Richard’s memories from his childhood were still very clear. After Abbie was born, he liked her very much and often secretly went to visit her.
At that time, Abbie looked like a doll, just like Emma now. She was so cute! Richard liked his sister so much that he secretly took Abbie back to his room to sleep by his side when the nanny was not looking.
As he was too young back then, he had rolled down from the bed when he was holding Abbie. At that time, he was frightened and had made himself a cushion for Abbie to fall on. Abbie was frightened too and burst into tears. Donald, who loved his daughter very much, gave Richard a good beating when he saw this.
Richard thought of what had happened when they were kids as he reached out to hold Emma. “Let me hold her!”
Emma stared at Richard for awhile, then timidly reached out a small hand towards him.
Emma had refused to let anyone hold her before this, so it was surprising that she had let Richard hold her.
When Richard held Emma in his arms, she wrapped her chubby little hands around his neck and placed her head on his shoulder obediently.
Richard’s heart melted when she did this. When Cade and Santhos saw Richard hold Emma, they immediately put their toys down and surrounded him.
Richard smiled and said, “Come on, boys. Let’s go play in the garden.”
Richard carried Emma and brought Cade and Santhos to the garden. The two aunts immediately followed behind him.
Abbie gave Valeria a worried look. Valeria lowered her voice and said, “It’s fine. It’s a good thing that Emma and your brother get along.”
“I know. My brother doesn’t like children. His actions are making me worried.”
“Don’t worry. Your brother is not a bad guy. He won’t do anything to such a young child. Besides, Jacelyn tagged along. She will stop anything from happening.”
Abbie let out a long sigh. “I thought my mother would like Emma. After all, Emma is so adorable. I didn’t expect her to not like her at all. She wouldn’t even look at her. My older brother, who I thought wouldn’t like Emma, is acting way out of my expectations.”
“Auntie is just uncomfortable for now. She will change. Trust me!”
Holding Emma in his arms, Richard walked around the garden with Cade and Santhos. Emma kept holding onto his neck, not letting go. Richard held Emma in his arms and smelled the pleasant odor on her body. His feelings were mixed up.
He shouldn’t be developing such a good impression of Leonard’s child. This was not normal at all. He thought of how Emma looked a lot like Abbie when she was little and how Abbie was pregnant when she was missing. Would there be such a possibility?
Richard’s heart skipped a beat. He walked to the side with Emma in his arms and called William, who answered the phone lazily, “What’s up?”
“Abbie brought Leonard’s child home.”
“I know. My wife took my two sons to your house. There’s a big dinner tonight, right? Won’t you invite me to dinner?”
“It’s not about dinner. I have something to ask you.”
“Do you think it’s possible to ask me questions without inviting me to dinner?”
“I’m being serious. William, is it true that Abbie’s child is gone?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Leonard’s child looks so much like Abbie when she was little. I suspect… that this child is Abbie’s.”
“Are you kidding?”
“I’m not. To be honest, I don’t like children very much. Apart from your boys who I’m a little fond of, I avoid other children as much as I can. But it’s totally abnormal for me to like this child at first sight.”
“What’s wrong with that? It must be beacuse she’s just so cute!”
“It’s not like that. William, do you know the truth? You won’t hide it from me, will you?”
“What is there to know?” William asked.
“Okay, if you don’t, then forget it. I feel that it’s very weird. I have to bring her for a DNA test.”
“Are you crazy?” William’s heart skipped a beat. If he were to do a DNA test, they wouldn’t be able to hide the child’s identity anymore.
“I think that I’m crazy too. I just want to prove it.”
“What will you do if it is confirmed that this child is Abbie’s?”
Richard was silent for a moment. “If it’s Abbie’s child, then it’s Michael’s too. I hate Michael very much, but…”
“But what?” William asked.
Richard paused for a moment. “But Michael’s child is also Abbie’s. If this child is really Abbie’s, everything will be different. I will love and care for her with everything I have.”
William let out a sound to show that he understood. He hadn’t expected Richard to say something like that. Didn’t Richard hate Michael a lot?
Would he really love Emma just like he said?
William was not sure and felt that Richard was testing him. He reminded him lightly, “Don’t you hate Michael? Wouldn’t you feel uncomfortable?”
“What’s there to be uncomfortable of? This is my sister’s child, the blood of the Clark family. What does it have to do with Michael? If this child is Abbie’s, I will not reveal anything to the public. Michael will never know the child’s existence all his life! She can only be a child of the Clark family!”
Richard really hated Michael, and he really loved Abbie.
William sighed and said, “Don’t bother with the DNA test. The child is Abbie’s.”
“What?”
“I didn’t mean to hide it from you. I just found out recently too. I don’t know how to tell you.”
“D*mn you, William! How dare you hide such a big thing from me! This is too much!” Richard was obviously angry.
“Richard, it’s not that I don’t want to tell you. Abbie didn’t want anyone to know. She still doesn’t trust you and the Clark family.”
“I’m her brother. Why doesn’t she trust me?” Richard asked sadly.
“The previous events were too great of a blow to Abbie. If you hadn’t stopped her from being with Michael, they wouldn’t have ended up like this.”
“What do you mean? Can you blame us? It’s all because of Michael. It’s because Michael didn’t handle his family matters well that caused this. It has nothing to do with us.”
“Alright, now is not the time to put the blame on anyone. Anyway, such a thing has happened, and Abbie doesn’t trust you.”
“That little brat sure knows how to break hearts!” Richard cursed angrily. Hearing Richard’s scolds, Emma, who was in his arms, flinched. Richard felt it and patted Emma’s shoulder gently. Then, in a soft voice, he said, “Don’t be afraid! I’m not talking about you!”
Emma looked at Richard tentatively, as though she was wondering if his words were true.
A young child like her could already read people’s expressions! Richard was very sad as this child must have suffered a lot in Leonard’s hands.
Such a lovely child. This was Abbie’s child, and she was also Richard’s niece.
Richard stared at Emma, who had beautiful features, and his heart melted. He couldn’t help but kiss Emma on her little face as he said in a soft voice, “Uncle isn’t talking about you! Uncle will never scold you! You’re my little treasure and I’ll love you with everything I have!”