Chapter 505
Three years later, Olive is back! Elvis glanced at Aiden, asking, "What do you mean?"
Aiden chuckled, "These past years, you raised Nathan, young master. It's called a father-son relationship. Your life has been… a mess. Nathan grew up in difficult circumstances, lacking maternal love since infancy; hence his autism and silence."
Elvis's handsome eyebrows furrowed, his gaze cold as he swept it towards Aiden. Aiden, ever cunning, sensed the shift and quickly said, "Young master, I have work to attend to. I'll leave." He departed respectfully.
Elvis watched Aiden go, a cold snort escaping his lips. He placed his glass of water on the table with a sharp clack, turned, and went upstairs. He showered, emerging minutes later in black silk pajamas, his damp hair glistening. The water droplets on his skin gave him a youthful appearance, but the coldness in his eyes remained. His mood was foul.
He entered Nathan's room—formerly an infant's room—finding his son fast asleep. Nathan, who had slept alone since he was very young, lay with a flushed face, showing the tender immaturity of a three-year-old. He stirred slightly, causing the small bells hanging above his crib to jingle merrily. Elvis remembered hanging those bells; little Nathan had loved them. He recalled the sleepless nights, the frantic attempts to coax his son to drink milk. Finally, the bells' sound had elicited Nathan's first smile, a tiny, teary chuckle from his toothless mouth.
Elvis sat beside the crib, gently caressing Nathan's face. The child had grown so quickly. Could even a father's devotion replace a mother's love? Nathan's smile at the bells, Elvis realized, had shown a deep yearning for his mother. Aiden's earlier words—his grandmother's lament at the Red Villa regarding Elvis's self-neglect—echoed in his mind.
He covered Nathan with a blanket, regret washing over him. He shouldn't have had this son three years ago. The difficulties of raising a child alone at thirty were compounded by his own self-destruction, impacting Nathan as well. He knew Nathan's autism and silence were directly linked to his own struggles. He felt hopeless, standing on the balcony, the cold wind whipping against his pajamas. He couldn't even fix himself, let alone his son. He shouldn't have wanted Nathan three years ago.
Three years earlier, after surviving a knife attack, Elvis's father, Alpha, had presented him with newborn Nathan, claiming him as his own. The sudden arrival of a son he hadn't expected was jarring. While everyone assumed Elvis craved a child, a biological heir, he secretly longed only for a child with that woman. But Alpha had provided a DNA test confirming paternity and revealing Nathan's mother: Olive. Alpha explained, "Elvis, I told you there'd be no happy ending with Olive; she would leave and return home. You were seriously injured, likely never wanting marriage or children. But our family needed an heir, so I froze Olive's egg and used your genes with a surrogate." He pointed out Nathan's eyes, identical to Olive's. That first sight of his son, whose eyes mirrored Olive's, had been profound.
Three years passed, and each time Elvis looked at Nathan, he wondered about the child Olive lost, if it would have resembled Nathan. Nathan had become a source of solace, a replacement for the past. Despite their struggles, they comforted and relied on each other.
Then, a melodious ringtone interrupted his thoughts. It was Peterson. "Young master," Peterson's deep voice boomed, "North Paulo picked up someone at the airport…"
"Who?" Elvis demanded, his pupils contracting.
"Olive Hart! Young master, Olive is back!"
Three years of relative peace were shattered. Peterson sensed an impending storm; this reunion would have devastating consequences.
"Young master…" Peterson hesitated. "Are you alright?"
Elvis hung up. At the airport, Olive—North Paulo, in disguise—lowered her cap and sunglasses, trying to avoid recognition. In three years, she'd risen to the pinnacle of the entertainment world, starring in multiple hit dramas and garnering numerous awards and brand endorsements. At twenty-three, she was a top celebrity.