Page 38 of The Billionaire’s Paradise (My Billionaire #4)

“You’re about to sign off on the destruction of my family’s land,” she said. “Hālaulani Valley. Our ?āina . You’re standing over blueprints that erase generations of our history. My father has been fighting this development for months—and you’re leading the charge against him.”

“What?” Cal looked down at the plans, then up at Hal. “Wait—what is she talking about?”

Hal gave a long-suffering sigh and tossed a pen onto the table. “It’s a contested site, yes, but that’s being handled. There’s no formal tribal claim, no injunction. This isn’t the first time someone’s gotten sentimental over a piece of coastal scrub.”

“ Sentimental? ” Leilani snapped. “Are you kidding me? There are burial sites. Sacred landmarks. The bones of my ancestors. It’s not scrub, it’s heritage.”

Cal turned to Hal, eyes sharp now. “You said this parcel was clean. You said this was just paperwork.”

“It is ,” Hal said, smoothing an invisible wrinkle in his sleeve.

“ Look, you asked me to streamline. I streamlined. If we start letting every little complaint letter derail this venture, we’re going to sink before we launch.

” He gave a small, insufferable shrug. “Besides… you and I both know that when it comes to land, laws are just paper. Money’s the ink. ”

Cal was the one to clench his jaw now.

He stood, steaming and silent, then stepped back from the table like it had burned him.

“You kept this from me,” he said quietly. “You kept her family from me. Did you keep them from knowing I was involved too?”

“Of course,” Hal replied coolly. “You wanted results? I gave you a billion-dollar pathway to results. I didn’t think you’d throw it all away over a few mango trees and a couple of outraged cousins.”

Cal shook his head. “You’re unbelievable.”

“I’m effective,” Hal corrected. “There’s a difference.”

Cal turned to me, and then to Leilani, and the horror on his face was real. “I swear to God. I didn’t know.”

She nodded. “I believe you.”

He looked like he might crumble anyway. “I never would have—”

“We know,” I said. “We’re not here to fight you. But we’re not letting this happen.”

Hal laughed under his breath. “And what exactly do you think is going to stop it now? A protest sign? An angry TikTok? You’re already out of time.”

Then the door to the room opened.

And in walked Tutu.

She was flanked by Nakoa and Kimo, with Kupuna Mahealani and Uncle Koa just behind.

Their faces were stern, bodies rigid, ready for battle with Hal, no doubt. But the moment they saw who was already in the room, everything stopped.

Their eyes landed on Leilani first .

Then on me.

Then—on Cal.

Nakoa froze. “Leilani?”

Kimo blinked, stunned. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Tutu took a slow step forward, confusion sweeping over her face. “Why are you here? All of you?”

Leilani turned, breathing hard, face pale. “Tutu, I can explain…”

But Nakoa’s attention had already shifted.

He was glaring directly at Cal.

“ You’re at the center of all this?” he said, voice rising. “ You’re the one behind this plan?”

Cal shook his head. “No—I didn’t know—”

Nakoa exploded. “This is your doing? Your name is all over the documents!”

“It’s not what you think,” Cal said quickly. “Yes, my name’s on some of the paperwork. But Hal kept the rest buried. I never would have signed up to this knowing the land was yours.”

“You came into our home,” Kimo said, pointing a finger at him. “You sat at our table. And this whole time you were planning to wipe us off the map?”

Cal looked like he’d been punched. “I wasn’t… I didn’t know. I would never—”

“How dare you,” Nakoa shouted. “How dare you stand there and act like you’re not responsible?”

“I’m not—” Cal’s voice broke. “I swear to God, I didn’t know.”

With a swagger that was nothing short of sickening, Hal stood from his chair and moved to Cal’s side. “Oh, come on. This is all a bit dramatic. Cal and I aren’t here to listen to your family sob stories. We’re just here to close a deal and—”

“Oh, shut up,” Tutu snapped. “Everyone, stop talking for one moment. ”

Nakoa took a breath to raise his voice again, but Tutu raised a hand and silenced him instantly.

“No, Nakoa,” she said, her voice low and deliberate. “We are not going to shout. We are not going to fight on his terms. We need to know the truth.”

Her eyes turned to Cal.

“Tell me,” she said. “Did you know this land was ours?”

Cal straightened, his voice steady. “No. I didn’t.”

