That night, both the boys and Roxanne did not get a good night’s sleep.Roxanne couldn’t stop thinking about Lucian’s reply in the group chat and also their collaboration in the play.As for the kids, they were kept awake by the worry that their mommy would back out of the play.The next morning, Roxanne stepped out of her room and saw two little “pandas” at her door.Surprised at the sight of the dark circles around the boys’ eyes, she frowned and softly jested, “Where did these two pandas come from?”The boys innocently looked up to her and gave her sheepish smiles.Roxanne shook her head and asked with concern, “What happened? Did you not sleep well last night? How did you get such bad dark circles?”Roxanne’s heart ached, and she bent over and gently caressed the area around their eyes.The boys closed their eyes to accommodate her, but there was a look of anxiousness on their faces. “Mommy, you’re still going to join us in the anniversary celebration, right?” They sought her a*su
“Ms. Jarvis.” Estella spoke, gingerly tugging on Roxanne’s outfit.Roxanne dropped her gaze and saw the little girl piteously looking at her with her big round eyes. She seemed to be asking why Roxanne was ignoring her.Roxanne was ruffled by her puppy-dog eyes, but she could only return a forced smile.Lucian noticed her uneasiness with Estella. His brows furrowed, but he quickly hid his emotions and said, “We are counting on your support to make the play a success, Ms. Jarvis. This will be the kids’ first performance, so I hope you can set aside your personal feelings for the benefit of the kids.”Roxanne’s expression froze. Her heart was in turmoil, but she put on a nonchalant front. She casually nodded her head and replied, “Don’t worry. I will.”As his gaze swept past her face, he could see she had pursed her lips and looked indifferent. Very obviously, she had no intention of engaging with him.Lucian lowered his gaze and exchanged a knowing look with Estella.The little girl go
When Estella heard that Roxanne wanted to switch to another group for the play, she pouted in distress and looked to her daddy for help.Lucian appeared emotionless, but his mouth was tensely shut. Although he did not say anything, it was obvious he was pissed.Before he made his way to the kindergarten that morning, he told himself he would avoid getting into a disagreement with Roxanne. However, when he saw she was adamant about switching groups with Ca*sandra, he couldn’t help but get furious.Estella suddenly recalled what Lucian had told her the night before. He had told her he would need her help to mend their relationship with Roxanne.She turned her gaze from Lucian and looked toward Roxanne. She was sniffling as she looked piteously at Roxanne, and tears were brimming in her reddened eyes.Her loud sniffling was very conspicuous in the noiseless cla*sroom, and everyone turned to look at her and Roxanne.“I want Archie and Benny!” Estella cried out, pouting and heaving as she
Just like that, the meeting came to an end after a brief discussion.Pippa stood at the cla*sroom door and waved goodbye at the parents as they left.Roxanne walked up to her with a concerned expression and asked, “Ms. Ward, are you sure you don’t want to change the plot for Sleeping Beauty? I don’t know if it’s appropriate for children to witness that final scene…”Pippa flashed her a rea*suring smile as she replied, “Don’t worry, Ms. Jarvis. The kids already know about this sort of thing. Besides, you’re not really going to kiss in front of them. You’ll be positioning yourselves to look like you’re kissing.”Pippa then looked behind her and asked, “I’m sure you’ll offer your full cooperation, right, Mr. Farwell?”Roxanne tensed up when she heard that.“Of course,” Lucian replied, his voice sounding like he was whispering right next to her ear.Roxanne lowered her gaze and stepped aside before turning around to look at him.“Don’t worry, Ms. Jarvis. I’m not the kind of guy who would
The next day, Roxanne was so busy working at the research institute that it was already seven in the evening when she got home.Upon entering the house, she froze in surprise when she saw Lucian standing in the living room.I remember agreeing to rehearse the stage play after the kids got off school, but I didn’t think he’d just let himself in without informing me beforehand…“Mommy!” Archie and Benny called out to her excitedly when they realized she was home. They then gave Estella’s hand a gentle tug, prompting her to turn around.Estella had a disappointed expression on her face at first, but her eyes lit up the moment she saw Roxanne.“Ms. Jarvis!” Estella shouted as she ran over and threw herself at Roxanne before Archie and Benny could.Suppressing her discomfort, Roxanne patted Estella on the head and asked, “When did you come over, Essie?”“She came home together with us!” Archie and Benny replied before Estella could.Noticing the frown on Roxanne’s face, they continued expl
