She had her arms crossed as she looked at him sternly. "Forty-five minutes."
"Okay." He flashed a smile. It was much better than he thought. He had expected her to give him half an hour. It was only fifteen minutes of difference but heaven knew how valuable a minute was when it came to Avery giving him time to spend with Angel. He mentally prepared to show up half an hour earlier than the time she would tell him. She definitely wouldn't kick him out, right?
"What else?" She grew impatient when he stayed in her path without moving.
He looked down at her. Of course he had something else to say. Many other things. She looked so beautiful even when she was angry. He couldn't say that so he let out a gentle smile. "Thank you."
"You may get out of my way now." She glared up at him.
"I will." He spoke but still continued to stand before her. When her brows scrunched up, he stepped aside and let her walk away, speaking after her. "So, see you on Saturday?"
"Sure."
_
When he returned to his villa, he was greeted by the sight of the last person he wanted to see—his grandmother.
"Grandmother." He tried not to sound too bitter about her presence. His family had been the one who wrecked his life in the name of caring for him and doing what was best for him. It was amazing how they managed to keep a calm front despite everything they had done in the past.
Dorthe stood from the couch and met him across the room. "You finally came. I was starting to think that you spent the night out."
"Can't I?" His question came off as defensive. He was not a teenager. Not that they would have the right to control his life if he were.
Dorthe patted his back. "I would be the happiest grandmother if you had a nightlife."
"I would appreciate it if you got straight to the point." He knew that his grandmother was not here to simply smile at him and catch up on gossip.
Dorthe looked displeased but spoke anyway. "We wanted to invite you to a banquet but you have been too busy."
He slouched onto a couch and poured himself some of the scotch he had left on the side table and instructed the servants to leave it there with a clean glass. He downed the content in one gulp. "I'm busy investigating what happened five years ago."
Dorthe's eyes flickered for a moment. Watching him, Damon almost thought that she was going to detonate. Almost. At the last moment, she looked saddened by his words. "It was all our fault. We thought she was not good for you so we told her off."
"I see." He smirked. That was way too easy.
Dorthe let out a breath. "Anyways, we would like to make amends. Do you think she will forgive us?"
So that was what it was about. One would think they were merely trying to make up for what they had done but he knew them better than that. They had probably done some extremely shady deeds and were covering up by rendering his reason to investigate meaningless. At the same time, Dorthe has always wanted a great grandson and probably no longer cared that it was Avery's child. They must have investigated and found out that the boy looked like a copy of Damon.
He humored her while slumping against the backrest. "I don't know. She can't even forgive me, let alone you guys. My son has mild autism."
"What?" Dorthe let out a gasp.
His brows dipped. Didn't they know? She looked genuinely shocked. They probably didn't find everything there was to find out.
He let out a slow breath and gave a brief explanation. "He was born prematurely. I'm inclined to think that it happened because his mother was under too much stress. Do you know what this means? That whatever it is you told her, it had such a huge impact on her. If she hated you for telling her off as you put it, then she hates you even more that our baby was born premature as a result and became vulnerable, which resulted in his autism.
Do you really want to try and reconcile with her even though you never liked her in the first place?"
"Damon…" Dorthe looked guilty but she looked aside so her grandson wouldn't see it. "I'll be honest. I just want to be close to my great grandson. He is our family after all."
"I see." Damon poured himself more scotch.
"Will you bring him home for an afternoon to play? I heard that autistic children gradually lose the symptoms if they stay in a cheerful environment. Having a caring family could help."
A caring family. Her audacity to say such a thing.
Damon shrugged. "I cannot promise you that."
"What do you mean? You are his father! You have every right to bring your son to his family." She lost it.
"I'll let you know." He didn't make a specific promise but didn't deny it either. Maybe, just maybe, he should have been specific.
____
On Saturday, Avery had a brief meeting with a partner she didn't finish discussing with on Friday, so she let Damon go to her villa and keep Angel company before her return. She didn't stay out for long but returned to a compound full of cheer and laughter.
"Did Damon come?" She asked the housekeeper who took her jacket upon her arrival.
"Yes." She responded. "He is playing with little master in the backyard. Would you like something to drink?"
"I would like apple juice in half an hour. Go and get some groceries later. I will cook lunch." She instructed and gave a list to the housekeeper.
Then she changed into indoor slippers and went towards the backyard. The laughter became more apparent the closer she was to them. She had never heard Angel give a full laugh before. The sound was contagious in a good way. Her lips gave way to a warm smile.
"And the devil shot the sky, making the whole world crumble down on the angel." She heard Damon's playful voice as she approached.
When she clearly saw them, her jaw almost dropped. Her son was wearing an adorable one piece suit that was similar to Damon's, only that his was white while Damon's was black. Angel's had a small pair of wings attached to its back while Damon had a pointy tail on his costume and a pair of devil ears on his head. She should take a picture of him as blackmail material, she chuckled.
Both the angel and the devil had large toy guns in their hands, which shot off balls that stuck to each other's clothes until they were removed. How realistic.
Angel's adorable voice rang out. "What's a sky? Never mind." He shot at Damon while letting out a "boom".
"Urgh!" Damon fell on the ground and clutched his chest where he had been 'shot'. He reached for his own gun, feigning difficulty. "I will not die without a fight. Wait till I remove the bullet. I will destroy the world!"
Once he removed the 'bullet', he shot at Angel who was running away and laughing, but he missed it because of his position.
Angel freaked out when he saw who Damon had shot. "Papa!"
Damon didn't realize it and steadied up. "How are you not dead yet, you little angel?"
Angel remained stiff. Damon felt something was wrong and followed his son's gaze. He had to be dreaming. The last ray of hope was shattered when Angel looked over at Avery in panic. "Mommy?"
Damon felt his heart sink to his stomach. She was definitely pissed off. He sighed and shut his eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry."
She glared at Damon and held out a hand. "Give me that."
____
AN
When daddy gets caught teaching the son how to use guns XD
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Unfortunately, my keyboard didn't work even after I tried drying it up using my hair dryer. I think it stayed wet for too long. The good news is I ordered a new one so I will resume daily updates soon!