Chapter 377 Book 5: Clarifications

Chapter 377 Book 5: Clarifications
“No, you have no rights over us. It’s none of your business what I do with my life, Maddox. You lost me the day you married Lucille. Why are you here anyway? Go live with your wife and children and leave me alone.” She shoved him away and held the door open for him to leave.
Maddox frowned at her allegations, refusing to budge. He wouldn’t leave without clearing the air between them. He wouldn’t leave without them. “Lucille is serving a prison term. Who told you I married her?” He watched the confused look on her face.
Soon she recovered and scoffed at his question. “Whatever! Lucille gave me ample proof. So, don’t even try denying it. I know you were planning to marry her.”
Maddox groaned in agony. He didn’t want this fight in front of his baby daughter. “How did you believe a criminal so easily, Iris? I’m here to take you and Esme home with me. So pack up. Now!” He strode towards Esme’s room.
Iris rushed after him in a state of panic. “Stop ordering me around, Maddox. I’m not your wife.”
Maddox rolled his eyes at her stubbornness. “You’ll soon be.”
“In your dreams. I’m not going back with you. My home is here.”
Maddox shrugged and walked into Esme’s room to see her sitting in the middle of the bed with a stuffed toy. He had guessed right. Their arguments were traumatizing his baby.
“Fine, stay here. I’m taking Esme with me.” He kneeled at her bedside and held out his arms to Esme.
“Won’t you give your dad a hug, sweetie? I’m sorry I didn’t come earlier. Can you forgive me?” He gave her a sad smile.
Esme glanced at her mother and then at him suspiciously. “No, you’re making Mommy sad. Mommy, do you like Dad?”
Tears pooled in Maddox’s eyes as he noticed the distrust in his daughter’s eyes for him. “I want to take you both home, Esme. Don’t you want us to live together like a family? I promise to be a wonderful dad.”
Iris stood like a statue instead of supporting him. It broke Maddox’s heart that she hated him so much without even finding out the truth.
“Pwomise?” Esme inched closer to Maddox.
“Yes, sweetie, I promise.” He still held his arms out to her, coaxing her to hug him.
She dropped her stuffed toy and came closer to him. “Why didn’t you come before, Dad?”
Maddox’s throat filled with emotions he couldn’t control any longer. “I didn’t know about you.”
“Oh, I thought you hated me.” She watched him in a state of confusion.
“I can never hate you, sweetie. I love you a lot. Come here and hug me.”
She smiled at him shyly and jumped into his arms with a giggle. Maddox enveloped her in his arms, and his heart swelled with happiness. It was a blissful feeling to hold his child close to his heart.
Her tiny hands went around his neck. “I love you too, Dad.”
It melted him into a puddle, and tears streamed down his cheeks.
Esme raised her head and looked up at him. “Are you crying, Dad?” She wiped his tears with her chubby, baby-soft hands.
Maddox smiled and nodded. “Oh, these are happy tears. I’m so happy I found you. Will you come home with me, Esme? It’ll be so much fun.”
Esme squealed with delight. “Yes, Dad.” Then she looked at Iris. “Mommy, Dad’s very nice. Can we please go with him? I wanna live with him. All my friends live with their moms and dads. Please, can I?”
Iris stood like a statue in one corner, watching him interact with Esme. A million questions flitted across her mind, but Maddox had avoided answering them. So had he married Lucille? Why did he want to take them home with him? Where had he been for the last two years? How did he find her?
Esme had tears in her eyes at Iris’s silence. “Mommy, please, can we go with Dad? I don’t wanna stay in daycare.”
Iris came out of her dazed state and looked at her daughter. “No, that’s not possible, Esme. My work is here.”
Tears pooled in Esme’s eyes. “I wanna go, Mommy. I hate daycare. Mia’s leaving too to live with her dad. Why can’t I live with my dad?” Big teardrops rolled down her cheeks, leaving Iris dumbfounded.
How would she make her understand?
“Of course, you’ll come along with me. I won’t let you stay here, baby girl. Where are your belongings? Let me pack them for you.” He could do this without Iris’s help.
“Mommy? Can we?” Esme wiped her eyes and glanced at her mother.
Maddox picked Esme up, ignoring Iris completely. He knew she would tag along if he took Esme home. He couldn’t argue with her in front of Esme. So that was the only option he had now. “Let’s pack your things up, yes?”
Esme nodded with a giggle, showing him her baby closet. “That is mine, Dad.”
Maddox placed her down and glanced at her confused mother. “Won’t you help me, Iris? I’ll help you pack yours next. Then we can talk to your employer before leaving. Does that sound good to you?”
“Why do you want me to go with you?” She muttered, still looking lost.
Maddox’s heart went out to her. She might have gone through a lot on her own. That might have turned her against him. If only he had come here earlier. If only he hadn’t faced the accident! He would have clarified with her long ago.
“Because we’re still in a relationship, remember? I have never broken up with you. We would have been married by now if you hadn’t fled that night.” He smiled sadly and packed Esme’s belongings.
To his surprise, Iris sat down beside him reluctantly and helped him. “Lies. You would have married Lucille.”
“I hadn’t planned to. The marriage license I had applied for was in your name. The police were hunting for Lucille. I gave in to her demand only to save your life. I would never have married her. If only you had trusted me...” He sighed, unable to continue anymore.
Iris gasped and wiped her tears away. “Oh!”
“Why didn’t you come home? Why didn’t you demand an explanation from me?” He gazed at her while Esme was busy ransacking her toy chest.
“I was too hurt to think straight. I overheard Lucille and her friends planning to kill me. They had no intention of releasing me. I had to escape. Then, out of nowhere, a white BMW stalked me all the way to Stanford. The driver was armed, and I panicked. The owner of the vehicle I fled in, Derek Morris, dropped me off here in Alpine Farms. It belongs to his friend. Ever since I’ve been living here. They have helped me a lot.”
Maddox frowned at the name. So that was how she met Derek. “Is this the same Derek guy you’re in love with or something?”
Iris groaned and rolled her eyes at him. “Jesus! You haven’t changed a bit. Derek is a happily married, fifty-three-year-old man. Yes, I love him and his wife. They saved my life. If my parents were alive, they would have been like Derek and his wife, Tina.”
Maddox felt relief surge through his body. He leaned over and brushed his lips against hers. “I’m so glad, baby. You’re mine and will always remain mine. Get that into your head.”
She jumped backward at his sudden proximity. “What are you doing? Esme’s there in the room, Maddox!” She glared at him, but he simply shrugged.
“She needs to get used to us.” He zipped up the suitcase and rose with a wink. “Where’s your bedroom?”
Iris rose too, with wide eyes. “I can manage. Why don’t you play with Esme?”
Maddox shook his head, glancing at his baby daughter, busy dumping her toys into a huge sack. “Oh, she’s busy. Lead the way now. I want to see your bedroom.”
“Please, Maddox. I don’t need your help.” She walked towards her tiny bedroom, feeling conscious of his presence behind her.
“Do you think I’ll let you out of my sight now? It’s been two years since I saw you, Iris. You have a lot of making up to do.” He followed her inside, desperate to steal a kiss.
Iris frowned in disbelief and turned to face him. “What stopped you from pursuing me in these two years? You knew I was pregnant. Yet you didn’t bother to seek me out.”
Maddox held her gaze and released a shattering breath. “I was lying in a coma in O’Connor General Hospital for the last two years, Iris.”