Chapter 39
Before Lilian could say anything, Carlos saw her.
“Lilian, come and join us!” said Carlos, with a smile on his face before continuing enthusiastically. "This boy is only five years old, but he can read, and surprisingly, he likes to play chess, and you know what? He also likes fishing. Amazing, he's just like me!" said Carlos proudly, looking at Théo fondly.
She was speechless and could only laugh bitterly. Seeing her, the grandfather was so focused on Theo that he forgot about her in a few minutes.
“I can't believe this boy is my great-grandson.” Carlos hugged Theo warmly. “Theo Arbex, I'm so happy to finally meet you.”
Lilian sat down in front of them while gesturing for Theo to sit down by himself, but her son, normally calm and serene, was now behaving like any child his age, and Theo didn't move from his grandfather's lap.
She enjoyed watching his childish side, a rare expression he had been showing lately.
“Grandpa, don't spoil Théo so much,” said Lilian, but her grandfather ignored her.
“Please, Lilian, let me enjoy this precious moment with my beloved grandson,” said Carlos with a somber expression, knowing that they would only be there for the next few days.
Hearing her grandfather's words, Lilian couldn't say anything else.
“Grandpa, can you move with us to the capital?” Theo said casually as he looked at his mother. “Mom, we have a guest room in our new house, right?”
“Really? Can I move in with you?” Before Lilian could say anything, Carlos shouted happily, his eyes sparkling when he saw Theo, then turning to Lilian.
“Of course you can live with us!” Theo replied. “Right, Mom?” he asked in her cute tone, making Lilian hesitate at his absurd request.
But a second later, Lilian shook her head to dismiss the idea of living with her grandfather, as she wanted a peaceful life in this country. If her grandfather lived with them, it would mean that she would arouse the curiosity and jealousy of her father and uncle, which would be problematic!
“I'm sorry, Theo, but our apartment only has three bedrooms.” Lilian smiled at Theo, even though she was frustrated inside, and before Theo could come up with another idea, Lilian quickly explained. "After all, your great-grandfather wanted to stay here because of his health. Right, Grandpa?“ Lilian tried to signal to her grandfather to reject Théo's idea.
She knew that her grandfather wanted to spend his old age in that quiet, secluded place.
”I don't mind moving to the capital, as long as I can be with my granddaughter and great-grandson!" said Carlos as he hugged Théo.
Had he forgotten what he said yesterday? Why had he suddenly changed his plans?
Lilian couldn't help but feel confused.
“But, Grandpa, my apartment isn't that big, and we don't have a spare room, so you can't stay with...” Before Lilian could finish speaking, Nicholas appeared with a tea set and distracted her.
Nicholas placed the tea set on the table before looking at Carlos and listening to their conversation before entering the living room, and he couldn't help but remember his boss.
“Sir, you still have a house in the capital, did you forget?” Nicholas asked, and Carlos frowned, trying to remember the property.
He doesn't remember the exact location of his properties, but he owns land and houses in every city in the country.
“You mean the house in the center? What's the name of the place?” After remaining silent for a long time, Carlos finally remembered.
“Yes, sir, and it's a little paradise there,” explained Nicholas. “Many celebrities live there.”
“I remember that place, we used to visit it when we wanted to escape the tormented city.” Carlos was excited to live there with Lilian and Théo.
Why is Nicholas helping Grandpa too? Lilian was speechless.
“Honey, that house is very beautiful, and the location is also better for Théo to grow up, because a child like him can't grow up in a small apartment!” Carlos emphasized, and he looked at Nicholas again. “Nicholas, ask the housekeeper to clean the house, because we're moving there!” he ordered.
Lilian opened her mouth several times to interrupt her grandfather, but couldn't when she saw how happy he was.
“I'll call them right now, sir.” Before calling, Nicholas looked at Lilian. “Ma'am, when are you returning to the capital?”
“In five days!” Lilian said weakly.
When she saw Théo and her grandfather starting to talk again, Lilian asked Anna to sit next to her.
“Anna, can you take Théo on a tour of the house? I need to talk to Grandpa!” Lilian whispered to her.
Lilian needed some time alone with her grandfather to discuss his plans to move in with them because if he was serious, she couldn't let him do that, not this time.
“He seems to like your grandfather, but I'll try, don't worry,” Anna said.
“Thank you.”
“Oh, I forgot to ask, is your grandfather serious about moving to the capital with us?” Anna expressed her doubts about his plan.
“I'm not sure either, and that's why I need you to take Théo with you.” Lilian turned her gaze back to Théo.
She couldn't believe that her son had become so close to his grandfather in such a short time, and even with Antony, when he visited them at their home in France, it took Théo a few days to talk to him. And to this day, Théo has never wanted Antony to carry him.
Daniel was the only one who could get close to Théo as quickly as his grandfather. But it also took Daniel several hours to get Theo to talk to him casually.
Lilian sighed deeply before looking at Anna again.
“You can go now, Anna, she won't stop talking until noon if we let her...” Anna nodded, got up from her seat, and went over to Carlos.
“Excuse me, sir...” When Carlos looked at her, Anna smiled before continuing. “I need little Théo to follow me, and there's something important we need to do...”
Carlos was surprised to hear another woman's voice, as he had heard that voice before, well, a long time ago, and he turned to look and was shocked to see Anna, his wife's maid, standing there.