CHAPTER 159: CHAPTER 160: SOMEONE STROKES TREASURED IDEA

Owen Hunter’s son, Little George, had turned two. He was chubby-cheeked, adorable, had started learning to talk, and was already a sweet-talker. Adrian Desmond and his friends all loved him.

"Uncle Desmond!" Little George looked at Adrian Desmond and called out happily.

"Good boy!" Adrian Desmond, who rarely smiled, stroked the child’s smooth little face. "Uncle brought you a gift and had the servant take it to your room. Go see if you like it. If not, I’ll buy you something else."

"Thank you, Uncle!" Little George beamed.

"He’s been asking me when Uncle Desmond would get here," Aria Harris said with a laugh.

Owen Hunter’s wife, Aria Harris, was beautiful and gentle as water—clearly a woman suited for home and hearth.

"Little George, call me Uncle too! I bought you a birthday present as well," Dan Taylor chimed in, leaning closer. But the little fellow didn’t like Dan Taylor; he ducked into his mother’s arms, snubbing him completely.

Dan Taylor looked embarrassed. He scratched his nose and said, "What’s wrong? Why doesn’t Little George like me? Is it because I’m too handsome and he feels intimidated?"

The others were silent.

"Don’t feel intimidated," Dan continued. "I know it’s stressful to think you might grow up to look like me!"

Everyone was speechless.

Owen Hunter said, "You reek so strongly of women’s perfume and cosmetics that my son doesn’t like you. I’m begging you, can you please change your clothes next time you come to see my son?"

"Oh, come on! He can’t even stand the scent of women’s cosmetics? How’s he going to pick up girls when he grows up?" Dan Taylor rattled on. "And Owen, no offense, but why’d you nickname him ’Little Stone’? Stones are tough and stinky! What woman will like a ’stone’ when he grows up?"

Aria Harris chimed in, "I’ve said the same thing. I wonder what woman will ever be able to crack open this tough, stinky stone of his."

Owen Hunter got defensive. "Who says my son is tough and stinky? He’s soft and sweet-smelling! Come here, son, give Daddy a kiss."

But the little fellow wasn’t having it, refusing even his own father.

"You little rascal!" Owen exclaimed.

"Uncle," Little George said, reaching out his arms to Adrian Desmond. Adrian picked him up, gently patted his bottom, and chuckled, "Little George, you’ve put on some weight..."

Aria Harris added, "He’s had a huge appetite lately."

Owen Hunter looked wounded. "Hey, Little George, I’m your real dad!"

"Uncle, I like you the most!" Little George declared.

Owen Hunter’s face fell.

Seeing her husband looking crestfallen, Aria Harris comforted him, "It’s just childish talk, dear. Children don’t mean what they say; don’t take it to heart."

Dan Taylor, enjoying the spectacle, chimed in, "Little George, why do you like Uncle Desmond the most?"

"Because Uncle Desmond is handsome, and the baby sister he’ll have will be pretty too! When I grow up, I want to marry Uncle Desmond’s baby sister!"

Adrian Desmond’s face darkened, but the gloom on Owen Hunter’s face vanished instantly. Owen pinched his son’s cheek and praised, "Attaboy, son! You’ve got good taste! Knowing how to suck up to your future father-in-law at such a young age—you’ve got a bright future!"

Then, turning to Adrian, Owen said, "Adrian, if Mai has a daughter, how about our families become joined by marriage?"

"Mai and I are having a son!" Adrian Desmond retorted. "But if you and Aria have another daughter, and my son takes a liking to her, I might consider letting him marry her!" He wasn’t about to let Owen get the better of him!

"How do you know for sure it’s a son?" Owen pressed. "What if it’s a girl?"

Adrian Desmond had never considered that possibility. Mai had run away, so he’d never had the chance to find out their baby’s gender. He recalled that when Sienna Johnson had been four months pregnant, the gender could have been determined, but with Mai gone, he’d lost that opportunity for his own child.

"Exactly, it’s a fifty-fifty chance for a boy or a girl," Aria Harris chimed in with a laugh. "Adrian, you might actually have a daughter, you know. Daughters are lovely; I always wanted one myself."

Adrian Desmond scoffed, "No matter how wonderful a daughter is, she’ll eventually belong to another family once she grows up. If you like daughters so much, Aria, just have more sons. Let your sons bring home a few daughters-in-law for you."

Aria was left speechless.

"Adrian, it’s settled then!" Owen Hunter declared. "If Mai has a daughter, Little George calls dibs!"

Adrian Desmond glanced at Owen and Aria’s scheming faces and said haughtily, "Mai is so beautiful and intelligent. Any daughter she has would likely be out of Little George’s league."

"Are you implying my son is as hopeless as you were?" Owen Hunter shot back, miffed.

Seeing an argument brewing, Dan Taylor quickly jumped in with a grin, "If Adrian isn’t willing, Little George can consider one of our family’s daughters. Our girls are very cute!"

Aria Harris wasn’t amused. "Dealing with one mother-in-law is more than enough hassle! If he really married a daughter from your family, wouldn’t my son end up with a whole flock of mothers-in-law?"

In Orienta, mothers-in-law were known to be formidable.

"PFFT..." Trevor Harrington couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Oni then interjected, "Isn’t Jule’s wife pregnant too?"

Oni’s question made everyone visibly uncomfortable. "Hey, why did you all go quiet?" he asked. "Oh, right, why isn’t Jule here?"

Oni had just returned after two years of studying abroad and was unaware of what Jule had done. In truth, ever since they found out Jule had used a fake Mai to scheme against Adrian Desmond, the group had ostracized him from their circle of friends.

Dan Taylor dropped his usual playful demeanor and said gravely, "Jule isn’t the Jule we used to know. We don’t associate with him anymore."

"What happened?" Oni asked, completely bewildered, having no idea what had transpired during his two years away.

Adrian Desmond handed Little George back to Aria Harris. "I have some business to attend to, so I’ll be leaving now," he said.

"Hey, you just arrived! Stay for dinner before you go," Owen Hunter called after him.

But Adrian Desmond didn’t stay.

Oni scratched his head. "Did I say something I shouldn’t have?"

"Just don’t mention Jule in front of Adrian Desmond again, okay?" Dan Taylor advised.

"Why not?" Oni asked.

"Because Jule is a piece of shit!" Dan Taylor said mercilessly.

Ultimately, Jule’s parents divorced.

It turned out Adrian Desmond had spent a fortune to have Amy Field surgically altered to be the spitting image of Yasmine, Jule’s father’s beloved woman. He had even hired people acquainted with Yasmine to teach Amy Field how to mimic Yasmine’s every frown and smile. Through Adrian’s machinations, the woman Jule had intended to foist upon Adrian was, in effect, repackaged and delivered right back to Jule’s own family.

Just as Adrian had anticipated, Amy Field successfully became Jule’s stepmother. What Adrian found even more amusing was that she had also managed to get pregnant, positioning herself to contend with Jule for the family inheritance.

Jule’s father was utterly captivated by Amy Field. Consequently, Jule’s own standing in the family became precarious, and he was too preoccupied with his own problems to cause trouble for others.

After hearing the full story of the feud between Adrian Desmond and Jule, Oni asked with lingering fear, "Hey, hey, I didn’t offend Adrian just now, did I? Please tell me he’s not going to find a stepmother for me too! I really don’t want one!"

It was clear: one could afford to offend anyone else, but never Adrian Desmond!