I saw clearly how Gregory had drafted the text. He had even entered the precise location of the mall we were in. The ability to recite phone numbers without hesitation seemed second nature to him; he did it all without even breaking a sweat.
I even suspected that he would have been able to find his way home by himself if he wanted to.
At this point, I was ready to leave. “Come on, I’ll take you to the mall security.”
Gregory tugged on my sleeve with an even more pitiful look on his face than before. “Mommy, you aren’t going to abandon me, are you? I’m scared to be alone…”
As women, our hearts are the softest when confronted with adorable children, especially when they were being coy. I was still able to muster a look of cold indifference earlier, but at this point, I would consider myself mollified.
After all, we weren’t waiting for Anthony to come. It would be fine to keep the child company a little longer. If I went home now, I would just be having a staring contest with the potted plants.
We decided to look for a safe place to wait.
We passed a fast food restaurant and Gregory stopped in his tracks. His beady little eyes were fixated on the fries and burgers on the menu.
Children were greedy, after all. I was just curious about the fact about rich people having a fondness for such unhealthy food.
“Greg, would you like a burger?” I asked.
“Yes,” Gregory said calmly with a nod. “I’d like to give it a try, for Daddy never lets me have any.”
He turned to me. “He’s very bossy and unreasonable. A fascist.”
I was stunned. Suddenly, I recalled the other day at The Jade when I heard a kid yell “Anthy”. So it was him.
Gregory was unusually brazen to call Anthony that.
At the sight of me hesitating, Gregory lowered his voice. “Mommy, I’ll just try a bite. I won’t eat more than that, okay?”
I understood now. Gregory was the same as his father; information had to be repeated to them multiple times!
“I don’t mind treating you, but you mustn’t call me Mommy anymore. Deal?”
“No problem.” Gregory flashed a wide smile and pulled me by the arm into the shop. “Let’s go, Ms. Stanhope!”
Gregory ordered a set meal for children on top of one of each of the best-selling items on the menu. A table for two was soon filled up.
The child was true to his word; he literally tried a bite of everything. The only thing he was particularly fond of was the sundae.
“I thought only girls like sweet things, Gregory?” I teased him.
As soon as I said that, he put down his spoon and wiped his lips in a dignified manner, refusing to touch another spoonful.
“Hey, I’m just messing with you. Carry on,” I said as I pushed the chocolate sundae back in front of him.
“That will be enough,” Gregory said with a solemn shake of his head.
“Really?” I probed him. Children are greedy.
Gregory nodded again determinedly. “Statistics show that an excessive consumption of deep-fried and sweet food is harmful to the body,” he said in a serious manner.
I couldn’t decide whether the child before me was a six-year-old or a genius who was familiar with the workings of the world. After a stunned silence, I said, “If that’s the case, shouldn’t you abstain from them completely?”
“They wouldn’t do you any harm in small portions. The more Daddy forbids me, the more I want to try. I’m a child; it’s normal for me to not be able to restrain my urges!”
His arrogant expression was bizarre. If it was normal for a child to not being able to reason, doesn’t it make accommodating him a grievous sin?
At the thought of this, I felt a pang of guilt, like a bright spotlight following me around. I looked up instinctively and jumped as I caught sight of a pair of cold eyes outside of the glass.
Anthony stood outside the restaurant with a straight face, but the coldness that he was exuding permeated invasively through the glass and lowered the ambient temperature in the restaurant by several degrees.
The guilty feeling solidified instantly upon looking into his eyes.
When I had regained my senses, Anthony was already walking in.
“Anthy!” Gregory called cheekily and stood up as he caught sight of Anthony.
“What are you supposed to call me?” Anthony asked coldly with a frown.
Gregory chuckled to himself as he hugged Anthony’s thigh. “Daddy!”
Anthony’s eyes flashed with helplessness but did not lose his temper. I stood up slowly.
As I was about to say something, Gregory came to my rescue. “Daddy, have you seen Ms. Ziegler? She said she would pick me up in a while but it’s been a long time and she hasn’t shown up yet. The adults here at the mall were ignoring me. Only Ms. Stanhope was willing to lend me her phone. I remembered that I shouldn’t call you unnecessarily. Aren’t I clever?”
What?
Thora left him here? Why didn’t he say so?
Besides, with Gregory’s ability to be coy, what kind of a normal adult would bear to leave him behind?
After he intentionally emphasized my role again, it looked as if I taught the child to say some good words to claim the credit on my behalf.
“Hmm,” Anthony grunted indifferently before looking up at me. The depths of his dark eyes made guessing his thoughts impossible.
Businessmen thought very deeply. Furthermore, we have had an interaction before. It wasn’t an experience I wished to repeat in a hurry.
“You have your child now. I won’t bother you anymore. I’ve got to go.”
I retrieved my purse. “Goodbye Gregory, listen to your Dad, will you?”
The indifferent and conceited man before me suddenly spoke up. “Thank you for caring for Gregory today. How can I return this favor?” I was stunned as I did not expect him to be so courteous. “There’s no need.” I shook my head with a smile. “Gregory is adorable. Anybody who runs into him wouldn’t ignore him. I know it’s not my place to say this, but though it’s important to earn money, please do not forget the safety of your family. If possible, you should assign a couple of bodyguards for Gregory.”
I did not intend to meddle; I simply cared for the boy and did not wish for him to be harmed. His father was too busy earning a living outside to care much. Today, he was abandoned by his future stepmother. Who knows what would happen tomorrow?
With those thoughts in mind, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the little fellow. It looked like he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. It was not necessarily all sunshine and rainbows for him.
Anthony’s face changed at my words. He stared at me with an odd look in his eyes.
I was uncomfortable with being scrutinized like that and was about to come up with an excuse to leave when the phone in my purse rang. I extracted it only to discover that it was Emery.
“How’s everything? Are you home yet?” Emery sounded remorseful. “It was all my fault; I should have planned for this beforehand. It was such a rare occasion that we got to hang out and now it’s all ruined.”
“That’s alright,” I consoled her. “We can do this again some time. I walked around by myself for a bit and was preparing to leave. I’ll give you a call once I reach home.”
I had been chatting with Gregory non-stop after we had ordered, and had completely forgotten about Emery.
I ended the call but the screen remained bright as a call from Marcus came in.
It was silent on his end except for his voice. “Have you gone out?”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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