“I know you didn’t mean it. I just need some time to recover from the shock,” Roxanne comforted Benny with a smile. The boy gazed at her doubtfully for some time. When he was finally convinced that she meant what she said, he nodded slowly, pursed his lips, and gave her a hug.“Let’s have breakfast. It’s getting late,” Roxanne said, caressing his head.All the children nodded, and the four of them went downstairs together.A five-person breakfast was ready on the table by the time they got down. It seemed that Lucian had taken the food in and laid them out on the dining table.He was scrolling his phone on the couch when they came down. His sleeves were rolled up, revealing a pair of lean and muscular forearms.When Roxanne saw that he was working, she held the children’s hands and asked them to walk silently, but the man still noticed them in the end.He looked up at Roxanne, and their gazes met. What had happened the previous night instantly came back to Roxanne’s mind.She hoped s
When Roxanne saw how persistent the girl was, she agreed to a game with the children. “I’m done!” Estella announced when she had found a hiding spot.Even after rounds of the same game with Archie and Benny, the girl still shouted out loud whenever she was done hiding.Roxanne could not help laughing at that.Right after Estella shouted, Roxanne heard Archie’s and Benny’s soft giggles from another corner.“I’m coming!” Roxanne exclaimed, shaking her head.Then she walked toward where Archie and Benny were.The boys were still feeling proud of themselves because they thought they had found a seemingly strategic place where no one could find them, but they were proven wrong.They even planned on changing their hiding place to make it more difficult for Roxanne to find them. But just as they were crawling out from where they were, they bumped into the woman.They looked up, only to see her smug smile. “Mommy, please give us another chance…” they mumbled, standing up in front of her.Rox
While Roxanne was bandaging him, she could sense Lucian’s gaze on her. However, Roxanne did not know what was on his mind.I wonder if he’s thinking about what happened last night…Roxanne could not help but recall the bottle of red wine that was almost finished the night before, and that made her feel perplexed. As such, the bandaging she did for Lucian was a little rough around the edges.“Are you done?” asked Lucian when he saw that she was not doing anything else.It was only then Roxanne returned to her senses and maintained a calm face. “It’s almost done.”Lucian took a look at the bandage on his hand, raised his brows, and said, “Ms. Jarvis, it seems that you are very selective when it comes to your medical skill, aren’t you?”Roxanne was startled by what he said. She followed his gaze and noticed that her bandaging was indeed horribly done.For a moment, Roxanne could not help but blush. She opened her mouth but did not know what to say.Thankfully, all Lucian did was teased
Roxanne was much more relaxed when she saw that Lucian’s preparations had been very thorough.The captain of the yacht chatted with them, “The weather is ideal for a trip out to the sea today.”Roxanne glanced at Lucian and saw no response from him, so she acknowledged politely.Seeing that she responded, the crew became more enthusiastic and started to introduce the activities that were available.Before they could arrive at the area for the dolphin sighting, the children’s attention was completely captured by the crew’s briefing. Excitement was written all over their small faces.Once in a while, Roxanne would respond as well.“I heard from Mr. Farwell that all of you are out here for the dolphin sighting. To be honest, that is not the most exciting thing to do in this area. I will highly recommend diving since the water in this area is well protected, and the views underwater are beautiful. If you have the chance, you should give it a try,” the crew strongly recommended.Roxanne st
Hence, the instructor gradually released her.Slowly, the underwater scenery appeared before Roxanne. When she saw the scenery in front of her, her eyes lit up.There was a vast array of colorful coral and fishes. The waters refracted the rays of sunlight and shone down on the treasures of the sea, giving them a mysterious color.Roxanne could not help but reach out her hand.Soon, a tiny fish circled her finger intimately.The instructor was stunned by the interaction, and he quickly took out his camera to take pictures of the scene.In the pictures, Roxanne looked like a beautiful mermaid interacting peacefully with the beautiful creatures of the sea.Meanwhile, the people on the yacht began to worry when Roxanne and the instructor had not returned after a long time.Benny shouted anxiously at the sea, “Mommy!”Estella, too, gripped the railing nervously and glanced at Lucian. “Daddy, why isn’t Ms. Jarvis back?”When Lucian heard her question, his gaze darkened, and he comforted her
Roxanne made herself comfortable in the seat, not daring to face the crowd’s stare. She kept her eyes lowered and thanked Lucian, who did not respond. Instead, he stared at her silently before returning to the seat in front of them. The diving instructor, who accompanied Roxanne into the water, climbed up the steps skillfully and returned the camera to her. When he was about to help her remove the swimming gear, he subconsciously glanced at Lucian, worried that the latter might get angry at him for getting too near to Roxanne.Thankfully, Lucian showed no response this time.Only then did the instructor carry on with his task.“Mommy, why did you go down there for so long?” Benny asked worriedly, looking at Roxanne.Roxanne, who had already removed the diving gears with the help of the instructor, appeared pale.The boys could not help but worry at the sight of their mother’s pale face.With a smile on her face, Roxanne comforted, “The scenery down there was really beautiful, so I wa