“Are you speaking the truth,” she asked. “Or are you just trying to save face in front of my granddaughter?”

Cal met her eyes. “I didn’t know,” he said again. “I trusted Hal to handle the details. That was my mistake. But I didn’t know. I never would have done this if I’d known.”

Tutu held his gaze. And for a moment, the room stilled.

Then—she gave the smallest nod.

Not forgiveness. Not yet.

But something close.

Then she turned to Hal.

“You,” she said, her voice suddenly ice. “I don’t know what kind of man builds wealth by burying other people’s legacies… but I hope you live long enough to watch it all fall.”

Hal opened his mouth—but for once, no words came out.

Until Cal stepped away from him.

Just one step.

That was all it took.

Hal grabbed his arm.

For a second he laughed, like all of this was some kind of prank. Then his face turned desperate. “What are you doing?” he hissed at Cal. “Are you saying you’re pulling out? You can’t pull out.”

Cal wrenched his arm free.

“Watch me.”

Hal’s face twisted. “Don’t do this. You don’t understand—I’m already overleveraged. Everything’s tied up in this project. If you back out now, it all collapses. I go under. I need your money.”

Cal didn’t flinch. “You should’ve thought of that before you tried to use me and my family.”

Hal looked around the room like someone about to drown, but nobody moved.

“You’ll bankrupt me,” he whispered.

Tutu chuckled. “I guess now is when you get to watch it all fall.”

Suddenly Leilani’s fingers gripped my arm like a vise.

“Matt,” she said, breath shallow.

I turned to her—and everything in her expression changed.

“Oh no,” she whispered.

“Leilani? Don’t tell me—”

Then I heard it. The soft splash on the tile floor.

I looked down.

There was a puddle at her feet.

Her fingers tightened around my arm.

“It’s happening,” she said.

“Oh shit! It’s happening? It’s happening!”

I looked down again. Yep. Puddle confirmed.

I shrieked so loud I startled me .

“It’s happening! Everyone— it’s happening! ”

The collective gasp was like a record skipping.

Everyone turned to look at us… then froze like statues.

It lasted all of half a second—

Then suddenly everyone sprang into action at the same time.

Tutu and Nakoa were already clearing a path to the door.

Kimo muttered something about towels and a parking lot exit strategy and took off like a linebacker.

“Okay, okay—deep breaths,” I said, gripping Leilani’s hand. “You’re doing amazing. You’ve got this. We’ve got this. We just need to—oh my God, we need to go. ”

Leilani nodded, wide-eyed. “Now. We need to go now. ”

Suddenly the phone in my pocket buzzed. I pulled it out and saw Mrs. Mulroney’s name appear.

I answered it.

“Where the hell are you, Matthew? You’re not at the house.”

“We’re having a baby!” I shouted into the handset. “Meet us at the hospital!”

“Sweet baby Jesus in a manger! We’re on our way!”

Cal was already on the other side of Leilani, propping up her other elbow. “Okay, we’re getting you to the hospital,” he said calmly… but not. “We’re going now.”

“Great,” Leilani said. “Because if you don’t, this boardroom’s about to become a delivery room.”

That’s when Hal grabbed Cal’s shoulder from behind.

“Wait—Cal, just one second—don’t leave like this,” he said, his normally confident voice crumbling. “We can fix this. We can talk—please. Don’t walk away from this deal, we’re so close—”

Cal and I ignored him, shuffling Leilani quickly toward the door.

Hal pulled on Cal’s shoulder again. “Cal, listen to me—Cal, please. You don’t understand what this will do to me. Just give me five minutes— five minutes —we can renegotiate—”

Cal didn’t even look at him.

And neither did I.

We hit the hallway. Everyone was surging toward the exit. Kimo barked something about the car being out front. I was pretty sure Tutu was praying in two languages.

Behind us, Hal’s voice rose again—panicked, sweaty, desperate.

“Cal! Don’t do this—please! The natives will find somewhere else to roast their pigs.”

That was it.

Suddenly Cal, Leilani, and I all turned in unison.

And in perfect sync, the three of us shouted—

“Fuck off, Hal! ”

It echoed down the hallway, where Hal stopped… and quietly broke.

It was, I have to say, one of the most satisfying moments of my life.

Then suddenly we were shuffle-waddle-running again.

Because there was a baby on the way.

And nothing else in the world mattered.