“I’m sleepy,” Simona mumbled, her hands clutching Matthew’s collar tightly. She wanted to sleep but felt uneasy in the unfamiliar surroundings.
Her body continued to snuggle against him.
Matthew held his daughter even tighter, his big palms stroking her back. He patiently reassured her, “Good girl, let me hold you until you fall asleep.”
Simona pressed her little face against his chest, finding solace in her father’s warm embrace. She could feel his strength and warmth through his clothes. “Daddy, will you leave Mommy and us again in the future? I don’t want to be apart from you. I want us to live together, like other families with fathers, mothers, and grandparents…”
Her voice grew softer with each word until it became barely audible.
Matthew lowered his head, his little girl burying her face completely in his arms. The corner of her eyes that peeked through were filled with tears.
“When I see other kids in their fathers’ arms or being pushed on swings, I feel so envious…”
Since her birth, Simona’s world had consisted only of Mommy, Samuel, and Grandpa. There was no father figure in her life.
Meeting Matthew changed that. She grew fond of him and clung to him, afraid of being abandoned once more.
Afraid of becoming a girl without her father again.
Matthew scooted back slightly and cupped her face with his hands. It seemed that her embrace was suffocating her or perhaps it was the sorrow she had experienced, but her eyes were reddened, tears clinging to her long eyelashes. Leaning in, he gently kissed away the tears from his daughter’s eyes and whispered hoarsely, “No. I will never leave you again in the future.”
His lips were warm and soft. Simona instinctively closed her eyes, her father’s breath so near. He held her, kissed her, and she felt an overwhelming sense of happiness.
It didn’t take much to satisfy her. A single kiss had melted her heart.
Little did she know that her words also stirred uneasiness in the man.
At that time, Dolores was pregnant. He knew it was he who had pushed her away, causing them to be separated for so many years.
He wondered what he could do to make it up to the mother and the children.
“Hey, why don’t you come back?” The caravan was spacious, with a sofa behind the driver’s seat. Boyce, lying half reclined, studied the routes. Samuel sat next to him, his head resting on the window, gazing outside. Upon hearing Boyce’s question, Samuel didn’t turn around. “I’m not sleepy. I don’t want to.”
Simona had been clinging to Matthew, and he didn’t want to witness that scene, which made him uncomfortable.
If Matthew truly loved them, why did he abandon Mommy in the past?
He wondered why Matthew suddenly appeared so regretful.
“Uncle Boyce, what kind of man is he?” Samuel had conflicting feelings about Matthew. He wanted to get closer to him, but he couldn’t let go of the fact that Matthew had abandoned Dolores before.
Boyce was slightly taken aback. He sat up straight. “Who are you referring to?”
Samuel pointed behind Boyce. Understanding who he was asking about, Boyce hooked his arm around Samuel’s neck and pulled the boy into his embrace. “Boy, that’s your father. Why do you refer to him as ‘he’?”
“Why should I call someone who has abandoned me ‘father’?” Samuel raised his head, looking rather proud. In truth, he envied Simona, who could easily call him “Daddy.”
But for Samuel, it was muchmore difficult.
He was still angry that Matthew had left them before. Matthew hadn’t just abandoned him and Simona, but he had also left their mother. Samuel couldn’t easily forgive him, even though Matthew seemed to be a good person now.
Boyce looked at the little boy and sensed the turmoil in his heart toward Matthew. He ruffled Samuel’s hair and said, “Your father probably didn’t know that your mommy was pregnant at the time. Given his character, even if he didn’t love her, he wouldn’t have divorced her out of responsibility.”
But what concerned Samuel wasn’t whether Matthew would take responsibility. It mattered more to him that Matthew didn’t love his mother. He wondered why Matthew had married her if he didn’t love her.
Was something wrong with him?
“In that case, didn’t he drag Mommy into an unhappy marriage?” Samuel frowned, contemplating the situation.
Couldn’t Mommy have found someone who truly loved her?
Boyce playfully pinched his little nose. “Boy, what are you thinking? Don’t worry about adult matters. You’ll age prematurely.”
Samuel pursed his lips. “Uncle Boyce, you’ll be the one aging first.” He counted on his fingers. “In twenty years, you’ll be an old man. But I’ll still be young.”
After finishing his words, he ran off, leaving Boyce behind.
“Hey, you brat!” Boyce exclaimed, feeling helpless. “Slow down! I’m not going to chase you. Your father is quite protective of you guys.”
Boyce was still upset that Matthew hadn’t allowed him to touch Simona.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.
What a petty man!
She was only his daughter, wasn’t she?
Boyce believed that he, too, could have a daughter in the future.
But he had to admit that Dolores was incredibly capable. Giving birth to twins of different genders who had inherited their parents’ best traits-smartness in their son and cuteness in their daughter-Boyce couldn’t help but feel overjoyed at the thought of having such two amazing kids.
The only difference was that he wasn’t as lucky as Matthew.
“Alas…” Boyce sighed, leaning back against the sofa. Just as he was about to pick up his phone and continue studying the routes, Matthew emerged from inside. Boyce perked up, “Where’s your daughter?”
In reality, he was asking why Matthew was willing to come out alone. Shouldn’t he be staying inside to be with his daughter?
“She’s sleeping,” Matthew replied, taking Boyce’s phone and scanning through the planned routes. He asked, “Is this the only path?”
“Not exactly. But based on my judgment, he would take the most remote routes to avoid being easily found. Those pathways might be rough, though, so he can’t drive too fast.”
“Send two men to scout ahead on those paths,” Matthew instructed. Since his children were with him, he couldn’t leave them behind. Otherwise, he would have gone himself.
“Sure,” Boyce agreed. “I’ve already sent my men over there.” He glanced toward the inside of the caravan and then approached Matthew. “I can tell the little boy has some resentment toward you.”
Matthew was well aware of that fact.
He knew it all too well.
“He blames me for divorcing Dolores,” Matthew admitted, looking down. His gaze seemed fixed on the phone, but his thoughts were elsewhere.
Boyce observed him with a knowing look. “You didn’t love her back then, did you? How did she end up getting pregnant?”
Matthew shot him an indifferent glance. “Stop being so nosy.”
He had no intention of discussing this matter with anyone. As long as he knew the truth, he didn’t feel the need to share it with others.
It wasn’t worth divulging to everyone.
Boyce understood him perfectly. If Matthew didn’t want to talk about it, no one could make him. So, Boyce picked up his phone and resumed studying the routes, hoping to find a better path that was shorter and less bumpy.
Inside the compartment, Samuel tossed and turned on the bed, unable to fall asleep. With one hand supporting his head, he watched Simona sleeping peacefully. He reached out and gently pinched her nose, saying, “You ungrateful little brat. How can you call him Daddy so easily?”
Simona’s nose twitched, and she shifted her head to continue sleeping.
Samuel grew bored. He rolled over and lay on his back, staring at the lamp above. Muttering to himself, he wondered, “When will we find Mommy?”
Suddenly, the wristwatch telephone on his arm started ringing. He raised his hand and glanced at the unknown number on the screen. He didn’t recognize the number and wondered if it could be Mommy calling.
Excited at the thought, he pressed the button to answer.
Bringing the watch closer to his mouth, he called out, “Mommy?”
A woman’s voice came through from the other end of the line…