Chapter 2 Strange Connection

Luke’s P.O.V.

“I can’t believe this. Whenever I think things can’t go wrong, something worse happens.” I murmur under my breath, glancing at the watch sitting in the backseat of my car.

My client is a pain in the ass. Instead of having a meeting in an office, he wants to meet at a cafe that is more than an hour away from my villa.

I landed in NYC just yesterday for a business project and will be staying here for about two months. Since my arrival, I’ve been feeling uneasy, as if something is going to happen, and I’ve been missing Daisy even more.

It’s been five years since I divorced her and pushed her out of my life when all I wanted was to confess my love and beg her for forgiveness for treating her like a shit.

That day, if I’d told her I realised my mistake, things would have been different now. Daisy and I would be living together because I’m certain she would have forgiven me and given me a second chance instantly.

However, I can never forgive myself for treating Daisy with cruelty. I don’t deserve her love. I only deserve her hatred. Living without her has been the punishment I’ve inflicted on myself for years, and it feels like thousands of years. Although I’m yearning to be with her, I’ll bear this punishment for the rest of my life.

I pull out of my thoughts when the chauffeur halts the car in the middle of the road.

I inquire, “What happened, Henry? Why did you stop the car here?”

“Sir, I think the car is stalled.”

Fuck! I’m already late for the meeting. What is happening with me today?

“What? Check it quickly. I’m already late.” I order him, and he hastily steps out.

I huff and look out of the window. A smile touches my lips automatically as my eyes fall on a little girl standing outside the school, licking her lips and her eyes brimming with excitement.

After such a long time, a smile graces my face. There is something magical about this little girl that captivates my attention, making it impossible for me to look away.

My eyes dilate in horror as I see her crossing the road without looking around. I climb out of my car and rush towards her without a second thought. I feel like I would be willing to sacrifice everything if it meant protecting her from harm.

Thank God! I push her aside, clasping her hand when a car is just about to hit her.

My eyes soften seeing her blue innocent eyes staring at me in fear. I don’t know why but I don’t like this emotion in her eyes. I don’t want her to look scared.

I kneel in front of her and softly ask, “What are you doing here, little girl?”

I haven’t used this tone on somebody in a long time.

“I want to eat Ice cleam (cream), Uncle. Why did you push me?” She inquires, pouting in anger.

“You were crossing the road without looking around, it’s not right. If you wanted Ice cream, you could tell your parents. Where are they?” I ask in a soft tone, still surprised by the strong connection I am feeling with her.

She palms her mouth. “Oops! I completely forgot about my mommy.” Her sweet voice and actions bring a smile to my face.

“Where is she, kiddo?”

She raises her eyebrows at me. “Why do I tell you? You’re a stranger, and my mommy instructed me we shouldn’t talk to strangers.”

I nod. “Well, that’s true.”

“Yup. So bye, Mr. stranger, I need to go back otherwise my mommy will scold me.”

I don’t know why I feel a sudden ache in my heart hearing that she’s leaving.

“Wait, let me buy you an ice cream. You wanted that, right?” I can see the sudden gleam in her eyes as soon as she hears the word ice cream, and a smile flashes on my face. She narrows her eyes at me from top to bottom, making me confused. “What happened, kiddo?”

“Are you trying to bribe me, Mr. Stranger?” She asks, putting both her hands on her waist, looking extremely adorable.

“What? Of course, not.” I reply, hiding my smile.

“You want me to kidnap me?” She asks, squeezing her eyes shut.

Before I can say something, a voice interrupts.

“Hope, what are you doing here? How did you reach to other side?” A woman inquires.

So the little girl’s name is ‘Hope.’

Is this woman Hope’s Mother?

Hope twirls towards her. “Teacher, I wanted to have Ice cleam.”

So this woman is her teacher.

“So you came here alone?”

Hope nods at her in response. “I wanted Ice cleam, teacher.”

“Hope, you’re a kid. You should never cross the road alone. It’s dangerous.” She explains to her, placing a hand on her face.

“She is a kid. You must take care of your students.” I interrupt, standing up, frowning at her.

“Who are you to interfere?” She looks at me suspiciously.

“Teacher, this tall uncle saved me,” Hope explains, causing the woman’s suspicion to disappear.

She sighs with relief before looking at me with gratitude. “Thank God you were there to prevent any accidents.”

“But you should be more careful in taking care of kids,” I instruct her in a stern tone, and she nods.

What if my car hadn’t stalled, and I hadn’t seen Hope? Only the mere thought of anything happening to her sends shivers down my spine. What’s happening to me?

“Teacher, where is my mommy?” Hope asks, pulling her dress.

She replies, “I just called her. She is stuck in traffic.”

“I miss Mommy,” Hope says, sadness spreading across her face, and I feel an ache in my heart. I can’t bear to see her upset.

