Prosperous Marriage: Married to My Brother-in-law-Chapter 742 - 741: The Inescapable Truth (4)_1

"Ivan's knocking again."

"Ignore him."

Outside the door, Jimmy Horne once again raised his little hand, knocking. He called out cautiously, "Aunt Mila, are you asleep?"

After his bath, the nanny had helped him get ready for bed, but he couldn't fall asleep. His mind kept replaying Noah Reyes's words. He desperately wanted to know if Noah Reyes was truly his daddy. If he didn't find out, he wouldn't be able to sleep. Also, where had Mommy gone? Why wasn't she in her room? When he asked the nanny, she just hemmed and hawed, which made him worry that something had happened to Mommy.

There was no response from inside the room. Had Aunt Mila fallen asleep? But Uncle should be in the room. Thinking this, Jimmy Horne decided to be a little bolder. He began knocking more forcefully, his voice louder as he called, "Aunt Mila, are you asleep? Uncle, can you open the door for me?"

The couple inside the room was surprised to hear Jimmy Horne's voice. They had thought it was that kid Ivan again.

"Aunt Mila, Uncle, could you open the door for me?" Jimmy Horne continued knocking, determined not to stop until the door opened.

"Billy, what's wrong?" Hearing the noise, Mila Anderson rushed over. She was curious to see her little grandson knocking on her son and daughter-in-law's door. She hurriedly approached, asking with concern, "Billy, everyone's resting now, why are you still here? And remember, don't disturb your Uncle and Aunt Mila at night, understand? Where's your nanny?" While speaking, Mila Anderson walked over to Jimmy and pulled him away, complaining, "What kind of nanny did they hire, not even knowing the child has left the room! Tomorrow, Grandma will talk to your mommy about getting you a new nanny."

"Grandma, it's not the nanny's fault, don't blame them. I have something I want to ask Uncle and Aunt Mila," Jimmy Horne insisted, taking full responsibility. This was entirely his idea; the nanny couldn't have stopped him, so he didn't want Grandma complaining to Mommy about his nannies.

"Oh? What do you want to ask your Uncle?" Mila Anderson paused, looking at her little grandson with an amused smile. "Whatever it is, you can ask your mommy. Oh, right, has your mommy come back yet?"

"I asked Mommy, but she said no. But Uncle said yes, and it doesn't seem like Uncle is lying," Jimmy Horne said, tilting his small face up to look at Mila Anderson, his expression earnest.

"Oh?" Mila Anderson raised her eyebrows. She took him back to her room and sat him on her bed, while she sat on the edge. Gently patting Jimmy's head, she smiled and said, "Billy, can you tell Grandma what you asked Mommy? And who is this Uncle? What did he say to you?" This was the first time, apart from his own relatives, she had heard her grandson use the term 'Uncle' for a male who wasn't a relative.

"Grandma, that Uncle said he was my daddy. I asked Mommy, and she said he wasn't, and told me not to see him again. Grandma, do you know who Billy's daddy is? Can you tell Billy? Is that man who looks a lot like Billy really Billy's daddy?" Jimmy Horne blinked, looking earnestly at Mila Anderson as he asked.

Upon hearing this, Mila Anderson was stunned. Then she denied it angrily, "No! He's a scoundrel, not your daddy! Your daddy is just as Mommy said: he went to work in a place far, far away, and he won't be back for three to five years." She harbored even more resentment and anger towards Noah Reyes than her daughter did; she was even more reluctant to let Billy acknowledge his biological father. Although her most beloved grandchild was Ivan Horne, Jimmy was also a grandson she had watched grow up. He was her daughter's treasured darling, her daughter's very life. How could she possibly be willing to see Billy taken away by his father?

"Grandma, why does everyone get so agitated when I bring up that Uncle?" Jimmy Horne's gaze sharpened, fixing intently on Mila Anderson.

Mila Anderson was startled again. She remembered her grandson was exceptionally intelligent, his mind far more mature than a typical four-year-old's. She quickly concealed her anger and said, "That's because Grandma is angry that some shameless person is impersonating your daddy."

"Grandma, our teacher said that children who lie aren't good children. Grandma, is that right?" Jimmy Horne put on an innocent expression, his face a picture of curiosity as he looked at Mila Anderson.

Mila Anderson smiled. "The teacher is right. Children who lie are indeed not good children."

"Grandma, what if adults lie in front of children? Should children follow their example?" Jimmy Horne's gaze once again took on an unfathomable depth.

Mila Anderson was stunned again. Her little grandson was subtly implying she was lying.

"Grandma, I miss Daddy. Even though I don't know what my daddy looks like, I really, really miss him." Jimmy Horne's expression shifted, becoming a mixture of pain and yearning. "I envy Brother Ivan. He has a mommy and a daddy, but Billy only has a mommy and no daddy."

Mila Anderson's heart clenched. Overcome with pity, she pulled her little grandson into her arms, sighing softly, "My poor child." Her eyes began to redden. She remembered that when her little grandson was only six months old, he could already say 'Daddy.' He would call everyone he met 'Daddy,' which deeply saddened the adults around them. Once he started walking, he could already speak quite well. Hearing Ivan call Glades 'Daddy,' he also followed suit. Patiently but helplessly, Glades would correct him, telling him he should say 'Uncle,' not 'Daddy.'

As he got a little older, learned to read, and began to understand more about the world, he started asking where his daddy had gone and why he couldn't see him.

When he was sent to kindergarten, some spiteful classmates discovered he didn't have a daddy. They mocked him, saying he had a mommy but no daddy, calling him a 'child of unknown parentage.' He would then come home every day asking if he truly was a 'child of unknown parentage.' His questions pained Adele deeply. She had no choice but to invent lies to pacify him, and only then did he sensibly stop asking.

Glades then put pressure on the school and the parents of those spiteful children. From then on, no one dared to call Billy a 'child of unknown parentage' again.

But they were all keenly, painfully aware of Billy's yearning for a father's love.