Chapter 203 Want to secretly have his baby?
Alexander heard her words but acted as if he hadn't.
The car waited at the entrance.
Alexander got into the passenger seat while Grace opened the back door. Max and Liam climbed in, but Lily hesitated by the car door—this was her first time seeing such a luxurious vehicle.
"Lily, get in. We're going home," Grace said gently.
"Is it Grace's home?" Lily asked uncertainly.
"Yes, it's my home."
Only then did Lily climb into the car.
She was clearly very shy around strangers. Once inside, she curled up in the corner without making a sound.
Grace settled into the passenger seat and buckled her seatbelt. Glancing back, she noticed that while Max and Liam had fastened their seatbelts, Lily didn't seem to know how. "Max, could you help her with her seatbelt?"
"Sure."
Max leaned over to help Lily with her seat belt. His proximity made her tense up completely, even her breathing became shallow and careful.
Only after Max finished and returned to his seat did Lily's shoulders finally relax.
During the drive, Grace pulled out a small piece of paper from her pocket with a phone number written on it—one she hadn't called yet.
She decided to discuss it with Alexander once they got home.
Back at the house, Liam and Max went to their rooms while Grace asked the housekeeper to prepare a temporary bedroom for Lily.
Standing in the unfamiliar room, Lily stared at the fresh sheets and comforter, the beautiful bed, and the solid wood wardrobe. Everything looked so wonderful.
This house was enormous—not as large as the estate they'd just visited, but still a mansion beyond her wildest imagination.
"Lily, would you like to sleep in this room tonight?"
Lily looked down at her faded, well-worn clothes, then at the clean bedding, appearing embarrassed.
"My clothes are dirty," she whispered.
"They're not dirty," Grace assured her. "Tomorrow I'll take you shopping for new clothes. By tomorrow, you'll have beautiful new outfits."
Only then did Lily obediently climb onto the bed, pull back the covers, and lie down.
Grace tucked her in and left the room.
Alexander stood in the doorway, looking toward Lily's room.
"Let's talk in the study," Grace said.
They went into the study together.
As soon as they entered, Alexander asked, "Are you planning to adopt her?"
"I'm considering it," Grace replied.
"You didn't ask for my opinion."
Grace fell silent.
She truly hadn't properly consulted him.
"If I adopt Lily, I'll work to support her," Grace offered.
"It's not about money."
For him, money was the least of concerns.
"Adopting a child means taking responsibility. I'm not psychologically prepared for that," Alexander said. "My capacity to love is limited—I've given it to Liam and Max. I don't have enough left for a third child."
He wasn't that altruistic or kind. Otherwise, with his wealth, he could adopt every child in the orphanage.
He knew that raising a child required more than money—it required love.
He didn't think he could provide that.
"But... I've grown attached to Lily," Grace said quietly.
"You've known her for such a short time. What kind of attachment could you possibly have developed?"
Grace pressed her lips together, staying quiet.
She knew she couldn't demand that Alexander adopt Lily. He had no obligation or responsibility to do so. But seeing Lily refuse food and drink at the orphanage had broken her heart.
After all, she and Lily had endured hardship together—they were both survivors of that disaster, kindred spirits in their suffering.
"I can find her a good family with the right conditions. But I don't agree to adoption," Alexander stated firmly.
"If it's truly a good family that would genuinely care for Lily, I'd be willing to consider that," Grace conceded.
She didn't necessarily have to adopt Lily herself—she just wanted the child to have a good life.
Alexander nodded. "If you're fond of her, you can bring her home to stay occasionally. But as for adoption, we should find her another family."
He seemed to be in a poor mood. Grace suspected his company affairs were weighing heavily on him, making her hesitate about bringing up another matter.
"What is it?" Alexander noticed her reluctance to speak.
"When I went to the orphanage today, one of the staff members told me a man called demanding to take Liam back."
Alexander's eyebrows shot up. "What man?"
"He claimed to be Liam's father."
Alexander let out a cold laugh. "Liam is my son. Who the hell does he think he is?"
"The orphanage staff said he demanded they return Liam to him. I wrote down his phone number."
She handed him the slip of paper. "Maybe with this number, we can investigate Liam's background."
Alexander took the note, his brow furrowing. "Are you that concerned about Liam's background?"
Grace looked startled, meeting Alexander's gaze.
"Do you care that much about who his biological mother is?" he asked.
"I..."
"If Liam was born to another woman, would you hate him for it?" Alexander pressed.
Grace shook her head. "Of course not. But don't you want to find out about Liam's background?"
"I don't care who Liam's biological mother is. I only know that Liam is my son."
Previously, he'd wanted to investigate Liam's origins because he thought Grace had given birth to Liam and abandoned him due to intellectual disabilities, which had made him resent her.
But after the paternity test proved Liam wasn't Grace's biological child, and that Liam had no intellectual deficits, he simply didn't care who the biological mother was.
It would be better if that woman never appeared.
He didn't care about what had already happened, nor did he wonder what methods Liam's mother had used to conceive his child. He only knew that Liam was his biological son, and he was responsible for him.
Alexander had seriously considered this matter. If they found Liam's biological mother and she discovered that Liam wasn't intellectually disabled, he feared she might become persistent and troublesome.
"Why don't you care?" Grace asked.
"Why should I care about a woman I've never met?" Alexander countered.
"Are you so certain that woman has no connection to you?"
Alexander frowned. "Are you questioning me?"
Grace looked stunned. "I didn't mean—"
"I told you before—I've never been with any woman. I don't know what happened during my coma, and I don't care who gave birth to Liam."
He had asked his grandmother about it. She'd said she only arranged IVF for Grace. If Liam wasn't Grace's biological child, then someone else had given birth to him, and even she couldn't figure out how.
Alexander had Jeremy investigate the sperm bank and discovered that one vial of his frozen sperm was missing.
He suspected someone had tampered with it, attempting to secretly conceive his baby.
Alexander immediately had all his remaining frozen sperm destroyed—every last vial.