Chapter 2 Love at First Sight, Willing to Go Home with Me?
Brielle was extremely vicious. "Smart of you to know your place! Just remember, you're not taking a single thing that belongs to the Obelon family!"
Candice couldn't help but feel disgusted by her words. "Don't worry, I won't take anything that doesn't belong to me."
People or possessions—she had never truly owned any of it anyway.
Finally satisfied, Brielle quickly ordered someone to pack up Candice's belongings before throwing her out of the Obelon family mansion.
One week later, on the Silverlight City highway.
A luxurious fleet of Bentleys sped toward Seaside City.
Inside one of the cars, a distinguished young man spoke into his phone, "We've found our sister's whereabouts. I'm already on my way to get her—you guys don't need to come!"
"Are you kidding me? Our sister's been missing for twenty years, and now that we've finally tracked her down, of course, I'm going to pick her up! I've already arranged more than a dozen helicopters. Our precious sister deserves nothing less than the highest reception possible!"
"Candice is the only girl in our Mortimer family, and everyone's been waiting for her. A dozen helicopters aren't enough! We should arrange more in formation to show our sincerity!"
As the three quarreled, a powerful middle-aged voice cut in, "All of you, stand down! Candice is my precious daughter—what business is it of yours? None of you is going! Her mother and I will go personally!"
The others responded, "Doesn't matter! Whoever gets there first gets to bring her home! There's no room for family sentiment in this race."
Six years later, at Seaside City's First Hospital.
Candice had just finished a six-hour surgery when she received a barrage of messages from her precious daughter Yasmin, who was back in Silverlight City.
[Mom, several men came to the house today offering marriage proposals, saying they wanted to be my stepdad! Grandpa was so angry that he literally set the dogs on them and chased them out. Uncle asked them where they found the audacity! It was hilarious!]
[Those men really don't know their place. My mom is the best and most beautiful mom in the world, so obviously, she needs the most handsome man out there.]
[Don't worry, Mom. I'll block all those unsuitable men for you. I won't let them bother you at all!]
Candice burst into laughter, reading the messages. She could just imagine the chaos at home!
She replied with a smile: [Thank you so much, Yasmin!]
She put away her phone, preparing to head back to the break room.
But as she passed the nurses' station, she overheard some gossip.
"I heard this little boy is here looking for a doctor for his father. Whoever can cure him could become his stepmother. This kid is the heir to an ultra-wealthy family!"
"Really? Then they need the best doctor possible, right? Remy would be perfect! She's young and beautiful too!"
Candice normally had no interest in gossip.
But just moments after hearing about men wanting to be Yasmin's stepdad, now there was talk about someone looking for a stepmom!
Out of curiosity, she paused to take a look.
Soon, she spotted a little boy surrounded by people in the center of the crowd.
The child appeared to be about four or five years old, with incredibly delicate features. His chubby little face looked soft enough to pinch, with rosy lips and white teeth—absolutely adorable and endearing.
At the moment, he sat in a chair, swinging his short legs, his bright eyes scanning the crowd around him.
Standing in front of him was an attractive woman.
Remy Phillips was speaking in an affected manner, "Hello, I'm Remy. I'm quite skilled as a doctor, and I'd be happy to help your father."
Hearing her self-introduction, the little boy's cute face immediately showed a trace of annoyance.
Yes, he was here accompanying his father to find a doctor, but he never said anything about looking for a stepmother!
Who on earth had spread such a bizarre rumor?
And where did this woman get the confidence? The foundation on her face was caked on so thickly.
The little boy's disdain was written all over his face.
Candice caught his expression clear.
Though he hadn't said a word, somehow she understood exactly what he was thinking.
Candice couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Her sudden outburst attracted quite a few glances!
When people saw her, they immediately straightened up and respectfully called out, "Dr. Mandy!"
Someone whispered, "How could we forget her? Even though she's only here temporarily for one surgery, she's the most skilled doctor of all! Remy doesn't compare at all."
Candice realized she'd accidentally drawn attention to herself.
She quickly composed herself and said, "I'm sorry for interrupting, but I think you all might have misunderstood. This child probably isn't looking for a stepmother!"
Everyone looked at the little boy with doubt.
A misunderstanding?
But this rumor came from the hospital's "intelligence organization"—the cleaning staff who had overheard it right outside the hospital director's office.
How could it be wrong?
"How do you know he's not looking?" Remy asked, somewhat displeased at being interrupted.
Candice shrugged. "Just a guess!"
Remy frowned, about to say something, when the little boy suddenly slid off his chair and said in a sweet childlike voice, "You're right, I wasn't planning to find a stepmom, but now I've changed my mind! I've fallen in love with you at first sight. Would you come home with me and be my mom?"
Everyone was stunned by his words.
Including Candice.
She hadn't expected to receive such a confession and stood frozen for two seconds before her face showed a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
This kid was serious?
She looked down at him with amusement and said, "Finding a stepmom isn't something to joke about. Does your father know about this?"
He replied with complete seriousness, "At home, I make these decisions! If I say it's okay, then it's okay!"
Candice was both amused and helpless, assuming he was just playing around.
After all, her daughter Yasmin loved to joke around too. Sometimes when she saw a particularly handsome man, she would muse, "That man has great potential to be my dad!"
This little boy was probably just like Yasmin!
Candice bent down and patted his head, saying, "I'm sorry, but I have no interest in becoming anyone's stepmother. You'll have to find someone else. I need to go now—I have things to do."
After saying this, she withdrew her hand and quickly returned to the break room to change her clothes, not giving the little incident much thought.
However, meeting such an adorable little boy had stirred something in her.
She thought of her own son, who had died at birth.
If he were still alive, he would be about this age now.
Six years ago, after divorcing Brandon, she had been left homeless.
She had tried to find work to support herself, but the Elikin family had blacklisted her everywhere.
When she had nowhere to turn, her biological parents and brothers had appeared out of nowhere and brought her back to Silverlight City.
Later, she became pregnant and gave birth to twins, but her son died during childbirth, leaving only her little daughter Yasmin!
Thinking of the past made Candice melancholic.
Her good mood instantly vanished.
Soon, she changed her clothes and prepared to leave.
After completing such a difficult surgery, she was quite tired.
She wanted to go home and get some proper rest.
But to her surprise, when she opened the door, she found the little boy from earlier standing right outside.
Candice hadn't expected him to follow her and raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Was he still not giving up?
Elijah Obelon flashed her a sweet smile and said, "Earlier, you were wearing a mask, so I couldn't see your full face. I thought you must be beautiful, and I was right! I have such good taste! You're absolutely stunning!"
Candice couldn't help but laugh.
Where did he learn to sweet-talk like that?
He was too good at it!
If he was already this charming at such a young age, what would he be like when he grew up?