The Apple of My Eye

Chapter 523 The BM Corporation

Leila didn't mind that Charles had made an appointment with Aron and his wife; she knew she still had

enough time to achieve her plan.

Charles allowed his employees to get off early from work that night. That was good news for David and

Alice, as they could really use some quality time together. Their plans were already set: have dinner

early and watch a good comedy movie.

Leila, on the other hand, didn't care much for the time off. She gave Charles an appreciating smile and

continued on with her work. As David went to start off his car, Alice had cleared up her desk and was

getting ready to leave, when she saw Leila still in her chair. Surprised, Alice sat her coat down, and

approached Leila inquiring,"How come you're still here?"

"I have a few more tasks left to finish, but I won't be much longer either," answered Leila politely. "You

go ahead; don't worry about me." She then forced a quick smile and went back to handling her files.

"Do you need help?" asked Alice slightly concerned. She remembered there was a kid waiting for Leila

at home. Perhaps if she could help her finish her work faster, Leila could go home sooner to be with her

son.

Leila, however, wasn't too keen on getting any help. She smiled at Alice once more and then

replied,"That's ok. I can handle them. This is a good opportunity for you and David to spend a relaxing

evening together; don't waste your time here with me. I've got this."

"But don't you have your kid at home waiting?" wondered Alice, now even more surprised by her

refusal. She was genuine in her offer to help and couldn't understand why Leila wouldn't take her up on

it. So she insisted,"Your son is very young, right? You should go home early and take care of him. I can

help you; it's no problem for me."

As if awaken from a trance, Leila immediately raised her eyes towards the wall clock and

exclaimed,"Oh, no! I have to go pick him up from school. I'll just take these files home."

"Okay, then," replied Alice relieved. She was quite glad that Leila wasn't going to spend more time at This content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.

the office. "Bring your son here some day; I'd like to meet him," she added encouragingly.

"Okay, I will," replied Leila with half a smile. As soon as Alice left, she started packing up the folders

that she needed to bring home with her.

If it weren't for the kid, she wouldn't leave work until after Charles did. But she didn't want to be too late

to pick up Charlie.

A sudden feeling of guilt started to overcome her since she had only been doing the strictly necessary

at work. Leila wasn't giving it her all those days and Charles deserved more. Interrupting her thoughts,

Charles opened up his office door all ready to leave.

He was impressed to see Leila there. "Are you still working?" he asked on a pleasantly surprised tone.

"I just had a few tasks left. I would have stayed and finished them, but I'm going to be late to pick up my

son. I will sort out all the files you need for tomorrow's meeting, though. No worries." Her answer was

confident. She was going to do as promised no matter what it took.

Charles nodded lightly and then asked her,"How about I give you a lift?"

"No need... thank you," she replied gratefully. As much as she would have liked to get a ride with

Charles, she didn't think it was appropriate to do so at that hour. "I can take the subway; it's really

convenient," she continued explaining herself.

"Ok. Be careful on your way there though. I'm going to go now. See you tomorrow!" It was almost time

for his dinner with Aron and Isla; he didn't want to be late, so he left right away.

Isla had made the dinner reservation much in advance. This was something they did every year. She

and Aron were really close to Charles. Not only did his firm often collaborate with Lighten House

Company, but also Isla had been managing Cloud Advertising Company for Charles as well.

It was an extremely hot July day; even after dawn, the heat was permeating the air. As soon as he got

inside the car, Charles loosened his collar and turned on the air conditioner to the max. Fortunately, his

car was powerful enough and the temperature cooled off quickly.

The ventilation system at the restaurant, however, was having a hard time cooling the locale off to a

comfortable temperature; so everyone there was a bit irritated. The cold drink orders were pouring in,

but even those didn't feel cold enough.

Isla and Aron had arrived there early and were wiping off their sweat from their foreheads when

Charles got inside. As soon as he stepped foot through the door, his leg was captured and hugged

tightly by a tiny little being.