“Hope, until your mommy comes, I can buy you the ice cream,” I offer, mentioning ice cream, which makes her eyes twinkle. My meeting has become a forgotten business now, I just want to lighten up the mood of the little girl who is standing in front of me.

“Good idea, uncle.” She gives me a thumbs up.

What kind of strange connection am I feeling with her? I wonder, smiling at her and stroking her soft cheek.

Hope turns towards her teacher. “Teacher, can I go and have ice cream with Uncle?”

“Okay! I’m standing outside the school. When your mommy arrives, I’ll call you.”

“Thank you, teacher.” She grins before taking my hands in her tiny hands. “Let’s go, Uncle.”

When her fingers touch mine, I feel a strange warmth spreading through me. It feels as if her touch has the power to chase away all the darkness and trouble in my life.

I smile at her and lead her towards the ice-cream van.

We stand in front of the colourful ice-cream van, and Hope’s eyes widen with excitement as she scans the various flavours on display.

“Uncle, which one should I choose?” she asks, tugging at my hand.

I crouch down to her eye level, scanning the options with her. “Well, Hope, it’s all up to you. What’s your favourite flavour?”

She ponders for a moment, her little finger tapping her chin. I don’t know why, but I can look at her all day.

“I love the chocolate flavour, but I wanna have strawberry flavour too.” She shares her confusion with me, licking her lips.

“You know, my favourite is also chocolate,” I tell her, causing her eyes to sparkle in surprise.

“Really, Uncle. Then I’ll have chocolate.” She grins, flashing her milk teeth at me.

I chuckle. “Okay, kiddo.” I tap her nose.

I turn to the ice cream vendor and place an order.

As the vendor prepares the ice cream, Hope looks up at me with a wide grin. “Uncle, you’re the best!”

I smile at her in return. My connection with her is so intense, as if our paths have crossed for a reason beyond my understanding.

The vendor hands the ice cream cone to Hope, and she holds it in her small hands, her face shining with pure delight.

As we sit on a nearby bench, Hope takes small, joyful licks of her ice cream while I just watch her. After so many years, I feel happy from deep inside. Hope is like a breath of fresh air.

“Mmm... It’s so yummy, Uncle.” She exclaims, her cheeks rosy with happiness.

I beam at her, savouring her joy. “Anyway, Hope. I want to ask you something.”

“What, Uncle?” She raises her brows at me, licking her ice cream.

“You said I wanted to kidnap you. If you thought this, then why did you come to have ice cream with me?”

She lets out a giggle, bringing immense joy to my heart.

“Uncle, I was kidding. I know you aren’t a bad uncle because you protected me like my mommy. I trust you.” She touches my heart with her response, and a contented smile spreads across my face.

I just lean down and press my lips against her forehead.

“You know, Hope doesn’t like to share her things.” She says, looking at me before glancing at her ice cream.

“It’s alright, little girl. It’s all yours.” I smile, softly flicking her nose, and she giggles. “You don’t need to share it.”

“Well, here.” I look at her, confused, raising my eyebrows as she forwards the cone in my direction.

“What happened, kiddo? Do you want me to hold it for you?” As I ask, she giggles again.

She shakes her head. “Nope, uncle. I want you to have one small lick. Right now Hope wants to share her ice cream with you because…” She pauses and thinks, averting her eyes for a few seconds before saying, “I don’t know why, but I want to. Take it, uncle. It’s melting.” She holds out the Ice cream.

I lean to have a lick, but before that, she pulls her hand back and laughs, causing me to chuckle at her cute antics.

“Very naughty little girl.” I wipe a smudge of chocolate from her cheek, causing her to giggle.

“Otay (okay). Have it.” She again forwards it towards me, but I can clearly see the mischievousness in her eyes. Still, I want to see what she will do, so I play along.

As expected, as soon as I am about to have a lick, she pulls it back again and immediately licks it, making me laugh.

She is the epitome of cuteness. I feel like gobbling her up. Everything about her feels so good.

I make a pout, pretending to be upset, and to my surprise, she immediately holds out the ice cream to me.

“Uncle, don’t be sad. I was just teajing (teasing) you. You can have it.”

I lick the ice cream and chuckle, petting her hair. “I was also teajing you. Kiddo, I didn’t get sad.” I pronounce the word ‘teasing’ in the wrong way like her.

“It means you’re playful like Hope.” She indulges in conversation with me, forgetting about the melting ice cream. She is a complete chatterbox.

“Hope, we’ll talk. First, finish your ice cream. It’s melting.” I point to her melting ice cream.

“Oops, I forgot about it.” She titters before licking her ice cream again, and I watch her with my eyes shimmering with happiness.

I don’t know what connection I’m feeling with Hope, but I’m certain about one thing: I’ve never been this happy before in my life.