After Divorce, Billionaire Ex Found Me Pregnant-Chapter 173 Stares And Whispers.

The weekend came about faster than Leonica liked and even though she preferred to stay in bed and rest away all the stress this week had given her, she found herself up and getting ready when it was approaching the set time for she and Ashley’s hang out with Gabriel.

She threw on a simple pink hoodie, pairing it up with black leggings and a pair of sandals, her hair pulled back into a ponytail, leaving a few strands loose, framing her face.

She was just about done when Ashley bounced into her room, looking happy and energetic about the day ahead.

“Good morning mommy!” He greeted with a gummy smile, hugging her leg once he got close enough.

“Morning Ash.” Leonica returned his greeting with a smile of her own. “Are you ready to hang out with daddy, today?”

Ashley nodded his head and Leonica couldn’t help but chuckle. “Glad to hear that.” She said and turned to pick up her phone when Ashley pulled on her sleeves.

Having gained her attention, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue necklace.

“What is that, Ash?” Leonica asked, a bit confused about why he was giving her the necklace.

“For mommy.” Ashley answered and held up the necklace.

Leonica knelt down so that they were on the same level and took the necklace from him, her eyes scanning over the simple yet pretty charm.

“This is beautiful darling, where did you get it?”

“Aunt Anastasia bought it for me.” He answered with yet another toothy smile.

Anastasia did? Leonica thought as she looked the necklace’s design over once more. No wonder it seemed so familiar.

“Aunt Anastasia said I could give it to the person I cherish.” Ashley added. “And I cherish mommy the most!”

Hearing this warmed Leonica’s heart and she smiled gleefully, giving him a peck on the cheek to show how much she appreciated his gesture. “Thank you darling.”

“You’re welcome, mommy.” Ashley responded and hugged her.

When they pulled apart, Leonica offered. “How about you help me out it on?”

Ashley’s smile grew wider than Leonica had ever seen. It almost looked as if she had uttered the exact words he wished for.

“Yeah!”

Smiling, she turned her back to him, allowing him access to the nape of her neck.

After a few seconds, she felt the chain rest against her neck and when she turned back, she saw a proud look in his eyes.

“You look gorgeous, mommy.”

“Thank you.” She thanked, patting his head gently. “Now let’s go.”

~•~

By the time Leonica and Ashley arrived at the location Gabriel had texted, a new amusement park situated in the heart of Oslo, he was already there, waiting for them.

Seeing him, Ashley rushed to him, excitedly calling his name, which had him turning towards them.

He was clad in a simple white t-shirt and black jeans, a casual look but still attractive nonetheless.

When he saw Leonica, dressed casually rather than her office, elegant wears, he couldn’t help but admire how she still looked like the most unique being present. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓

“You’re early.” Leonica greeted him as she walked over, Ashley by her side.

Gabriel gave a slight nod. “I wanted to see if it was okay or not.” Turning to Ashley, who he effortlessly swooped off his feet and into his arms, he asked. “Do you like it buddy?”

Ashley looked between his mother and father and a bright smile settled on his lips. “I like it!”

The idea of his mother and father being together had him jumping with joy, and just imagining that for today, they were one happy and complete family going on a fun trio, had him ecstatic.

“Glad to hear that.” Gabriel returned the smile, his eyes glancing at Leonica, who was also smiling.

She noticed his gaze and she averted hers, looking at the amusement park.

After their last encounter at the hospital, it was clear that she had gone back to being awkward around him.

Had he pushed his luck too far?

“I haven’t been to an amusement park in a while,” She said, changing the topic.

“Neither have I,” Gabriel admitted. “Now come on, I reserved tickets for us.”

With that, he led the way, Ashley being in the center of them both with a happy smile on his face.

For the first few hours, they went from one attraction to the next. The three of them, especially Ashley had a lot of fun.

Once, they stopped at a price boot and Ashley couldn’t help but be reminded for the first time he and Gabriel played something similar.

He still had one of the pictures that they had taken, one that he had hidden from his mother and slept with every night.

But he wanted a new one. And he wanted his mother to be in this one.

“Mommy, I want to play.” He declared as he pulled Leonica towards the stall, Gabriel following.

“Alright.” She smiled and looked at the prices. “How about we try to get a bear?”

“Uh huh.” Ashley nodded and she picked up the toy gun.

Angling the gun, she found it feeling weird in her grip. It was obvious the toy gun had been designed to be easy for children to use, but for her, a grown woman who had never played one of those games, she had a hard time getting used to it.

“Need some help?” She heard Gabriel’s voice and felt his warmth as he moved behind her, his hands guiding hers. “Holding it like this is best.” He added.

“Okay.” Leonica mumbled, feeling a bit awkward with their proximity.

She could feel his chest against her back and the warmth his body radiated, the warmth his breath on her skin gave her and for a second, she couldn’t focus, her aim thrown off and she ended up missing the target.

“That’s not good mommy,” Ashley shook his head, while Gabriel decided to take a step back, giving her much needed space.

“Sorry,” She apologized, feeling slightly embarrassed.

“Don’t worry.” Gabriel said. “You’ll get it the next time.”

Leonica didn’t give any form of reaction to his words and focused on hitting the target and that she did.

“Mommy got it!” Ashley cheered.

“I did.” Leonica laughed.

“Now you have to do it two more times.”

“That I can do.”

And sure enough, she did it.

“We did it.” She announced.

“I knew mommy could do it.”