He held her up immediately and asked in a soft tone,"Did you miss me?"

"Yes, I did!" she replied eagerly. She had indeed missed him. She stretched out her hand, and,

counting each finger, she said,"Yesterday, the day before yesterday and the day before that... I've

missed you for so many days!"

Charles smiled tenderly at the innocent expression on the little girl's face. He had missed her too.

"Amanda, give Charles some space to breathe. It's already really hot in here," said Isla assertively to

her daughter. Amanda was only two years old and quite a handful. She had gotten very close to

Charles but, at the same time, unusually cold towards her father. Aron was struggling with that. He had

tried his best to win his daughter's heart by doing whatever she wanted, but his efforts still remained

highly unappreciated.

"No!" stated Amanda loud and clear in response to her mom's request. Isla gave her a serious look and

was about to argue with her, when Amanda's face suddenly turned sad. She sniffed and pretended to

start crying. In response, Charles intervened by saying,"It's all right. I want to hold her for a while."

Charles absolutely loved his sworn daughter. He always bought her lots of toys every time he would

meet her, and this time was no exception.

Excited to show her the new toy, Charles sat on the ground with Amanda in his lap, while emptying out

his bag. Seeing that, Isla got teary-eyed.

"Why are you crying?" Aron asked her. It was mostly a rhetorical question, as he knew what was in her

heart. Autumn was her best friend, and Isla wished she was there with Charles and Amanda. The

thought of her death had left a void in her heart.

"I'm fine," she attempted to divert his question while rubbing her eyes. However, too many tears had

accumulated and Isla was having a hard time hiding her sadness. She knew Charles was still hurting,

too.

If Autumn was still there, Charles would have a family now. The way he laughed and played with

Amanda showed he would have been a good father. Amanda could have had a playmate, too.

"Darling, stop crying," Aron said trying to comfort her. He pulled her close and continued cheering her

up,"He is happy with Amanda. Let them play together."

Perhaps when Charles was with Amanda, he could forget about his sadness and satisfy his longing to

be a father. So Aron and Isla didn't want to disturb him.

"Daddy, look..." expressed Amanda excitingly while showing him a trick.

Isla smiled at the scene. She had picked the name Amanda for her because she knew Autumn liked

that name. Unfortunately, Autumn left them before she knew Isla was pregnant. What wouldn't she give

for her to see Amanda now! Amanda had been her main consolation after the sad news about Autumn.

Her cute, little smile made any worry a bit more tolerable. Every time she looked at her, she somehow

found faith that Autumn was ok wherever she was.

'Maybe God sent Amanda to us so that she could fill in the void that Autumn left, ' Isla thought.

"What's the matter?" asked Charles after noticing Amanda's serious face. Leaning in close, he looked

her attentively in the eyes with a reassuring smile.

Pouting, Amanda replied,"Mom told me that I can only get married when I grow up. Daddy, can you tell

me when I will grow up?"

Charles couldn't help but laugh. Though, he didn't want her to be embarrassed by his laughter; so he

quickly settled for a large smile saying,"And why are you thinking about that now? You want to get

married? Tell me, which boy have you fallen in love with?"

"Stop talking nonsense, Amanda," stated her father angrily. Aron didn't like hearing her talk like that.

She was too young to think about marriage, and he felt it was inappropriate for Amanda to say that in

front of Charles, especially after what she had told them at home.

Amanda tilted her head slightly to the left, attempting to soften her dad's heart with her cute look, and

then said,"I didn't say anything wrong."

Her words made Aron even more embarrassed and slightly annoyed. Confused and frowning by this

point, Charles attempted to clarify,"What's wrong with you?"

"Let me tell you," intervened Isla. She then sighed and continued in an embarrassed tone as well,"The

last time she saw you, Amanda told me that when she grew up, she wanted to marry you. Aron then

asked her why, and guess what she answered?"