Betty thought to herself, it wasn't weird for the madame to be worried...
Betty had watched Jackson grow in all these years. He was no longer a young child.
People now viewed him as a business tycoon, a successful entrepreneur, a cold blooded man.
Just like any businessmen, all Jackson cared about now were benefits and profits. It was just the way he was. Everyone was slightly terrified of him, and all of them would refer to him as Mr. Cunningham in the most respectful way possible.
Angelica took out her phone to check out Sophia's Twitter.
Sophia posted on her page very frequently.
Just a few moments ago, she had just tweeted with the caption, 'I'm so sick of having English breakfast, but I don't know how to make Chinese food. Ugh, I'm just so excited to be able to eat actual Chinese food next month when I go back home. I miss mama and my future mother-in-law's cooking.' Angelica liked her tweet and turned to Betty. "Mature people should know how to handle things maturely, but Jackson hasn't completely cut contact with the child's mother..."
"I hope the master will be able to handle this before Miss Roberts comes back!"
"I'm just worried that his heart is now elsewhere!" Angelica said in a monotonous tone.
Betty decided not to prolong this conversation and continued working as per usual.
Meanwhile, the little thing was lying on his stomach, sleeping on his father's big bed.
Due to his inability to toss and turn, he could be at risk of suffocation. Hence, Jackson sat next to the bed as he watched the little thing fall asleep.
After confirming that the little thing was asleep and had stopped crying from stomach pain, Jackson stood up and let Nidia watch him.
Patricia was at the side, busy with house chores.
"If anything happens, you can ask Patricia to help. I'll be having a meeting back in the office." Jackson turned to Nidia and said in a deep voice. He took his coat and went out of the room.
Nidia sat next to the bed, not taking her eyes off her baby son.
The little thing had long and thick eyelashes. Although most of his features weren't defined yet, it was obvious that he looked a lot like Jackson.
Being able to watch her son in person, Nidia patted his arm gently. She continued watching him for more than two hours. The little thing was now awake, hungry for milk.
Patricia entered the room and picked the little guy up.
"Miss South, would you like to try breastfeeding?"
Nidia was surprised. She was happy, yet conflicted. "Can I really?"
Patricia could tell that she really wanted to try it out, so she signalled to the bathroom and said, "Why not? Of course you can!"
"There, that's the master's bathroom. It's always empty anyway. Go take a shower and breastfeed your son on the bed later."
Nidia turned her head to look. That was Jackson's personal bathroom, and it was huge.
"You gave birth to him, what's wrong with a little breastfeeding?" Patricia said with an empathetic voice. "I was a mother too, I understand how you feel. The master and madame aren't home now, so it'll be our little secret."
To be frank, it wasn't a taboo. Who cares if they found out?
The reason why they wouldn't let Nidia breastfeed her son was because they were worried that he would get too used to it. He would refuse to drink from a bottle and starve himself, which would be an issue.
However, after putting it into thought, Patricia thought that breastfeeding him once or twice wouldn't hurt. The young master didn't seem that picky of a person.
Nidia took a shower, but she didn't wash her hair.
After showering, she tied her hair into a ponytail. Just as she was deciding on what to wear, Patricia opened the bathroom door and handed her a set of pyjamas, all while still holding the child in her arms.
"I prepared this for you when you were still in postpartum. I prepared a lot, and most of them are still brand new." Patricia said as she gave Nidia the pyjamas.
Nidia smiled and took the pyjamas. "Thanks!"
"You won't have to wear a bra later. You'll be breastfeeding, after all." Patricia said, shutting the bathroom door.
A brief moment passed, and Nidia came out of the bathroom. She was worried that her son was starving.
Due to her inexperience, she had to listen to Patricia's directions.
Sitting on the big bed, Nidia leaned against the bed frame. On her lap was a giant pillow. She then placed her arms on the pillow as she held her son. Her top was completely unbuttoned.
She wasn't wearing a bra, it was more convenient to breastfeed that way...
"Yeah, just like that." Patricia helped the little thing to get breastfed.
Nidia was a little unsure at first. However, she slowly got used to the sensation and smiled. She felt satisfied and blessed...
...
After breastfeeding, Patricia taught Nidia how to help the child burp.
With a light burp, the little thing went back to sleep.
"Miss South, why don't you take a nap as well? You haven't slept next to your child before, right?"
Patricia hoped to help Nidia spend more time with her child. She didn't know why, but she felt very connected to Nidia.
"I'm worried Jackson might come back in a sudden." Nidia whispered to Patricia, who was standing next to the bed, as she placed her child back onto the bed.
Patricia shook her head and smiled. "Even if he did, I don't think the master would be mad at you. You're the child's mother, it's normal for you to be next to your son.
From how I see it, you're way more responsible than him. As a father, he's unable to take time off of work to spend time with his son, but you could! He should be jumping with joy."
Nidia felt a slight sense of comfort after hearing what Patricia said.
'So I shall take a nap with my son...' The nap lasted till night time.
Just as he opened his eyes, the little thing was hungry yet again. Infants his age were like this. After all, all they can do is eat and sleep, hence the cycle would repeat.
Nidia breastfed her child again.
After that, she played with her child for a while. She held his little fingers, squeezed his little feet, and kissed them gently.
It was around 8 p.m. when Patricia then filled the tub with water and brought the child into the bathroom, about to help him shower.
As they helped her son shower, Nidia asked Patricia, "Will Jackson be home tonight?"
Patricia placed a toy duck into the baby tub and said, "That would be highly unlikely.
He only came back a little more frequently lately. However, since the master didn't go to work during the day, he'd probably be pulling an all nighter. It is quite late now too, so I don't think he's coming home. I heard from Dylan that there's a pretty well equipped lounge in the office as well."
