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Rafael swallowed a bite of his sandwich and studied Noah. The boy sat beside him at the dinner table and regarded his own bitten sandwich with one raised eyebrow. His blue orbs captured the man and he shook his head. “You’re right, it tastes great.”
The former ADA smirked. “See? I told you to trust me,” he paid attention to his own Cuban sandwich. “Better than McDonald’s.”
The child shifted in his seat. He caught a line of dripping mustard with his finger and sucked it clean. “Is everything okay with mom?”
“Hm,” the attorney sighed, he nodded, “yes, she’s okay. Something happened at work, she’s trying hard to help this boy.”
“What happened to him?” questioned Noah.
“Someone was mean to him because he likes boys,” said Barba.
Benson furrowed his brown. “That’s silly. What’s wrong with him liking boys?”
“I ask myself that sometimes,” replied the counselor.
Noah faced the adult. “Do you like boys, Uncle Barba?”
“ And girls,” answered Rafael.
The child beamed. “That’s nice, so you can go out with anyone?”
The former ADA tipped his head. “Pretty much, yes. If I like them, I can go out with them.”
“Susie’s mom is like you,” said the boy. “Susie said she likes it because when her mom is going out with someone new, they always bring her new presents.”
Rafael snorted. “Susie’s smart.”
Noah smiled. “She is, and she’s funny too. My other friend, Louis, said his father gave him a book like the one you gave me for Christmas.”
Barba frowned. “Which was it again?”
“The Little Prince, silly,” chuckled Benson. “He said it’s nice, but he didn’t understand it really well.”
“What did you think of it?” prompted the attorney.
“I don’t know, I didn’t read it yet.” Blue orbs met green ones. “Could we read it today until mom comes home?”
Rafael narrowed his eyes, a hint of a grin on his lips. “And go past your bedtime? Nice one, didn’t work though.”
Noah smirked, he batted his eyelashes. “Not even a little?”
“Sure, and then your mom will be a little angry with me. Not a chance, but we can read it a little of it tonight.”
The child observed the man, nodded. “Okay, deal. Do you think I’ll like this book?”
Barba’s gaze paused at a point on the horizon, it met Benson then. “You know, I never met someone who didn’t like this book. They may not understand it, but everybody likes it.”
“That’s nice,” smiled the boy. “I wonder if mom likes it.”
“We’ll have to ask her when she comes home.”
Olivia sighed when her bare feet touched her apartment floor, she held her eyes closed for a beat. In her moment of quietness, the captain heard hushed voices. A glance at her couch revealed it empty, but light came from her son’s bedroom.
Careful quiet steps took her to Noah’s unclosed door. Laying on the bed, with the lamp on, were Rafael and the child. The former ADA held a small copy of The Little Prince and the boy pointed at something in one of the pages.
“It doesn’t look like a hat,” Noah declared.
Barba shifted his hold on the book. “And now?”
The child furrowed his brows. “Now it looks like a silly hat. It looks better as a boa snake.”
Captain Benson knocked on the door. “What are we debating?”
“Mom!” Noah’s expression lit up. “We’re reading The Little Prince!”
“Are you now?” she approached the bed, kissed the boy’s head. She eyed the clock on the bedside table. “It’s almost time to go to sleep.”
Noah’s eyes widened, he kept his blue irises on his mom. “May we finish this chapter? Just this chapter?”
“Okay, finish this chapter and you’re done. You have school tomorrow and your uncle Rafa must be exhausted,” she regarded the man, a beam on her lips.
“Don’t worry about me,” he replied, smiling back, “We had fun together, right?” he glanced at the boy, who nodded.
“Uncle Rafa made us the best sandwich of all.”
Olivia studied the pair. “Still, both of you need to wake up early, so, finish this chapter and you, Noah, are going to sleep, okay?”
The two of them nodded. “Okay.”
“Mom, wait,” he grabbed the book and turned it for her to see the page. “What do you think this is?”
Benson bid her time, studying the figure. She avoided glancing at Barba, Noah didn’t need to know she was familiar with the book. She feigned a frown. “It looks like a snake eating an elephant.”
The child produced a huge smile.