Con

CHAPTER 48

Elijah’s POV

I froze. Now I’m going to find out if Reese’s mother is Sophia…

My heart raced as I turned slowly, scanning the area, half–expecting to see Sophia’s familiar face. rushing toward us. Instead, I saw the woman from the restaurant, the same one who had been with the little girl.

My face fell. I was greatly disappointed.

I don’t know why, but I always thought it would be Sophia. Maybe it’s because Reese looked so much like her, but it was probably just a coincidence.

The woman hurried over, her eyes filled with concern. Reese’s little arms wrapped around my neck in a tight hug. “Take care of the little one,” I told the mom. “I think she was lost earlier, so’l stayed with

her.”

“Thank you,” she said, almost breathlessly. She hoisted Reese onto her hip and began to walk away, clearly in a hurry.

As they moved further away, I overheard her soft voice ask Reese, “Where’s Dan?”

The question stopped me in my tracks. Dan? Who was Dan?

“I talked to your Uncle Dan,” I heard the woman say “He turned around to buy you that balloon you wanted, but then you suddenly disappeared. He’s been looking all over the park for you. Both of us were so worried!”

“Oh!” Reese exclaimed. Then she suddenly began shouting. “Uncle Dan! I’m here!”

I looked around but I didn’t see anyone coming closer. Perhaps they were meeting him somewhere. I wondered if this could be Daniel, Sophia’s friend. Just then, the Paris scenarios involving all of us flashed back in my mind.

Could this be Sophia and Daniel’s child? I wondered in alarm. But why is it that I feel so drawn to the little girl?

For some reason, I started walking behind them, intending to follow them and see for myself if it was really Daniel they were meeting. Maybe Sophia would even be with him!

For a while, though, I paused, shaking my head. You’ve already proven that this is the mother, not Sophia, a voice in my head told me. But my heart seemed to whisper otherwise. Maybe I’m just being paranoid.

It was then that my stepmom Morgana called. “Hello Elijah! Where are you?” she demanded to know. Serena told me we already have a designer for my luxury resort idea. I want to see the final proposal that was selected. I’m here in your office now.”

“Oh, really?” I was surprised. My eyes followed the diminishing figures of Reese and her mother, and I felt torn. But of course, it was stupid to be so suspicious. Hence, I eventually decided to go back to the office building to meet Morgana.

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The office was almost deserted when I got back. It was past working hours, after all.

“Elijah, dear! What took you so long?” Morgana exclaimed. “I’ve been waiting for ages.” But she didn’t even look up. She stood near the large drafting table, a thoughtful expression on her face as she examined two design layouts side by side.

“Two designs for the upcoming development,” she said, lifting one slightly. “Both have their strengths and weaknesses, but this one,” she held up the design in her hand, “is better in comparison.”

I felt a twist in my gut as I recognized the layout she praised. It was Sophia’s, not Julia’s.

Before I could gather my thoughts, Morgana continued, “The use of color, the composition, it’s striking. It’s clear she has a natural talent. And all the details are quite thorough. Plus, I think the designer clearly understands what’s needed by the target market. This is wonderful!”

I took a deep breath, masking my surprise. “Yes, it is impressive,” I admitted, walking closer to get a better look. Indeed Sophia had done a fantastic job, and I began to wonder if I’d made a huge mistake by choosing Julia’s work over hers just because I got pissed off at Chris’s attention toward her.

With the issue of plagiarism being investigated now, it’s even more complicated. But nevertheless, I could still change my final decision.

“I like that one too,” I finally remarked, a mischievous smile playing on my lips. “But this designer doesn’t have much experience, and I’m not sure you’ll want her to take on this project.”

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