Claimed By My Billionaire Ex

Chapter 11

OLIVE

This was probably a mistake. It had to be. It was only a matter of time before something went drastically wrong and I realized the foolishness of my decisions. Living in a penthouse, Lucas wanting to be a part of not only Claire's life but also mine...knowing that with him, I was safe from any potential threats. Of course, this was too good to be true.

Lucas and Claire were standing at the stove, and he was explaining his secret recipe for making chocolate chip pancakes.

Side by side, they looked like mini versions of each other. Their jet black hair was identical in color and texture, and as they smiled, I noticed their dimples popped in the same places. Even the shade of their blue eyes was identical. Claire had inherited my short height, but she had Lucas's naturally athletic body type, broad shoulders, and strong legs. They even had similar mannerisms—both even scratched their hair in the same way—something I never would have believed possible if I hadn't seen it myself. Genetics ran deep, apparently.

Claire grabbed the oven door to stand on her tip toes and get a better view of the pan. My heart clenched. This was a disaster waiting to happen. But just as the oven door was about to burst open, surely knocking her over, Lucas swept her off the ground.

She burst into excited chuckles as he swung her in a circle.

"Let's get you a stool, shall we?" Lucas reached for the stool he'd insisted on buying the day before. Of all the things we'd gotten to childproof the house and make it more comfortable for Claire, a stool wasn't even something I'd thought about.

And here he was, already using it.

It was like he was born for this job.

He lifted her onto the stool, and as he helped her pour the batter, he glanced at me with an excited grin and a thumbs up. "Told you we'd need this," he whispered.

I couldn't help but chuckle. Sitting back, I shook my head.

This had to be a dream, right?

My life had never been this easy. Why should it start getting good now? Beyond good. Great, even. I didn't believe in Karma, so it couldn't have been that. Not that I was any beacon of wholesome piousness or anything. I'd broken enough laws in my hacking missions that there was more than one jail cell I'd been lucky enough to avoid.

But still, I'd long ago accepted that my life would be subpar and that it would only be a good life if I could raise Claire to have everything she needed to never feel like she wasn't enough.

"Just like that," Lucas said, showing Claire how to slide the spatula under the pancake.

As Claire flipped it into the air, the pancake landed perfectly in the center of the pan.

I clapped at the landing. "Nicely done!"

Claire looked back at me, beaming. "Mommy, I did it!" She glanced up at Lucas. "Did I do good?"

The pride that filled Lucas's face made my heart melt. It was the way I looked at Claire when she accomplished something for the first time. It was the proud approval of a parent realizing they can teach their child something.

Lucas ruffled her hair. "You did great."

I pushed up from the chair and met them at the stove. "Amazing!"

Claire grinned. "Mommy, can we stay here longer?"

I glanced up at Lucas as he licked pancake batter off his finger. "Yeah, mommy, can you stay here longer?"