Charlotte rolled her body over on the bed and fell asleep with a stuffed bear in her arms. Taking out her cell phone and walking over to the balcony, Summer called Jazz. He picked up the phone in no time. “I wonder if you have time tomorrow, Jazz?” She lowered her voice, speaking very softly, but enough for the other end to hear clearly. “Yeah, what’s up?” “Don’t you want to visit those places in Santabaca? I have time tomorrow.” Jazz was brisk all of a sudden on the phone. “Okay, I will pick you up tomorrow.” “All right.” She hung up and put the phone aside. Now that Mark was back in Santabaca, if she and Charlotte continued to stay here, they might bump into him one day, just like this afternoon. This was too dangerous. In order to avoid this, it was better for her and Charlotte to leave as soon as possible. After four years, Charlotte had become a part of her life, and she had long been accustomed to Charlotte’s company, without which she really did not know what s
Obviously, she did not take heed of his warning. His narrow eyes flashed with a dangerous light as he squinted and raised his head, downing the entire cup of coffee at one go. His face darkened, as black as ink that could not be washed away. The next morning Summer went to the bathroom to freshen up. Not wanting to wake Charlotte up, she moved with light steps. But when she stepped back into the room, Charlotte had woken up and was sitting in bed, rubbing her groggy eyes with her tiny hands. When she went to bed at night, she liked to roll around in bed. So when she woke up the next morning, the back of her hair would always point upward. Summer reached to brush down her hair and coaxed her gently, “Charlotte, go sleep a little longer.” She did not plan to bring Charlotte along. But if she were to walk out when Charlotte was awake, she would clamor to tag along. So she thought she had better coax her back to sleep. “I don’t want to sleep anymore. I want to go out with y
Yvette was sipping on a glass of water. When she saw Jazz, she immediately broke into a smile. “You have come down just at the right time. Come over for breakfast.” “I have an appointment, Mom. So no breakfast for me this time.” “Even if it is an appointment, you should at least eat something before you go.” Jazz shook his head and then looked at Mark in surprise. “Mark, aren’t you going to work today?” “I’m not going.” He flipped a page of the paper and shot a knowing look at Jazz. But Jazz did not notice it. He said his goodbye and left the Valentine mansion. He arrived at the McDonald’s half an hour later. He pushed in and immediately spotted Summer sitting by the window. His charming face broke into a smile. But he was taken aback when he saw a beautiful little girl drinking orange juice beside her. He had quickly figured out that she must be the daughter of Summer and his brother. Jazz pulled back his thoughts, walked over, and sat down in front of Summer, his e
“Why are you Baby Bop, not Barney?” Jazz asked, hugging her closer to his arms. “Because I am small, Barney will look for food for Baby Bop. I don’t have the money to buy things for Baby Bop,” she pouted and said justifiably. Jazz broke into a smile and liked Charlotte even more. “Tell me, what else would you like to eat. I will buy it for you.” Licking her lips, she pointed to the cotton candy on the side. Jazz walked over and bought the largest one without saying a word. Charlotte smiled with her eyes turning into crescent moons. She held the cotton candy in her hands, but she did not eat it. Instead, she delivered it to Jazz’s mouth. “You may have it first, Uncle Handsome,” she said, her voice tender. Jazz was not a big fan of sweet things, but when he saw Charlotte’s face, he felt like he was ready to take a few glasses of syrups. Charlotte then offered her cotton candy to Summer. “You may eat it, too, Mommy.” “Thank you, but you can have it all for yourself.” Summer
“I came here to sign a contract.” Mark appeared calm, his lips sharp. He glanced at Summer with his deep black eyes. He then looked at Charlotte, staring fixedly at her. It was not after a long while his lips moved. “Whose child is this?” He felt the child looked like Summer and him. Summer looked calm, rational, without a trace of panic. “She is my brother’s child.” Only she knew how hard her heart was pounding right now. “Really?” His eyes glanced at her with a lukewarm expression, and then again, he stared at Charlotte, who was enjoying her cotton candy. His stony expression had a trace of gentleness. “What is her name?” “Charlotte Hart.” Summer sounded indifferent. “Let me carry her for a while.” Mark reached out his arms. But for some reason, Charlotte resented. She writhed in Jazz’s arm and turned her back to Mark. Her two small hands wrapped around Jazz’s neck, her chin resting on his shoulder. She continued to lick the cotton candy. Mark’s hands were in the
“Mommy, why do I have to call you Aunt?” Charlotte could not understand, tilting her head in an I-wonder-why fashion. “I will explain it to you when we get home. But for now, can you listen to Mommy?” “Okay.” Charlotte nodded, her voice tender. Something made Summer curious, so she tidied Charlotte’s clothes and asked, “Why didn’t you let the gentleman hold you just now?” Licking her sweet lips, Charlotte sniffled and shook her body as if she was cold. “I don’t like that gentleman. It feels like he could freeze me. Besides, he is not as handsome as Uncle Handsome.” The world of a child is a little different from that of an adult. Everything that children like was usually full of vigor and vitality, and even more, they love people dressed in bright clothes. So Mark might be elegant and a charming, mature man, but his dark clothing and unsmiling face could not win the heart of the child. Just to be sure, Summer gently stroked Charlotte’s soft hair and asked again, “Do you
After a while, Mark got up from his chair and headed out of the private box without a word. “Where are you going, Mark?” Jazz looked up. “I’ve got to answer a call.” Mark waved his phone in his hand and walked out calmly. Summer dashed into the ladies’ room and took off her pants, which were stained. There was no way to clean it. But this was not the point. The thing was, she did not have a sanitary napkin in her handbag. Things got worse when she found she did not even have any tissue paper. Her period usually was delayed for three or four days. This time, it came a week earlier. She was caught unprepared. There was no toilet paper in the washroom, either. So she sat on the toilet and felt what a bad day she had today. All the bad things seemed to have come upon her at once. She let out a hapless sigh, unsure what to do for a moment. The only way was to call Jazz and ask him if he could help her buy a pack of sanitary napkins. It would be embarrassing, but that was t
She stared at the things inside the paper bag, and the corners of her mouth curled up in a mockery. It had been four years since they last met. She did not know that he had become so thoughtful. After changing into the new pants and tidying up things, Summer opened the cubicle door, washed her hands, and then walked out. Mark was leaning against the wall by the window outside the ladies’ room. He must have been waiting for her for a long time. “Since you have come out, Ms. Hart, let’s talk.” He now stood straight, his eyes dark that looked like a bottomless pool fixating on her. “I don’t think there is anything to talk about between us. There is even no need for us to talk,” Summer said flatly, her face calm. She then walked away without looking at him again. Mark looked on and frowned as she went, his charming face getting colder and colder. His lips twitched as he slowly forced words through his teeth. “Charlotte Hart…” The name startled Summer. The next second, her h