The next morning, Leon entered the living room with a determined expression and a clipboard under his arm. Aria looked up from arranging the girls' hair into matching ponytails, brows lifting in mild suspicion.
"Do I even want to know?" she asked.
Leon straightened his tie—despite still wearing casual sweatpants—and announced, "Today marks the first official session of the Elias Bennett Executive Training Program."
Aria's lips twitched. "Executive training? He can't even tie his own shoes."
"He doesn't need to. That's what assistants are for," Leon said smoothly, already lowering himself to sit cross-legged in front of Elias, who was perched in his baby chair. "Alright, son, lesson one: negotiation."
Elias stared up at him, clutching Mr. Bunny like a talisman.
Leon placed two small wooden blocks on the tray in front of him. "These are assets. Now, I want you to trade me one block in exchange for this…" He produced a shiny silver spoon from his pocket, twirling it between his fingers like a prized treasure.
Elias blinked, glanced at the blocks, then at the spoon… and promptly snatched the spoon without giving up anything.
Leon froze. "…You just took it without closing the deal."
From across the room, Aria burst out laughing. "Looks like he's already better at negotiations than you are."
Leon narrowed his eyes at his grinning son. "Alright, round two. Lesson two: asset management." He handed Elias three blocks and watched as Elias carefully stacked them… and then gleefully knocked them all over.
Leon groaned. "We might need to work on long-term investments."
But when Elias giggled—pure, unfiltered joy filling the room—Leon forgot all about the clipboard and the blocks. He leaned forward, scooping the boy up into his arms and pressing a kiss to his soft hair.
"You win, little tycoon," Leon murmured. "Lesson three: family comes first."
Aria smiled from the couch, watching them with quiet warmth. And just like that, the "training program" transformed from a game about deals and assets into something far more valuable—an hour of laughter, love, and the simple comfort of being together.