Page 2 of The Billionaire's Contract Baby

When he finished eating, he didn't like being cuddled. Rather, he'd crawl and walk around, amusing himself with whatever he found. He had boundless energy. Since I promised him that we were going to celebrate, I decided an ice cream shop would be just the place.

***

Later in the day, we got dressed and left the house. The Uber driver was a middle-aged man who made funny noises at Alfred. He laughed and clapped his hand calling,mamasee.He was an adorable baby that everyone loved at first sight. At first, I had hidden him, afraid someone would see him and report it to Lorenzo, but no such thing happened. In fact, I made myself believe he had forgotten me. California was a big state, and no one seemed to make any connection between us.

This was because the surrogacy was kept under wraps. His wife back then was a beautiful woman who could not conceive. I signed an NDA to keep whatever I knew about his family away from the public.

How could I tell anyone about it? Even after the procedure had failed, he paid the agreed amount, which made it possible to live my life the way I wanted and set me on a path to success. With that alone, he had my trust.

The car slowly came to a stop. I looked out the window to seeAmelia's Scream.It had a poster of a woman licking ice cream with her eyes wide with enjoyment. "Your stop, ma'am." The driver unlocked the door of the car.

I smiled at him, opened the door, and stepped out of the car with Alfred in my arms. "Thank you, Sir. Have a nice day."

"You, too. Take care Alfred." He drove off with Alfred waving forlornly at him. "Let's go inside. Many adventures await you!" I tickled his cheek with my nose making him laugh.

I set him down on the ground, and he walked slowly to the entrance. I followed behind. We reached the door, and it swung open. A person inside smiled at us, then stepped aside to let us pass. Giving her a grateful look, we entered the shop. The door closed behind us: the person was leaving.

The place had an enticing scent of flavored ice cream. It was brightly illuminated with natural sunlight through floor-to-ceiling windows. At the partition were various displays of different ice creams. Alfred was about to run to it, but I held him back.

"Not so fast, young man. Let's get a seat." I guided him to a seat beside another family, enjoying their own treats. They waved at us. Our seats were directly by one of the windows, looking out to a row of flowers. The whole place had a soothing ambience. The customers made barely any noise, seeming content to just have their favorite flavors.

A young woman wearing the store's apron came to meet us. "Good day both of you. What would you like to have?" Her smile was professional and warm. She handed me a tablet, showing their menu. I didn't like sweets, so I showed it to Alfred. He was quick. He picked the one titled, Flavor Bomb.

"Let's have this, kid's size, and the tea ice cream. Thanks." She left quickly. Within a minute, though, she was back with a tray. She served Alfred’s ice cream right in front of him. It was in a small ceramic bowl accompanied by a little golden spoon. The bowl was filled with different colored ice cream. She served mine and left.

"Do you like it?" I asked. He was already taking his second spoon.

"Yes. Mommy, sweet. Like it." he said, a little smear on the side of his mouth. I slowed him down, so he wouldn’t get a brain freeze. We enjoyed our time together. The ice cream I ordered was a mix of sweet and sour, and a little creamy. Not bad.

A woman walked in and went directly to the partition to request something. Alfred stretched his spoon to take a bite of my ice cream. I did the same to him, laughing at the expression on his face.

"Excuse me, may I join you?" A polite voice drew my head up. It was the woman from earlier. She had on a knee-length green floral dress. Her light makeup gave her a youthful look even though she looked five years older than me.

"Yes, please." I gestured for her to join us. She sat down. Her ice-cream was the cookies n' cream type. She took a spoonful and exhaled in contentment. She caught me staring and smiled. I averted my gaze. "I've been craving this for a while now. How do you like yours?"

"I'm not really a fan of ice-cream, but this is good," I shrugged.

"It seems that this gentleman here is enjoying himself. Is he your son?" she asked with no hint of prejudice in her voice.

"Yes." I said, boldly.

"You must feel so lucky. He is cute. His father is lucky to have you both. I'm Jennifer Tolleson. You can call me Jen."

That stung. I'm glad Alfred is not yet old enough to understand that his dad wasn't around. I smiled to mask the pain. "I'm Crystal Goldwyn and this is my son, Alfred." I was still stuck on whether Alfred should bear his father's surname.

"It's my pleasure to meet you all. As a young mom, it is not easy taking care of kids. Though I don't have any children, I have experience with them and, my dear, they're something out of this world." Her aura was bright and infectious. I caved in quickly to her attempt at making a conversation.

"You took the words right out my mouth. Alfred here is my love, but I know what I went through taking care of him at first. I just got a job, and I'll have to find a nanny or someone I can trust who’s capable of taking care of him in my absence." I just realized how hard it was going to be, leaving him with a stranger. There is no way I was leaving him alone at home.

"I understand your plight. Though this is our first meeting, I think I know how to help. You see, I live just a few blocks from here. I own a pet store. My staff does all the work, leaving me without anything to do. I don't mind being a nanny for your son." She gave a small wave at Alfred who had finished his ice-cream and was breathing hard, his face flushed.

I wanted to refuse. This woman was practically a stranger; there was no way I could trust her. She seemed to see the suspicion in my eyes. "I know. I wouldn't even trust me. Here, have my contact information. We can talk later. For now, how about I show you, my place; you might end up getting a pet for your son." I took the card and examined it. Her name was embossed.

"Ok, I wanted to bring him out for a celebration. Going to a pet store is a great idea."

We finished our ice cream and followed her. It was wonderful, and I got to know more about her. She was quite lovely, and in no time, a friendship formed between us. Alfred and I returned home after a fulfilling day.

***

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