Nidia let out a sigh of relief.
She was truly touched that Patricia had convinced her to stay for the night. She didn't know when she'd be able to see her son again, after all.
It was a rare opportunity, after all. It wasn't easy to get in here. There were two guards at the entrance, and they wouldn't let her in so easily.
Besides, she'd have to go back to work in just a few days.
She had to put herself to work and save up. This was for the well being of Grandma, herself, and her child.
She was in the designing industry, so most of her time would be spent on work. She might have to work overtime as well. How would she even have the time to see her child...?
Before giving birth, she had been wondering how she could earn money while taking care of her child.
She knew that she couldn't leave her child under the care of others. Even though Grandma was the closest family she had, Grandma was old and it wouldn't be wise to add on to her stress.
It would seem that the only option she had was to resign from her job, and take commissions from her friends in the industry. She'd be able to earn a little pocket money from these commissions while taking care of her child. She only needed to earn enough for both her and her son after all.
"I'll bathe him. You can play with him with this toy duck." Patricia said.
Nidia picked up the toy duck and started playing with her son.
The little thing was giggling. Nursery rhymes were playing in the bathroom as well, livening up the atmosphere. The little thing kicked his feet to the rhythm.
He was splashing water everywhere!
The bathroom was filled with giggling and laughter, and was very lively. Their laughter covered the noises of a car pulling up outside.
Jackson walked upstairs, his posture straight . The living room was lit, although there wasn't anyone inside. The hall of the second floor was very quiet as well.
The man then opened the bedroom door, still confused.
His motions were gentle, as he was worried he might wake his son up.
Even though the bedroom was empty, the lights were still on. Meanwhile, music and splashing sounds were coming from the bathroom. There was a woman's humming mixed with the sounds as well.
Patricia's giggling could be heard coming from the bathroom as well.
"The young master is so cheeky! Oh my, do you love your mommy that much? Look at you. You made mommy's clothes all wet with your splashing!"
...
"London bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down! London bridge is falling down, my fair lady!" Nidia sang cheerily as she gave her son the toy duck. The little thing seemed to be having trouble grasping on to it.
"Okay, bath time's over!" Patricia said, picking the little thing up from the tub.
On Patricia's shoulder was a towel made of pure cotton. As she held the little thing in her arms, Nidia helped wrap the towel around him, drying his body.
"I'll have this place cleaned up. I have to take a chowder and change into new clothes, after all." Nidia said, her whole body now soaking wet.
"Sorry for the trouble."
"Oh, it's no trouble. Don't sweat it, Patricia!"
Patricia brought the little guy out of the bathroom, preparing to give him a gentle massage and putting baby lotion on him. This was to ensure the young master would have a good sleep later on.
Walking out of the bathroom, Patricia thought to herself, the child's mother was such a nice person. She wasn't arrogant or hot tempered, and she was humble.
However, rich families weren't the same as normal families. Every man in the Cunningham family had arranged business marriages. All of them were married to famous and rich young women.
The young master was young, so he had no clue of what was going on. Once he matured and was able to recognize his mother, Nidia wouldn't be able to see him anymore. She wouldn't even be able to come near the mansion.
When the young master grows up and asks about his biological mother, the elders will only make up a lie to trick him. They might even say that his mother had died in an accident.
As she rubbed lotion on the baby, Patricia worried about the young master's future and her heart shattered.
The bedroom door was opened. Patricia lifted her gaze and realized that Jackson, who she originally thought would be pulling an all nighter, had returned to the mansion.
"Has the master eaten dinner? I'll go cook something up for you."
"I have, don't worry." Jackson said as he bent down and gave his son a gentle kiss on his feet. He then said with a deep voice, "Papa kith."
Patricia couldn't help but stare at her master. A matured and reliable man like him, eyes filled with fatherly love and responsibility. Knowing that he would have to marry Sophia Roberts, Patricia felt it was so wrong.
"Is she in the bathroom?" Jackson asked.
"She's cleaning up!"
Jackson put down his son's little feet and walked towards the bathroom.
Nidia, on the other hand, had already put away the little guy's tub. It wasn't big, so it was easy to store.
The bathroom had different sections. The large bathtub seemed to be still fairly new, as if no one had ever used it. Nidia went to the shower and took off her wet pyjamas.
She took off her hairband, deciding that it would be best to wash her hair as well.
Nidia decided to just take a short shower. This wasn't her house, after all. Moreover, she was on her period. In just ten minutes, she managed to shower head to toe.
After turning off the shower and putting in a tampon, Nidia then came out of the bathroom with just a towel in her arms.
Jackson wasn't home yet, and Patricia was taking care of the child. Besides, Patricia was a woman as well, so Nidia had nothing to hide. She stood in front of the mirror naked as she dried her hair. She decided it was best to dry her hair before she changed into new clothes.
She didn't want her son to feel uncomfortable if her hair dampened her clothing.
The hair dryer let out a buzzing noise, however Nidia heard the door open.
She thought Patricia was here to get something. She took a look into the mirror, and froze.
Jackson was walking into the bathroom. Just as he laid his eyes upon Nidia, who was blow drying her hair in the mirror, he didn't take another step forward. He just stood there and gazed at her with his deep, dark eyes.
Nidia didn't expect him to be back so soon. Snapping back to reality, she immediately grabbed the clothing that she had set on the rack nearby and used it to cover her chest.
She wasn't sure if it was because of the hot shower she just had, or if it was because of something else. Her cheeks were painted with a slight tint of pink...
She wanted to wear her clothes, but doing that now would let him have a full view of her body.
Oddly, Jackson stood there without saying a word. It was as if his blazing gaze could see through her clothing, burning her bare skin directly...