Chapter 38

He grabbed his jacket and put it on before picking his phone from the table and after looking around to make sure he forgot nothing, he walked out of his office and met Emily waiting for him.

He arrived at the restaurant and immediately sighted the Miss Lauren at a table. He recognized her immediately because she was a popular figure.

" Hello " He said when he got to the table. She looked up from her phone and a slightly surprised look crossed over features

" Hi " She replied with a warm smile.

If Alex could guess correctly, she should be in her late 30s or so. She was a brunette of average height and her high bone cheeks looked outstanding. She was beautiful in a wild way. Enough assessment, Alex thought and focused on what brought him to the restaurant.

" Did I keep you waiting? Have you been here for long? " He asked politely and slowly withdrew his hand from hers because it seemed she wasn't ready to let go of him.

Lauren noticed that her touch made him feel uncomfortable and he probably thought it was unprofessional but she didn't give a damn. The pictures she had seen of him didn't do any justice to his good looks. The guy was strikingly handsome, she thought to herself, getting attracted to him already.

" Not at all, I just got here myself. Have a seat please " She replied in a polite tone too.

Once they were seated, Alex got down to business and brought out some documents. He handed them to her and while he waited for her to finish going through the documents, he busied himself with his phone. He knew it wasn't professional to use his phone in the middle of something like that but he couldn't help it. He didn't know what else to stare at and definitely didn't want to send the wrong message by staring at her.

" Okay, I'm cool with the terms and conditions " Lauren announced and passed the documents back for him to sign his part. Alex exhaled a sigh of relief and he smiled at her genuinely.

" Thank you so much, I promise I'll never disappoint or make you regret working with my company " He vowed and signed his part.

" I hope you won't " Lauren replied in a seductive voice and Alex knew she meant much more than just the partnership. He pretended not to understand what she meant and put up his hand for a shake in which Lauren took eagerly.

" Welcome to being partners with the King's Company. I'm looking forward to working with you " He said with a professional smile.

" Same here " She replied and took his extended hand.

There was that wild smile again, Alex thought and pushed it out of his mind, hoping the woman wouldn't try anything unprofessional because he had so much on his hands already, and he wasn't ready to deal with a woman again. He excused himself not long after the lunch and Lauren promised to give him a call and discuss some more. He was so happy with the successful deal and was excited to go home early.

With that lingering thought, he went back to the office and got to work immediately. He wanted to be done with his schedule on time so he could go home and he did just that. On getting home, he eagerly looked around for a particular petite lady but it seemed she had vanished into thin air because he found no traces of her at all. He looked everywhere in search for her and when he didn't see her, he finally asked Maggie even though she was the last person he wanted to ask about Ava. He knew the old lady was full of mischief and with how she had bonded with Ava so well, he knew she was on her side.

" Hey Maggie " He said when he saw her at her usual place, the kitchen.

The old lady looked up and smiled at him brightly " Hi Alex, you're home early " She remarked and without waiting for an answer, she drew him into a hug. Alex hugged her back and closed his eyes, feeling the motherly love seeped into him, the love he had not felt in a long time. It's been long they shared a moment like that and it was because of the accident. After the terrible incident happened and Alex couldn't talk, he refused to let anyone come close to him except Ava.

He remembered the reason he came there in the first place and slowly, he disentangled himself from the woman.

" I've been looking for Ava, do you have any idea where she might be? " He asked and was starting to get worried.

Maggie nodded with a smile " Of course I do, she went to Jack's place to babysit Liam. He would have brought Liam over here but that kid can be stubborn at times " She sighed and continued " He refused, saying he wouldn't come here so Jack asked Ava to come over "

Alex nodded in understanding " Thanks Maggie, I'll head over there now " He informed Maggie and in a blink of an eye, he got the car ready and was on his way to his brother's place. He got there within 15 minutes and pulled up on the driveway. He didn't know why seeing Ava again excited him that much but heck, it did.

He rang the doorbell and waited. When he got no response after a minute, he rang it again and waited still. When he got no response this time too, he punched in the password and went in. His mouth dropped open at the sight which greeted him. Everywhere was a mess as toys were scattered on the floor. He neither saw Ava nor Liam in sight and he frowned, wondering where they could be. He ran upstairs to Liam's room but it was empty so he got even more confused.