Chapter 179 048
ADRIAN was seated in his study, the soft glow from his laptop screen reflecting against his glasses as he scrolled through emails and documents, occasionally pausing to type a response. The room was quiet, filled only with the faint hum of the air conditioner and the ticking wall clock. Across the wide wooden table sat Hazel, her legs crossed neatly beneath the chair. She alternated between scrolling on her phone and jotting things down in a notepad spread open in front of her, her pen moving with purpose as if she were organizing thoughts only she understood.
The calm was shattered when the door burst open.
“Daddy! Daddy!” Gabriel’s voice rang out as he sprinted into the room, breathless and excited. In his hands was a small pink Barbie doll and a matching pink comb, both clutched tightly as though they were treasures he had just discovered.
Adrian looked up sharply.
His eyes dropped to the items in the boy’s hands, and for a brief second, his fingers froze above the keyboard. Something flickered across his face— surprise, recognition, and a flash of something deeper, before he masked it.
Gabriel skidded to a stop by the table, holding the doll out proudly
“Dad, who owns these?” he asked.
Hazel lifted her head at the same moment, her brows knitting together as she took in the sight.
Before anyone could respond, Gaddiel came rushing in, nearly colliding with his brother. He held a handful of colorful baby stickers, waving them triumphantly in the air.
“And these?” he shouted as he reached the table.
Hazel straightened in her chair, her eyes darting from the stickers to the doll and then to her father. Adrian’s gaze was fixed on the objects, his jaw tightening just slightly as he leaned back in his chair.
“Boys,” he called gently, his voice calm despite the tension that had crept into the room, “where did you find all that?”
Gabriel pointed immediately.
“It was Gaddiel,” he said quickly. “He went into the room first.”
Gaddiel spun around, offended.
“No! It was you,” he protested. “You were the one who found the box deep in that closet!”
They both began talking at once, their small voices overlapping as each tried to clear his name. Adrian raised a hand, and the boys fell silent almost instantly.
He sighed, rubbing his temple.
“Those aren’t yours,” he said. “Why were you touching them?”
Their excitement drained from their faces. Gabriel’s shoulders slumped as he lowered the doll.
“We are sorry, Dad,” he said softly. “We were bored.”
Adrian exhaled slowly, the tension easing from his posture.
“It is fine,” he said after a pause. “Those belong to my butler’s kid.”
Hazel scoffed loudly, the sound sharp in the quiet room.
“Huh?” Her eyes widened. “You had a butler?” she asked, looking around the study as if expecting a man in uniform to step out from behind a shelf.
Adrian nodded once.
“Now, boys,” he said firmly, turning his attention back to them, “take those back and put them where you found them. Now.”
The boys nodded eagerly, relief washing over them.
“Okay, Dad,” they chorused before turning and scampering out of the room, their footsteps fading down the hall.
Hazel leaned back in her chair, still staring at her father.
“You really did?” she asked.
“Yes, I did,” Adrian replied calmly, closing his laptop and folding his hands together.
“Really? I never knew.”
“Well,” he said with a faint smile, “you would have. But you were always in a hurry to leave whenever he came.”
Hazel frowned slightly, thinking back. She tapped her pen against the notepad, searching her memory.
“He doesn’t live in?” she asked.
“Not until five months back.”
Her brows furrowed deeper.
“How come I never met him?” she muttered, more to herself than to him.
Adrian heard it anyway.
“Like I said,” he replied, “you would have.”
She tilted her head, suspicion flickering in her eyes.
“Interesting,” she said slowly. “So where are they now? What happened five months back?”
He chuckled, shaking his head.
“Always curious, aren’t you?”
“Well, yeah,” she replied plainly. “I want to know.”
Adrian leaned back in his chair, his expression softening.
“Math travelled,” he said. “Said he was needed back home for some stuff, and he took his daughter with him.”
Hazel nodded thoughtfully.
“Will he be back?”
“I guess so,” Adrian replied. “He didn’t resign. Just said something important needed his attention back home.”
She nodded again, processing the information.
“Wow,” she said quietly. “That is nice. I never knew you had a butler.”
Adrian chuckled, the sound warm and light.
“It is not a big deal, Hazel.”
Fiona walked across the living room with the trashcan from the kitchen, heading straight for the door. The can was half full, the faint smell of leftovers trailing behind her as she nudged the door open with her shoulder and stepped outside. The evening air was cool against her skin, a brief relief from the warmth of the house. She emptied the trash quickly, tied the liner, and slipped the can back into place before turning around and heading back inside.
Vivian emerged from the kitchen just as Fiona stepped out, her attention completely fixed on her phone. A wide smile curved her lips as she typed rapidly, her manicured fingers gliding across the screen with practiced ease. She laughed softly, then shook her head as if responding to something amusing she had just read.
Without looking up, Vivian walked into the living room, counting her steps from memory. She knew exactly where the couch was. When she reached it, she turned and sank into the cushions comfortably, crossing her legs as she continued typing. The soft tapping of her manicured fingers against the screen filled the room, accompanied by the unmistakable WhatsApp notification sound that chimed every few seconds.
At intervals, she burst into laughter, sometimes loud, sometimes muffled as she bit her lower lip to contain it. Her shoulders shook slightly, her eyes glued to the phone as she scrolled, typed, paused, and typed again. Whatever the conversation was, it clearly held her entire attention.
The front door opened.
Fiona walked back in, this time holding an empty trashcan. She closed the door behind her gently and stepped forward, her gaze initially fixed on the floor as she adjusted her grip. The living room felt quiet in a strange way, broken only by Vivian’s occasional laughter and the tapping of her phone.
She took two steps forward.
Then three.
And suddenly, she stopped.
Her feet froze mid-step, the trashcan tilting slightly in her hands. Fiona lifted her head slowly, her eyes drawn toward the couch. Something about the scene before her made her chest tighten without warning.