Adrian scoffed, but before he could say anything, Zia suddenly tugged at his hand again. His eyes darkened several shades imdiately.
"Auntie, we saw you at the restaurant," Zia said proudly.
Mrs Vale froze. Her lips parted a little as she looked at the little girl more carefully. "The restaurant?" she repeated.
Zia nodded at once. "Yes. You were sitting all by yourself and you looked very sad. Elara kept staring at you."
"Elara?" Mrs Vale repeated.
"Yes." Zia nodded again. "And when those ugly bad n ca and wanted to take you away, Elara called Scary Suit Uncle lots and lots of tis but he didn’t answer."
Mrs Vale fell silent, a small smile slowly appearing on her face as she turned toward Adrian. "Where’s Elara?" she asked carefully.
Adrian didn’t answer. His gaze remained fixed on the shrubs Zia had just erged from.
Mrs Vale followed his line of sight and she pursed her lips. "I saw her at the restaurant where I told those n to et ," she said softly. "She’s the one who called you, isn’t she?"
Adrian remained silent. He simply continued looking toward the darkness as though he was patiently waiting for the person there to stop hiding.
Finally, Elara let out a slow breath. At this point, staying hidden any longer would only make her look ridiculous. So... she straightened her clothes, lifted her chin, and stepped out from behind the shrubs. The mont she erged however, she regretted it because three pairs of eyes imdiately landed on her.
For so reason, she suddenly felt like a thief who had been caught sneaking around. She almost wished the ground would open up beneath her feet and save her from this embarrassnt.
Mrs Vale stared at her for several seconds before her face softened into a warm smile. "Thank you," she said quietly.
Elara simply nodded. Standing far away felt even more awkward now, so she walked over to them and stopped beside Zia.
Mrs Vale smiled again. "I saw you at the restaurant. When our eyes t, I was hoping you had noticed." She said.
Elara nodded once more in acknowledgnt.
An awkward silence followed that.
Elara was already considering how to excuse herself and leave. After all, this was still a matter involving the Vale family. Staying here any longer made her feel strangely out of place.
Mrs Vale suddenly glanced down at Zia. The little girl was still holding Adrian’s hand, and oddly enough, Adrian didn’t seem to have noticed anymore. Or perhaps he simply wasn’t reacting.
Mrs Vale smiled. Then she looked back at Elara. "Is she your daughter?" She asked with a curious expression.
Elara nearly choked.
Her daughter?
If not for the serious look on her face, she would have thought Mrs Vale was just pulling her legs. Her expression turned even more horrified as the woman’s gaze moved from Zia to her face, then sohow... To Adrian.
Elara’s stomach dropped, realizing that Mrs Vale might no longer be wondering whether Zia was her daughter. She was now probably wondering who the father was.
How was that even possible?
She hadn’t spent more than two years in the capitals and she had known Adrian for less than that. How exactly was she supposed to have a six year old daughter?
The more she thought about it, the more ridiculous it beca. Why was she even trying to do the calculation in the first place?
That thought alone almost made her retch. Before she could even open her mouth to deny anything, Adrian suddenly scoffed. The sound carried a strange tone of annoyance.
"No." he said coldly before Mrs Vale could say another word.
Mrs Vale’s smile imdiately stiffened, her face flushing a little. "Oh... Right!"
Zia looked between the adults and giggled. "I know what Auntie is thinking."
Nobody spoke so this only encouraged her. She pointed at Mrs Vale. "You want Elara and Scary Suit Uncle to have a baby."
The entire atmosphere fell silent but Zia didn’t seem to be bothered, if anything, it only boosted her morale. "Even if they have one, she won’t be as cute as because I’m the cutest."
Mrs Vale imdiately looked away to hide her smile. Elara closed her eyes tiredly. anwhile, Zia was still talking.
"Besides, what if the baby grows up and becos taller than ? That would be very rude."
Elara slowly opened her eyes again. She wasn’t sure what to say. Honestly, the only reason Zia was still alive was because she was a child. If anybody else had been saying all this nonsense in front of Adrian, Elara suspected they would already be planning their funeral.
With a tired sigh, she tightened her grip on Zia’s hand. "I think we should go now." She muttered.
Mrs Vale’s expression turned slightly awkward making Elara frown and wonder if she had said sothing wrong. Not wanting to linger unnecessarily any longer, she looked down at Zia who was holding Mrs Vale’s hand.
"Let’s go." She said but Zia only shook her head, a huge smile planted on her face.
The exact smile she always wore whenever she had just done sothing troubleso. Elara imdiately beca suspicious but she casted it away.
"Fine then. Stay here. I’m going ho." She said and turned around, already expecting Zia to panic and follow.
But suddenly her steps ca to an abrupt halt. Her face slowly paled as she ca into realization.
There couldn’t possibly be two Zias.
Her eyes imdiately flew toward the little girl who was still standing beside Mrs Vale giggling happily.
Her vision blurred and slowly, she turned her head. Adrian’s unreadable face entered her sight. Her eyes followed his gaze downward until it stopped on their hands.
Ah... how had she not noticed?
At so point, that troubleso child had let go of her hand and sohow replaced herself with Adrian.
Elara stared at their joined hands for a long second, her lips pursed tightly.
That girl was becoming far to clever for her own good.
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