Leonica smiled. “Now, which one would you like.”

Ashley pointed at the tall white Bear stuffy and the stall manager wasted no time in plucking it off the shelf.

“Congratulations ma’am,” He said as he handed it to Leonica. “You and your husband are the first ones to win a price today.”

At his words, Leonica felt a defensive side of her coming up and she stuttered. “He-he’s not my-“

“Thank you.” Gabriel interrupted her, taking the bear and handing it over to Ashley, who gladly took it.

“Thank you.” Ashley thanked and hugged the bear.

“You’re welcome.” The stall manager offered them a wave. “And I hope you enjoy the rest of your time here.”

Gabriel and Leonica exchanged a look before he led the way.

The next few hours were spent on the rides, and they all had a great time, even Leonica gradually became more relaxed around Gabriel.

At some point, Ashley became tired and they had to seat by a river view to allow him rest.

As they chose a spot, some couple other people present glanced their way, whispering incoherent words while Obviously pointing at them.

Leonica didn’t like that.

“I guess here’s okay.” The sound of Gabriel’s voice had her looking away.

He set Ashley down, the young boy’s face flushed from the running around he had done, the exhaustion evident on his face.

“You really exhausted yourself Ash,” Leonica commented as she joined them, rubbing her son’s hair.

He offered her a toothy smile. “It was too fun, I couldn’t stop.”

“Yeah?” She mused, watching as Ashley shot up the next second at the sound of an ice cream truck.

He stared hard at It before asking. “Can I mommy?”

Leonica glanced at the distance, it was less than five feet away. “Sure, let’s go.”

As she tried to stand up, Ashley stopped her. “No! I-I’ll go alone!”

Leonica’s brows dipped. “What?”

Without answering his mother’s question, Ashley turned to Gabriel and stretched his hand out. “Daddy, please give me some money.”

Gabriel hesitated, glancing at Leonica for a second before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a ten dollar bill.

“You sure you want to go alone?” He cautiously asked, earning a vehement nod from the child. “Alright, just be careful and be back here, fast.”

“Yes daddy!” Ashley said as he took the money and rushed in the direction of the ice cream truck.

“Don’t run, Ashley!” Leonica called out to him.

She watched him for a seconds before her attention was once again captured by the people staring and discussing amongst themselves.

The more she stared, the more abnormal it got. Normally, she was used to people staring and talking, but this, this was something else.

Something wrong, she could tell by the look in their eyes.

"Hey, you okay?" Gabriel whispered, gently tugging on her finger to get her attention.

Without taking her eyes off her latest targets, she answered. "They’re staring, whispering? Why are they doing that?"

Gabriel followed her gaze and he too soon became aware of how people stared at them.

Was it because they were together?

People knew all about Leonica and Owen’s relationship. It was hot topic, so perhaps seeing her with him was...confusing them?

Misleading them, maybe?

Ah, what if a scandal were to originate from this?

Leonica and Owen’s relationship was sure to have a fall because of it, but as tempting as that offer sounded, Gabriel didn’t want it.

He didn’t want to win Leonica’s heart by going low and creating a misunderstanding in her current relationship and he sure as hell didn’t want to see her hurt from said Misunderstanding.

"I think we should leave," He said after pretending to peak at his watch. "It’s getting quite late and with winter approaching, it isn’t advisable for Ashley to stay out that late."

Leonica found reason in his words. They indeed needed to leave, not because of the growing stares, but because of Ashley.

He was more important.

Peeling her gaze away from the staring figures, she found Gabriel standing in front of her, offering a hand to raise her up.

She took it and he pulled her up, a little to hard. They were inches apart.

Close.

Too close.

Leonica was the first one to break the silence that had descended on them.

"Thank you," Her voice was a mere whisper as she stepped back and wiped her hand on her trousers, finding them more moist than they should be.

She didn’t wait for his response and instead, focused her attention on her son, who was heading towards them with a popsicle in hand.

"Mommy, daddy, I bought it!" He announced happily once in front of them.

Leonica smiled. "That’s good." She took his free hand. "Come on now, let’s go to a different place."

Ashley looked between his mother and Gabriel, who offered him a convincing smile.

"Let’s go Ash."

"Alright."

After he agreed, Leonica began leading them towards the exit, however bumped shoulders with someone.

"Ah, I apologize." The individual who had been glued to his phone, stopped to apologize, but upon looking at the person he had bumped into, his brows furrowed. "Huh, it’s you."

"It’s me?" Leonica questioned in confusion, tilting her head to examine the person speaking. "Have we met before?"

"N-no, not at all?" The males face flushed at her action. "We haven’t met before, but you’re pretty popular. Everyone’s talking about your family news."

"My family news?" Leonica was even more confused.

Seeing the look of uncertainty on her face, the stranger asked. "Are you not Leonica Romero?"

Before Leonica could respond, Gabriel stepped protectively beside her. "What’s going on here?" He asked in an intimidating manner, slightly scaring the stranger, who was later surprised to see him look at Leonica with a softer expression. "Is everything alright, Leonica?"

"Y-yeah. But," She was now curious. "What did you mean by ’news about my family?"

She asked and the stranger didn’t hesitate to raise his phone, showing Leonica the article he had just been reading.

"This."

A few seconds later, a wave of shock and confusion washed over her when she read the Article’s headings, which were written in bold letters;

"SCANDAL UNFOLDS: RETIRED BUSINESS MOGUL’S SECRET LOVE CHILD SHOCKS THE NATION!”