Chapter 22 Dare to touch them and see what happens?
"Noe, get Edric on it," Aaron finally said after a pause.
Edric, a lifelong friend he'd grown up with, was undoubtedly the right man for the job.
"Mr. Gordon, Edric might find out that you're getting treatment here," Noe warned.
Aaron curled the corner of his lips in a sly smile. "Let him; I've got nothing to hide."
Upstairs, after Nora finished her dinner and tidied up the kitchen, she headed to check on her three little ones.
They all shared the same room: the boys in bunk beds and their sister in another bed nearby.
"Mommy, come tell Samantha a bedtime story, please!"
Samantha was propped up in bed, patting the space beside her and batting her large, expectant eyes.
"Alright."
Nora smiled gently, picking up a fairy tale book and sitting beside Samantha's bed. This was part of her evening routine—telling a bedtime story to her adorable trio. Of course, her daughter was the one who looked forward to the tales the most; her sons were just happy to listen in.
"What shall it be tonight? How about Sleeping Beauty?" Nora's voice was soft as she began the familiar story.
The children were still, listening intently until their eyes gradually closed in slumber. Watching them breathe evenly, Nora's face was aglow with a maternal warmth. After she was sure they were fast asleep, she tucked them in and tiptoed out of the room.
That's when her cellphone vibrated in her pocket. Quickly, she muted it and stepped into her own room to take the call, recognizing the familiar name flashing on the screen.
It was Lucas!
Nora's expression chilled. She hesitated for a moment before answering.
"Hello?"
"Nora, it's me."
"What's up?"
"Let's meet tomorrow."
Meet with her?
Nora scoffed, "Lucas, if you've got something to say, spit it out. My time is precious, and I'm not interested in playing games with you."
"You—"
Lucas was taken aback and took a deep breath before speaking again, "Nora, I've heard you're trying to enroll your three kids at Mont International Kindergarten using my wife's status?"
So that was it. Becky must have told him.
Nora's lips curled into a cold smirk, "Well, since Becky wouldn't tell me who their real father is, I had no other choice, did I?"
"Look, Nora, those kids aren't mine, and you know that without my consent, Mont Kindergarten will never admit them."
Nora's eyes flickered subtly, "The school's policy is to admit children from intact families. Whether or not you claim them, we're still not divorced. So, why can't they go to the school?"
Lucas chuckled. "Nora, there's something you don't know. Mont International Kindergarten? It's partly owned by the Gordon family. Just one word from me, and guess whose side they're going to take?"
Nora's face went pale, her grip tightening around her phone.
Granted, Lucas was from a branch of the Gordon family, but he still carried the weight of their name.
His word would hold sway with the school, she believed.
"Lucas, don't push me too far."
Lucas grinned. "Relax, Nora. There’s a way your kid can get into Mont International Kindergarten."
"What way?"
"Keep me company for one night and I'll make it happen."
One night with him!
Stunned by the proposition, Nora almost laughed at the absurdity.
Once, Lucas had hurt her for the sake of Becky.
Nora wondered how Becky would feel if she knew that, upon seeing her transformation, he now wanted to sleep with her.
"Actually, Nora, it's always been you I loved. I only chose Becky because she got pregnant, and I had no choice. All these years, I've regretted it, thinking about you. If you don't want to divorce, then let's not."
Lucas's voice was deliberately soft, his feigned affection dripping from every word.
Nora smirked internally without letting it show.
"So, you're not getting a divorce? Becky has been with you for four years without any formal status."
"That was her choice, I never forced her," Lucas replied, dismissive.
Cursing inwardly, Nora added, "Then the child you have with her will be illegitimate."
"We'll discuss the child later. I miss you, Nora. Can we meet and talk tomorrow?"
A meeting probably just a ploy to get her into bed, Nora speculated.
"Where should we meet?"
"The Bloom Hotel."
Of course, it would be a hotel.
With a mocking smile, Nora agreed, "Fine, we’ll meet tomorrow."
After hanging up, she let out a sigh of disgust before heading downstairs for a glass of water.
Noe hadn’t left the house on the first floor.
Aaron, sensing footsteps, signaled Noe to leave quickly.
With a quick response, Noe hurriedly out of the room, accidentally kicking the doorframe and making a small noise.
Nora, alert and in the kitchen, heard the disturbance.
She turned quickly and headed toward the foyer.
"Who's there?"
Noe gasped and swiftly hid in a corner, holding his breath.
Nora approached step by step, her eyes sweeping the surroundings.
"Meow!"
A cat’s yowl pierced the silence as a little tabby squeezed through the pet door, breaking the tension.
Nora paused mid-step, feeling the tension in her nerves ease slightly.
She crouched down and scooped up the little calico cat.
“Well, if it isn’t you, little rascal?”
The cat meowed, content as Nora stroked her fur.
After Nora had gone, Noe wiped the sweat from his brow and let out a long sigh of relief.
That was close! Nora almost caught him!
In his room on the first floor, Aaron listened to the commotion outside, worrying for Noe too.
It was only when everything fell silent again that he relaxed.
The next day.
Aaron opened his eyes and lay quietly in bed, listening to the sound of footsteps above.
The kids were up.
In just a few days, it felt like a different world.
He had grown accustomed to this simple life.
No complicated office politics, no cutthroat corporate battles.
Just the sound of children’s laughter and a woman’s sweet voice.
Then, his door swung open.
A little voice chirped, “Mr. Thomas, you’re awake.”
Samantha’s hair was a tousled mess, suggesting she’d come to see him as soon as she woke up.
Aaron’s face softened, and he reached out to tousle Samantha’s hair even more.
“Samantha, did you sleep well last night?”
“Uh-huh, I dreamt about you, Mr. Thomas!”
Samantha tilted her head in thought.
Aaron raised an eyebrow, smiling. “Oh? And what about me was in your dream?”
“I dreamt that you got hurt by the bad guys and couldn’t move, lying in bed. Then Mommy came and kissed you awake, and then the prince and princess got married!”
Aaron: “…”
What to do when a little girl’s dreams are so fanciful?
“Samantha, what nonsense are you talking about?”
Nora arrived at the doorway just in time to hear her daughter.
Wasn’t that just like the Sleeping Beauty story she told her daughter last night?
Did her daughter just insert her and this Thomas into it?
“Mommy, weren’t you laying on top of Mr. Thomas? " she asked. "There are boundaries between men and women, you know. You have to take responsibility for Mr. Thomas !”
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