring my vision. My heart felt like it was clenched in a vice as I made my way to the pediatric ward where the nurse said Brian had been admitted. 

"Where is he? Where's my son?" I demanded as soon as I reached the nurses' station, my voice terse with barely contained panic.

The nurse must have seen a thousand worried mothers, but she gentled her tone as she said, "He's right through here, Ms. Claire. The doctor is with him now."

I followed her down the corridor with hurried steps, pushing open the door to Brian's room. He looked so small and pale lying there, though his eyes were open and he seemed fully conscious, thank God. 

"Mummy!" His face broke into a relieved smile when he saw me.

In an instant I was at his bedside, stroking his hair. "Brian, sweetheart, are you okay? What happened?"

The doctor, an older man with a reassuring manner, spoke up. "It seems our young man suffered a minor bout of heat exhaustion while playing outside, but he's doing just fine now. We've got him on fluids and he should be cleared to go home soon."

My eyes slipped closed as I exhaled the breath I didn't realize I'd been holding. Bending, I pressed a fierce kiss to Brian's forehead. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, little man?"

"Yes, mummy," he mumbled, throwing his skinny arms around my neck. Warm tears spilt down my cheeks as I hugged him tightly, so very thankful he was alright.

When I resurfaced, Lucas was standing in the doorway holding a takeout bag from Big Belly Burger. "I didn't know what he liked, so I got a burger and some fries," he said by way of explanation. His gaze held a complicated mix of emotions. I didn't want to try unpacking the bags he brought. 

Bewildered, I opened my mouth but Brian beat me to it. From the bed, his eyes went comically wide. "Mummy, did he get a cheeseburger for me?"

Lucas chuckled softly and came to perch on the edge of Brian's bed. Up close, I could see the care shining through his face as he rumpled my son's hair affectionately. "You know it, little man. Thought you could use some good grub after your ordeal."

And just like that, any reservation I had melted away at seeing the simple sweetness of the moment. This man, who barely knew Brian, had still gone out of his way to bring a smile to his face. The warm feeling it stirred in my chest was entirely unexpected.

"Thank you," I murmured, hoping Lucas could hear the full weight of gratitude in those two small words.

He waved me off as Brian happily tore into the burger. "Hey, it's no big deal. You have more important things to worry about right now."Lucas said. 

I opened my mouth to respond, but the words stuck in my throat as Lucas's gaze locked intensely with mine. That familiar spark was there again, one I knew all too well from our single night together five years ago. An undeniable chemistry that still lingered despite my best efforts to extinguish it.

It was Brian who finally broke the weighted silence, of course. With ketchup smeared across his cheek, he piped up innocently, "When are we going home, Mummy?"

I blinked, jolting back to the present moment. "Soon, baby. As soon as the doctor says you're okay to go."

But even as I focused my attention on my son, I could feel Lucas's eyes burning into me. And somewhere deep down, I knew this wasn't the end of whatever it was that kept pulling us together after all this time apart.

"Look, Lucas," I stated firmly, holding his intense gaze. "I get that revamping your entire estate is a huge undertaking. But $20 billion is still a big figure, even for a project of that scale. I need you to walk me through exactly what that number accounts for."

Lucas considered me for a moment, then gave a small nod of acquiescence. "Fair enough. Let me lay it out..." He began detailing projected costs - construction, materials, labour, timelines and more. But before he could get into the nitty-gritty, a small voice piped up from the hospital bed.

"But Mummy," Brian cut in, looking at Lucas with open admiration. "Why don't you introduce me to your friend first? He kinda looks like that superhero guy I told you I want to be like when I grow up!"

A surprisingly warm chuckle rumbled from Lucas's chest at that. Shifting in his chair, he extended a hand out to my son. "You must be Brian. I've heard such great things about you, little man. I'm Lucas - it's a real pleasure to finally meet you."

Brian's eyes went comically wide as he grasped Lucas's much larger hand in both of his. "Wow, you're even more buff in person! Do you, like, work out all day or what? Will you show me how to get muscles like that?"

I opened my mouth to deflect, but Lucas was already leaning in with a roguish wink. "You know it, dear. I spend plenty of time in the gym working on these muscles ." He flexed teasingly, laughing again at Brian's rapt wonder. "But pumping iron is only part of the equation. To become a real dude, you need brains and heart too. Gotta study hard, be kind, have integrity - that's just as important as physical strength."

Brian was hanging on his every word, utterly starstruck in a way that made my breath catch. Yes, he had uncles and my brothers as male influences. But there was something uniquely powerful about the way this virtual stranger was speaking to him, engaging him as an equal.

"Will you help me with that stuff, Mr. Lucas?" my son asked eagerly. "I try not to bother Mom too much since she works so hard..."

"Now Brian," I cut in, running a hand over his tousled hair. "You know you could never bother me. We're a team, you and me against the world."

But Lucas was already shaking his head, that intense gaze locked on me again. "No, he's right, Claire. Every young man needs strong role models to lead by example." He held my stare in a way that seemed to strip everything else away until all that existed was the heated charge between us. "If it's alright with you, I'd be honoured to play that role for Brian. Take him to the gym, out on the ball field, whatever 'guy stuff' you need an extra hand with."

Was he offering what I thought he was? To be that present, that invested in our lives, in our family? The suggestion was simultaneously panic-inducing and yet... oh-so tempting. I couldn't ignore how Brian's whole face lit up at the prospect of the warm flutter it sent through my traitorous chest.

I opened my mouth, still grasping for a response, when the doctor bustled back in. "Well, look who's ready to blow this pop-stand!" he announced with a grin at Brian. To me, he added, "Just need you to sign a couple of discharge forms and then this young man is free as a bird."

Brian cheered predictably, looking at Lucas again with open adoration and excitement. "Does that mean you'll come over to my place soon, Mr. Lucas? I want to show you all my baseball trophies and stuff!"

The tender, almost wistful expression that broke over Lucas's striking features at that moment completely disarmed me. Here was one of the most powerful men in the world, utterly charmed by my son's simple request.

Meeting my gaze again, his eyes shone with naked longing. "I wouldn't miss that for anything, Brian."

The weight and meaning of his statement hovered between us, heavy and laden with unspoken history. The air seemed to thicken until it felt like I could drown in the tension arcing between Lucas and me. At that moment, I understood with dizzying clarity - this went so far beyond any mere business arrangement. Not only did Lucas want a place in Brian's life...he wanted back into mine as well. 

Despite all the reasons that possibility should have terrified me, despite the danger of ripping old wounds open, I felt an unmistakable pull toward whatever future was unfolding here. Because as endless as the risks were, the rewards seemed even vaster - a chance to be truly seen and accepted by someone who understood the all-consuming love of being a parent. Someone who seemed to want to embrace every last gorgeous, terrifying, wonderful aspect of the life I'd built in the half-decade since he became a fleeting part of it.  

So when I finally found my voice, the words slipped out with surprising ease. "We'd love to have you over, Lucas. Any time."

And with that, the course of all our lives twisted yet again, spinning out towards a dizzying, thrilling new horizon.