Chapter 244 A Joyful Leisure Day
Nora Lopez piped up, "I'm Nora Lopez. My mom's at work and she has no clue I snuck out. And about my dad..."
Nora's face fell, "Mom said he died in a car crash."
Ethan and Ashley exchanged serious looks, feeling bad for the little girl.
"Sorry, Nora, didn't mean to bring up sad stuff," Ashley said.
Nora shrugged, "It's cool. It's always been me and my mom. She's my favorite person ever!"
"Nora, your mom's probably worried sick. You need to call her," Ashley said. "Do you know her number or where you live?"
Nora's eyes sparkled, "Nope."
"What now?" Ashley turned to Ethan.
Ethan sighed, "We gotta call the cops."
Just as Ethan pulled out his phone, Nora chimed in, "I'm starving. Can you get me something to eat? My mom can pay you back later."
Ethan and Ashley shared a look. Ashley said, "Let's grab her some food first."
"Sure."
Ashley took Nora to get some grub while Ethan trailed behind, keeping an eye out. When Nora wasn't looking, he called the cops.
When Ethan caught up with them, Nora was munching on ice cream, fries, and fried chicken.
Nora was all smiles, and Ethan shot Ashley a look.
Ashley walked over to Ethan. "What's up?"
"I think this kid's pretty sharp. Not sure what her game is," Ethan said. "I called the cops when she wasn't looking. We don't wanna get played."
Ashley laughed, "Mr. Yates, scared of a little scam? She's only five. What could she possibly do? You're overthinking it."
Ethan shrugged, "Better safe than sorry."
Ashley sighed, "You're worrying too much. We're almost late to meet Sienna. Nora and Lily are about the same age, they should hit it off. Let's just take Nora with us."
"The cops aren't here yet, so we don't have much choice," Ethan said.
They grabbed a few more things, and Ashley held Nora's hand while Ethan carried the bags. They found their car and headed to Sienna's place.
The Weiss family
Sienna had gotten Ashley's call and was waiting at the door with Lily.
Lily was a gorgeous little girl, only six, but you could already tell she'd grow up to be a stunner.
When Ashley's car rolled up, Lily jumped up and down, "Ashley's here!"
She bolted towards the car.
"Lily, slow down," Sienna called, waddling after her with her pregnant belly.
"Lily!" Ashley got out and spread her arms wide. Lily ran into them, hugging her tight. "Ashley, it's been forever! Did you miss me?"
"Of course!" Ashley planted a kiss on Lily's cheek.
Lily giggled and kissed her back.
Ethan stepped out of the car just as Nathan came out of the house. "Ethan, didn't expect to see you here."
Ethan clapped him on the shoulder, "Came with Ashley."
Watching Ashley and Lily, Ethan's eyes softened, "Your daughter's adorable."
"Yeah, she's a sweetheart. Come on in," Nathan grinned.
Just then, Nora hopped out of the car.
Nathan noticed the unfamiliar kid and asked, "Who's she?"
Ethan shrugged, "We found her at the mall. She got separated from her family. We called the cops, they'll pick her up soon."
"Come on in," Nathan said.
"Alright."
They all headed into the Weiss mansion.
Lily made a new friend, and soon enough, she and Nora were holding hands, chasing butterflies in the garden.
Ashley and Sienna sat down, chatting and laughing, having a blast.
The guys watched the women and kids, smiling warmly.
"Ethan, it's rare to just chill like this, talking about life while watching the ones we love. This will be a cherished memory when we're older," Nathan said, content.
"Yeah," Ethan agreed, feeling a rare sense of happiness.
"But, Nora's not your kid. You gotta think about your future. When are you planning to have one?"
Ethan felt a pang of regret, "It'll happen."
Ethan always thought kids were noisy and a hassle. But after hanging out with Lily and Nora, he found them innocent and cute. Having one with Ashley would be perfect.
But he knew about Ashley's health issues.
Ashley ran over, hugging Ethan. "Babe, we're planning a barbecue. Come help."
"Sure thing."
They held hands and headed to the grill to pick out ingredients.
Nathan watched them, noticing how they'd begun to resemble each other after all this time. Maybe that's what happened when two people are deeply in love.
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