Desire Me If You Can-Chapter 9

Koi quickly pressed the buttons on his phone.

In fact, Ashley always conveyed news like this to Koi. He would then spread it to the whole family right away. As Ashley had expected, Koi was once again quickly making calls to share this information.

“...They’re not picking up. Are they in court? Grayson’s going to be a firefighter! He’s looking for new people, doing good things... It’s such a great development, right? Stay healthy and come by once in a while to show your face. Love you.”

After leaving a voicemail on the first son’s phone, which sounded just like Ashley, Koi dialed the number of his first daughter and third child, Stacey.

What? A firefighter? Grayson? That idiot?

However, as soon as she heard the news, Stacey burst into laughter. Koi blinked in confusion, surprised by the reaction. When he didn’t get the response he wanted, he hastily wrapped up the conversation and ended the call after saying, “Love you.”

Then, the next call. This one made him hesitate a bit. The recipient was Chase. It had not been long since Koi had patched things up with Chase. In fact, though they had reconciled, it was hardly a complete recovery. They only exchanged a few words now and then, barely enough to qualify as a conversation. Still, Koi was grateful for even that.

“Phew.”

Before calling Chase, Koi took a deep breath to calm himself and checked the time in the West.

It’s fine, now’s the right time.

He nodded to himself, gathered his composure, and pressed the button on his phone. He waited with bated breath, and when the line finally connected, he almost screamed out loud when he heard the voice.

“Uh, um, hey. It’s me, Chase. How’ve you been?”

The joy he had felt vanished in an instant when he heard only a terse word from the other end in response to Koi’s nervous voice.

Why.

“Uh...”

Koi squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, then opened them and struggled to say the next words.

“Well, Grayson’s going to be a firefighter. And Ashley’s helping him get a job, so...”

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

Despite his difficulty in speaking, there was no response from the other side. Koi, feeling an ominous silence, hesitantly opened his mouth.

“Uh, Chase...”

Before he could finish the sentence, Chase cut him off with a cold remark laced with swear words.

What the hell is that crazy bastard trying to do now?

“What?”

Koi asked in shock, but Chase had already hung up the phone. Koi stood stunned, staring at the phone, but nothing changed. The conversation ended abruptly, and he sighed as he reflected. Surely, Chase would tell his partner Joshua about this. After all, the most important people in Chase’s life were Joshua and the kids.

It’s good.

Koi smiled faintly as he thought of it. It was a relief that one of his children, just like him, had found someone to spend their life with. In fact, Koi had worried the most about Chase among all his children. But what was surprising was that Chase was the first one to find a partner. Following him, the other children had also found their loves one by one and were leading stable lives. Except for Grayson.

Isn’t it cruel? The one who spent his whole life searching for his one true love was Grayson, yet he’s the only one still alone.

I hope someone shows up for him soon.

After briefly wishing, Koi silently added to himself. Even if he doesn’t find someone, it would be great if Grayson could awaken to “humanity” by helping others this time around. Even if he hadn’t been born with it, he could still learn. It wouldn’t be an easy process, but just like he finally learned “sociality,” he could do it.

With that thought, he continued to make calls to the other children. Their reactions varied, but Koi was certain they all felt the same. They would all wish for Grayson to find his destined partner quickly.

Because our children are all angels.

Though it wasn’t exactly a normal thought, Koi chose to ignore it. Unaware of the dark clouds looming over him, he remained blissfully unaware of what was to come.

The news of the Miller family troublemaker spread throughout the fire station within half a day. Of course, the response wasn’t exactly favorable. It was only natural. Everyone here had gone through difficult procedures and serious training to become firefighters, yet someone had been brought in through family connections without even a basic fitness test, not even during a hiring period.

They were certain that the person was there simply because it looked cool or for a fleeting thrill. And if things didn’t meet expectations, he’d run away, pretending nothing had happened. This was a dangerous job, one where lives were on the line, but they did it with pride, serving the community. Who {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} would welcome the tarnishing of their sacred profession due to the whims of a rich kid?

As a result, the employees in the fitness room looked ready to explode. It seemed as if they would not let anyone off lightly if they were to cross their path. The fire chief, sensing the tension in the air, wiped the cold sweat off his back and tried to continue.

“Well, since it’s happened, let’s just think of it as something normal. It’s only for a year, after all. Think of it as serving the citizens. Miller is a citizen too, and he pays a huge amount of taxes. Right?”

He added the last part as if seeking agreement, but the response was cold.

“It’s not serving the citizens; it’s just being a plaything for the citizens. Why should we be the ones to play along when we’re already busy responding to calls?”

One of the employees raised his hand and asked, but it was clear that his intent was to mock the whole situation. The fire chief, understanding this, suppressed his frustration and answered in a calm tone.

“Just think of it as a new volunteer firefighter. You can consider it a part-time job if you want.”

Of course, no one accepted this explanation. Even volunteer firefighters had to go through training nearly as rigorous as full-time staff. It was not a job where anyone could come and go lightly. They too had responsibilities and duties after undergoing considerable training. The growing cold silence finally made the fire chief awkwardly smile and quickly change the subject.

“Well, well, since Miller is coming, let’s throw a welcome party. Let’s all have a drink and get to know each other. It’ll be great, right? After drinking and chatting, we’ll all get along better. Ah, they say extreme alphas don’t get drunk, but... well, if we pour enough, who knows? Haha! Everyone make sure to show up, alright?”

The so-called “joyous welcome party” was met with no response, but the chief still urged them one last time before hurriedly telling them where the bar was and rushing off.

Once the door closed, the air inside turned cold. After a long silence, someone who couldn’t take it anymore raised their voice.

“Is this even reasonable? They’re not even officially hired, and they’re coming in without a fitness test?”

The man sitting on the bench press stood up, furious. Soon, a chorus of complaints erupted from all sides.

“This is ridiculous! It’s unfair, it goes against the principles of fairness!”

“That arrogant bastard, he probably didn’t even take the firefighter qualification test.”

“We should all have equal opportunities. This is a loophole. I guess that’s what happens when you come from a slimy lawyer family.”

“Three generations of them, that damn Miller law firm!”

“Even if Miller becomes president, he can’t just act this way, we’re in America!”

“Miller’s not the president, he’s just a lawyer!”

“He’s a senator, but it’s the Miller law firm that’s behind him!”

The grievances slowly died down, and eventually, silence returned. Yes, this was America. A country where money could buy anything. And if you owned one of the top law firms in North America for three generations, was there really anything you couldn’t do? Moreover, the Miller family was now branching out into politics. In the eyes of many, America was already in their grasp.