Chapter 120 He Found Out?
Eleanor didn't think anything of it at all. In her little baby voice, sweet as honey, she said: "Uncle, Eleanor missed you so much. Does it still hurt? Let me blow on it."
Alex froze for a moment. He instinctively glanced at the back of his hand. The needle mark had long faded, yet she still remembered.
Alex’s lips curved. “It doesn’t hurt anymore. Thank you, Eleanor.”
Seeing the two of them getting along so well, Emily lowered her lashes and hid every trace of emotion.: "Alright, we should get going."
But Eleanor was already throwing her arms around Alex's neck, swaying her little body and pleading: “Uncle, come home with us!”
At those words, Alex's pupils shrank.
Go home... together?
"Have dinner with Eleanor, okay? Mommy's cooking is so yummy!" Eleanor pressed her cheek against the man's face. Who could resist that kind of coaxing?
Emily froze on the spot. "Eleanor, stop making trouble. Uncle is busy..."
"I'm not busy." Alex cut in almost immediately, then raised an eyebrow at her. "Since Eleanor's inviting me, I don't mind at all."
"You—!" Emily was speechless with anger. This man was clearly doing it on purpose!
With Eleanor right there, she couldn't make a scene. "Alex, don't push your luck. I never said you could come home with me!"
Alex curved his lips in a half-smile. "Then I guess we'll have to ask the little one."
The little one?!
Emily was so furious she almost laughed.
Eleanor, however, scrunched up her little brows and looked over with a pitiful expression: "Mommy~ please~ Eleanor likes Uncle. Eleanor wants Uncle to have dinner with her and tell her stories..."
The child's eyes went slightly red. Her little mouth started to quiver like she was about to cry.
Emily could never hold out against her daughter's face like that. She bit her lip and finally gave in. "Just this once. You leave right after dinner. No staying longer than that."
Alex's lips curved up slightly. He held Eleanor securely and stood up. "Fine. I'll drive."
Just this once?
After this once, there would always be a next time.
The dark, volatile energy that had surrounded him earlier seemed completely soothed away.
Emily had no choice but to get in the car.
The car drove smoothly toward the Johnson family home.
With Eleanor there, the inside of the car felt unusually warm.
Eleanor leaned against Emily, chattering away about everything that happened at kindergarten.
As a mother, Emily was naturally patient and responded to every little thing.
What surprised her was that Alex listened patiently the whole time too, occasionally murmuring a quiet reply. The scene was... surprisingly pleasant.
Emily pressed her lips together, feeling an inexplicable ache in her chest.
Alex was probably just doing this on a whim.
Half an hour later.
The Johnson family home.
By now it was getting dark.
In the brightly lit courtyard, a servant spotted the car coming from a distance and hurried forward to greet them: "Emily's back, come quick— hm?!"
When the car door opened and they saw Alex step out carrying Eleanor, the servant was completely stunned. No words were needed — the shock was written all over their face.
"Mr. Baker, this is..." The servant didn't know what to do with themselves, eyes darting to Alex again and again.
How... how did Mr. Baker end up carrying Eleanor home?
The commotion quickly reached Andrew and Lillian inside.
The two of them walked briskly out of the living room, and the moment they saw Alex, both their expressions changed at once.
Andrew's brow furrowed tight: "Alex, what are you doing here?"
Lillian stepped forward right away, pulled Emily aside, and asked urgently: "Emmie, what's going on? How did he end up coming back with you — and why is he... holding Eleanor?"
After all, Alex had just come from his own engagement party.
Emily rubbed her temple: "Mom, Dad, I couldn't help it. Eleanor insisted he come back for dinner."
Alex held the little girl and gave a slight nod: "Andrew, sorry to drop in like this. Eleanor invited me to dinner. I hope you'll forgive the intrusion."
Seeing her parents' grave expressions, Emily had no choice but to explain as best she could: "Mom, Dad, Eleanor likes him, so... just let him stay for the meal. The two families are working together anyway. Think of it as a business dinner."
Even she knew how weak that sounded.
Andrew and Lillian exchanged a glance. Both could see the worry in each other's eyes, but this wasn't the moment to ask too many questions. They gave a reluctant nod: "You're already here. Come inside."
Eleanor was bouncing with excitement: "Uncle, I'll show you my room! I have so many dolls, and paintings too... Mommy says we should share with others!"
Alex looked down at her, feeling something soft stir in his chest: "Okay."
He then turned to Andrew, his tone respectful: "Andrew, I'll take Eleanor upstairs for a bit."
Andrew pushed down whatever was running through his mind and nodded: "Go ahead."
Alex carried Eleanor up the stairs, her little voice still chattering nonstop. Then the two of them disappeared around the bend in the staircase.
The moment they were out of sight, Andrew immediately pulled Emily into the living room, his expression dead serious: "Emmie, tell me the truth. Does Alex know who Eleanor really is?"
Emily's heart tightened, but she shook her head helplessly: "He shouldn't. I made it very clear at the banquet that Eleanor was conceived through a sperm donor. He has no reason to suspect anything."
"No reason?" Andrew's frown deepened. "Then why did he suddenly show up at the engagement party today — and follow you home? Emmie, the way he looks at Eleanor is nothing like how a person looks at a stranger's child. If the Baker family ever finds out who Eleanor really is, they will go after custody. You need to be ready for that."
Emily said nothing.
She already knew everything her father was telling her.
After a long pause, her voice came out slightly hoarse: "Eleanor is my daughter. No one is going to take her away."
"As for Alex..." She still didn't know what that man was trying to do.
He already had Grace. So why was he still coming after her?
Lillian let out a quiet sigh beside them and gently patted the back of her hand. "Emmie, Mom's been around long enough to see what's going on between you two. But Eleanor is growing up. She needs a father. She needs a complete family. Alex's intentions aren't clear right now, and the Baker family is what it is — Eleanor absolutely cannot go back there. But if you want to truly silence people's talk, you need to start over... find someone new."
Emily lowered her eyes, her fingertips curling slightly.
It wasn't that she hadn't thought about it.
But those three years had left wounds too deep. She just didn't have the courage to start something new.
"I know, Mom." She said quietly. "I'll think about it. But right now... it's not the right time."
Lillian looked at her tired face and didn't push any further: "You silly girl, stop carrying everything on your own. Alright, go wash up and get ready to eat. I made a lot of desserts too. You barely touched anything at the Baker banquet, and Eleanor just got out of school — she must be starving."
Meanwhile, upstairs.
Alex followed Eleanor into her bedroom.