Chapter 88 Silent Standoff
Emily approached Liam with a smile. "Liam, you need to listen to Daddy. Come on, let's go home with us."
She reached out to hug him.
But Liam pushed her away. When Emily forcibly tried to embrace him, he lowered his head and bit down hard on her wrist.
"Ahh..."
Emily jerked her hand back in pain, her expression instantly turning fierce, though she still had to maintain her facade of gentle tolerance. "Liam, don't be scared. I'm here to take you home. Why would you bite me?"
Liam completely ignored her.
He absolutely refused to go home with her!
Alexander watched Liam in silence, father and son locked in what seemed like a wordless standoff.
Emily cautiously ventured from the sidelines, "Alexander, if we keep this up, it'll be dark soon."
"You should head back first," Alexander said.
"I..." Emily hesitated. How could she bear to leave?
She was desperately eager to seize control of the situation. Seeing Liam grow closer to Grace by the day posed an urgent threat to her plans.
"He won't come if you're here," Alexander stated.
"Kids don't understand these things," Emily protested. "You can't just waste time like this with him. Just pick him up and put him in the car."
No matter how stubborn Liam was, he was still just a child. Alexander could easily overpower him with one hand.
"If I force him into the car, he'll just find other ways to resist me," Alexander replied. Liam was a child with a peculiar temperament—angelic when he was good, utterly rebellious when he wasn't. Even if Alexander physically carried him to the car, once they got home, Liam would probably stage a hunger strike in protest.
Since Liam wanted to play the waiting game, Alexander was perfectly willing to oblige.
Alexander sat down in the chair across from Liam.
Once he settled in, everyone else felt even more uncomfortable, unsure whether to stay or leave.
Alexander and Liam, this father-son duo who looked like copy-paste versions of each other, wore identical stern expressions when angry—as if they'd been carved from the same mold.
...
Grace picked up Max and returned home, where the housekeeper had already prepared dinner.
Max dropped his backpack in his room and sat looking rather glum.
Grace stood in the doorway, watching Max sit alone at his desk, staring into space. "Have you finished your homework?"
"Yeah, I finished it," Max said. He always completed his assignments during class and never brought work home.
"Then we'll wait for Liam to get back and have dinner together," Grace said.
Max frowned slightly. "He won't be coming back."
Grace was startled. "What do you mean?"
"From what I know about Liam, he won't want to go home with Alexander," Max explained.
Grace paused, surprised by how well the two little boys understood each other. They'd developed such a strong bond and intuitive understanding.
She smiled. "You and Liam have such a good friendship."
Max looked troubled. "Mommy, I hate that woman, and Liam hates her too. He doesn't want Alexander to marry her either."
Grace remained silent.
Who Alexander chose to marry was his decision—how could she possibly interfere?
Time passed minute by minute.
Before she knew it, it was already eight-thirty in the evening.
Alexander and Liam still hadn't returned home.
Just as Grace was wondering what could be happening, her phone rang. It was Alexander.
Grace answered. "Hello?"
"Liam wants you to come pick him up. Otherwise, he refuses to go home," Alexander said.
Grace shot to her feet. "You're still at the school?"
"Yes." His voice carried obvious fatigue.
It seemed that after such a long standoff with Liam, even this perpetually cold and ruthless man had finally met his match and was forced to turn to Grace for help.
Only Grace could convince Liam to come home with her.
Grace grabbed her purse and headed for the door, then suddenly remembered Alexander's cold attitude toward her earlier. She snorted. "Didn't you tell me not to pick up Liam before? Didn't Emily come to get him?"
"Liam refuses to go home with her," Alexander replied.
"So you're asking me for backup?" Grace asked.
"Yes," Alexander admitted.
Grace suddenly felt mischievous. "Are you begging me?"
Silence fell on the other end.
"If you don't beg me, I'm not going," Grace said. "I don't want to be accused of having ulterior motives for getting close to Liam."
Alexander's voice became stiff. "You..." This woman was absolutely pushing her luck.
He gripped his phone tightly, looking at Liam sitting on the little stool with a sullen expression. The boy clutched his backpack, his stomach growling from hunger, yet his bottom seemed glued to that seat—he wouldn't budge an inch. Alexander was truly at a loss.
"Please." The perpetually commanding man actually begged her over the phone. "Is that enough?"
"Fine, I can't deal with you!" Grace hung up and told Max, "I'm going to pick up Liam."
Max nodded. "Okay, I'll wait for Mommy to come back so we can have dinner together."
"Alright."
When Grace arrived at the school gate, it was already nine o'clock at night.
Alexander and Liam were still locked in their standoff, with Emily standing nearby, apparently having never left. From a distance, Emily spotted Grace walking toward the school entrance and unconsciously clenched her fists.
Earlier, she'd seen Alexander get up and step aside to make a phone call, but she hadn't expected him to be calling Grace.
Emily felt uncomfortable about this.
During this entire time, no matter how she coaxed or cajoled, Liam had refused to go home with her, leaving her feeling somewhat defeated and resentful. Now, seeing Grace arrive and watching Liam immediately jump up from his stool with sparkling, bright eyes, Emily felt even more hurt and jealous.
Why was this little boy so close to Grace? Could this be the power of blood connection?
Emily tried to approach Liam for a hug, but he deliberately avoided her, glaring at her with particularly wary eyes.
"Liam, do you really dislike me that much?" Emily asked gently.
Despite her tactful question, Liam's response was unambiguous—he nodded emphatically.
Emily felt even more wounded. "Why do you dislike me? What did I do wrong?"
Liam kept his face stern and remained silent, but his eyes clearly declared: He didn't like her, and that was that. No matter how beautiful she might be, he simply didn't like her!
Grace walked over to Liam with a smile. "Liam, why are you throwing a tantrum and refusing to go home? Max and I are both waiting at home to have dinner with you!"
Upon hearing this, Liam immediately reached out his arms toward Grace, asking for a hug.
Grace knelt down and pulled Liam into her embrace, lifting him up.
Liam's face instantly lit up with joy, his eyes curving into adorable crescents like little moons.
Alexander watched this scene with a flash of astonishment in his eyes.
He hadn't expected that the little boy who had lost all his sparkle would suddenly come alive again the moment he saw Grace, as if infused with new life.
Liam was truly dependent on Grace and simply couldn't bear to be apart from her.
Liam was even smarter than Alexander had imagined. The boy seemed to understand that Alexander was deliberately trying to foster a relationship between him and Emily, so he was protesting in his own way.
It was clear that Grace held an important place in Liam's heart.