Chapter 141 When Will Uncle Matthew Move Over?
Chapter 141 When Will Uncle Matthew Move Over?
Five Years Later
Morning sunlight spilled warmly into the cozy, spotless room.
The range hood hummed away as Sophie stood at the stove making breakfast, her phone propped on the counter, displaying an active call.
"…All right, I got it. I'll come to the office to handle it in a bit."
She hung up, plated the fried egg, and carried it out. "Silas, come eat!" she called toward the bedroom.
Moments later, the door to the children's room opened, and a little boy emerged neatly dressed. He climbed into his chair at the table, well-behaved as ever.
Sophie set breakfast in front of him and planted a loud kiss on his cheek, then ruffled his hair. "Eat up. Uncle Matthew's taking you to preschool in a bit."
Silas kissed his mom back and broke into a sweet smile. "Uncle Matthew's here?"
Sophie nodded. "He's in town on business. Staying a few days."
"Awesome!" Silas beamed, his adorable face lighting up with joy.
"You like Uncle Matthew that much?" Sophie asked with a grin.
"I love Uncle Matthew," Silas said earnestly, nodding.
Uncle Matthew played with him, goofed around with him, and took him to preschool. He was even nicer than Mom sometimes.
Sophie looked at his delighted expression and pinched his cheek playfully. "You just like how Uncle Matthew spoils you."
Silas let out a little laugh but said nothing, dropping his gaze to his food like the perfect angel.
Sophie's eyes crinkled with amusement as she sat across from him. "I have to go to the office in a bit, so Uncle Matthew's going to spend the day with you. But you have to behave."
Silas nodded obediently.
The doorbell rang.
Before Sophie could react, Silas jumped down from the table. "I'll get it for Uncle Matthew!"
He stood on tiptoe to open the door. When he saw Matthew standing there with a toy in hand, he threw himself forward. "Uncle Matthew, you're finally here! Silas missed you so much!"
His sweet talk had Matthew grinning from ear to ear.
Matthew crouched down and scooped him up effortlessly, gently holding out the toy. "I missed you too. Have you been listening to your mom lately?"
Silas's eyes lit up at the sight of the toy. "Yes! Mommy even said I've been really good lately."
Sophie seized the opportunity to tattle. "Good? He was not good. Yesterday he went and played in the mud with the neighbor's kid. Got himself filthy. Took me forever to clean him up."
Caught red-handed, Silas shrank into Matthew's arms clutching his toy, looking pitiful. "I didn't… I just fell by accident."
Sophie finished her breakfast, wiped her mouth, and walked over with her plate. She tapped Silas on the nose. "Little boys who lie get long noses."
Silas immediately covered his nose, guilt written all over his face. "Mommy's mean!"
Sophie cleared her throat and shot Matthew a displeased look. "This is all your fault for spoiling him rotten. Every time you visit, he thinks he can challenge me."
Matthew smiled and ruffled Sophie's hair. "If you're not happy about it, I can spoil you instead."
Silas immediately let out an exaggerated "Ewww!" and covered one ear. "So cheesy! So cheesy!"
Sophie felt her cheeks warm and quickly retreated to the kitchen.
Once his mom was gone, Silas wrapped his arms around Matthew's neck and leaned close to his ear, tugging on his tie. "Uncle Matthew, when are you gonna move in and live with us?"
Sophie had just stepped out and caught his supposedly quiet question. She put her hands on her hips, her tone stern. "Silas, what kind of nonsense are you spouting now?"
Silas's eyes went wide and innocent, his voice pitiful. "I'm sorry."
Quick to apologize—but never to change.
Sophie shook her head helplessly.
She turned to put on her coat and grabbed her bag, waving at Matthew. "He's all yours. I'm heading to the office."
"All right. Drive safe."
After seeing Sophie out, Matthew turned back and carried Silas to the table. "Finish your breakfast first. Then I'll take you to preschool."
Silas stuck out his tongue, eyeing the bland meal with a pout. "I don't wanna eat Mommy's breakfast. It's not good."
Matthew glanced at the time. "We don't have time to make anything else. Just eat a little now to tide you over. I'll bring you lunch at noon."
"Yay!" Mission accomplished, Silas stopped complaining entirely. He grabbed his fork and polished off the rest of his breakfast in a few quick bites.
Matthew picked up his backpack and took his hand as they headed out.
Once they were in the car, Silas fiddled with his toy and asked, "Uncle Matthew, when are you really gonna move in with me and Mommy? Mommy's cooking is seriously so bad."
Sophie's cooking wasn't quite as terrible as Silas made it sound, but it wasn't great either. Healthy and edible, sure—but tasty? Not really.
"So you want me to move in just to cook for you?" Matthew asked with amusement, glancing at him through the rearview mirror.
Silas stuck out his tongue and muttered, "I mean, I'd also like Uncle Matthew to be my dad, but you're just not pulling your weight."
Uncle Matthew had been pursuing Mom for ages now, and there'd been zero progress. Even he was getting anxious for him.
And what was Mom's excuse for turning him down?
'These past few years, I just want to focus on my career. I'm not thinking about other things.'
That excuse wouldn't even fool a kid.
Yet Uncle Matthew believed every word she said.
Silas let out a small, world-weary sigh.
Sure, Uncle Matthew was basically like a dad already, but he still wished he'd move in with them instead of only visiting once a week.
Being looked down on by a little kid left Matthew feeling a bit helpless.
But what could he do? He respected Sophie.
Besides, her company had grown so much over the years that she was constantly swamped. If he and Bailey didn't occasionally come by to help with Silas, he didn't know what kind of mess she'd be in.
"All right, all right. Stop roasting your Uncle Matthew. What do you want for lunch? I'll make it for you."
"I want…" Silas rattled off a whole list of dishes, his earlier worries instantly forgotten.
Kids were so easy to distract.
---
When Sophie arrived at the office, she was stuck in meetings for a solid two hours. By the time she walked out of the conference room, her head was pounding.
Her assistant brought her a cup of coffee to help her wake up.
The iced coffee cut through the fog in her mind.
She leaned back in her chair, eyes closed. "Keep a close eye on the collaboration with Master Harris. We can't afford any mistakes."
Her assistant nodded. "The promotional video might require you to appear on camera."
Sophie opened her eyes. After a moment of silence, she nodded. "Fine. Just arrange it."
Her assistant was caught off guard by how quickly she agreed.
Usually, whenever she needed to appear on camera, Sophie would find a way to decline.
Though the assistant didn't know why, she'd come to accept it as one of Sophie's unspoken rules. Seeing her agree so readily this time was genuinely surprising.