Chloe stood and faced Harrison. “Because when I tried to tell you, your assistant blocked my calls. Your lawyer returned my letters unopened. Your security team threw me out of your building when I came with the medical file.”
Harrison’s expression hardened. “That never happened.”
“It did.”
“I would have known.”
“You were in Singapore. I called. I emailed. I came to your office. Madeline told security I was unstable.”
At Madeline Vance’s name, Harrison went still.
“She saw the ultrasound,” Chloe said.
Harrison stared at her, pale.
Chloe ended it there. She sent the boys into the Bentley. Before getting in, she looked at him one last time.
Harrison whispered, “I threw it away.”
“I know.”
The next day, Harrison arrived at the park without an entourage, wearing a navy sweater and holding three small bags from a toy store. He looked nervous.
Lucas approached first. “What’s in the bags?”
“Books,” Harrison said. “And an apology.”
Leo narrowed his eyes. “Do you know how to apologize?”
“I’m learning.”
Harrison crouched carefully, giving them space. “I’m Harrison,” he said. “I know you learned something big yesterday. I’m sorry it happened that way. I didn’t know about you, but I should have listened to your mom.”
Leo studied him. “Are you our father?”
“Yes.”
“Do you want to be?”
Harrison’s voice broke. “More than I know how to explain.”
Mason whispered, “Are you going to make Mom cry?”
Harrison looked at Chloe, then back at him. “No. Not on purpose.”
For the next hour, the boys questioned him with brutal honesty. Did he have stairs? Did he eat cereal? Could he make pancakes? He listened to every question as if it mattered more than any business deal of his life.
Mason eventually sat beside him. Lucas talked loudly about dinosaurs. Leo remained cautious, watching everything.
When the hour ended, Harrison didn’t argue. “Thank you for letting me meet
