Chapter 22\u00a0<\/p>\n
Oliver\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
After Mommy left for investment this morning, I went to the ice cream shop to meet Aiden. He planned to take me home, but I wasn\u2019t having it. I grabbed the check from his hand and escaped with Hunter\u2019s help. I knew Aiden\u2019s bodyguards wouldn\u2019t dare touch me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hunter then helped me track Mommy\u2019s phone because she seemed worried during a call. He didn\u2019t want me to follow, but he can\u2019t resist my puppy dog eyes,\u00a0<\/p>\n
Getting into the building was easy since Hunter handled the security guards.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When Mommy was taken into an office, I felt uneasy. I had Hunter break down the door. Those guys were trying to hurt her, so I used my slingshot. Things got messy when more guards arrived, so I covered Mommy\u2019s eyes while Hunter dealt with them. Seeing Hunter would ruin my secret mission.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As we left Wright Creatives, I squeezed Mommy\u2019s hand, relieved to feel the cool breeze. The glass doors whooshed shut behind us, and I was glad to be away from those people.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOllie,\u201d she said, kneeling to meet my eyes on the sidewalk. \u201cWhat happened back there? Why are you here?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart raced. I needed a quick answer. \u201cI\u2026 I have a cousin working security here. He knows you\u2019re my mom and warned me about the Wrights\u2018 plan. He\u00a0<\/p>\n
helped with the guards.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mommy narrowed her eyes, looking at me suspiciously. \u201cAnd where did you get that check?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s just my allowance. Daddy gives me money every year to learn about finance,\u201d I tried to sound casual.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEight million dollars\u2026 as an allowance?\u201d Her eyes got really big, and her voice sounded funny.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMm\u2013hmm,\u201d I nodded, fidgeting with my dinosaur backpack strap. \u201cFor school fees, play time, and\u2026 stuff.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mommy looked confused. \u201cThat\u2019s more than most people make in a lifetime,\u201d she finally said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDaddy says money is just paper if you don\u2019t know how to use it properly,\u201d I answered, repeating what I\u2019d heard him say a million times on his boring\u00a0<\/p>\n
business calls.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As we walked through a busy plaza with lots of people in suits like Daddy wears, my heart nearly stopped. There, standing near a coffee shop, was Henderson\u2013Addie\u2019s assistant. He was looking right at me! I had to think fast.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMommy,\u201d I said quickly, pulling her hand. \u2018I need to use the bathroom. Right there.\u201d I pointed to the restroom sign across the way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Do you want me to come with you?\u201d she asked, looking worried.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018No, I\u2019m a big boy now,\u201d I insisted, trying to stand taller. \u201cYou can wait on that bench over there.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She hesitated before nodding. \u201cAlright, but don\u2019t take too long.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I gave her a quick hug, then rushed toward the bathrooms. As soon as I was sure she couldn\u2019t see me, I snuck around to the side entrance and ran straight\u00a0<\/p>\n
to Henderson.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYoung Master Oliver,\u201d Henderson said quietly, looking as stiff as always. \u201cMaster Aiden has tracked your location.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
3:51 pm D M\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 22\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d I demanded, feeling annoyed. \u2018I turned off my phone!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYour watch has a tracking function,\u201d Henderson explained, pointing to my wrist. \u201cMaster Aiden used it to locate you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I pressed my lips together, feeling trapped. \u2018I\u2019m not going back.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaster Aiden is already here,\u201d Henderson told me, his voice getting a little softer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My mind flashed back to dinner two weeks ago\u2013I\u2019d drawn a really good cat, but Daddy didn\u2019t even look at it. He was too busy talking to Aiden about boring business stuff. It made my chest feel tight, like when I can\u2019t breathe right.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018I don\u2019t care,\u201d I declared, crossing my arms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOliver.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1 froze at the sound of that voice. Turning around, I saw Addie walking toward us. Even though he\u2019s only six like me, he walks like Daddy and wears mini\u00a0<\/p>\n
business clothes that make him look important. People even moved out of his way!\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve been gone for almost a week,\u201d Addie said, staring at me with his serious blue eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSo?\u201d I challenged, lifting my chin. \u201cNobody needs me at home anyway.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
*Father has requested your immediate return,\u201d he replied in his grown\u2013up voice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not going back,\u201d I insisted, getting louder. \u201cI found someone who actually cares about me. Addie, please\u2026 just help me stay with her a little longer. I\u2019ll\u00a0<\/p>\n
give you a big surprise later.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Addie\u2019s face didn\u2019t change much, but I know my brother\u2013something flickered in his eyes when I begged.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOllie? Are you okay?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart jumped when I heard Mommy\u2019s worried voice. She was looking for me!\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMommy!\u201d I called out, quickly sneaking back through the bathroom\u2019s side door and emerging from the main entrance, running toward her as fast as my legs\u00a0<\/p>\n
could carry me. I felt relieved she hadn\u2019t spotted me with Aiden.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aiden\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOllie? Are you okay?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A woman\u2019s voice, laced with genuine concern, cut through our conversation. I turned sharply toward the source, immediately recognizing her\u2013the designer from the exhibition, the one whose minimalist concept had momentarily captured my attention with its elegant efficiency.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMommy!\u201d Oliver called out, abandoning our conversation to race toward her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stood motionless, an unexpected sensation spreading through my chest as I observed their interaction. Oliver grabbed her hand with uncharacteristic . eagerness, his entire demeanor transformed by what appeared to be authentic joy. The term \u201cMommy\u201d echoed in my mind, connecting with the mysterious\u00a0<\/p>\n
voice from Oliver\u2019s secretive call.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The woman\u2014slender, with dark hair caught in the afternoon sunlight\u2013looked toward me with clear concern in her eyes. Her protective stance toward Oliver\u00a0<\/p>\n
was unmistakable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 22\u00a0<\/p>\n
We should go now, Oliver was saying, tugging her hand with surprising determination. \u201cI\u2019m all done.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I remained where I stood, watching them disappear into the crowd. Henderson quietly took position beside me, awaiting instruction.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShould we follow them, Master Aiden?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t immediately respond, my attention fixed on their retreating figures. What struck me most was not Oliver\u2019s predictable attempt at escape, but the natural way they moved together\u2013the woman adjusting her pace to match his shorter stride, her hand holding his with gentle firmness rather than the awkward distance that characterized our nanny\u2019s interactions with us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Something unfamiliar and uncomfortable twisted in my chest. Oliver had found something I\u2019d never experienced\u2013someone who appeared to care for him without obligation or agenda. The woman\u2019s concern seemed authentic, her protective gestures instinctive rather than performed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, I finally answered Henderson, ensuring my voice revealed none of my internal discord. \u201cBut maintain distance. I need to understand more about this\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
situation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As I began walking in the direction they\u2019d gone, questions multiplied in my mind. Was this woman who had somehow earned Oliver\u2019s complete devotion our mom? How had Oliver found her? And why did observing their interaction awaken something long dormant within me\u2013something that felt disconcertingly like longing?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Sky Remembered the Touch of Our Uninished Goodbyes by Lysa Orion Rehn 22 Chapter 22\u00a0 Oliver\u2019s POV\u00a0 After Mommy […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[88],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-zero-stars-for-daddy-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30421"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30421\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}