Chapter 8
774 Words
Emma thought the day would be normal.
It wasn’t.
Not even close.
From the moment the little girl sat beside her at the office, she refused to leave.
She clung to Emma’s hand like she had known her forever.
“What’s your name?” Emma asked softly.
The child smiled brightly.
“Lia.”
Emma smiled back. “Lia… that’s pretty.”
Lia nodded proudly. “Daddy chose it.”
Emma glanced toward the boss, who was sitting at his desk, reviewing files as if nothing unusual was happening.
Same cold expression.
Same distant aura.
But now… there was a child in the picture.
And somehow, that changed nothing about him.
And everything at the same time.
Throughout the day, Lia talked nonstop.
“This is my daddy’s office.”
“That man is scary but he gives me sweets sometimes.”
“I don’t like when he works too much.”
Emma laughed softly. “He works a lot?”
Lia nodded seriously. “Too much. He forgets to smile.”
Emma paused slightly at that.
Forget to smile…
That sounded familiar.
By midday, Lia had completely taken over Emma’s space.
She sat on her lap.
Tugged her hair.
Pointed at her screen.
“Can you draw?”
“A little,” Emma said.
“Draw me!”
Emma chuckled and opened a sketch pad, quickly drawing a small cartoon version of Lia.
Lia gasped.
“That’s me!”
“Yes.”
“It’s beautiful!”
Emma smiled.
Something warm settled in her chest.
Strange… but nice.
A few minutes later—
Lia suddenly stood up and ran across the office.
“Daddy!”
The entire room went quiet again.
The boss looked up from his documents.
“Yes?”
“I want Emma to stay with us!”
Emma froze.
“Huh?”
Lia ran back and grabbed Emma’s hand again.
“She should stay! She’s nice!”
A few people exchanged glances.
Emma’s face immediately turned red.
“Lia—no, I can’t—”
But the child wasn’t done.
“She can be my mummy!”
Silence.
Complete silence.
Emma’s soul left her body for a second.
“Lia!” Emma whispered quickly. “No, I’m not—”
The boss slowly leaned back in his chair.
His expression didn’t change much.
But something in his eyes shifted slightly.
“Enough,” he said calmly.
Lia pouted immediately. “But I like her.”
“I said enough.”
The tone was firm.
Final.
Lia crossed her arms.
Emma looked between them awkwardly.
Then—
A pause.
The boss exhaled slowly.
And unexpectedly—
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
“Stop picking random people as replacements,” he said quietly.
Lia frowned. “She’s not random.”
That earned a short glance from him.
But he didn’t argue further.
Instead—
“Emma,” he said.
“Yes, sir?”
“Thank you.”
Emma blinked.
“…you’re welcome?”
He didn’t explain.
Just turned back to his work.
Later That Evening
The office was finally quiet.
Lia had fallen asleep in Emma’s arms.
Emma carefully sat her on the couch in the private lounge area, covering her with a small jacket.
She didn’t want to leave.
Strangely.
She kept watching her.
That small face.
That innocent smile.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Emma whispered softly.
Across the building—
The boss stood in his private study.
Silent.
Still.
He walked toward a shelf and stopped.
A framed picture sat there.
A woman.
Beautiful.
Warm smile.
Soft eyes.
Emma froze for a moment—this was the first time anything about his personal life was visible.
He stared at the photo for a long time.
Too long.
Then—
A memory hit.
Fire.
Smoke.
Chaos.
A scream.
Hands reaching.
A blurred voice calling his name.
And then—
Silence.
His jaw tightened slightly.
He looked away.
Expression returning to cold control.
But his hand stayed on the frame for a moment longer than usual.
Then he placed it back.
Quietly.
Carefully.
Like it still mattered.
Meanwhile
Emma stepped out of the building later that night.
But her mind wasn’t on home.
It was on Lia.
On her smile.
On her voice.
On the way she called her name like she already belonged to her.
Emma shook her head slightly.
“What is happening…” she whispered.
But deep down—
She already knew something was changing.
And she was starting to look forward to work.
For the first time…
Because of a child.
And maybe—
Just maybe—
Because of her boss too.
- Writer
