CHAPTER 41
LILY’S POV
Lila’s question caught me off guard. Liam’s plate almost slipped from my grasp as I was about to serve him. This was the second time she had asked this. The first time was amid Noah when he came over for dinner. I almost choked on my food and was uncomfortable around Noah throughout the entire dinner up until he left.
“Are you okay, mummy?” Liam asked in concern, seeing how disoriented I got.
“Yeah,” I took in a deep breath in an attempt to get myself back together and managed a smile before steadying my grip on Liam’s plate and keeping it on the table in front of him. “Sorry about that.”
I turned my attention to Lila as I walked back to the kitchen island, a bit infuriated with her. She can’t keep doing this and I nearly broke a plate. “We talked about this and I said no.”
“Please, mummy,” she begged softly, looking adorable as she did. “If you say yes, I promise never to bother you about anything again, and I promise to be a very good kid to Uncle Noah as well.”
“No,” I said flatly while wiping the kitchen island clean.
“But why?” She asked, her shoulders dropping in frustration. “As far as I know, he’s not married and he doesn’t have any kids.”
“And how do you know he’s not married or has kids?” I asked, staring at her in disbelief, wondering how a little girl like her could be noticing such things.
“He doesn’t wear a ring and he always comes here alone. If he has kids, he’ll bring them along because he’ll want us to be friends with them.”
I could not help laughing, shaking my head in amusement. I knew Noah was divorced but he never mentioned having any kids with his wife so it was safe to say he didn’t have any. I wondered if he’d ever remarry.
“Plus,” she pressed on unrelentingly, trying so hard to convince me. “He buys us cool stuff. From the way he stares at you, I know he likes you and Liam looks a lot like him…”
“No, I don’t,” Liam cut in sharply, his face contorting in shock.
“Yes, you do,” Lila said, locking eyes with him like it was a standoff. “Nana Mae even said it herself.'”
“No, she didn’t.”
“Yes, she did. You and Mum just weren’t around when she said it.”
My mouth hung open and my brows creased as I watched them get into their usual petty argument. I took time to observe Liam’s features, comparing them to Noah’s mental image. Then it dawned on me as I gasped a little in shock. Lila and Mae were right. They did look a little alike. How come I never noticed it?
Liam having his father’s brown ruffled hair and dark chocolate eyes qualified as a mini version of him. But I just realized he also had Noah’s diamond-shaped face and the same shape of thick brows slightly arched. Noah also had the same hair and eye colour as Robert, just that his eyes were a lighter shade and his hair always slicked back and not ruffled.
But I didn’t give it much thought. This was just a coincidence, hinting at nothing more. There are over 8 billion people in the world. There was a greater possibility of strangers looking a lot alike without any familial attachments so there was no need for me to worry.
“That’s enough!” I yelled at both of them, having snapped out of my thoughts and had enough of their squabble. “Eat your food. Uncle Noah can’t fill in for your daddy, no one can and that’s final. We’re not having this conversation ever again.”
“But…” Lila tried to say but I cut her off sharply.
“No buts. Eat your food and don’t ever bring this up again.”
Angrily, I carried the dishes and utensils I used in baking and dumped them into the sink. I covered the bottom with the stopper and filled it with soapy water to wash them. Just then, I heard the sound of my phone ringing.
“Mummy your phone is ringing!” Liam screamed at the top of his voice.
I left the dishes and utensils in the sink and wiped my hands clean before rushing to where my phone was on the counter. Taking it and checking the caller ID, I could see it was the topic of the day calling, Noah. I picked it up.
“Hey…” I hadn’t finished saying hello when he cut me off, his voice sounding urgent. That was unusual because he always sounded cheerful.
“Can you come to the office?”
“Why?” I furrowed my brows in confusion. “Did something happen?”
I had ensured my shift was over before leaving the office, and I wasn’t scheduled to start working alongside him as co-partner and CEO until next week. I was still getting familiar with everything I needed to know about every aspect of the company before diving in. So why did he want me to come to the office now? And it was nearly dusk.
“I found out about something very important and need to talk to you about it?”
“Can’t it wait till tomorrow? I’m really busy with my…”
“It can’t wait!” He interjected with a frustrated tone before taking a deep breath to calm himself. “Just get here quickly.” He finished and hung up.
As I brought the phone down from my ear and stared at the screen, a baffled look crossed my face. Noah has never spoken to me in such a manner. Apprehensive thoughts filled my head and chilled my spine, even making my heart race. I couldn’t help thinking something very bad had happened at the office. What did he find out about? Did we lose an important deal or was it some personal matter that has to do with him? Maybe he found out something troubling about his ex-wife.
Puffing out a gale of breath, I had to force myself to stop thinking about such worst-case scenarios. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as I thought. But whatever it was, I needed to find out and I couldn’t keep him waiting.
“Kids, I have to go,” I announced to them as I took off my apron and scarf, hanging them on the hook by the counter.
“So soon,” Lila pouted.
“Where are you going?” Liam asked.
“To the office,” I replied. “My boss needs me for something. I won’t take long I promise. I’ll be back before you know it like a flash.”
I peppered their faces with kisses and wrapped my arms around them for a tight hug before heading upstairs to freshen up and change. I didn’t want to meet Noah smelling like sweat and kitchen spices.