Loving The Temperamental Adonis
Chapter 189: Bedtime story

Chapter 189: Bedtime story

That same evening after Neil phoned Mia, he contacted the head of his bodyguards team and instructed them to monitor Mia’s movements in the city closely, ensuring that Owen Sullivan and any unwanted people stayed away from her. He directed the team to safeguard her from a distance, as she had expressed her dislike for being followed around. He was determined to prevent any further incidents where Owen would attempt to harm or harass her.

While he couldn’t change the past incident, he was resolute in ensuring such occurrences never recurred again. Once things were in order, he planned to hold the bastard accountable for his actions towards his woman. Neil wasn’t the kind of man to let things like that slide, and he intended to make certain Owen returned to his rightful place in the slum of Whispering Way. He regretted not being able to be by Mia’s side, especially now that she was carrying their child and would need someone to monitor her eating habits and her health. The last thing he wanted was something bad to happen to her now that he’d finally accepted his feelings towards her.

Despite his inclination to have her leave the country and go live with his grandma temporarily, he understood Mia wouldn’t agree to that, thus he wasn’t going to force her and would instead do his best to get back to her.

After speaking with his security team, Neil immediately contacted Liam to inquire about their plan’s progress.

"We are still working on it," Liam responded. "We’ve taken the man into the underground cell to make him agree to the confession by threatening to kill his family. He’s too loyal to his boss to agree to us, but worry not, I’ve thought of another way to make him agree. I heard he loves his wife so much, perhaps when he sees a sniper’s laser sight targeting her head, he’ll finally give in."

"Don’t kill the innocent, but use any means necessary to get the confession from him before the end of this week. I need to get back home, Liam, Mia needs me. I can’t bear to be away from her for more than a week," he said the words like they were being wrenched out of his heart and Liam couldn’t help but feel surprised yet again for the change in his friend.

He recalled when Neil was first sentenced to prison, Liam had suggested this method three years ago but Neil had refused saying he’d find the main culprit but now because of a woman he was willing to do anything to get out of it.

"Alright," Liam muttered, "I will hurry the process." Though it was easier said than done but if the man were to still refuse even after threatening him with the life of his wife, there was nothing else Liam could do. The man was a criminal but that didn’t mean he’d admit to a crime he didn’t commit that easily.

"By the way, before I forget to mention, this morning my men noticed they were being tailed by an unidentified car. The vehicle has been shadowing their every move, as if someone is aware of our activities. I’d have suspected it to be Jason, but Jason has too much on his plate lately to worry about us. He’s been busy trying to make connections with Max Everett by attending all of the Everett social gathering in the city," he explained. "However, upon reviewing the surveillance footage at Mirage Mesa, I observed that the car briefly stopped at the Rodrigo Enterprise."

Upon hearing this, Neil muttered a curse under his breath, "Kevin Rodrigo, that conniving old man! I’ve always suspected he was involved with Da Kroll and my parents’ deaths. What other misdeeds has he committed in my absence?"

"Well, he has managed to sway most of Galverra’s shareholders to his side. I did my best to oversee your company in addition to mine, but following my father’s passing, I had to dedicate more time to the Thompson’s business corporation. It’s challenging at times, and during my last check, I discovered that Kevin Rodrigo has been attempting to drive Galverra Enterprise into bankruptcy by deceiving your investors about Xavier. While the public is unaware that you are Xavier, I believe Kevin is privy to this information. He is using the fact that you have not revealed your identity as Xavier to gain an advantage."

Neil ran his fingers through his hair in frustration and took a deep breath to control the surge of rage that coursed through his veins. Kelvin Rodrigo, that cunning son of a gun, would pay double the price if he discovered he was responsible for his parents’ deaths and now attempting to ruin his company after failing to persuade Fabian to sell his share five years ago.

"Liam, you’ve done your best in assisting me, and I appreciate that. You can concentrate more on the Thompson’s Business Corporation. James can oversee the Galverra Enterprise in the meantime until I return. Please say hello to your niece for me," Neil said upon hearing a child’s voice on the other end of the phone before ending the call.

Meanwhile, Liam sighed heavily as he heard his niece’s loud voice ascending the stairs, calling his name even before reaching his room.

"Uncle Liam!" She knocked at his door, and Liam was tempted to pretend he wasn’t there, but he knew the little girl would persistently knock and call his name once she’d already seen his car parked outside. He couldn’t fathom why his sister chose to keep her daughter and nanny at his house when she could take them to their other sister’s place. He could already envision the little girl standing outside his door with her large teddy bear, awaiting a bedtime story, when all he desired was to rest.

