Archie and Benny stayed in the bathroom for a little while longer before heading out. Roxanne was still chatting with Jack at the time.She had wanted to get him to leave as soon as possible, but Jack started talking about the ancient medicine books halfway through the conversation.Due to Roxanne’s incredible pa*sion for medicine, she couldn’t help but get carried away talking about it again.It wasn’t until Lysa told them dinner was ready that she snapped out of it.“Would you like to stay for dinner, Mr. Damaris?” Roxanne asked out of courtesy.Jack arched an eyebrow when he saw Archie and Benny standing next to the kitchen.They were both glaring daggers at him and looked like they would tear him to pieces if he accepted her invitation.Because they were still kids, they just looked adorable no matter how fierce their expressions were.Jack couldn’t help but smile in amusement as he drawled suspensefully, “Thank you for the invitation, Ms. Jarvis. I—”He was halfway through his s
Aubree followed Estella closely into the room. Hesitantly, she muttered, “Lucian…” She felt somewhat guilty when she noticed the young girl fuming at Lucian.At the same time, she was relieved that Estella had not said a word to her father.Lucian nodded at Aubree and said, “Sorry for troubling you to look after Essie.”Aubree was delighted by his words. She sputtered, “Not at all. I’m happy to do this. Essie’s a lovely girl.”As for how she upset Estella in the car earlier, Aubree decided to sweep things under the rug if the young girl kept things to herself.“Dinner’s ready. Why don’t you eat with us?” Lucian offered.Aubree was over the moon. “Sure.”They entered the dining room one after another.Catalina had already set the table for three.Aubree said, “I’ll go get Essie.”Despite her suggestion, she was not confident about coaxing Estella downstairs.After all, the young girl was put out because of Aubree, and she might not listen to her instructions.If she throws a tantrum i
Cory was in a good mood, knowing he had once again made a fortune. He then said, “Of course. Ms. Pearson, I’m sure you’ve come to me again because you believe in my capabilities. Now, tell me. What is it that you want me to investigate?” Narrowing her eyes, Aubree said, “Investigate what happened between Roxanne and Lucian!”Cory let out a meaningful chuckle when he heard what she said.Aubree questioned coldly, “Why are you laughing?”As if unaware of her anger, Cory muttered, “Since you’ve agreed to the price I proposed so readily, I have to show you something.”With that, he took out a phone from the bag beside him and typed away on the screen.Soon, Aubree received a few messages on her phone.“I believe what you’re about to see won’t disappoint you, Ms. Pearson.” Cory sounded confident.Aubree furrowed her brows and swiped open her phone, checking the messages he sent.The chat interface showed that Cory had sent her more than ten pictures.Each picture was attached with the tim
Estella looked at her father, who was already at the door and turned to look at Aubree, who was still standing by the couch. A few moments pa*sed, and the little girl finally begrudgingly got out of her chair and jogged to keep up with Lucian.Aubree let out a relieved sigh and caught up to them as well.“Daddy,” Estella mumbled. She gave her father a puppy-eyed look and tugged at the corner of his shirt in a bid to curry favor with her father.Lucian lowered his gaze to meet Estella’s. He lifted his hand and patted her head. “I’m really busy lately. Please don’t throw a tantrum at me.”Estella pursed her lips in disapproval, refusing to believe what he said.She knew as a matter of fact that Lucian was in a bad mood because he had quarreled with Roxanne.Estella was flabbergasted that Lucian was still trying to lie to her, despite the fact that even she knew the real reason her father was upset.Why are adults so weird? Why doesn’t Daddy just make up with Ms. Jarvis?Of course, Luci
Jack froze for a few seconds before coming to some kind of realization and agreeing to it. The two of them then went out of the research institute.A look of delight danced across Colby’s face when he saw them leave.Ever since Jack came for Roxanne, Colby had been keeping his focus on the two.Therefore, he saw the look of struggle on Roxanne’s face.Evidently, what he had said in the morning was effective.Meanwhile, Roxanne came to a stop in her tracks at the entrance of the institute with mixed feelings still surging in her heart. In the meantime, Jack stopped behind her.“Sorry.” Roxanne had calmed herself down on their way out and realized that she had been a little too carried away earlier.Jack raised a brow and teased, “What’s the matter? Why are you apologizing to me all of a sudden? You couldn’t have secretly done something terrible to the project, could you, Ms. Jarvis?”Roxanne shook her head immediately. “Of course not.”I’ve done so much for this project. Why would I d
Meanwhile, Estella and Pamela were the only ones left at the kindergarten entrance. “Essie, who’s coming to pick you up today? Were you always picked up so late in your previous kindergarten?” Pamela patiently clarified the matter with Estella, for it was the first time she had encountered such a situation.Estella pursed her lips in silence as if she didn’t hear Pamela at all.It was never her desire to come to the new kindergarten, and now that she was left to wait for a long time, she couldn’t help but feel depressed.Just when Pamela was wondering whether to give Lucian a call, a car gradually rolled up beside them.Aubree alighted from it with an anxious expression on her face.“I’m sorry for being late, Ms. Yaxley. Traffic was really bad.” After speaking to Pamela, she gave Estella an apologetic look. “I’m sorry to have made you wait, Essie. I’ll definitely come earlier next time!”Estella continued to pout in silence.Seeing that, Pamela defused the situation with a smile. “It
