Chapter 65: How Did Mom Win Dad Over?
"Did your dad used to come home every day after work?" Caroline Whitman asked suddenly, looking at the drawing.
"He came home every day. Sometimes Dad would take me to my grandma and grandpa’s, or to my other grandma and grandpa’s to play for a few days before he picked me up."
"..."
It suddenly clicked for Caroline Whitman.
After a pause, she cleared her throat twice, then asked softly, "Mommy’s going to test you. How did I win your daddy’s heart before?"
Ryan Grant’s eyes lit up. His little hands even wiggled unconsciously as he said in a childish voice:
"You and Dad were always running into each other. After it happened many times, you started talking to him first, chatting about work. Slowly, you began asking Dad out to dinner and movies every day, and you even went for walks together..."
"That’s it? It was that simple?"
Caroline Whitman felt the whole process was ridiculously simple.
’Isn’t this just how most couples get together?’
’Was Adrian Grant really that easy to win over?’
’Could it be that Adrian Grant was single for so long just because no one dared to pursue him?’
"Yeah, yeah!"
Ryan Grant’s eyes sparkled as he nodded vigorously. He scratched his head, trying hard to remember.
"Mommy also told me that whatever Daddy liked, Mommy would say, ’What a coincidence, I like that too.’ It’s called... what was it called again?"
Caroline Whitman finished his sentence, "Catering to his interests and creating fated, coincidental encounters?"
Ryan Grant nodded repeatedly, clapping his hands. "Yes, that’s exactly what you said, Mommy."
Caroline Whitman’s feelings were a bit complicated now. ’Isn’t this pretty much the same as those ’36 Stratagems for Pursuing a Man’ she’d read about?’
’It’s all about manufacturing chance encounters, catering to his interests, and giving him the wonderful feeling of a fated connection, a soulmate destined by the heavens.’
’Does that really work?’
"Let Mommy test you again. What does Daddy like?"
"Daddy’s favorite and most loved person is Mommy, and then me," Ryan Grant answered seriously, looking down and counting on his fingers.
After a moment, he looked up and smiled sweetly at his mother. "Hehe, and I like and love Mommy the most, most, most too!"
Even though those words were for the Caroline Whitman of a parallel world, Caroline Whitman was still deeply touched when she heard his answer.
She smiled and pinched the little dumpling’s cheek. "And we love our baby the most, most, most, too."
"Then what does Daddy like to eat? What kind of movies does he like to watch?" Caroline Whitman thought, ’Since I’m already asking, I might as well ask a few more questions. It won’t take long.’
"Daddy says whatever Mommy likes to eat, watch, or do, he likes it all."
"..."
’Uh... isn’t that just a non-answer?’
’But then again, could it be that her parallel-world self deliberately created these shared hobbies, which is why Adrian Grant would say something like that?’
She asked a few more questions about Adrian Grant, right up until the door was suddenly pushed open and the man himself, Adrian Grant, appeared at the doorway. "What are you two talking about? It’s time to eat."
Ryan Grant stood up excitedly. "We were talking about..."
Her heart racing, Caroline Whitman pulled her son back and shot to her feet. "Mhm, we’ll just tidy up the desk and be right over."
Adrian Grant glanced at the drawing pad and pens on the desk, nodded with an "Mm," and left without another word.
Only after he left did Caroline Whitman let out a small sigh of relief.
The room was well soundproofed, so she wasn’t worried at all that Adrian Grant might have overheard anything from outside.
’But the necessary prep work still had to be done.’
Caroline Whitman bent down and whispered in Ryan Grant’s ear:
"Sweetie, let’s not tell Daddy what we talked about today, okay? This will be our little secret."
At the mention of the word "secret," Ryan Grant’s big, dark eyes blinked, and he nodded his little head like a bobblehead.
"Let’s pinky-promise. You have to remember not to tell Daddy."
"Okay! Pinky promise!"
Ryan Grant stuck out his chubby little finger, hooking it with hers. He giggled, leaned in, and whispered:
"Mommy, are you going to try and win Daddy over again?"
"Don’t be silly. Come on, let’s go eat."
...
Adrian Grant’s cooking was truly first-class; no wonder the boy was always mentioning his culinary skills.
After a simple dinner and cleaning up, Adrian Grant sat with their son in the living room, watching some educational cartoons.
Caroline Whitman, meanwhile, put on a face mask and did her beauty routine by herself, then took a shower and went back to her room.
She had thought their son could sleep by himself tonight, but when she saw Adrian Grant lead the freshly bathed child through the door, Caroline Whitman instantly understood.
’Tonight was going to be another performance of the harmonious family of three.’
Except this time, Adrian Grant was also carrying a small blanket, clearly one prepared especially for the child.
It was his own fault, after all; the little guy was always complaining about a draft when he slept in the middle.
In reality, the parents’ plans were no match for the child’s.
In the middle of the night, Ryan Grant was squeezed awake by them.
He struggled to climb out from under the covers, dragged his own little blanket out from inside, found a more spacious spot to lie down, and covered himself up again.
When the alarm went off the next day, Caroline Whitman subconsciously reached out to turn it off, only to find herself held tightly in someone’s arms.
As the alarm continued to ring, the warm breath on the nape of her neck brought her more and more to her senses.
It was only after she reached down and her hand brushed against a set of abs that she was finally sure they were cuddling again.
’What was this?’
’A friendship forged in bed?’
As she was lost in her first thought of the morning, Adrian Grant’s alarm also went off. With the dual alarms ringing, the man beside her finally stirred.
When Adrian Grant was woken by the alarm, he knew, even before opening his eyes, that he had overstepped his bounds again.
The soft, delicate body beneath him emanated a constant warmth. Adrian Grant mumbled an "I’m sorry," released his hold, and let her go from his embrace before turning to the side to shut off his alarm.
Caroline Whitman also took advantage of the brief opening to turn off her alarm.
Then she looked for their son.
’Huh? Where’s the kid?’
’He’s gone again.’
But the little guy’s blanket was still there. As they were getting out of bed in silence, Ryan Grant tiptoed to open the bedroom door and came running in with a PITTER-PATTER.
"Good morning, Mommy, Daddy!"
Seeing the little dumpling already dressed, the two of them almost exclaimed in shock.
’They hadn’t looked after him for just one week, and he’d grown up this fast?’
’He could already change his clothes, brush his teeth, and wash his face all by himself.’
’So, it turns out they were the ones coddling him and holding back his independence, huh?’
"Why are you up so early today? And you even ran back to your room to change?" Adrian Grant got up, walked over, and squatted down to pat his head, asking curiously.
"At Grandma’s house, I wake up early, but they sleep in, so I just changed my clothes myself."
"Is that so? Well, you did a great job," Adrian Grant praised.
Caroline Whitman also gave him a thumbs-up, praising, "Amazing, sweetie."
After the two of them washed up, Adrian Grant took their son to his early education class, while Caroline Whitman went to work at her own company.
When it came to taking their son to class, they didn’t have a clear division of labor.
Whoever was closer or had it on their way would be the one to take him.
After moving to Golden Crest Manor, Adrian Grant’s commute to work overlapped with his son’s route to school, so he was the one who took him most of the time these days.
After dropping off his son, Adrian Grant sat quietly in his car for a long while.
The scene of the two of them waking up that morning flashed through his mind.
He had to admit that even if they hadn’t crossed the line, their relationship could no longer be described as completely innocent or leave him with a clear conscience.
After a long time, he finally started the car and headed to the office.
「Grant Group.」
Adrian Grant had just stepped into the elevator when he saw Jonathan Grant, that semi-retired old man, was also inside.