Strict Dad Mode.

Sean hid behind the curtain and carefully looked around. Mom and dad were busy giving another interview, which means that right now he had a chance to get hold of such a desired trophy.

The table in front of his eyes was lined with various cupcakes and cheesecakes, but what attracted the boy's attention most of all was the plates with chocolate candies. Here were collected the best and one of the most delicious sweets from around the world. Belgian, Italian chocolate, handmade French sweets. And most importantly, his beloved Godiva. These sweets could be found in almost any supermarket in America. Although he was in such a shop only once, he well remembered the moment when he managed to sneak one candy and quickly eat it, until his mom noticed. True, he then had to have an injection, but he happily forgot about it.

But what was there on the table was even better than the sweets they sell in stores. It was an exclusive collection from Godiva "G". A limited extra-class batch that can satisfy the highest demands of the most captious gourmet. And by all means, he had to taste at least one of those sweets.

Sean crept up to the table and wanted to grab the candy closest to him when a familiar silhouette flashed nearby, forcing the boy to quickly hide under the table. 'Shoot, if Aunt Corey notices me, she will definitely tell mom,' a serious dilemma arose in the child's head whether it was worthwhile to further implement his plan into reality. It's one thing if mom finds out about it, and a completely different thing if it will be dad...

Less than two days after he received a serious scolding from David for smashing an expensive tea set, which a red-haired man from England presented to his parents. 'So what if he was a prince or someone else there. I didn't specifically plan to crush my airplane into the dishes, I just lost control a little. Although, playing in the kitchen was probably a bad idea.' The boy sighed with regret. And why the most interesting places in the house are not designed to play? It would be very interesting to play in daddy's study!

Sean carefully looked out from under the table, to check if Corey had gone, but to his great disappointment, now there was not only Corey but also Daniel and Jason. It would be too far to climb for candy by himself, and he would be definitely spotted, so he decided to use another method.

The boy focused all his attention on the target and looked intently at the candy, it did not budge. He frowned in annoyance and took a breath, then began to look at the desired target again.

The candy swung slightly and fell from the plate onto the table, the child's eyes immediately flashed with joy. He looked around and, making sure that no one noticed anything suspicious, he continued with his secret plan. Under his gaze, the candy slowly moved across the table toward Sean, literally a few inches and he could almost reach it, just a little more. The boy stretched out his hand to take the desired trophy when something caught him, and he instantly found himself in the air.

"Well, well, it seems, the little mouse decided to quietly sneak in and steal our reserves? Sean, if you wanted to play Tom and Jerry, you should call us and Ashley for the company," Jason grabbed the boy in his arms, the candy that he tried so hard to get was left alone on the edge of the table.

"Jason, let me go! I'm already big!" Sean outraged, "I'm not Ashley to carry me like that!" Jason grinned, seeing the boy's disgruntled face, and lowered him down, then patted him on the head, "Okay, okay, don't be mad. By the way, big man, do you know where Ashley is? You seemed to be playing together?"

Sean's face immediately changed, he completely forgot about this annoying little girl who ran behind him like a tail. She began to pester him, the boy offered her a hide-and-seek game but warned that she should hide in the darkest place where he could not find her quickly and not behind some kind of curtain as usual. And then, when he saw the candy, he completely forgot about her.

"Ummm, Ashley, well, we... we are playing hide-and-seek," Sean said barely audibly and lowered his eyes, studying the drawing on the floorboard.

"Dear nephew, I understand correctly, while Ashley is hiding somewhere and waiting for you to look for her, did you decide to seize the moment and steal some chocolate?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, but I only wanted one! It's true! It's true!" The boy spoke in his defense.

"You wanted one what?"

"One cand-" Sean immediately closed his mouth with his hands, the man behind him looked serious and strict, "Oh, hi dad!" The boy immediately pretended that nothing was happening and smiled sweetly. Any person, whether an adult or a child, would have immediately fallen under the spell of the little prince, but not David.

