Chapter 70
Then, Valeria heard Selena’s sweet, clear voice say, “Thank you, Mr. Grant.”
It turned out that Sebastian was handing Selena a slice of mousse cake. The cake had a strawberry on top and looked soft and sweet.
Out of the corner of her eye, Valeria caught another slice of strawberry mousse cake right beside his defined fingers. It was just a simple, casual gesture.
The restaurant was full, but everyone was caught up in their own little world-cutting cake, sharing slices, chatting with smiles, snapping pictures.
No one seemed to notice except for Mallory. Her eyes widened, and she let out a small cough in Martha’s direction as if she had just witnessed the most shocking thing ever.
But Martha was too busy whispering with Nicholas to pay attention to Mallory.
“Look at that little girl. She’s so pretty and cute! That nose and face of hers look just like Sebastian.”
Nicholas glanced over at Selena. He had to admit that the resemblance was there. But what he said contradicted his thoughts.
“You must be out of your mind. That’s someone else’s kid. She’s six years old and in the same class as Leo.
“What, you think Sebastian had a baby in college? That’s impossible.”
Martha mumbled, “I pray to the heavens every year. What if the universe has finally answered my prayers?”
“What prayers? That some random woman shows up with a kid and demands Sebastian take responsibility? Do you think Sebastian would’ve done something like that? Even if he had, don’t you see the way the woman acts?
“She clearly doesn’t even know him,” Nicholas snapped. If it weren’t for Leo’s birthday, he would have told her to quit daydreaming.
They bickered constantly.
“I watched this short drama last night. The rich heir comes back from overseas, runs into his ex, and-boom-she’s back with twins! His mom’s all snobby and treats her like she was nothing, just because she’s not from a fancy family.
“It made me so mad. Who writes scripts like this? If I suddenly had grandkids I didn’t know about, I’d run screaming through the neighborhood for miles!”
Martha got more and more worked up as she spoke, then pulled up the clip and handed her phone to Nicholas. “Doesn’t our family run a media company, too? I’m gonna talk to that producer guy-Mike or whatever-and get him to greenlight something better.
“And if no one wants to play the nice mother-in-law, I’ll play her myself.”
Nicholas rubbed his temples hard.
“No one has time for your nonsense. Just delete those apps already.”
Martha rolled her eyes. “You delete yours first. Don’t act like you’re not watching those action soap operas every night.”
“Guys… Please…” Mallory sighed, looking at her bickering parents like they were overgrown
kids.
Nicholas stood up, holding his wine glass.
He figured Mallory was hinting that it was time for a toast.
But the moment he rose to his feet, all eyes in the room turned to him.
The lively restaurant suddenly fell silent.
Naturally, Nicholas didn’t flinch. He cleared his throat like nothing had happened.
Everyone else stood and raised their glasses, too.
Valeria took a sip from her glass, too. However, she was only having juice.
She ended up spending the whole afternoon at the Grant residence. At around 3:00 pm or 4:00 pm, Mallory and the Gale couple started setting up for a backyard barbecue.
Valeria checked the time. She and Selena had been there since about 10:00 am. It was about
time to head home.
But seeing Selena playing happily with Leo and the other kids in the yard, Valeria realized it had been a long time since she’d seen Selena this happy.
Valeria ended up exchanging contacts with a few other parents, making small talk here and
there.
By around 5:00 pm, she planned to leave.
But Leo clung to Selena’s hand, begging her to stay. He said there’d be fireworks later.
Selena didn’t want to miss such beautiful fireworks.
By the time dinner was over, and the fireworks had lit up the night sky, the parents began to leave with their kids one by one.
Most of them drove.
The kitchen staff at the Grant residence had prepared a handmade snack gift bag for each of the kids who came to celebrate Leo’s birthday. Those snacks were freshly made that afternoon. Inside the gift bags were treats like brownies, cupcakes, and chocolate chip cookies.
But a cold front had swept into Slate City that week, bringing off-and-on rain. By 8:00 pm, it was pouring.
The Grants arranged drivers for the guests. But Valeria didn’t want to trouble them, and waiting around would’ve taken time. So she borrowed an umbrella and headed out with Selena.
Just then, her phone buzzed. It was the Uber driver. He said that outsiders weren’t allowed to enter the area, so Valeria would have to walk out to the nearby bus stop to meet him.
The bus stop was about 600 yards away. It didn’t sound far by the numbers, but in the cold, rainy night, with just one umbrella and Selena next to her, even that short walk felt like a struggle for Valeria.
She bent down, trying to lift Selena.
But Selena looked up at Valeria, her eyes clear and sensible for someone so young. “I can walk on my own. Mommy, I want to walk with you. We’ve never gone on a walk in the rain together before,” she said gently.
Valeria tilted the umbrella slightly toward Selena and said, “Alright, then let’s walk together.”
She then gripped Selena’s hand tightly.
They’d barely made it a hundred yards when her phone buzzed with a notification saying the ride had been canceled because the driver had waited too long without picking anyone up.
Suddenly, a blinding beam of light flared behind her.
Valeria turned around, raising a hand to shield her eyes. The sharp white headlights cut through the rain, drawing closer with a wave of warmth as the car pulled up beside her.
She hadn’t even seen who it was yet, but the voice that followed made her freeze. “Get in.”
Valeria didn’t want to keep Selena in the rain any longer. The umbrella barely covered them both, and the downpour was relentless. Her coat was already soaked through. Without hesitation, she opened the car door, helped Selena climb in the car first, then closed the
umbrella and slid into the backseat herself
Sebastian was still wearing the black loungewear he’d worn at the Grant residence. His short, dark hair hung slightly over his forehead, and there was a trace of exhaustion between his sharp, handsome features.
Valeria recalled that Leo had mentioned Sebastian worked the night shift, woke up around 10: 00 am that morning, and had barely gotten two or three hours of sleep all day.
As the car moved along, Valeria watched the raindrops trail down the window.
Since the temperature inside the car was warm and comfortable, she helped Selena take off her damp coat.
The lights inside the car were off, and the only sound was the soft, steady patter of rain hitting the roof. Cramped as it was, it still felt safe.
Valeria couldn’t quite explain the feeling. The rain drummed on the car, steady and soft, but it echoed like a thud in her chest.
