12

12

Luke and Ruby had settled down quite well. Ruby felt like she was living in a whole different world. Luke had been a sweetheart and made her feel at home. He had a separate room arranged for her. It was like a princess room. And the attached bathroom in her room was not lacking any amenities. Ruby had to not worry about anything else.

In fact, Ruby found herself having a lot of free time and she had no idea how to spend it. She spent her time at Luke’s penthouse, mostly exploring the place. And she found it hard to exquisite. She compared Gabriel’s independent house to Luke’s huge penthouse. The view from the penthouse was picturesque. And Ruby loved to see the sunrise and sunset from the huge window in the living room.

Luke was getting ready for work. He had woken up early since he had to attend a board meeting today at the company. He went to the dining area as soon as he was dressed and ready to have a quick bite of breakfast and leave.

Luke stood still when he noticed Ruby in the kitchen. He had seen her many times in the kitchen, sometimes talking to the chef, Rosa, and sometimes helping Rosa with vegetables or something. Rosa was a fairly aged woman but she had a lot of strength enough to prepare food for Luke. She had been his nanny since her teens and now she was almost like a family to Luke. And she had taken a liking to Ruby.

Luke cleared his throat in an attempt to catch the ladies’ attention. Ruby and Rosa turned to face Luke. Rosa flashed a bright smile to Luke, “Good morning, bubba. Sit down. The breakfast is ready.” Luke cringed internally about the nickname. He loved being pampered in his childhood. Now? In front of Ruby? Absolutely not. Luke heard Ruby’s light chuckle when she saw him cringe at Rosa’s nickname for him.

“Ruby, sweetie, you also sit down for the breakfast,” Rosa said and Ruby complied to it obediently. Rosa was aware of Ruby’s pregnancy because she had caught Ruby puking and Luke had confessed to Ruby’s pregnancy but he had left out the information of his and Ruby’s agreement. So, Rosa believed that Luke and Ruby were genuine lovers.

“I might be late tonight,” Luke said as Rosa served breakfast. Rosa hummed and went back to the kitchen.

“Do you have any plans today?” Luke asked Ruby. She shook her head, “Not really. Mia will be at work. So, I have to stay back at home. That is it.”

Luke nodded his head in understanding, “When does your college begin? How will you manage it along with the pregnancy?”

Ruby swallowed the food in her mouth and said, “I have two more semesters to complete my under graduation. I will manage to complete at least one right now. I will complete the last one after the baby arrives.” Luke hummed, “That’s great. Let me know when the admissions begin, I will hand in a cheque for you.”

“Yeah, okay,”

“Then, I shall leave for work now. And get back to you later,” Luke finished up his breakfast and immediately excused himself. Ruby carried on with her day.

Luke went to the office and he got busy with the board meeting. It was a simple routine meeting but still his presence had things clear about the future of the company. His father had told him not to skip any board meetings no matter what. The meeting was soon over and almost everyone had left the conference room. It was just Luke, his father David. David’s secretary, Danny, excused himself and exited the room.

“So, I heard that you and your girlfriend, Ruby, are living together,” David said, trying to hold a conversation with his son. Luke did not take off his eyes from the file but he did answer to his father, “Yes, she moved into my penthouse last week.”

“Well, won’t you bring her home to see the house you grew up in and meet Anna?” David asked.

Luke scoffed at his father’s words, “Why? Will you host a dinner to welcome her to the family?”

David did not waste a second and replied, “Of course, I will. That is not at all a problem. In fact, that is how I want to welcome Ruby to our family. So, why don’t you and Ruby come over to the mansion tonight for dinner?”

Luke was astonished at his father’s words. He could not wrap the news around properly. Did his father just say that he will welcome Ruby into the family? Luke had confused thoughts that ranged between surprise and shock.

Seeing Luke's shocked face, David smiled and said, “Well, see you two at the dinner.” With that, David walked out of the conference room while leaving Luke to think things through.

David's secretary, Danny, found it amusing to see his boss with a beaming smile when he walked out  of the conference room.

“Is everything alright, sir?” Danny asked.

David laughed, “Oh Danny. Everything is alright. In fact, everything is happening perfectly. Let's go to the mansion soon. I have a dinner to host for Luke and Ruby.”

Danny's eyes widened at the information. He had never seen David being this happy. But he could not help but feel glad about it. And he knew that hosting dinner for Luke and Ruby was a good start for something new to happen in the family.

Danny had seen Ruby when David and he bumped into Luke at the Regency hotel. As a matter of fact, he was surprised to see Luke with a girl. Because Luke has always been secretive about his love life and never gave any chance for him to track.

David's car came to halt right in front of the entrance of his mansion. It was basically an estate which David had brought when Luke was born. Luke had spent 18 years of his life in this mansion but with very few happy memories.

David made way inside the mansion and called out for the head chef, “Chef Rogers!! Chef Rogers!!” David's voice was so loud that Anna who was in her closet heard the commotion.

Chef Rogers came running to see David. “Yes, sir. You called me?” Chef Rogers was almost breathing heavily.

“Yes, I called for you. Because I have to host a dinner tonight,” David said. Chef Rogers nodded his head, “Yes, of course, sir. Whatever you want will be prepared for the dinner.”

Just when David was about to answer, Anna came downstairs. As usual, she was wearing an expensive dress and matched it with equally expensive jewellery.

“What are you planning? Who are you hosting dinner for?” Anna asked as she came and sat down next to David.

David smiled at her, “The dinner is for Luke and Ruby.” David then turned towards Chef Rogers and continued, “So, Chef Rogers you are aware of Luke's favourite food. I hope you will be able to make an exquisite dinner for my son and my future daughter in law.”

Chef Rogers happily smiled at David, “Absolutely sir. I will make sure it will be the best welcome dinner for the future lady of the house.”

Anna was shocked beyond words. David was actually referring to Ruby as future daughter in law. He sounded so serious when he said that. Before she could say anything, David had excused himself and was walking towards his room. Anna quickly jumped out of the couch and followed him.

“Honey, I think it is too soon to be welcoming that girl to the family,” Anna said.

“I don't think so. Because Luke has never been this serious with any girl. And I have this feeling. It feels so right,” David said. He really did feel extremely happy and he felt like everything was falling into the right places.