Roxanne was surprised by her son’s words. She knew they had always been very sensible and had always taken good care of Estella.However, what she didn’t expect was that they had been thinking about this even more than she did.Benny chimed in sweetly, “Mommy, please talk to Mr. Farwell about this. We’re worried that Essie might get bullied, and we won’t be there to protect her.”Roxanne felt her chest tighten at the mention of Estella being bullied.She recalled the incident when Estella had been bullied by her cla*smates when Archie and Benny first entered the cla*sroom.Back then, the boys had stepped forward to protect Estella and helped her to smoothen things over with her cla*smates.However, now that Estella was in a new kindergarten, she no longer had any playmates she was familiar with. Roxanne was worried that if Archie and Benny weren’t beside Estella, the past would repeat itself.There’s a possibility that it would be just like what the boys said. Estella would be ostrac
Roxanne heaved a sigh of relief. She could see that although Estella was a bit out of place, the other children approached her enthusiastically and played with her.Yet before she could feel totally at ease, she saw Estella letting out a yelp.The children who were skipping around also halted their actions one by one.Feeling her heart tighten, Roxanne instinctively looked in Pamela’s direction.Something was obviously wrong with Estella, and Pamela could probably see that from where she was standing.However, there was a child who wouldn’t stop crying next to Pamela. Although she did notice a small commotion over here, she was occupied with coaxing the child beside her.Left with no choice, Roxanne turned back to Estella and observed her worriedly.The girl hung her head low as she ma*saged her hand on her lap.Roxanne could only see Estella’s actions vaguely from her spot, but she could guess that the latter was hurt.Upon realizing that, Roxanne felt a little distressed. Neverthel
Elias knitted his brows when he saw his wife acting in that way. “I don’t remember any conflicts between the two of you six years ago. Why are you so biased against her?” “Are you saying that I’m unreasonable?” Sonya snapped, turning around to glare at him.The resignation on Elias’ face deepened. “I’m only stating facts. Why are you taking this so personally?”“Then we’ll go to her place to check it out right now! We’ll see if the kid really is hurt! Didn’t she ask us to pick Essie up from her house? We’ll go right now!”Elias knew that she was only saying that because she was furious, so he just drove them back to the Farwell main residence.Sonya was even more irked when she realized where they were heading, and she kept grumbling on their way back.Elias pretended not to hear anything she said.He was already relenting much by accompanying her to pick Estella up from the kindergarten.As Farwell Group’s chairman, he simply could not do something ludicrous like kicking up a fuss i
Roxanne’s heart was lodged in her throat as she made her way to the hospital. She floored the accelerator, on the verge of breaking the speed limit. Archie and Benny might be independent since young, but it was the first time one of them had gotten hurt.Roxanne felt a surge of anxiety wash over her.Upon arrival, Roxanne parked her car hastily and strode into the hospital.Pippa was considerate enough to text her the ward number after Benny was admitted to the hospital.Thus, Roxanne found them without any difficulty.“Mommy!”Archie firmly grasped her hand, squeezing it with such force that it caused her pain.Estella also clutched at the corner of her shirt.Roxanne patted their heads comfortingly before turning to Pippa. “Ms. Ward, what happened?”Pippa answered apologetically, “We’re not sure yet. The doctor at the infirmary said it might be a bruised cartilage. Benny is taking an X-ray inside.”Roxanne felt a stab of pain in her heart after she heard the news.“Ms. Jarvis, we’r
The next game was hopping on one foot. The kids filed to the equipment room to change into their sneakers. After changing into his shoes, Benny felt slightly uncomfortable. He a*sumed that it was probably because he had not worn these types of shoes in quite some time and wasn’t used to the fit. Nonetheless, he didn’t give it too much thought and kept going.Archie and Estella were urging him to hurry up, so he pushed aside the thought of his uncomfortable shoes and hurried over to them, beaming happily.This was an individual game, and Benny’s turn wasn’t until later.After Archie and Estella finished their turns, they stood aside to watch Benny play.“Remember to be careful. Safety comes first,” Pippa told them repeatedly.Ophelia stood aside and acted like she was ready to spring into action and protect the children at any moment.The three children had done a good job in the previous games, so when it was Benny’s turn, their friends cheered him on and watched him expectantly.Ben
