Jillian Left

"Yes, her name is really Jillian Patrick. Because our mall is a high-end mall frequented by celebrities, all employees' identities are thoroughly verified," She explained calmly.

"She is 23 years old. Jillian is not married but is in a serious relationship with her fiance. She only has her mother as her family. I haven't heard her talk about her father and she doesn't have siblings," The lady answered to the best of her abilities.

'She has a mother but Ashley was an orphan? Am I really mistaken?' Brayden began to doubt himself.

"So how long has she been working at M & S mall?" He demanded.

"Hmmm… for six months if I am not mistaken and unfortunately today is her last day…"

"Why?" Brayden was quick to ask.

"Three days ago one of our big-time customers made a fuss just because Jillian told her that the dress she picked was smaller than her. She said Jillian called her fat and ordered her to be fired or else she wouldn't patronise the mall anymore. Although Jillian is excellent at her work, the management decided to let her go," The salesperson concluded, looking slightly gloomy.

Curious to know more about the lady who looks exactly like the twins' mother, Brayden continued to ask the lady questions about Jillian.

Despite all the answers she provided, in the end, he still failed to get information about Jillian's next workplace.

Inside the car where Jillian and the girls stayed, surprisingly they didn't make things difficult for Jillian. They were so well-behaved that she almost forgot that she was sharing the car with kids and not adults.

Apart from hugging her hand and asking her questions, another thing they did was stare at her face like she was an angel who fell from the sky.

Jillian let out a sigh of relief as soon as she saw Brayden and her colleague approaching the green sports car.

Marley and Monalisa wanted to get out of the car too but Jillian asked them to remain in their seats and to Brayden's dismay the girls complied without asking questions like they often did with him.

Jillian's ability to effortlessly control the girls with just a few words when their father couldn't at the time he was alive looked as if Jillian cast a spell on them.

"We are sorry again for any inconveniences you might have experienced today at the mall. We promise to make sure that such a thing won't happen again," Jillian, whose position was higher than her colleague's, apologised with her head slightly bowed.

"It's ok. Besides the two of you helped us out a lot today too," Brayden replied. He couldn't seem to take his eyes off Jillian's face.

"To thank you for enduring Marl's and Lisa's misbehaviour, why don't I treat the two of you to dinner?" Brayden offered when he saw the ladies turn to leave.

"Sorry, but I have a prior appointment. I can't join you," Jillian outrightly turned down his offer.

Luckily for Jillian, Marley and Monalisa were inside the car and couldn't hold onto her and prevent her from leaving.

As she strolled away she hardened her heart and refused to look back despite the girls' screams and cries.

"Marl, Lisa, Mommy left to buy something, so she asked us to return home first. She promised to come back as soon as she finishes," Brayden lied when all tricks to get Marley and Monalisa to stop crying failed.

"Really?" Marley and Monalisa chorused amid their wailing.

"Of course. When has Uncle Brayden ever lied to you before?" Brayden asked playfully.

What he didn't know at the moment was that the lies he told for a good deed would come back to haunt him.

With that, Brayden was able to get the girls to come home with him.

For hours things went smoothly for the guy who had specifically taken the day off work to be with Marley and Monalisa.

But things began to turn ugly when they started demanding for their mother whom he promised would be back soon.

"When will Mommy come back?" Marley asked for the hundredth time ever since they returned from the mall.

"Why don't you call her and ask her to come back quickly?" Marley suggested to the guy who was suffering headaches due to their constant interrogation.

Meanwhile, as Brayden was trying to come up with new excuses to give the smart girls, Jillian was seen entering a well-furnished room with her handbag strapped on her shoulder.

The first thing she did after taking off her red high heels was to peep into the living room.

"You are back Babe," A guy sitting on the green sofa wearing lemon colour sweater remarked after he looked towards the door.

He stood up and went to welcome her.

When he reached her, he bent slightly, embraced and planted a light kiss on her lip.

"I know I promised to come back earlier. It's just that something unexpected happened at the mall which delayed my handover. I am sorry for keeping you waiting," Jillian apologised.

She walked into the living room hand in hand with the guy who was a few inches taller than her.

The first thing that caught Jillian's attention was the plate of crisps in the centre in front of where her fiance sat earlier.

"I am sure you must be starving. Let me freshen up and prepare something yummy for us," Jillian muttered and tried to stand up but Oliver grabbed her hand and pulled her back onto the sofa.

"How can I let you enter the kitchen when you look this exhausted," Oliver muttered. He raised his hand and stroked Jillian's cheek.

"Besides, I have already ordered pizza just in case you wouldn't be able to cook. We can make do with that tonight…,"

"But you are not too fond of pizzas," Jillian interrupted abruptly.

"Also, I am sure you haven't eaten anything tangible since the breakfast we had in the morning. I know you are being considerate of me but trust me, I can still make you something nice without…"

"Yes, I am not a very big fan of pizza but that doesn't mean I can't eat it. Also, it's not as if I eat pizzas every day, right?" Oliver teased hoping to ease Jillian's worries.

"It has been an hour since the pizza was delivered. I am sure it must be cold so let me go and heat it," Oliver said and tried to leave but Jillian held his hand.

She attempted to pull him back on the sofa but he didn't budge.

"Let me do that…"

"I will heat the pizza while you go in to freshen up. Remember we can only eat earlier if we divide the work like this," Oliver insisted.

In the end, Jillian lost to him.

While she moved towards their bedroom to freshen up, Oliver went to the kitchen to set up their dinner.

He returned to the living room later with a box of pizza, a cup of freshly made lemon juice as Jillian normally loves it and a cup of coffee.

Jillian joined him in the living room after she was done.

"You have only taken three bites from it? Why don't you eat some more? I am sure you are still hungry," Oliver muttered. He picked a piece of pizza and stretched it towards her.