Chapter 111: Chapter 111: He Is My Flesh and Blood
Ivana Monroe glared at Leon Keane. He had snatched away the last of the food, then belatedly said sorry? She didn’t see a trace of remorse in his eyes, only the satisfaction of eating.
"President Kane, you’ve seen Timmy, you’ve had dinner, can you leave now? After all, I’m a woman here with my child. If you leave late and residents see you, there’ll be gossip, which won’t be good for us mother and son."
Ivana spoke bluntly and clearly. She knew too well how damaging rumors could be.
Like attending dinners with him, encountering Isaac Heston on the street, even meeting Kiki Jennings at the kindergarten gate.
She didn’t want this harm to follow her and Timmy into their neighborhood, affecting their normal life.
Leon Keane frowned, his handsome face immediately darkened. She was driving him away?
"For those who love to gossip, no matter how well you do, people will always gossip. You can’t control other people’s mouths. Just be yourself, that’s enough."
"Moreover, you’re a single mother now, I’m a single father. What’s wrong with me visiting you? Should a single mother be single her whole life? Living in other people’s gossip, you can’t find a man? Isn’t that absurdly laughable?"
Leon Keane made up his mind not to leave easily. He hadn’t seen her for several days, and now she was dismissing him. Where should he put his face?
Besides, he wanted to know why his messages to her had gone unanswered lately, like dropping a stone into the sea.
Did she have another man? Or was she really trying to shake him off, as Secretary Sullivan said?
The word "shake off" immensely displeased Leon Keane.
He thought, in this lifetime, the word "shake off" would never apply to him.
Ian Keane finished his steak, his plate as clean as his father’s. He took a napkin and wiped his small mouth, hearing Leon’s words to Ivana Monroe.
Ian slightly furrowed his brows, feeling as if his daddy was wooing this woman.
Wasn’t it supposed that this woman was seducing his daddy and had an affair with him?
Disappointment flashed in Ian’s eyes. His daddy’s charm seemed diminished if he couldn’t handle this woman.
"Mommy, I think daddy’s very right," Ian’s innocent voice suddenly spoke, thinking it necessary to assist his father at this moment.
After all, he was very satisfied with the woman’s cooking skills. If his daddy married her, he could enjoy delicious steak dinners like his brother every day.
He could eat them for a year without growing tired.
"Timmy, how can you call him daddy?" Ivana said, shocked, looking at Ian Keane. Her cheeks turned red and hot, heart trembling at the boy’s innocent eyes. She was reluctant to scold him.
Leon was also very surprised. Timmy called him "daddy" only once when seeking help at the Kane Group. Otherwise, Timmy never called him "daddy," always "Uncle Kane."
God knows how delighted Leon Keane was when the boy called him "daddy" in Ivana’s presence. It showed the child had completely accepted him.
"He’s my flesh and blood; is there a problem with him calling me daddy?"
Leon refuted Ivana, seeing her face turning crimson like a sunset, his thin lips slightly curved, and turned to Ian, saying, "Timmy, come over to daddy and let daddy hold you."
Hesitation flickered in Ian’s eyes, but he finally moved to Leon’s side, who lifted him onto his lap.
Ian’s small body felt a bit rigid, sitting on daddy’s lap at his age seemed somewhat embarrassing.
Leon sensed the boy’s stiffness but didn’t dwell on it. Perhaps the boy was just shy in Ivana’s presence. He understood this child.
Leon felt he had done the right thing by bringing Ivana as his companion, taking Timmy to the Kane family home to interact with Ian. Derrick Stern said Timmy and Ian got along well.
Maybe it was precisely for this reason that Timmy understood the importance of having a brother and daddy.
As long as Timmy sided with him, Leon believed Ivana wouldn’t escape his grasp and would eventually compromise.
Suddenly, Leon’s gloomy mood turned bright, as if the sky cleared completely.
Ivana watched as the father and son affectionately sat together, their similar faces unmistakably indicating their relationship to the world.
Timmy was his flesh and blood.
Ivana wanted to deny it, but no one would believe her.
The boy liked being close to Leon, and Ivana couldn’t protest much. After all, Timmy was only six and craving fatherly love was normal.
Ivana silently cleared the empty plates and cutlery and headed to the kitchen.
She washed very slowly, spending ten minutes on one plate, leaving the living room to the father and son. She was indeed the child’s mother, but she couldn’t deprive her son of the right to enjoy fatherly love.
As Ivana washed, her eyes felt as if sand were rubbed into them, blurring her vision with tears. She was suddenly afraid Timmy might run off with Leon, abandoning her.
Leon had his own son and a big family, but she only had Timmy...
About half an hour.
Ivana heard Ian’s voice calling her from outside, finally coming to her senses. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand, splashed some water on her face from the tap, and dried it with a towel, then slowly walked out.
Ivana had just stepped out when the boy rushed over to hug her waist, "Mommy, why’d you take so long? Daddy’s ordered dinner for you."
Ivana embraced the boy, her fingers gently stroking his soft, white cheeks, feeling a warm stream flow through her heart. He was her son, and she should trust in him to not be easily lured away by Leon Keane.
Ivana looked towards the dining table and froze.
She saw Leon Keane’s tall figure busy at the table, filling the modern glass table, seven feet in length and wide, with food. The cover bowls were mostly opened by Leon.
Hearing the kitchen door move, Leon’s hands didn’t stop, yet he glanced back at her and frowned, "How come it took half an hour to wash two bowls? At this speed, you’re really not suited for washing dishes. There’s no dishwasher in the kitchen? I’ll send you one tomorrow."
Was he showing concern?
Ivana felt a twinge in her nose, as if sand had entered her eyes again. She bit her lip, forcing the misty tears back inside.
What’s happening to her? Why was she being so sentimental tonight?
"Why’re you standing there? Come eat," Leon said this time without turning back. Seeing Ivana standing motionless, his peripheral vision flashed and he frowned.