He was the only male son In the Thompson household before his stepbrother appeared, and he had three younger sisters, who were all married now, but their youngest sister had gotten pregnant and given birth to a child out of wedlock, and not knowing who the father was, she’d had no one to put the responsibility on but herself. And now that she was married, her husband refused to take responsibility for the little girl Lilly who was now living with him temporary.

The reason he’d not sent Lilly back to her mother’s house was because he knew the little girl didn’t even like her stepfather who’d refused to acknowledge her as his after he married her mother. And besides, he liked the little girl in his house, the only thing he was finding hard to keep up with, was her constant request of him to tell her a bedtime story.

"Uncle Liam!" Lilly’s small voice interrupted his thoughts once more. Knowing she wouldn’t give up, Liam relented. He walked to the door and opened it just as Lilly was about to knock again. Her hands froze in midair as she saw him respond to her. Her dark, doll-like eyes gleamed with excitement as she smiled up at him.

"Uncle Liam, I knew you were inside! Can I sleep in your room tonight?" she asked eagerly, darting past him before he could answer. She tossed her teddy bear onto the bed and settled in comfortably.

Liam watched her with a disapproving expression, but she met his gaze with a cheerful look. "Aunt Linda isn’t here today, so I’ll sleep in your room instead," she explained, mentioning one of the women he used to bring home to satisfy him. Liam was surprised that Lilly knew Linda’s name.

"How do you know about Linda?" he inquired, feeling uneasy that Lilly was aware of the women he used to bring home while she was supposed to be asleep in her own room. Despite usually taking his female companions to a hotel, he had brought Linda to his house a few times out of laziness, thinking Lilly was asleep each time. It was clear that Lilly was more observant than he had realized.

Lilly sulked and remarked, "I talked to her when she went to the kitchen for water. She mentioned that you two will be getting married soon, and once that happens, she will be the lady of the house. I don’t like her; she doesn’t even know how to tell a bedtime story when I asked her to put me to bed. Don’t let her take over your home," she gazed at him with a cute expression. While she had used the bedtime story excuse to visit her uncle’s room tonight, her true intention was to dissuade him from marrying the ghost like woman she had seen sneaking into the kitchen late at night.

Lilly held her uncle in high regard and would prefer if he married someone kind and attractive, unlike Linda, whose face was as pale as a ghost from a cartoon she had watched. Despite being a six-year-old girl, she could recognize a good person when she saw one. Seeing her uncle’s disapproving look, she quickly sought to make amends. She retrieved a paper from her teddy bear’s pocket and held it up saying, "If you want to marry a nice woman, choose this one. I like her because she was kind to me and my friends when she visited our school."

Intrigued, Liam leaned down to examine the paper she was offering, realizing it was a torn page from a magazine. His eyes landed on Mia Harrison at first, and he chuckled softly at the thought of Neil’s reaction if he knew his niece was suggesting he marry his woman. He could already imagine his friend’s dark look. However, Lilly noticed he was focusing on the wrong woman and scowled, "Stop gazing at my idol; she’s not the one I want you to marry. Look at this one," she pointed to the woman standing behind Mia, and upon closer inspection, Liam recognized it was Rayne Wallace she was endorsing.

"Look at her, she’s so pretty and nice. She knows how to tell a story, unlike Miss Linda who looks like a ghost this lady looks like Merida in Brave! I like her hair so much, please marry her and let her be the owner of your house. I will never bother you to tell me a bedtime story again. Pretty please!"

Liam looked down at the girl with a raised eyebrow, he couldn’t help but scoff in disbelief. Who told her he was interested in getting married and having a woman run his house and life? Even though he were to do that someday, Rayne Wallace was the last woman on earth he’d ever consider, not for any reason but because of her brother Jason, who’d suddenly decided to befriend his stepbrother to get to him. But knowing how persistent his niece could be, he stroked her hair and said, "Alright, only if you agree to go and sleep in your room."

Lilly didn’t have to be told twice, she jumped down the bed in such a hurry she almost fell but Liam was quick to catch her. "Careful," he warned but instead she threw herself into his arms and laughed, "Thank you, thank you, uncle Liam. I will tell all my friends at school tomorrow that my uncle will marry Aunty Merida!"

Before Liam could say anything, the girl was out of the room in a blink of an eye, all he heard was the sound of her legs hitting the floor. He shook his head in disbelief dismissing her words and walking back to his desk to finish his work before he’d get some sleep and wake up at dawn again.