Chapter 17″ They are not yours
“Congratulations, Sir.” Enock said to his boss with a smile on his face.
Aaron’s happiness was contagious as he celebrated the news. He walked towards the visitor’s lounge, got down on his knees and embraced the other two kids all while carrying Willa in his arms.
Something exploded in his chest and he felt overwhelmed with emotions. He couldn’t believe it! Everything felt surreal. Tessa whom he thought he would never see again was back in the City and she had his children. His heart soared as he thought about how the woman he loved was also the mother of his three children.
Three! At once!
What a blessing it was!
“You’re mine. You’re my kids,” Aaron confirmed, his voice choking as he suddenly thought of how he had missed out on the most important parts of their lives.
He was never there when they were born. He didn’t hold them or change their diapers. He didn’t put them to sleep or experience being a first-time Dad.
His heart clenched as he held the three children and he ended up shading tears. He couldn’t protect his children and that’s because he wasn’t told about them! ‘Did Tessa hide my kids to punish me? If that was her aim, then she achieved her goal.”
The pain that Aaron felt at not being a part of his children’s lives was beyond description.
“I’m so sorry. Daddy is so sorry. I didn’t know about you.”
He really felt like shit. He was sure it appeared as if he had abandoned his kids when he was never one to shirk his responsibilities.
Aaron let go of the kids so he could take a good look at them. Seeing how Nia and Reagan resembled him and how Willa resembled her mother, warmth spread through his chest. However, the kids were not used to him so they weren’t as sentimental as him. More tears rolled down his cheeks when they looked at him as though he was a stranger.
‘I can’t believe Tessa had my children and didn’t tell me about them. I had a right to know!”
At the same time, Willa’s eyes watered when she saw her father crying. She wiped his face with her chubby fingers, asking, “Don’t cry, Daddy. Why are you crying? Did someone bully you too? Don’t worry. Willa will protect you.”
Aaron chuckled and took her small hand in his. He shook his head, his heart feeling full as he said, “No, I’m just happy to have found you.”
Reagan who was quiet glanced at Aaron, inquiring, “Are you really our Daddy?”
Aaron ruffled his hair and surprisingly, the little boy didn’t get angry like he usually does.
“I am your Daddy. When we went to the hospital earlier and the nice nurse swabbed the inside of your cheeks and mine, that’s when I found out you are my children.”
ey are no
Reagan frowned and crossed his arms, throwing Aaron a series of questions. “Then why don’t you live with us if you’re our real Daddy? Shouldn’t mommies and daddies live together? What do you mean you didn’t know about us? How can a daddy not know he has kids?”
Aaron was at a loss for words. He noticed how Reagan was too smart for his age. He didn’t know how to explain everything to the kids because he didn’t want to put Tessa in a bad light. If the kids still longed for him, it meant Tessa had not bad-mouthed him in front of them so naturally, he wouldn’t make her look bad in front of the kids.
He smiled at them before replying, “Let’s wait for Mommy to explain, ok? For now, I’m just happy that I found you. I promise to be there for you and make up for lost time.”
Aaron was already making plans of how he would spoil his kids and spend time with them.
“However, Reagan’s brows furrowed more. He still thought Aaron didn’t like them and that’s why he didn’t stay
with them.
“Where’s our mommy? We would like to go home now,” he stated.
Aaron saw that Reagan and Nia were still reserved towards him so he decided to wait for Tessa to come and
tell them about him.
He sighed and looked up at Enock, “Bring the car around, I’ll take them to see Tessa at the mall.”
Meanwhile, Tessa had just received a call from Miss Smith, the kindergarten’s principal. Her heart jumped to her throat as she feared that something may have happened to the children at school.
“Hello?” She quickly picked up, her stomach knotting.
“Hello, Miss Hilton. I’m calling to inform you that something happened at school. Willa was bullied and in return, Reagan hit the bully in the face. Both of them didn’t follow the rules so I’ve suspended them-”
“What? Oh my god! I’m on my way!”
“Wait. I’m not done. The kids are no longer at the school.”
Tessa stopped in her tracks when she heard that and her heart sank to her stomach.
“Where are they? Did Mr Jackson pick them up already?”
“No. They called their father. He’s the one who took them.”
Tessa almost fainted. Her stomach churned violently as she shouted at the principal. “What father? How could you be so careless? Didn’t you see that I didn’t include their father when registering for the school? How could you let my kids go with a stranger just like that?”
“Miss Hilton, the man who claimed to be their father was Aaron Wentworth-”
“What?! How dare you give my kids to that man?! I brought them to your school thinking you’re responsible but you’re so careless! No one else apart from my mother is listed as my children’s guardian. However, you agreed to let them go with a man who could steal them from me. You shall be hearing from my lawyer soon! I’m suing you for negligence!”
