"Tell him that I'll talk to him later in the day," Liam waved his hand to dismiss Jake. He sat leaning on the seat and crossed his legs.
"Which one?" Jake asked. He needed specific instructions.
"The Estate Planner…" Liam said rubbing his forehead. He was staring at the sole of his shoe and his mouth was slightly parted as if he had more to say.
So Jake waited.
"…Inform Sterling to proceed with the divorce," Liam said after a minute-long silence. His foot was not shaking anymore. His knuckles holding the armrest were white. His face was red.
It was obviously a difficult decision for Liam.
Jake was surprised. This was the first time Liam's divorce lawyer contacted him. He didn't even know of Liam's marital status. But apparently, he had filed for divorce and it was left as it is without making any further progress.
After seeing how he acted with Aurora Roberts the entire day, he thought that Liam has changed his decision to proceed with the divorce. And hence the call from the divorce lawyer.
It is obvious Liam still cares so very much for Aurora Roberts.
But if he wants to proceed with the divorce…
A thought popped into Jake's mind. He wondered if Liam's decision has got to do with what they saw in the news some hours earlier.
"With all due respect, Liam… Maybe staying married can give you spousal privilege in case-"
"What are you insinuating, Jake?" Liam's voice got deeper. He placed his foot on the floor and leaned forward.
Jake gulped and swallowed the rest of his sentence. He then pastered on his professional smile. "Nothing, boss. I'll do what you ask of me," he said with a slight bow.
"Yes, please," Liam said and pointed at the door. Jake left the meeting room swiftly.
Liam sat leaning on the seat for some time and watched the clouds floating around. As the jet cut through the clouds there was slight turbulence. He used to get scared but this time…
Oh, shit!
He stood up and ran to the bedroom. Both Rory and the baby were asleep. He sighed in relief. He carefully walked closer to the bed making sure his shadow does not fall over Rory's eyelids. She gets terrified if a shadow passes over her eyelid.
He carefully sat beside her. He reached to her forehead to check if her temperature has gone down. When he held her hand before, she was burning. But he retracted his hand before he touched her forehead.
He got up and got an infrared thermometer and checked her temperature. The medicine must have taken effect. Her temperature was 100.9 degrees Fahrenheit. He placed the thermometer down and stared at her face for some time.
She has gotten prettier…
She had placed her hands over her chest. He wanted to check if she had bruised her hand for a long time. This woman has great willpower to smash other people but her hands are soft as butter. She would only hurt herself.
And just as he predicted, he saw a small bruise on her hand around her knuckles. He got some ointment from the first aid box and treated her bruise.
Maybe I should get her those brass knuckles thingy… That way she won't hurt her hands while hitting others…
He saw her smiling while he was holding her hand. His lips curved up too. It's been a while since he held her hand. The last time he held her hand, she almost broke his fingers. She was in such great pain.
His eyes ended up on the baby. Ellie was still sleeping deeply.
Liam continued to observe Rory. Her empty ring finger made him feel uneasy. He still couldn't accept how easily she could give back his mother's ring. She knows how important that ring is for him.
But then, he could only sigh.
-----
Rory was in deep sleep after a long while. She didn't even know what happened around her. But she did have some weird dreams that she couldn't remember when she woke up.
It took her some time to register where she was after that deep sleep. After staring at that false ceiling for a couple of seconds, she remembered that she was in the jet traveling back to her hometown.
But why does it feel like the jet is not moving?
Ah! Ellie!
She sat up and her eyes ended up at the crib immediately. To her dread, the crib was empty. And the jet was stationery. She opened the window slightly to see that they'd landed already.
F*ck this! How could I sleep like this! Where's Ellie?
She blamed herself and ran out of the room. "Liam!" she screamed. For some reason, dread occupied her heart.
She was met by the hostess and she took her to the meeting room. What she saw made her astonished.
Liam was holding Ellie to his chest and the baby was drinking from the bottle. Her baby who would scream as if someone is hurting her when she comes across the silicone nipple of the bottle had latched on to it and had almost finished the bottle.
Her little chubby hands were holding the bottle and Rory could see the bubbles inside the bottle that was rising as she was drinking from the bottle.
What wonder is this? Am I still asleep? Am I dreaming?
Liam looked at her with a smile. His usual halo over his head looked brighter with the added smile. And with the baby in his hand, he looked totally divine.
Rory, blinking with astonishment, gathered herself and walked closer. She sat in the opposite seat to observe more. She couldn't believe that her daughter would drink from the bottle.
The baby finished her feeding and the hostess collected the bottle from his hand to wash it. Liam placed Ellie on his shoulder and gently patted her back to burp her. Within just ten seconds, Ellie let out a loud burp.
"You're very good at this..." Rory said. Along with her astonishment, there was a twinge of jealousy detected in her tone.
"I tried to get her used to the bottle but she never liked it..." she added.
Liam placed a kiss on Ellie's cheek. "You'll listen to your daddy, won't you? Don't you love your daddy?"
The baby laughed showing her toothless mouth. The sound of her sweet laugh filled the room.