Chapter 112 The Most Important Business Meeting of the Day

Chapter 112 The Most Important Business Meeting of the Day
The first rays of golden morning light filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the penthouse, casting a warm, peaceful glow over the bed. The heavy, lingering exhaustion of the courtroom had kept the penthouse completely quiet for hours, but a certain toddler had finally decided that she was done sleeping.
Between Leona and Owen, a tiny, curly-haired lump began to stir under the heavy duvet
Olive sat up, her footie pajamas slightly rumpled from a long night of sprawling across her parents' mattress. Blinking the sleep from her dark eyes, she assessed her surroundings. Both of her parents were still completely out, breathing deeply and peacefully on opposite sides of her.
Deciding it was officially time to start the day, Olive went to work. She clumsily but determinedly crawled over the plush mattress, making a beeline straight for Leona’s pillow.
Stopping right next to Leona's head, the toddler reached up with her chubby hand and popped her pacifier out of her mouth, holding it firmly in her fist. She leaned in close, her messy curls brushing against the pillowcase.
"Hi, Momma," Olive chirped softly, her sweet, melodic voice breaking the quiet stillness of the bedroom.
Leona stirred with a soft sigh, her eyelashes fluttering as she slowly opened her eyes to the morning light. The very first thing she focused on was Olive’s bright, triumphant, perfectly toothy smile hovering mere inches from her face.
Leona couldn't help but smile right back, a rush of absolute warmth flooding her chest as the reality of yesterday's victory washed over her all over again. "Good morning, my beautiful girl," Leona whispered, her voice rough and thick with sleep.
Knowing she had successfully and fully awakened her mother, Olive's mission on that side of the bed was complete. She immediately pivoted to her next target.
Leaving Leona to stretch and wake up, the toddler crawled right across the expanse of the bed, her little knees sinking into the mattress as she made her way toward Owen's imposing, sleeping form.
Owen was lying on his back, one heavy arm thrown over his eyes to block the morning sun. Completely unbothered by his defensive sleeping position, Olive shimmied right up next to his chest. She reached out with her little hands, moving his arm just enough so she could plant her palms squarely on both sides of his scruffy face.
She leaned down, looking right at him. "Hi, Dada," Olive announced happily.
A deep, gravelly chuckle immediately vibrated through Owen's chest, proving he was already starting to wake up before she had even touched his face. But the billionaire kept his eyes stubbornly shut, a faint, teasing smile playing on his lips as he feigned sleep just to see what she would do next.
Olive waited for a second, her little brow furrowing in confusion. When those familiar storm-gray eyes didn't appear, she decided to take matters into her own tiny, chubby hands.
Leaning in even closer, she carefully pinched her fingers together and attempted to physically pry his right eyelid open.
That was all it took. Owen's eyes snapped open, sparkling with pure, unadulterated morning mischief. With a sudden, playful roar, he rolled over, completely trapping the toddler against the plush mattress and launching a ruthless, two-handed tickle attack right into her ribs.
Olive erupted into breathless, hysterical shrieks of laughter. She wriggled wildly under his massive hands, her footie pajamas twisting as she tried to escape his grip.
"Momma! Momma!" she squealed through her giggles, desperately reaching out across the wide expanse of the bed for Leona to save her from the tickle monster.
Leona laughed, sitting up against the headboard and fully prepared to intervene on her daughter's behalf. But a sudden, sharp, demanding wail from across the room beat her to it. The loud, happy commotion on the bed had successfully pierced the quiet sanctuary of the bedroom, and Hazel was now officially awake in her bassinet, very loudly requesting her breakfast.
The absolute second the baby's cry echoed through the room, the tickle fight came to a screeching halt.
Olive instantly stopped squirming. She plopped herself straight back down onto the mattress, her messy curls bouncing around her face. Looking incredibly serious, the toddler fixed her dark eyes right on Owen. She pressed a tiny finger firmly to her lips, entirely blaming him for waking up her little sister.
"Shhhhhh!" Olive scolded him, the loud, highly dramatic sound cutting through the morning air.
Owen froze, his hands still hovering over her ribs. He looked from his stern, shushing toddler, over to Leona who was currently covering her mouth to hold in a burst of laughter, and then toward the crying bassinet.
"I guess I'm in trouble with the boss," Owen whispered, throwing his hands up in mock surrender.
Owen chuckled, easily accepting his reprimand. He scooped the stern toddler up from the mattress, his massive hands lifting her effortlessly and settling her securely on his hip.
"Alright, boss. Message received," Owen murmured, pressing a quick, apologetic kiss to her messy curls. "Let's go get our breakfast ready so the baby can eat."
Olive gave him a single, very serious nod of approval.
"Tell Momma bye," Owen prompted softly, stepping back from the California king bed.
Olive looked past him to where Leona was already moving across the room to lift a fussy Hazel from the bassinet. The toddler’s stern expression completely melted back into a sweet, gap-toothed smile. She wiggled her fingers in a happy, enthusiastic little wave. "Bye, Momma."
Leona smiled warmly, the quiet peace of the morning settling right back over her chest. "Bye, my sweet girl. I'll see you in a few minutes."
Owen pulled the heavy bedroom door shut behind them, leaving Leona in the quiet, sunlit sanctuary to peacefully nurse their youngest daughter, while he carried his oldest out into the sprawling, quiet penthouse.
Ten minutes later, the CEO was officially conducting his most important business meeting of the day.
Owen stood in front of the massive floor-to-ceiling windows in the main living area, dressed simply in a soft pair of gray sweatpants and a plain t-shirt. In his right hand, he held a steaming mug of strong black coffee, and his left arm securely supported his daughter.
This was exactly how they usually started their mornings. Looking out over the sprawling, sun-drenched New York skyline, Owen would point out the various Zenith projects and towering cranes dotting the distance, explaining the intricacies of steel beams and structural integrity to a toddler in footie pajamas.
"You see that massive crane over there on the East Side, sweet pea?" Owen murmured, taking a slow sip of his coffee before pointing his large finger toward the horizon. "We're pouring the foundation today. It's going to be fifty stories of glass and steel when we're done."
Olive, gripping her bright pink sippy cup with both hands, took a long drink of her apple juice. She followed his finger with her dark eyes, her little brow furrowing in deep, thoughtful concentration as if she were actively reviewing the blueprints. She offered a very serious, knowing nod, absolutely fascinated to be talking shop with her father.
"Yeah, Dada," she agreed softly, taking another sip of her juice.
It was a beautiful contrast to the aggressive battle they had fought in the courtroom just yesterday. Today, there were no lawyers, no gavels, and no threats. It was just the billionaire architect and his tiny, curly-haired executive, having their daily morning meeting and looking out over the empire they had just fought so fiercely to protect.