Upon seeing that Roxanne was still in a daze, Lucian couldn’t resist lifting his hand and caressing her face. “You…”Roxanne was stupefied for several seconds before she belatedly snapped back to her senses. Mild embarra*sment showed in her eyes.While the man had sneaked up on her countless times when they were in Miralaea, she could more or less postulate the reason after the fact.But this time, I didn’t do anything. Why did he simply kiss me?Innocence was written all over Lucian’s face. “Sorry, I lost control.”At that answer, Roxanne’s eyes went wide in fury. However, she couldn’t really censure him either. All she could do was turn around as though nothing had happened and put the washed tableware aside.The two of them spent some time doing the dishes. When they exited the kitchen, Archie, Benny, and Estella pestered Lucian to play with them for a while.Only when it was rather late did Lucian drive home.Needless to say, Roxanne saw him off with the three children.When they
Lucian didn’t expect his father to be in such a hurry to go and pick Estella up. After hanging up the phone, he glanced at the time. Seeing that it was still relatively early, he wanted to phone Roxanne to inform her about the situation. But on second thought, he snagged his jacket and went downstairs.Downstairs, Catalina had just prepared dinner. When she saw her employer coming down, she hollered, “The food is ready, Mr. Farwell.”Lucian halted in his steps for a fleeting second. “Go on and eat. I’m not having dinner at home.”Having said that, he left in huge strides without waiting for a response from her.Catalina stared at the man’s back, bewildered for a moment. In the next heartbeat, understanding dawned upon her.Aha! Who else could induce such an expression on Mr. Farwell’s face? He must be on his way out to visit Ms. Jarvis once more. Thus, he’s also likely having dinner there!Roxanne had just finished cooking dinner and led the three children to the dining table. They h
Elias frowned, and when he spoke, his voice was tinged with a hint of exasperation. “I’ve long since told you to let Lucian make the decisions himself when it comes to his marriage. Everyone is free to live their own lives. Why must we meddle so much?”Disapproval was written all over Sonya’s face. “How could I possibly allow that? Is Lucian’s marriage his business alone? Never mind if he wants to marry some other woman, but why must it be that woman?”Why must it be Roxanne? Worse still, she comes with two little bastards!Seeing that she was still dissatisfied with Roxanne, Elias patiently cajoled, “No matter who he wants to be with, that’s his business. He matured into an adult ages ago. We can’t interfere in everything.”But still, Sonya remained obstinate and griped, “If he had finalized his marriage with Aubree earlier, all this wouldn’t have happened.”After saying that, she shot the man beside her a chagrined look. “You’re no better. It’s because you allowed him free rein in
Roxanne’s life was soon back on the right track while Lucian’s was still in chaos. Lucian considered going to Roxanne’s place in the evening after handling all the accumulated work in Farwell Group. However, he received a phone call from his mother, who asked him to return home as soon as possible.Lucian furrowed his brows at his mother’s annoyed tone. Nevertheless, he still drove back to the manor.As soon as he stepped into the house, he was greeted by the sight of Sonya sitting on the couch.“Why are you here?” he questioned with a frown.Sonya turned to look at him and said unhappily, “If I hadn’t come here, I wouldn’t even know you were back!”He had not mentioned to anyone about him going overseas with Roxanne.Sonya had come over every day to ask her son for an explanation but always ended up empty-handed.When she called him and mentioned Roxanne and the kids, he would always give a half-hearted response before hanging up.Hence, Sonya had nowhere to vent her anger.Since th
Roxanne was moved by his words but remained hesitant. “Perhaps, but I lack enough knowledge of cancer to support the research on an anti-cancer medicine.” Over the past few years, she had been more focused on researching how to treat patients through acupuncture. She simply didn’t know enough about medicinal herbs to be confident in developing an anti-cancer medicine.Sensing her worries, Jack said, “I won’t lie. Only a few medical books kept in the Damaris residence touch on this research. However, the reason the research in those books was halted was due to technical issues at the time. It was also these books that inspired me.”Roxanne’s eyes glinted upon hearing that. If I can take a look at those books, perhaps I’ll get some inspiration, too. Then again, those books are properties of the Damaris family. I don’t know if he’s willing to lend them to an outsider.“The books about traditional medicine I lent you in the past were a part of that collection. If you’re interested, I can
While the reporters’ photos depicted a woman standing at the helicopter door, Jack knew Lucian was behind it. He thought the matter had ended when the celebrity scandals dominated the public consciousness that afternoon. Thus, the next day, he planned to meet up with Roxanne by using the project as an excuse.To his surprise, her a*sistant told him she wasn’t in the research institute.In fact, he received the same answer over the next few days.By then, no matter how stupid Jack was, he could still realize what was happening.He knew Roxanne had left with Lucian, so he wondered how long it would take them to return.To his surprise, it was a whole week, and that enraged him.Jack was still upset as he spoke. “Even though the development of our project was about to begin, the person in charge of the research institute was nowhere to be found. What do you think I should say about that, Ms. Jarvis?”When he brought up the project, Roxanne felt guilty and apologized further. “I’m really