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Chapter 457 Sworn Brothers
Rowan’s face was etched with concern as he observed his grandfather. He was worried that Noah
might send his grandfather’s blood pressure skyrocketing. However, instead of getting upset, his
grandfather let out a hearty laugh as he looked at Madeline and Noah. “You never divorced her?” his
tone turned serious once again.
He recalled Annalise had told him that Noah was forced into marriage by a woman who got pregnant
with his child five years ago. The woman cheated on Noah and left him and his child to be with another
man, so Noah had filed for divorce. It was also the reason why Old Mr. Solace had finally agreed for
Annalise to marry Noah, since she made him sound like a half-decent, responsible man. Of course,
now that he had heard Noah’s side of the story, it seems his granddaughter had spun a perfect lie for
his ears too.
“Never,” Noah confirmed.
“Do you really love her? You don’t have a speck of feeling for Annalise or any other woman?” Old Mr.
Solace pressed.
“She’s the only woman I love,” Noah said, like it was the most natural thing in the world to say. He
turned to look at Madeline, who jumped in fright as she was stealing glances at Noah. Truth be told,
she was rather moved by his honest and continuous confessions.
“If that was the case, why did you trick Annalise into getting engaged with Joseph Quincy?” Old Mr.
Solace asked once more, this time sounding more solemn. After all, Annalise was still the
granddaughter he had raised. Even if her identity was brought into question now, the bond he had
formed with her was not so easily broken.
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“Ms. Solace had caused harm to my wife on more than one occasion. I was only returning the favor. If I
did not take into consideration the friendship you had with my grandfather, Ms. Solace might not even
be lucky enough to marry into the Quincy family,” Noah’s voice was cold and detached. He was
indirectly telling Old Mr. Solace that Annalise Solace had to watch her behavior and stay in her lane if
she wanted to survive in Imperia.
Rowan shot Madeline a look, signaling her to rein Noah in so he would not anger Old Mr. Solace to the
point of a heart attack. Receiving the message, she quickly took two steps forward and grabbed hold of
Noah’s hand. Noah’s fierce expression softened the moment he felt her warm hand wrapped around
his. This change in his demeanor did not go unnoticed by Old Mr. Solace either who was observing
them silently.
“Mr. Solace, were you looking for me?” Madeline finally asked, breaking the silence.
Old Mr. Solace looked up at Madeline and smiled with an almost child-like playfulness. “Yes, yes. I get
along very well with the children,” he hinted.
Thomas, who was standing in a corner and listening in on the conversation, began to overthink Old Mr.
Solace’s words. As the gears in his little head started turning, he jumped up and placed his little hands
on Old Mr. Solace’s bed excitedly while looking at his father. “Daddy! Can I and Mr. Old Solace…
become sworn brothers?” he asked in earnest.
Madeline let slip a chuckle, while Noah could not stop a smile from forming on his lips either. The three
Solace brothers were also holding back their laughter. Oscar gently ruffled Thomas’ hair, genuinely
curious as to what was inside the little boy’s head.
Old Mr. Solace laughed heartily as well, as though he had just heard a funny joke. His own great-
grandson wanted to swear an oath to become sworn brothers with him!
“Hmm? Isn’t that what you were hinting at when you said you got along very well with me?” Thomas
wondered out loud. “I’ve seen it in all the movies. When two friends get along with each other, they
become sworn brothers!” Thomas’ expression was as serious as it could get.
Zeke had no time for her brother’s theatrics. “How old are you, Thomas? And how old is Old Mr.
Solace? You can’t be sworn brothers with an old man!”
“Why not? Our friendship isn’t measured by age!” Thomas refuted.
Zeke rolled her eyes at Thomas and kept quiet. She was better off pretending she was not related to
that silly boy.
“Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Solace, and for showering the children with your affection.
Thomas, especially, can be a handful,” Madeline said to Old Mr. Solace. Her cramps were worsening
again, and she could not wait to leave the hospital and go home to rest.
“Wait, what I meant was… I wanted to take you as my adopted granddaughter, what do you think?” Old
Mr. Solace said to Madeline directly.
Madeline’s expression turned into one of shock, while Thomas stomped his little feet on the ground
indignantly. “You said you got along with me, but why are you asking my mother to be your adopted
granddaughter?!” he whined.
Truth be told, Old Mr. Solace did not know how to respond to Thomas and could only signal at Rowan
with his eyes. Rowan himself was not feeling all too pleased with Old Mr. Solace at the moment. They
had initially agreed to share the paternity results with Madeline and reveal that they were indeed
related by blood. However, he thought it was likely due to Noah Quincy’s presence that Old Mr. Solace
had to hatch this “adoption” plan.
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Oscar, on the other hand, did not share his brother’s sentiments. In fact, he thought that Old Mr. Solace
must have been thinking about Annalise when he made this decision. No matter how flawed Annalise
was, she had been a good granddaughter to Old Mr. Solace where it counted and the love he had for
her was genuine.
“Grandpa heard about Grant Corporation’s bankruptcy. He’s afraid that people might take advantage of
the situation and come after you. If you become his adopted granddaughter, our family can protect
you,” Rowan explained on Old Mr. Solace’s behalf.
“There’s Daddy to protect us! My Daddy’s the best. With him around, no one would even think of taking
advantage of us!” Thomas remarked innocently.
Rowan glanced sideways at Noah. It’s Noah that we’re cautious of… he said internally.
“Well, thank you for the offer. We will seriously consider it. If there’s nothing else, we’ll probably get
going first,” Noah said as he tugged on Madeline’s hand impatiently.
Old Mr. Solace had wanted Madeline to stay a little longer and tell him more about her previous life, but
he noticed she did not look too well. Worried that his suggestion might have scared her, he decided not
to pursue it any further for now.
Oscar and Alexander Solace offered to send Madeline, Noah and the children to the elevator. As they
arrived, Oscar began to speak. “Madeline, Grandpa truly likes you and the children very much. I’m
hoping you will give his suggestion proper consideration,” he said. “Truth be told, I think you remind him
of my father. My parents had disappeared mysteriously when we were very young, and I know Grandpa
still misses him to this very day. That’s why he’s particularly fond of you,” he explained.
Alexander reiterated his brother’s words as well, saying that Madeline bore an uncanny resemblance to
their father. Based on his understanding of Madeline’s personality, she was likely to reject Old Mr.
Solace’s offer if they did not try to persuade her otherwise.
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