The deck was rather narrow, but the two adults wanted to give the children enough space to stand there. Thus, both of them stood quite close to each other.From the back, both of them looked like a couple. On top of that, the children’s laughter made them look like a peaceful family.Roxanne wanted to take a step away when she realized the distance between her and Lucian was getting smaller. However, Lucian grabbed her wrist.“What are you doing? Let go!” Roxanne whispered, worried she would frighten the children.Lucian frowned and gazed sternly at her. “Don’t move about. It’s dangerous.”Roxanne was taken aback by Lucian’s expression.Just as she was about to say something, she saw some movements on the surface of the water in the distance.In the next second, the children cheered, “Dolphins! The dolphins are here!”Hearing that, Roxanne and Lucian glanced over.Not far away, a pod of dolphins leaped out of the water and went back in with a splash as they swam toward them.The child
Ultimately, they were children. Despite what happened earlier, Benny returned to his happy self after playing with the dolphins. Seeing it was almost time, the staff in front reminded, “Mr. Farwell, it’s time to return.”Lucian gave him a brief answer and turned to the children standing on the deck. “Come here. It’s time to go back.”However, the children still continued patting the dolphins’ heads, reluctant to leave.Seeing that, Lucian frowned. He had no idea how to get them to come back.Meanwhile, Roxanne was amused to see Lucian’s troubled looks. She stepped forward and said gently, “We’re going back now. Let’s say goodbye to the dolphins.”With that, she held the children’s wrist.Only then did the children return to reality and wave at the dolphins reluctantly. “We’re going back! Goodbye!”As if understanding their words, the dolphins leaped into the air one by one.When Archie and Benny were waving at the dolphins, they felt a wet and slippery feeling on their faces.The chi
Originally, Sonya did not intend to cause trouble for Roxanne at such an hour.Yet she did not expect her son to release such a shocking announcement on the internet, and she only found out while she was having dinner.Sonya was so incensed that she didn’t even finish dinner. After throwing her cutleries in a rage, she set off and drove to Roxanne’s house.She was determined to make Lucian and Estella cut ties with Roxanne as soon as possible.Now that Sonya saw how dependent Estella was on Roxanne, her anger was further fueled.“Roxanne Jarvis, give me back my granddaughter,” she uttered frostily as if Roxanne had snatched Estella away from her.Sensing Estella’s nervousness, Roxanne gripped the former’s hand to soothe her anxiety. Next, Roxanne lifted her head to face the woman opposite her.If this had happened in the past, Roxanne might not know how to respond to a demand like this.However, things were different now. She was Estella’s mother, so she had the right to keep Estella
The boys were exhilarated for nearly the whole day after seeing the announcement in the morning.When night fell, Roxanne had just stepped into the house when Archie and Benny flung themselves at her in excitement. “Mommy!”She was slightly perplexed by their gleeful demeanor. “What’s going on? Did something nice happen in the kindergarten?”As soon as she ended her sentence, she glanced at Estella and was puzzled. If something did happen in the kindergarten, why isn’t Essie acting the same way as them?Upon detecting his mother’s confusion, Archie said, “Didn’t you see the news on the internet?”That confounded Roxanne even further. What news on the internet?Excitedly, Benny added, “Mr. Farwell claimed that we’re his children, just like Essie!”Did I hear that right? Lucian said Archie and Benny are his children? How’s that possible? Roxanne was stunned.He could tell his mother was befuddled, so he grabbed the laptop, clicked on a public forum, and showed it to her.Farwell Group’s
Jonathan’s jaw dropped open in disbelief. If they aren’t his, why does he look so calm in comparison to me, who is freaking out?“What are you thinking?” He shot Lucian an incredulous look. “If you want to help Roxanne by stopping the haters online, then you can just publicize your relationship with her and issue warning letters through your lawyer. Why would you do this?”If it was revealed that the CEO of Farwell Group had claimed to be the biological father of his ex-wife’s children even though they were not his, no one would believe it. It sounded pretty ridiculous, but that was exactly what Lucian did.“If I only did that, the netizens will still a*sume the worst about the boys’ father.” Displeasure flashed across Lucian’s eyes as he explained, “The kids are innocent. If she’s willing to marry me, it will only be a matter of time before the boys become mine, too.”Lucian knew very well that the last thing Roxanne wanted was to drag the kids into her mess, so he was more than wil
