Chapter 304 Uncle, Will You Hurt Me?
After Aaron popped that question, Tyler, riding shotgun, was totally floored. Aaron, the guy who couldn't stand kids, was actually worried about the little girl by the road!
The little girl's eyes sparkled as she strutted to the car, opened the door with her tiny hand, and hopped in like a pro. "Thanks, mister. You're a real good guy."
She neatly folded her small umbrella and even wiped the rain off her shoes, trying not to mess up the car.
Aaron stared at the little girl with a serious face. "Don't get too happy. I'm not a good guy," he grumbled.
The little girl looked up with her sweet, innocent voice, "Mister, are you gonna hurt me?"
Normally, he'd ignore stuff like this. But her big, sincere eyes made it hard to brush her off. After a moment, Aaron replied in his usual cold tone, "No."
"Then I am relieved," the little girl sighed in relief, patting her small chest. She then dug into her tiny backpack, her braids bouncing around.
Aaron watched her patiently. She pulled out a crumpled bill and slapped it into his hand, saying generously, "Thanks for the ride, mister!"
She'd been waiting forever by the roadside, and this was the first car that stopped. She knew she had to grab the chance.
As her mom always said, "If you don't see an opportunity, make one. But never take advantage of others for free!"
Aaron glanced at the bill in his hand. Her tiny hand in his palm felt weirdly small.
"This ain't a taxi," Aaron said flatly.
The little girl was stunned for a sec, then pulled out more bills from her backpack. With a pained look on her round face, she said, "Mister, don't be so cheap. I promise to be quiet and good, okay?"
Aaron looked into her eyes again and nudged Tyler. "You got three minutes to find her family," he ordered.
Tyler, still in the front seat, sighed. He knew Aaron's kindness wouldn't last; his patience was paper-thin.
Looking back at the little girl sitting quietly, Tyler finally saw her face clearly. It hit him why Aaron was being nice. She looked just like the late Susanna.
"Little girl, do you know your parents' contact info? Did you get lost at the airport?" Tyler asked.
Calling the cops seemed like the only option now.
The little girl answered seriously, "Mister, my mommy's on a business trip and not home."
Aaron frowned. "Turn around, back to the airport."
They'd picked her up near the airport, so it made sense to take her back there.
"Mister! I don't wanna go back to the airport!"
The little girl nervously clutched Aaron's finger, her eyes filling with tears, looking like she was about to cry. "Mister, you're so handsome, you wouldn't leave me by the road, right?"
Even though Aaron usually hated physical contact, he couldn't ignore the little girl's hand gripping his finger. With patience, he asked, "Where do you wanna go?"
"Radiant Valley Hotel!"
Tyler jumped in, "Mr. Abbott, since she's headed to the same place, why not take her along?"
"I'll be super good!" The little girl nodded eagerly, her braids bouncing in front of Aaron.
Aaron finally caved, glancing at the foggy weather outside. It reminded him of that rainy day four years ago. Since then, he couldn't stand rainy days.
The car rolled on, cruising at a chill pace. A calm silence filled the car.
Before long, Aaron felt a tug on his sleeve and heard the little girl's cute voice, "Mister, can I ask you something?"
"No," Aaron shot back. He knew kids weren't that obedient.
"Mister, I wanna ask a grown-up question. If you don't wanna answer, are you scared you can't? It's cool, I won't mind," she said.
Aaron turned to look at her. "Go ahead."
He never thought a cute kid would tease him one day. Now he was curious about her question!
"Mister, my mom says I don't have a dad like other kids because I'm too awesome. Is that true?"
Hearing this nonsense, Aaron figured she was from a single-parent family. No wonder she was so bold, hopping into the car and even offering money!
He felt a bit soft-hearted. "Is this answer important?"
"Yeah, I wanna know how I came to be. Do you know?" she asked sincerely.
Aaron was stumped, his patience wearing thin. He pursed his lips and gave a vague answer, "You'll get it when you're older."
"My mommy says the same thing. Must be a tough question if even you can't answer!"
Aaron fell silent, staring out the window instead of debating with a kid.
The little girl didn't get the answer she wanted. She sat quietly, sneaking a look at her smartwatch in her backpack. There were missed calls and unread messages: [Lillian Jones, where are you? If Mommy finds out you snuck out, you're toast.]
She reluctantly replied: [Charles, I'm at the airport, on my way to find Daddy.]
Charles Jones: [How are you getting there?]
Lillian: [Charles, chill. I met a nice guy, and he's going to the same hotel as Daddy.]
Charles: [Give me the license plate number.]
Lillian quickly sent the number: [Charles, don't tell Mommy yet, okay?]
Otherwise, she'd be in big trouble.
Over an hour later, the fancy car pulled up outside Radiant Valley Hotel.
There were a lot of people at the auction, and despite the heavy rain, many cars were parked outside.
"Mister, is this Radiant Valley Hotel?" Lillian pressed her face against the window, eyes wide. "I've never seen such a big hotel."
Aaron looked down at Lillian. "What's your mommy's phone number?"
