Isabella was contemplating how to slip away when Andrew happened to walk up to her. He was pushing a shopping cart containing some daily necessities and snacks.
“Asher, it’s time to go home,” he said, reaching out and scooping the child out of the playground, directly placing him in the shopping cart.
With one hand pushing the cart and the other arm around her waist, he said, “We’ve got everything, let’s head back.”
“Okay,” she replied, following him towards the checkout counter.
After they had walked a distance, the woman suddenly slapped her forehead, finally recalling. “Isabella, the one I saw just now looked like Isabella.”
“Are you seeing things? The woman you just saw looked like a married woman with a husband and child,” her husband said, patting her head.
In the bustling town of Ithaca, many settled celebrities lived there, but Isabella’s image on the screen was that of a sweet and cute girl-next-door. No one would associate her with a married woman who had a child.
The woman rubbed her head. Upon her husband’s remark, she too doubted her perception.
On their way home from the supermarket, Isabella patted her chest, still somewhat shaken.
“You have no idea how close it was. I almost got recognized,” she said.
“What difference would it make if you were recognized? Are Asher and I not supposed to be seen together?” Andrew, with his clean and slender hands resting on the steering wheel, replied casually.
She instinctively gave him a glance. Their relationship wasn’t legitimate or rational; they were not supposed to be seen together.
But she couldn’t say that outright. All she could sigh was, “I debuted as a single person, suddenly having such a big son. If it’s exposed, there’ll be suspicions of deceiving the public.”
“There are many celebrities in secret marriages; one more or less won’t make a difference,” he replied nonchalantly.
“They are secretly married. You and I have no marital relationship,” she retorted.
He chuckled after hearing her, “Are you blaming me for not marrying you?”
Isabella: “…”
She swore she never thought like that. Besides, how could David marry her off to an unemployed drifter?
“Actually, we’ve been fine like this,” she said, looking at him tentatively.
Fine? How was it fine? She indeed planned to keep them in the shadows forever.
Although Andrew didn’t entirely agree with Isabella, he was patient with her and wasn’t rushing her to make promises to each other.
The current state of their relationship was acceptable to him for now. Perhaps they both needed time.
“Isabella, I won’t force you to make any decisions, but whenever you’re willing, I’m ready to cooperate,” he said.
His ‘cooperation’ naturally meant cooperating with her to get married and register officially.
“Yeah, thank you for your cooperation. Now, focus on driving,” she said firmly, holding the child. There was a hidden smile on her lips.
She dared not promise Andrew easily because there were things beyond her control. Yet, he had clearly promised her, and the feeling of being waited for and protected was actually quite nice.
The car slowly entered the underground parking lot of the apartment. Andrew got out first, opened the back door, lifted the child out, then went to the trunk and grabbed the shopping bag.
He held the child in one arm and the shopping bag in the other, walking steadily.
Isabella followed behind, empty-handed, just keeping up with his steps.
Once they reached home, they handed Asher over to Amelia.
Amelia gave the child a bath, read him a storybook, and eventually put him to bed.
As for Andrew and Isabella, they still hadn’t slept together till now, so they continued sleeping in separate rooms.
Isabella seemed to have grown accustomed to the guest room. As soon as her head touched the pillow, she quickly fell asleep.
She rarely had such leisurely moments lately, so she usually slept until she naturally woke up. However, someone disturbed her at this moment.
The phone on the bedside table kept ringing incessantly, playing the recently downloaded firework ringtone, which sounded especially harsh.
She was huddled under the blanket, lazily extending one arm out and fumbling outside the covers, finally reaching the phone.
She subconsciously pressed the answer key. Her voice, not fully awake, carried a hint of hoarseness as she said, annoyed, ‘You better have a good reason for this disturbance, or I won’t hold back.’
“Emily is pregnant,” Olivia’s voice on the other end was filled with excitement, as if she were the one expecting a child.
“What?” Isabella abruptly sat up in bed, instantly awake.
James and Emily had only recently reconciled. It was astonishing that Emily was already pregnant.
“Emily is pregnant, no doubt about it,” Olivia reiterated.
Lily was clever in uncovering this matter. Emily felt nauseous after a steak meal, which seemed suspicious to Lily.
While cleaning, Lily checked all the trash bins in the Harris family villa and found a pregnancy test with two lines inside a trash bin in the second-floor bathroom.
The female occupants in that villa were limited in number. It couldn’t belong to Mrs. Ada or Charlotte, leaving only Aria and Emily.
Mrs. Ada was determined to have Aria marry into a prominent family and would keep a close eye on her. Aria wouldn’t engage in such affairs. That left only Emily.
Isabella admired Lily’s resourcefulness and decided to give her a raise.
Emily being pregnant was indeed good news. Isabella felt the need to invite James for a meal to celebrate properly.
Suddenly, drowsiness vanished. She got out of bed barefoot.
After freshening up, she deliberately put on the newly purchased snow-white knee-length skirt and carefully applied makeup.