Chapter 46: Chapter 46

Annabelle's POV

As I left the room, I received a phone call from my lawyer Mr. Henry Campbell.

"Annabelle, Mr. Campbell speaking, are you free to talk? It's important," He said in a grave tone.

"Yes, Mr. Campbell. Tell me," I told him.

"As you are aware that your grandfather has left you a fund which is to be transferred to you on your 22nd birthday. I wish to inform you that I will no longer be looking after your funds. I will transfer everything to your sole responsibility," He informed me.

"Also, there are some other matters that have come up. Your father remarried 8-9 years back, and his second wife has 2 children. They live in Chicago and have laid a claim to the property in New Jersey which is in your dad's name, " he said and I tried to digest the news.

Dad had a second family? I never knew about this. No wonder he never loved me. No wonder he never was home for me. It all fitted like a jigsaw puzzle. I felt cheated and heartbroken. I didn't want to meet my dad's second family but it seemed I had no choice in this.

"I would have gone to New York, but I'm very busy with a case, so you need to come down to my office in Chicago and sign the necessary documents as well as meet your stepfamily for talks," he told me.

"Mr. Campbell I will let you know my plans tomorrow morning?" I asked him. I needed to have a talk with Stefan first.

"Annabelle, come tomorrow as I will only be available this week. Next week I'm leaving for New Zealand on a complex case," he said.

"It's too short a notice. I've to call at work too. Alright, let's see what I can do about it," I told him. I had to apply for leave, talk to Stefan and Arielle and book a flight.

"Do the needful and you can come by the afternoon flight tomorrow," he suggested.

"Alright," I agreed as I had no choice. I needed to talk to Stefan.

"See you then Annabelle." He hung up and I hurriedly changed into my pajamas and went to Stefan's bedroom.

I walked towards Arielle who was waiting for me grumpily.

"Sorry sweetie, had a phone call to attend," I told her apologetically. I would have to tell Stefan about the phone call tomorrow.

"It's ok mommy," she said, her tiny arms going to my cheek. I was touched by what she called me. It made me hug her close. It felt as if I was made to be Arielle's mom. Stefan stared at us, touched by our special moment.

I carried Arielle to the en-suite and bathed and cleaned her. Afterward, when we were all ready for bed, we all cuddled into each other on the bed. It felt like we were one happy family. Stefan and I cooked up a bedtime story for her together. She wanted to sleep in between us, and we let her. She listened to us, spellbound by the story. We somehow managed to finish the story. After the story, all of us were so exhausted that we all went to sleep.

Stefan's POV

Claudia's voice had disrupted my peace of mind. I couldn't understand why she was giving me blank calls after our bitter separation. As far as I had heard, she was happily married to an old diamond merchant and lived in South America. So why was she here now and harassing me? I couldn't think of a reason. She was the last person I had expected behind the blank calls.

I walked back to the house, deep in thought when I saw Rosy interacting with Arielle's friends and their mothers.

I was glad that she had bonded so well with Arielle and most importantly I loved to watch Arielle as she interacted with Rosy. It seemed as if Rosy was Arielle's biological mother. I was impressed with how expertly she handled Arielle all the time. I was touched when she called Rosy 'mom'. If anyone deserved to be Arielle's mom, it was Rosy.

I was glad in fact that my whole family had accepted my relationship with Rosy so well. Gran tried to discreetly ask about our future plans together but each time we were disturbed by something or the other and I was saved from answering her. I would soon propose to Rosy once I told her everything about myself.

We came back home and I was glad that Arielle wanted to sleep with us. I couldn't face Rosy's questioning. If I told her about Claudia she would misunderstand me and leave angrily. I really didn't have the energy to explain everything to her.

Tomorrow I would tell her and explain to her everything about my past. I was scared of Claudia's new plots and evil plans, so the earlier I told Rosy everything, the better it would be for our relationship. Sighing, I closed my eyes and fell asleep listening to Arielle and Rosy's even breathing as they slept beside me.