Soon, some recalled Roxanne’s previous scandal after reading the statement. One comment read: So what happened between Mr. Farwell and Aubree Pearson?Another read: Isn’t that obvious? Aubree is the homewrecker. She was the one who faked the rumors so Roxanne would give up on Mr. Farwell!One netizen replied: But what about Roxanne and Jack? They had been involved in two scandals. Besides, they seem to be on good terms.Another comment read: Isn’t that obvious? They are both capable doctors. Besides, the recent medical consultations were all initiated by the Damaris family. It’s normal for them to be on good terms!Many online users expressed their disapproval of Aubree, while the rest offered their support and blessing to Roxanne and Lucian.Now that Roxanne and Jack’s relationship was clarified, everyone thought Roxanne and Lucian were the perfect couple.One comment read: I heard that Roxanne had participated in various medical consultations recently. A while ago, someone ran into
The medicinal herb company owned by the Damaris family was mainly run by their own people, leaving outsiders nothing but envy. Lucian went silent after hearing that.However, that piqued Jonathan’s interest. “Why? Is Roxanne working with the Damaris family again? Do you need my help with anything?”Lucian managed to detect the hint of derision in his voice and snickered. “Go on and acquire the Damaris family’s medicinal herbs company if you’d really like to help.”Jonathan rubbed his nose sheepishly and said, “Well, anything but that.”“Then there’s nothing you can do. Bye.”Lucian hung up the call right after that.Jonathan’s face was full of reproach as he watched his phone screen go dark.That was the second time Lucian had woken him up in the middle of the night and hung up after dropping a bomb on him.It had taken him considerable effort to finally drift off to sleep.Great. It looks like I won’t be able to sleep at all tonight, either!Jonathan lay back down in bed, scrolling
It was already past nine at night when Roxanne reached home. As she got out of the car, she felt anxious and guilty for leaving the children alone at home.Hence, she hurried into the mansion, but as soon as she entered, she was greeted with the lively sounds of the children playing with each other and running around.Roxanne stopped in her tracks and looked inside the living room, surprised.Initially, she thought Madilyn had come over, but Lucian was sitting on the couch instead.As if sensing her presence, the man turned around to look.When their gazes met, Roxanne’s shock intensified. “What are you doing here?”Didn’t we agree on meeting some other day?Upon noticing her return, the children stopped playing and gathered around her, yearning for affection.“Mommy, you came home so late! Daddy’s been waiting for a long time!”Roxanne ruffled the children’s hair, but her gaze was still locked on Lucian.Lucian sat on the couch, crossing his legs. The button on his collar was undone
Lucian had mentioned visiting Roxanne in the past few days, but she rejected him by saying she had work to do. When he heard Estella mention that Roxanne was rarely home, he finally realized how hard she had been working recently.“Are you free tomorrow at noon? Let’s have lunch together,” Lucian suggested.He was determined to let Roxanne get some rest.Roxanne fell silent for a few moments when she heard the time he mentioned before replying apologetically, “Sorry, I’m not free.”Lucian frowned. “Why? Is there work that you have to complete?”Roxanne scratched her nose sheepishly. “I’ve promised to meet up with Mr. Damaris for lunch tomorrow to discuss a project.”Jack Damaris?Lucian’s expression instantly darkened.We’ve hardly been in contact these few days, and yet she’s been contacting him?What the elderlies from the nursing home said echoed in Lucian’s mind once again.After all, he and Roxanne did not work in the same industry. Plus, the woman was a workaholic, causing thei
I can’t believe the Queen family is the culprit! I… I a*sume that with our friendship of years, even if they refuse to help us, at the very least, they won’t hit us when we’re down. Yet, they are the reason we ended up in such a state! If that’s the case, why did Frieda come to our house yesterday? Did she come to shed crocodile tears? Gina glared at her daughter resentfully. “You knew about it, didn’t you?”Aubree’s involvement in the company’s affairs meant that she must have known who the culprit was, yet she still permitted Frieda to visit her, much to Gina’s bafflement.If I knew the Queen family was behind this, I wouldn’t have allowed Frieda to enter our house!Aubree’s eyes had also turned red. “So what if I did know? It was the Farwells’ order! Lucian drove us into a corner all because of that b*tch!”I refuse to give up just yet! Even if I end up in hell, I’ll drag that b*tch down with me!Her words made Gina feel as though the world was crumbling around her.She could not
At noon the next day, Jonathan brought Frieda shopping. They bought a bunch of gifts before driving to the restaurant where they were supposed to meet Roxanne. The restaurant was near the research institute. Due to the closeness of both locations, Roxanne thought she could head back to do some more work if their meeting ended early.Something in the research institute held her up, so Jonathan and Frieda were already waiting in the private room by the time she arrived.“I’m sorry, Dr. Jarvis. Did I interrupt your work?”Despite addressing Roxanne by her name in front of Lucian, Jonathan was mindful of his behavior and addressed her politely when she was present.Roxanne offered him a polite smile. Her gaze then landed on Frieda, and confusion crossed her eyes.If I’m not mistaken, Frieda never liked me. So why is she here today?Considering how busy she was handling various projects at the research institute, Roxanne did not want to be involved in any trouble.Jonathan rose to his fee