Tessa cut the call before Miss Smith could reply. She dashed out of her office like a missile that had been launched from the ground. Her heart was in her throat as she rushed to the Wentworth group. She didn’t remember Aaron’s line so she couldn’t call him and she had no time to go through the contract to get his line.
The whole time she drove to the company, her stomach kept twisting with nerves. ‘How dare he get my kids! They are mine alone! Where was he when I carried them for nine months until I gave birth to them?’
It didn’t take long for her to reach the company. She didn’t even talk to the receptionist at the entrance and rushed into the elevator immediately.
Arriving at the top floor, she bumped into Nora Miller, her former junior. Nora’s eyes widened upon seeing Tessa and she opened her mouth to speak.
“Tessa! Long time-”
However, Tessa wasn’t in the mood to talk about old times. She quickly dismissed Nora with a short greeting and ran in the CEO’s office direction, barging into the room the moment she reached the door.
The moment she entered, she found the kids walking alongside Aaron as they approached the door. Willa was very comfortably seated on Aaron’s arm while her head was on his shoulder.
Seeing this, Tessa saw red. Her nostrils flared as anger rushed through her. Smoke could be seen coming out
of her ears. She was furious!
“What are you doing, Mr Wentworth? Why did you get my kids?!” She spat and moved forward before grabbing
Willa from Aaron’s arms.
She then pulled her two children to her side and stood in front of them. Her eyes were bloodshot and she was breathing heavily as she glared at Aaron.
Seeing how defensive she was, Aaron’s brows furrowed. “Tessa, they are my kids too. You don’t have to act as if I kidnapped them or caused them harm. Please, don’t treat me like a criminal. I just want to get to know my kids. They are my flesh and blood.”
“Who told you they are your kids? They are not yours!” Tessa hissed as she glared at Aaron. Panic and worry completely filled her and she couldn’t think straight.
What she had been afraid of had happened. Aaron finally met her kids and now he would fight with her for
custody.
Aaron was a powerful man so she knew she would be fighting a losing battle. However, Tessa was determined to protect her children. She could never hand over her kids to be raised by Serena!
Tessa’s words pierced through Aaron’s heart like a sharp knife. He had no choice but to take out the DNA test result and show it to her.
“I had a test done. This is the evidence that these kids are mine. You can’t keep them from me, Tessa. They
are mine too.”
Although Aaron was upset that she had hidden his children, he couldn’t bring himself to be angry at her because he was partly at fault. If he didn’t treat her like shit back then, she wouldn’t have kept the news of her
pregnancy a secret.
3/4
Tessa wanted to say a lot of things. To remind him of how he treated her as a substitute and told her he didn’t want unwanted surprises. She wanted to tell him he gave her a cheque as if she was some whore he had picked in the street. Someone he paid after he was done having fun. But with her children behind, she held her tongue, not wanting them to hear the matters between adults.
The only thing she could do was shoot daggers at Aaron with her eyes. Recalling his words of him saying she can’t keep the kids from him, she sneered and said, “Watch me.”
She led the two children out while carrying Willa. Her chest felt stuffy and she kind of felt guilty that she was keeping her children from their father but she didn’t want anything to do with Aaron.
He was someone who could ignore her when she mentioned her mother had cancer and she needed help. Tessa didn’t think he was capable of accepting children that were born outside marriage and from a woman he didn’t love.
It didn’t take long for Tessa to drive home. The ride back was quiet. The kids didn’t say anything. They obediently sat in their car seats, knowing their mother was very angry this time.
The moment they all entered their house. Tessa turned sharply to look at her kids. However, she immediately stopped herself from scolding them when she saw the sad look on their faces.
Her heart ached and intense guilt crept into her.
Reagan’s eyes watered as he stared at their mother.
“Mommy, is that man really our Daddy?”
Tessa sighed. She rubbed her temples and got down on her haunches. Looking at her adorable kids, she
realised she couldn’t keep them in the dark anymore. She inhaled sharply and answered. “Yes. He is your
Daddy.”
“But why doesn’t he live with us?”
“Mommy and your Daddy have some issues. He can never live with us. Don’t you like Uncle Harry? Would you like him to be your Daddy?”
Tessa was desperate and at that moment she had decided that she would try her best to make it work with Harry to give her kids a complete home.
However, the little ones frowned and chorused. “No! We want our Daddy!”
Reagan huffed and crossed his arms. “Uncle Harry is Uncle Harry. And Daddy is Daddy, Mommy. They are not the same.”
