chapter 09

Later that night, my phone rang. Seeing Noah's name on the screen sent a flutter through my chest. I picked it up, trying to calm myself.

"Hi, how are you?" he asked in his deep, husky voice, sending shivers down my spine.

"I'm fine," I replied softly. "How was your day?"

"It was fine," he said, his tone casual but warm.

" wrapping up all the work before coming back to the country?" His casual words made me delight, yeah he is coming back, how can you always forget this Lyla.

"That's nice. So, when's your flight?" I asked, eager to know when I would see him.

A teasing chuckle came through the line. "Quite eager to know about your husband's return, Mrs. Anderson?"

His playful tone made me blush. "I just wanted to know... you know, Grandpa's birthday is around the corner," I stammered, trying to cover my embarrassment. Stupid Noah.

His amused chuckle deepened, and I could feel my face heating up. "Don't worry. I'll be there for the party. Since I have such a beautiful wife waiting for me, how could I possibly stay away?"

The teasing was relentless, and I was starting to realize it had increased ever since he'd messaged about his return. Maybe this is the actual Noah Anderson, beneath that cold and composed facade.

"Crystal told me about the fashion show your Aunt Mina arranged," he said suddenly, changing the subject. "She showed me some pictures of the dresses. I'll ask the boutique to deliver a few for you tomorrow."

His unexpected comment surprised me. "No, there's no need for that. Aunt Mina already has send some dresses according to my taste," I quickly responded.

" Having a few extra dresses won't hurt. Besides, my mother always says girls love shopping and dresses, so just take them."His calm yet firm tone made it clear he wasn't going to argue about it.

"Alright, whatever you want," I finally relented. Since you want to spend money then who I am going to refuse.

"Good. I'll tell the staff to deliver the dresses to our home," he said casually.

"Our home?" I repeated in surprise, his words catching me off guard.

"Yes, the home we're going to live in. Isn't it our home?" he replied matter-of-factly. "I'm settling back in the country, Lyla. Where else do you expect me to live?"

His words struck a chord, reminding me of what Grandpa had said earlier that day. My heart began to race again after hearing it from his directly . Our home. The idea of living together, of starting a life together.

"I… I see," I finally managed, my voice barely above a whisper.

His soft chuckle echoed through the phone. "Get some rest, Lyla. I'll see you soon."

"Goodnight," I murmured, my voice shaky as I ended the call.

As I lay in bed, Grandpa's words replayed in my mind, mingling with Noah's casual declaration. The thought of our home, of Noah's return, left me feeling a strange mix of excitement and trepidation.

*

The next morning, I messaged Rose to request a day off.

"Why the hell do you want a day off? Your debut is just around the corner. You should be practicing," came her sharp reply.

"I need to buy some gifts, and I need some time to relax my mind," I casually responded before tossing my phone into my bag and heading downstairs.

"Good morning, Grandpa," I greeted him cheerfully as I found him sipping his morning tea, admiring the vibrant garden in front of him.

"Good morning, sweetheart. How was your sleep?" he asked with a warm smile.

"It was alright, Grandpa," I replied, noticing his curious gaze.

"Are you going somewhere?" he asked, his eyes landing on the bag in my hand.

"Yeah, I need to buy something. I'll be back in just a few hours," I said with a reassuring smile.

"Have some breakfast first before you go," he suggested, concern lacing his tone.

"No, Grandpa. I'll grab something at the mall. I really need to get going," I replied hastily, trying to avoid lingering too long.

The truth was, I was heading out to buy him a birthday gift, and I knew myself too well. If I stayed for breakfast, I'd probably spill the surprise. It was better to skip breakfast and focus on the task at hand.

"Alright, but at least eat something," he insisted, tossing me an apple as I walked toward the door.

The driver drove me to the nearest mall, but midway, a thought struck me. "Can you take me to some street vendors instead?" I asked.

"Street vendors? But why?" he asked, his confusion evident.

"Please, just take me there. I need to buy something from them," I insisted.

Without further questions, he drove to the bustling market area filled with street vendors and parked at the side of the road, where the traffic was slowed to a crawl by people crowding the stalls.

"Please wait here. I'll be back in a while," I said, stepping out of the car.

I wandered through the busy market, stopping at different vendor stalls and asking if they had coins for change. Most of them looked surprised by my unusual request, but since their items were low-priced, they usually had plenty of coins.

One by one, I exchanged my bills for coins, feeling a strange sense of excitement with each handful I collected. Soon, my bag was filled with coins, their metallic clinking a satisfying reminder of my little mission.

I walked back to the car, holding my bag of coins tightly, and asked the driver to help me sort them by their dates. He looked surprised by the sheer amount of change I had gathered.

"Why did you buy so much change, miss?" he asked curiously, his brows furrowing as he eyed the heavy bag.

"I'll tell you later. For now, let's just sort these coins by their dates," I replied mysteriously, hiding my smile.

Though skeptical, he nodded and began helping me. It took us a solid hour and a half to sift through the coins and sort them, but given that I had exchanged nearly $5,000 worth of change, I was surprised we managed it so quickly.

As I examined the sorted piles, I felt a wave of relief wash over me. The dated coins I was searching for were all there. I couldn't help but smile, holding onto the small yet significant pieces I had collected for Grandpa's surprise.

"What's with these coins, miss?" my driver asked again, his curiosity growing.

"It's a surprise. You'll know soon enough," I replied, keeping my tone light but evasive, amused by his growing impatience with my secrecy.

However, as I glanced at the remaining coins piling up on the seat, a new problem presented itself—what was I supposed to do with all this leftover change? Then, an idea struck me. Without hesitation, I grabbed the paper bag I had used to carry the coins, filled it with the excess change, and handed it to the driver.

"Why are you giving this to me?" he asked, confused and clearly overwhelmed by the unexpected gesture.

"It's a small gift from me for helping me out," I said, lowering my voice. Truthfully, it felt more like I was passing my trouble onto him rather than offering a gift, but I needed to get rid of the coins somehow, and he was the only person who knew about them.

"But miss, what am I going to do with so much change?" he asked helplessly, staring at the heavy bag in disbelief.

"Well, you can use it as pocket money for your children," I suggested eagerly, hoping he'd accept the idea.

Seeing my hopeful expression, he gave me a resigned smile and said, "Okay, I'll deal with the change."

"Thank you so much," I said, relieved.

"Where to now, miss?" he asked, his voice now calmer after the ordeal.

"Let's go to the antique shop," I said, checking the time.

"Antique shop?" he repeated, puzzled again.

"Yeah, I need to buy something there too," I explained.

"Alright, miss. On our way to the antique shop," he said with a small chuckle, shaking his head as he started the car.