Chapter 6 Chapter 6: An Unexpected Proposal: Stepfather Edition

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps caught Grace's attention as Emma and Ethan rushed out of their room, their faces full of curiosity. "What are you two doing here?"

Grace felt a surge of irritation. "Tristan, shut up!"

As she spoke, she pushed him out the front door, adding, "You don't need to worry about Vincent Fisk; I can handle it."

With that, she slammed the door shut.

Tristan barely dodged the door, touching his nose and muttering to himself, "Still as fierce as ever-cute."

In the night, a smile played on his lips, his playful demeanor replaced by a newfound seriousness.

Just then, his phone buzzed. Checking the caller ID, his expression shifted, and he glanced warily at the closed door of Grace's house before hurrying back to his car.

"What do you need?"

In the confined space of the vehicle, his voice took on a different tone.

Sounding like another person entirely.

Whatever was said on the other end darkened his expression.

"Tell Mr. Fisk that the overseas project will wrap up soon. I'll be back in the country shortly, and please leave the partnership with the Sinclair family to me."

---

After sending Tristan away, Grace turned around to see her two little ones staring at her with their almost identical gray-green eyes.

"Ethan asked, "Mommy, are you going to let Tristan be our daddy?"

Grace was taken aback. "Who said that?"

Ethan pointed to his ear. "I just overheard! He said he wanted to be your boyfriend."

Grace was speechless.

She often felt her children were far too clever, like little schemers.

Emma chimed in, "Mommy, can you consider Uncle Vincent first? I think he's more handsome than our godfather!"

Grace felt a headache coming on.

"There's no chance with either your godfather or Uncle Vincent. Stop thinking about it."

Grace thought for a moment, then crouched down in front of the children and said seriously, "Vincent Fisk is the boss of the mafia. Do you know what the mafia is? They're the bad people who will take you away, will hurt you first, and then lock you up until you're hungry. Scared yet?"

The siblings exchanged glances and nodded obediently. "Got it, Mommy. Uncle Vincent is very dangerous; we won't go looking for him anymore."

Grace felt satisfied and took her little ones to wash up, carefully tucking them in before leaving the room.

What she didn't know was that once the door was shut, Ethan scoffed in the darkness. "Emma, we're five years old; it seems Mommy still thinks we're two."

He didn't buy her story; after all, the mafia had lots of money and bodyguards for protection.

Emma quietly climbed down from the bed, rummaging through her little backpack until she pulled out a brand-new phone and started dialing.

Ethan's eyes lit up at the sight.

The phone had been a gift from Uncle Vincent earlier that day, one for each of them.

Uncle Vincent had said they could call him anytime if they needed anything.

Before Ethan could speak, Emma put a finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet.

"Daddy, it's Emma."

---

Once the kids were asleep, Grace turned back and entered her small study room, and powered on her computer.

As a freelance illustrator, her income was decent, but it required a significant amount of time and energy to complete her work.

After working late into the night, she finally finished her painting draft, letting out a sigh of relief as she leaned back in her chair. Her gaze inadvertently drifted to the filled bookshelf nearby, and her expression turned a bit melancholic.

Among these books, some were about art appreciation, while others compile and introduce artifacts from various countries. The variety is quite extensive, and judging by the wear and tear on the books, they were frequently read.

Though she was an illustrator, her true career dream had always been to become an auctioneer.

Yet, no company was willing to hire someone without a professional background or relevant experience.

Regardless, she hadn't given up on sending out resumes to auction houses over the years.

She firmly believed she was destined to work in that field.

"Ding-"

Suddenly, an email popped up on her computer screen. Grace casually glanced at it, her expression freezing in surprise.

"Alpha International Auction House." she murmured, reading the email, "Your proposal and work are excellent; you are specially approved for employment. Please arrive at the company by 9 AM tomorrow."

After reading the email in its entirety, her dark eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Awesome! This is my favorite company!"

The overwhelming joy kept Grace up almost all night, and she only dozed off as dawn approached.

She was awakened by a persistent doorbell, groggily covering her head as she went to answer the door.

"Who could be here so early."

Her sleepy mumble turned into a shocked gasp when she saw who was at the door. "Vincent Fisk?!"

The man outside wore a tailored dark striped suit, exuding an icy demeanor. Yet, the red rose pinned to his chest added a touch of warmth, enhancing his strikingly handsome face that was hard to look away from.

His gray-green eyes, usually cold, softened with infinite tenderness as they landed on Grace.

He smiled and said, "Good morning, Miss Grace. I thought about it all night and came to a conclusion."

"I fell for you at first sight, and I really like Emma and Ethan, so."

"I come to recommend myself as their stepfather."