Chapter 218: Hiding a child?
"At the end of the day..." Daisy looked up at Ryle, "I don’t feel soft-hearted towards them."
She looked straight into his eyes when she said that, a hint of anticipation in her heart regarding what she might see on his face when she said that.
But there was not a hint of judgment in those clear eyes. All that stayed there was a vow as he opened his mouth to speak.
"Do what you must, Daze. I will forever be there to back you up."
Every word tugged at her heartstrings in an incomprehensible way.
’I will forever be there’
Such sweet words spoken with a blazing devotion... would probably have been dismissed if someone else uttered them.
But even for the briefest moment, for every reason she knew and every belief she was unaware of, she did not doubt the sincerity behind those words.
...
When Daisy and Ryle entered the mansion, both of them were surprised by the joyous atmosphere lingering in the air.
It surprised Daisy for one split-second but it was all it took for her to know who was the cause behind it.
The energy was too familiar with her for her to not be able to guess who it was.
As expected, the moment she turned her head to the side, she was greeted by the sight of a certain blonde-haired woman running out of the kitchen chased by a tiny little dumpling who wobbled all the way. And following them was a certain fox.
The illustrations in Daisy’s head were so distinct that even Ryle could more or less see what was going on in that head of hers.
He chuckled as he watched Diana running with a few cupcakes in her hand while Angel chased her. And his very own best friend, Maxim Warner, trailed right after them.
"Eh... After their engagement, doesn’t he seem more and more like a dog?" Ryle whispered in Daisy’s ear.
His warm breath tickled her skin, making her feel unstable on her legs for a moment.
As his words gradually registered in her head, she could not help but look at Maxim again and sure enough, he was still right behind Diana.
The image of a brutally loyal and fiercely protective husky got sealed in her mind.
Only when the butler came to greet her did the people in the living room finally notice their presence.
"Mommy... Mommy..." Angel shot towards her like an arrow.
As Daisy squatted, the girl jumped into her arms without any qualms.
After a lot of coddling and kisses did the girl then turn to acknowledge the other person by her side.
"Rylee..."
Unlike before where she pronounced his name like it was the name of some cartoon character, her pronunciation has gotten better in recent days. All thanks to Ivy who nagged that she would end up sticking to calling him as ’Raeel’ even after she grew up.
Angel hugged Ryle’s leg for sometime before she stretched her little arms towards the man.
And Ryle was all smiles as he picked her up from the floor, "Did you miss me?"
"Miss.. miss," the girl swayed one leg and buried her face in the crook of his neck, more than ready to be cooed by him.
And Ryle had no qualms about it.
He seemed to have all the patience in this world when he dealt with Angel. Even when she talked gibberish, he would pay undivided attention to her words and try to make sense of things. And Angel seemed to be like that gossipy little neighbor who would take note of every small thing and make it a topic. Except all her little gossips were reserved for Ryle.
The little princess only liked gossiping with the man not just for affinity with him but also because she had no one else to share her matters with.
Daisy talked too less and was not as animated as her and Ivy talked too much and barely let the little girl talk. So, it was only Ryle who managed to strike the right balance and that pleased the little princess.
For Daisy who was used to such interactions between the both of them, it was not a surprise.
But the same could not be said about Diana and Maxim.
Diana’s mouth had long formed an animated ’O’ while she held two cupcakes in her hand.
And even the loyal husky... ahem... Maxim had arched an eyebrow seeing his ’unearthly-and-untouched-by-mortal-affairs’ of a best friend patiently interacting with the little furball.
Perhaps their gazes were too blinding that Ryle finally looked up from Angel. Holding the girl in one arm, he glanced at the people in front of him, "What? Am I blinding your vision?"
Diana rolled her eyes and passed a cupcake to Angel before she ate one, "I am just surprised. You seem like..."
"Like?"
A pause. A very long pause. "Like a father," Maxim finished his fiancee’s unfinished words.
Daisy choked on air.
Diana bobbed her head up and down and glanced at her man with starry eyes. The words ’my-man-knows-my-entire-heart- my-man-is-unparalleled’ written on her face were too obvious.
Her words made Ryle pause. He looked at the sweet little dumpling in his arms.
And she happened to look at him too, with her doe eyes. She blinked and raised her tiny hand to touch his cheek when he looked at her in a frozen state, "Ryle?" she said.
’Daddy’ he heard.
’Thump’
To be Angel’s father...
And just like that the calm and collected Ryle Harper lost his cool in the blink of an eye. His mind raced with different thoughts, dreams, most of which remained delusions.
A father.
He bit his bottom lips and held Angel a little tighter than before looking at the little girl with sparkling eyes.
Unaware of the loop she had thrown the man into and more unaware of his emotional and reflective moment, Diana opened her mouth, "So, why don’t you tell us the truth if you have been hiding a child?"
