Chapter 158 Do You Want to Be My Daddy?
By the morning, Leo woke up again, and Olivia was nowhere to be seen.
He rubbed his eyes, and came out of the bedroom. He spotted Luca lying on the sofa right away. His eyes went wide, and he ran over to the sofa, circled Luca twice, and poked his arm lightly with his little hand.
"Uncle LO? Why are you sleeping at my house?"
Luca woke up from the poke, opened his eyes, and met Leo's sparkling gaze. His heart softened. He sat up and ruffled Leo's hair. "I wasn't feeling well last night, so your mom let me rest here overnight."
Leo nodded like he sort of got it. Then he remembered something from cartoons, grabbed Luca's shirt corner with his little hand, and asked seriously, "Uncle LO, are you going to be my dad? On TV, only moms and dads sleep in the same house!"
The words hit Luca like a little stone in his heart, stirring up warm ripples. He pinched Leo's cheek. "If you want, I'd love to be your dad."
"Then you have to say nice things about me to my mom!" Leo leaned in close to his ear and whispered, "Mom's just stubborn, but she thinks you're great too."
Luca couldn't help laughing. This kid was better at matchmaking than he was. He wanted to say more but worried it might annoy Olivia, so he patted Leo's back. "Come on, I'll make you breakfast. Go wash up first—the custard buns will be ready soon."
Leo cheered at the mention of his favorite custard buns and dashed to the bathroom, his short legs pumping fast. He yelled back, "Uncle, I want two!"
"Okay, I'll make three!" Luca called back with a smile, watching him run off. His mind replayed last night's scenes.
Olivia by the bed, changing his cooling towel over and over, her fingertips gentle and warm. The patient way she fed him medicine.
His fingers rubbed together unconsciously, as if her palm's warmth was still there. That strange feeling in his heart grew stronger.
Luca stood and went to the kitchen. He looked at the stomach-soothing porridge simmering in the pot and thought about how to win Olivia over step by step, get her to drop her guard, and accept him.
The door lock clicked. Olivia was back from her morning workout, a thin sheen of sweat on her forehead, wearing workout clothes, breathing a bit heavy.
She walked in and saw Luca busy in the kitchen. Her face turned cold. She tossed her gym bag on the sofa and said distantly, "Why haven't you left?"
Luca turned off the heat, wiped his hands, walked toward her, and casually locked the door behind him. He stepped closer, eyes steady on hers. "I'm not leaving."
Olivia backed up instinctively until her back was almost against the wall. She watched him warily. "Luca, this is my home. Please leave."
"If I wanted to leave, I would've last night." Luca stopped a short distance away, his tone firm. "If you really wanted me gone, you wouldn't have let me stay last night, or left me alone with Leo."
Olivia's face stayed calm, but he'd hit her weak spot. "I just felt sorry for you being sick, and Leo likes you. I didn't want to disappoint him."
"For whatever reason, I'm not leaving." Luca's eyes were stubborn. "I'll stay by you and Leo's side, make up for my past mistakes, until you accept me."
"I won't accept you!" Olivia raised her voice, her heart panicking. She was afraid his persistence would wear her down.
Just then, Leo finished washing up and came out of the bathroom. He saw the tension between them, ran over, grabbed Olivia's hand, and looked up. "Mom, what's wrong with you and Uncle LO? Are you fighting?"
He paused, then looked at Luca with hopeful eyes. "Mom, is Uncle LO going to be my dad?"
Olivia opened her mouth to explain, but Leo beat her to it. "Mom, I know you might be shy to say it. It's okay—I really like Uncle LO as my dad. But..." His voice turned whiny. He looked down and clutched Olivia's shirt. "Some kids at kindergarten say I'm a kid with no dad to love me. They laugh at me. I didn't tell you 'cause I didn't want you sad."
Olivia's heart twisted hard. Guilt and pain flooded her. She knelt down, hugged Leo, her voice choking. "Baby, I'm sorry. Mommy's fault—you shouldn't have to go through that."
Leo snuggled into her arms and whispered, "Mom, I don't blame you. I just want a dad, like other kids. One to play with me and take me to school."
Olivia held her son, her emotions all mixed up. She remembered her own childhood, growing up with just her mom, watching other kids with dads, that envy and emptiness—she knew it better than anyone.
These years, she'd worked nonstop to give Leo the best stuff, but ignored his need for a dad's love.
She looked up at Luca. He stood there, eyes full of pain and guilt, saying nothing, just watching them quietly.
Olivia's heart started to waver. Maybe she could give Luca a chance—for him, and for Leo to have a dad.
After breakfast, Luca offered to take Leo to kindergarten. Olivia didn't say no. The three of them went downstairs together.
At the kindergarten gate, Leo hugged Luca's leg, not wanting to let go. "Uncle LO, will you pick me up tonight?"
"Of course. I'll pick you up, and we'll get something yummy." Luca ruffled his hair, watched him run inside, then turned to Olivia. "I'll handle some work at the company. See you tonight."
Olivia nodded, watching him go, her feelings complicated. She wasn't sure if her decision was right or wrong.
Meanwhile, in Windy's apartment, Windy sat on the sofa crying to her mom Patricia. "Mom, Luca blocked me. I can't reach him at all. All he cares about now is Olivia and that brat!"
Patricia saw her daughter a mess and got furious. She slammed the table. "Crying won't help. This little thing breaks you?"
"What can I do?" Windy cried harder. "Luca ignores me, sides with Olivia to mess me up. I lost my job, my reputation's ruined."
"No need to panic." Patricia's eyes turned cold and mean. "We have one last card. Play it right, and Luca comes crawling back."
Windy looked up, confused. "Mom, what card?"
"Go to the nursing home and see Linus." Patricia said. "Tell him how ungrateful his grandson is."
"But he's still in a coma. Can he help?" Windy hesitated.
"Even if he doesn't wake, the butler knows the old story. We cry to the butler, make him think Luca's ungrateful—he'll step in." Patricia sounded confident. "Then, for the family name, Luca won't dare touch you."
Windy's eyes lit up like she had grabbed a lifeline. "Right, you're so smart, Mom. Let's go now."