"Sean Nicholas Anderson, I heard everything and will ask you only once. Did you leave your friend for a candy? You know that you are allergic and you can not eat chocolate, and yet you did it anyway. Do you think this is a worthy act?" David stared at his son, not a single muscle in his face trembled.

Daniel covered his mouth with his hand and turned away. No, he could not withstand such tension. Seeing his brother in the Strict Dad mode was too much for him. A little more, and he would have laughed out loud. Daniel wiped invisible tears from his eyes, 'God, my little brother is already such an adult. He is chastising his own son.'

David noticed the malicious expression on the face of his older brother, a smile twitched the corners of his lips, but the "strict dad" managed to restrain himself on time.

"Khem, so? What is your answer?" he asked again.

"This is a bad deed. I won't behave like this anymore," Sean answered quietly.

"Well, if so." David looked at the company of three adults who strenuously held back laughter, and rolled his eyes, 'God, guys, I'm trying to raise my son here. Could you not frankly laugh at me, eh?'

"So, do you know where Ashley hid?"

"Ehm I... Well, I told her to hide in the darkest place, otherwise, I would not look for her," Sean turned away. He understood that now he would definitely get some grue.

David scratched his head and sighed heavily, "Sean, have you ever wondered why Ashley was so easy to find? Because she always hides where you will quickly find her. And now you asked her to hide in a dark place, although you yourself do not like darkness, right? Were you even going to look for her?!"

Sean did not answer, and lowered his head guiltily, tears came out in his eyes. Corey knelt down and patted the boy on the head, "Don't worry, Ashley is fine. You know that she is a brave girl, so she won't be afraid of the darkness." The girl opened the clutch and took out a small bag of cookies, "Here, I know that you and my daughter love these cookies."

"Go and find Ashley right away," David commanded, "Corey, you and Elena are spoiling him way too much. He must learn to hold responsibility for his actions, if he claims that he is already big, then he should behave accordingly." Sean gave his father a displeased look, turned around and walked away at a brisk pace. David stayed under the disgruntled gaze of his friends, "What? Would you say that I am too strict again?!"

Daniel patted his brother on the shoulder sympathetically, "Yes, apparently, fatherhood is also a skill that is not acquired immediately. By the way, I remember that in childhood someone broke mother's beloved vase, that made a real splash that time. Interestingly, and who did the naughty and stubborn Sean take after?" Senior Anderson winked swiftly and led Corey toward the exit where his nephew had run.

"You want to say something too?" David turned to Jason, to which he only laughed out loud.

"No, I would rather say nothing. By the way, where is your wife? Somehow I do not see Elena."

"She was going to discuss the next exhibition with one of the guests," David turned around and began to look for Elena in the crowd, but no matter how he looked, he could not find her, "Hey, where is Elena?!"

. . .

"Mr. Carter, I will be glad to cooperate. I hope, with your help, the exhibition will take place without problems," Elena extended a hand to the man to thank him.

"Well, common, Mrs. Anderson, on the contrary, it is an honor for me that I can be of help to you," he squeezed her hand gently, and then raised her hand to his lips and kissed it. "I will get in touch with you on Monday, have a nice weekend," the man winked and headed off.

Elena sighed and rubbed her temples. She, of course, heard that the well-known collector Philip Carter was quite a ladies' man, but she did not expect that he would decide to flirt with her so openly. Moreover, less than half an hour ago, David on the stage publicly demonstrated his rights for her. Oh, these men, as soon as she began to go out into the world, crowds of fans appeared from nowhere. Well, at least David was not around right now, otherwise, her talks about such an important exhibition could be in doubt.

Young Mrs. Anderson smiled, perfectly imagining her beloved husband in a fit of jealousy, when suddenly something cold touched her shoulder. Hundreds of electrical discharges ran across her skin, a wave of unpleasant sensations made her stand still. The stranger's hand slid down her back, and his deep and captivating voice sounded right behind the woman's ear,

"Long time no see, E-le-na."

Elena turned around, and her face instantly turned pale.