Tommy sounded as though Luke should have put more effort to win Luca’s heart.
Luke’s expression turned grim. “Who let you watch those soap operas?”
“I watch them whenever Grandma Susan watches them in the living room. What’s wrong with soap operas, Daddy? Why would
Grandma Susan watch them if there’s something wrong with them?” Tommy asked several questions at one go.
Ever since Allison went to prison, Susan acted like the matriarch of the household.
Whenever Old Master Crawford was not at home, Susan would sit on the living room couch and watch meaningless soap operas
with convoluted family plots. She did not care if what she watched would negatively affect the children’s development.
Luke had never heard his son use that word before. He wondered if he should talk to Susan. She had a television in her
bedroom, so it was probably better to watch it there than in the living room.
“Because they’re boring,” he said.
Tommy nodded. “Oh? If that’s the case, I won’t watch them next time. I’ll find something less boring to do.
Luke patted the child’s head, took his hand, and walked toward the spot where he parked his car.
“You need to work harder, Daddy. Ms. Luca is a good person. Some other man might seduce her if you don’t work harder,”
Tommy said. He knew more about adult relationships thanks to the soap operas he watched.
Luke’s expression darkened. “Why do I have to work harder?”
“Aren’t you trying to make her your girlfriend?” Tommy analyzed like a little adult. “If you don’t want to make her your girlfriend,
why did you treat her to dinner?”
“It’s just repaying the favor,” Luke said, not caring if his son knew the nuance behind it.
“Nonsense, Daddy,” Tommy said derisively.
Luke raised his eyebrow. “Have you ever treated me like your Daddy before?”
“Of course I have. I won’t bother telling you all this if you’re not my Daddy. If you’re not trying to make her your girlfriend, why
would you deliberately go to the apartment to change clothes? Aren’t you trying to find an opportunity?” Tommy said. Without
looking at him, any person would have thought that a mature adult had said that. “Also, When the waitress treated Ms. Luca as
your wife, you didn’t deny it or explain anything.”
Luke frowned. Why was Tommy so talkative today?
Indeed, he was doing all those deliberately. He had to become closer to Luca to test her.
He knew that Luca was harder to read than Tia. If he did not give it his all, he would not find out the secrets Luca was hiding.
“I see, so you’re doing it deliberately too,” Luke said, ignoring what Tommy had said.
Tommy blinked in confusion. “What was I doing deliberately, Daddy?”
“You deliberately didn’t call her ‘Ms. Luca’ when other people were around,” Luke said while gently pinching Tommy’s cheek. He
realized that the child was becoming more and more precocious, though he did not call his son out in front of the waitress.
Now that Tommy was calling Luke out on his behavior, he was not going to hold back either.
“Do I have any other choice? You didn’t deny it, and I can’t call Ms. Luca Mommy. I think she’d be shocked if I did,” Tommy said
with a sigh, as though he was disappointed with his father.
Luke realized that Tommy’s character was very much unlike his elder brother.
“Alright. Get in the car.” Luke said while opening the car door.
Tommy pulled his hand away. As he stepped into the car, he said, “Sigh, I don’t know when I can spend the night with Ms. Luca
again.”
“Don’t even think about it.” Luke closed the door after Tommy settled down.
Tommy shook his head and said, “I was hoping that I could live together with Ms. Luca in the future.”
Luke sat on the driver’s seat. He said nothing when he heard Tommy’s words.
Living together with Luca?
He had thought about it before. After all, Luca might be the key to saving Bianca.
Tommy liked Luca very much, but Luke knew that Tommy would shift his attention to Bianca if she came back.
No one could be his wife other than Bianca Rayne.
Luke started the car and drove away. Luca came out of a dark corner. She came out of the apartment’s side door and followed
Luke and Tommy from a distance.
Seeing the car drive away, Luca turned around and headed back to the apartment.
She could not help but be envious when she saw Luke walking away while holding Tommy’s hand.
She envied Luke for being able to play the role of the child’s parent, and also for the fact that they had no secrets between them.
Back at the apartment, Luca closed the door and remembered Kevin Rayne, her adoptive father.
He had been gone for several years.
Luca remembered that she had not paid her respects ever since she came back. She wondered if she should visit her father’s
grave on the coming weekend.
After making up her mind, she went to the common bathroom to take the bottle of shower cream so that she could take a
shower.
In the bathroom, she noticed that Luke had thrown his shirt into the trash can.
She thought for a while but eventually picked the shirt up. She noticed a red lipstick stain on the chest.
Luke must have thrown the shirt away because he was disgusted by the lipstick stain.
However, the shirt was quite new. It was a pity to throw away a shirt that had been worn less than ten times.
Luca brought the shirt to the balcony and tossed it into the washing machine.
She went to the bathroom to take a shower. Then, she did the laundry with the rest of her clothes.
After the laundry was done, she hung them on the clothesline.
The sky was already completely dark by then.
She turned on the balcony light and looked at the white shirt in a daze.
She had worn Luke’s clothes before. They had a light lemony fragrance because of the detergent he used.
After wearing it once, she fell in love with that scent.
That was why she had always used the same brand of detergent.
Luca watched his shirt swaying gently in the breeze, together with her clothes on the clothesline.
It looked as though they lived together.
Luca returned to the living room. She sat on the couch and looked at the clothesline for quite some time.
Meanwhile, Luke returned to Crawford Manor.
Old Master Crawford was waiting for him in the living room. “Come here and sit with me, Luke.”
“Is there anything, Grandfather?” Luke asked. His grandfather must have something to discuss with him.
“The lawyer called today. If you’re free tomorrow, you should go to the prison to visit your mother,” Old Master Crawford said.