My Billionaire Ex Beg For A Second Chance-Chapter 189: Like Father, Like Son

Leonard stood in front of his father’s office door for longer than necessary. It still bore the faint scuff mark from when he’d kicked it years ago, a teenager’s anger turned physical in a moment of fury. He remembered the sting in his foot more than the argument itself.

He exhaled quietly and pushed the door open.

The scent hit him first. Leather-bound books, old parchment, cigar smoke that lingered even though Winston hadn’t smoked indoors for years. Time had preserved the office like a mausoleum, each object neatly placed, untouched since his father’s death.

Leonard walked inside slowly, as if afraid the room might collapse with a single touch. The grandfather clock still ticked in the corner. His father had hated silence. "Even silence must be filled with purpose," his father used to say.

He walked to the tall bookshelf behind the desk and traced the spines of the books he once saw hurled across the room. Philosophy, finance, strategy... It was all power, all control. His father had ruled with intellect and intensity, expecting nothing less than perfection. Anything short was failure.

Leonard sat down in the chair his father once occupied, settling in with stiff hesitation. The leather creaked under his weight. He rubbed his hands together and stared out the window. Outside, the garden was bathed in sunlight, quiet and unaware of the past it once witnessed.

And then his mind drifted.

He never thought he’d step inside this room again.

Leonard exhaled slowly. "I hated this room," he muttered under his breath. "Hated what it made me feel."

Powerless.

A soft knock pulled him from his thoughts.

"Come in," he said, his voice rougher than intended.

The door opened and Theor stepped inside. He moved with the quiet grace of someone used to walking through secrets. Theor offered a slight smile, one brow raised. "Didn’t expect to find you in here."

Leonard returned a wry look. "I didn’t expect it either."

Theor chuckled under his breath.

Leonard narrowed his eyes slightly. "Is that so funny?"

"Not really," Theor replied, the grin still tugging at the corner of his lips. "But it reminded me, funny story. Last night, I found your son in here."

Leonard’s brow lifted. "Nathan?"

Theor nodded. "Yep. Around midnight. Though he wasn’t alone. Maya and Julio were with him. The three of them sneaking around like they were on a secret mission."

Leonard let out a quiet breath, something between amusement and disbelief. "In here? What were they doing?"

Theor gave a shrug, walking further into the room and letting his fingers brush lightly over the back of a nearby chair. "From what I gathered? Some kind of explorer adventure. They thought they were in some kind of spy movie or something."

Leonard sighed but there was no real annoyance in his expression. "They’re probably just curious."

"Curious, brave, and a little nosy," Theor agreed, smirking.

Leonard gave a faint scoff, shaking his head. "Well, as long as they didn’t break anything. Pretty sure the old man won’t be mad, so it’s not a problem."

Theor let out a short laugh, the sound low and warm. "Mad? He would’ve spoiled them rotten just for being adventurous."

Leonard’s lips twitched, the ghost of a smile tugging at the corner. "Yeah... he would’ve."

Neither of them spoke after that. Leonard’s gaze drifted toward the far window. His eyes didn’t seem to focus on anything in particular, just somewhere beyond the room, beyond the walls, beyond what was safe to say aloud.

Theor didn’t interrupt the quiet for awhile. He understood Leonard well enough to know that some silences didn’t need breaking.

Theor then stepped further in, pausing just before the desk. "This room still smells like your father."

Leonard nodded. "It’s like he’s still watching."

"He’d like that," Theor said with a faint chuckle. "Even after death. The man was never good at letting go."

Leonard leaned back in the chair, arms crossed. "No. He wasn’t."

Silence lingered, but not uncomfortable. Theor glanced around the room, then finally spoke. "I know you had your share of battles with him."

Leonard exhaled a slow breath. "We both knew how to hurt each other. But he always had the last word. Even when he was wrong."

"He believed control was love. Never figured out that letting someone choose for themselves was the real thing," Theor said gently. "You didn’t follow his path. That’s something."

Leonard gave a bitter smile. "Did I?"

He leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees, fingers loosely laced.

"I let go of the best woman in the world," he said quietly. "Walked away because I thought I was doing the right thing. For her. For myself. But it wasn’t right. It was cowardice disguised as sacrifice."

Theor didn’t interrupt, watching him with quiet understanding.

Leonard’s gaze drifted to the window again. "And now... I just found out I have a child. A son. A daughter. Both." He gave a short, humorless laugh. "I don’t even know where to begin."

Theor tilted his head. "You still have time."

"Do I?" Leonard muttered. He rubbed the heel of his hand against his chest as if trying to calm something heavy lodged there. "If he were still alive, my father would mock me. Say, ’I told you so.’ That I was foolish to think love could work in my world. That responsibility would catch up to me."

"Winston was a lot of things, but he wasn’t always right," Theor said quietly.

Leonard didn’t answer immediately. His gaze dropped to his hands. "They still don’t know I’m their father."

"Why haven’t you told them?"

Leonard didn’t look up. His fingers curled slightly against his knees, as though gripping invisible threads. "Funny thing is... I don’t know the answer either," he murmured. "I keep telling myself I’m waiting for the right moment. Waiting until things are calmer. Safer. Until I’ve earned the right to stand in front of them." He exhaled a shaky breath. "But maybe I’m just afraid."

Theor shifted slightly, clasping his hands in his lap. "Then I pray the truth finds its way to them soon. Whether you’re ready or not."