While having dinner, Roxanne realized Lysa had arranged for Lucian to be seated right in front of her.As Lucian’s gaze would fall upon her from time to time, Roxanne felt extremely uncomfortable throughout the entire meal.After what seemed like forever, they were finally done having dinner. Lysa then cleaned up the table while Roxanne and the others headed over to the living room to rehearse the stage play.Although they had yet to finalize the roles for the play, Lucian and Roxanne became obvious choices for the prince and princess due to the kissing scene.The kids then stared blankly at Roxanne as they were unsure of the roles they should take up.After going through the script, Roxanne gave it some thought before saying hesitantly, “Essie can play the role of the witch.”Estella nodded obediently in response.“What about us, Mommy?” Archie and Benny asked in unison while staring at her excitedly.They were curious as they didn’t remember finding any roles in Sleeping Beauty that
It wasn’t until she heard Benny’s voice that Roxanne regained her senses and recalled that they were rehearsing.As for Lucian’s actions, it was needed by the script.Realizing that fact, the apologetic Roxanne smiled at the children. “I’m sorry for spacing out. Please continue.”After exchanging curious glances, the children obediently agreed.Meanwhile, Lucian, who was looking at Roxanne, had an epiphany that brought a grim expression to his face.Feeling guilty to the extent of not daring to look in his direction, Roxanne naturally didn’t notice the change in him.As the rehearsal continued, they had to change their roles.Roxanne, playing the princess after she was all grown up, did so with much aplomb.It wasn’t until the prince appeared while she was asleep that her frustrations began to build.Taking on the role of the prince, Lucian would either be too aloof or not angry enough when he faced Estella.Naturally, his performance caused Roxanne to worry.“Mr. Farwell, you’ll scar
Meanwhile, cla*s had ended at the kindergarten. With most of the students gone, only the three children were left waiting at the school field.They were in a particularly good mood as they were looking forward to the rehearsal later.While Archie and Benny would chat occasionally, Estella sat obediently by the side with a smile on her adorable face.“Why isn’t Ms. Lane here yet?” Benny began to grow curious when he noticed the sky turning dark.Ms. Lane has always arrived early, so why is she late today?Despite furrowing his brows, Archie rea*sured his brother, “Perhaps she’s occupied with something. Let’s just wait for a while longer.”At that moment, Lucian strode through the kindergarten entrance and was greeted by the sight of the three children sitting in a row.“Daddy!” Estella, the first to see him, waved at Lucian.After hurrying up to her, Lucian knitted his brows while staring at the brothers.Over the last few days, Lysa had been picking up the boys since Roxanne was avoid
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
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
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
In the kindergarten, Archie and Benny sat in their seats quietly while the other children were playing games with Pippa. They could sense something was off when Roxanne said she would send them to school that morning.It wasn’t until Roxanne handed them over to Pippa that they noticed Roxanne glancing at the crowd from time to time as if she was looking for someone.When Pippa led them into the school, they looked back and saw Roxanne still looking around.Although Archie and Benny said nothing, they knew Roxanne was looking for Lucian and Estella.Mommy must feel terrible after the fight with Daddy that day.At the thought of Roxanne’s sadness and disappointment, Archie and Benny’s moods were gloomy, too.“Archie, Benny, what’s wrong?”Seeing the listless look on the boys’ faces, Pippa walked over to comfort them, “Are you missing Estella?”At the mention of Estella, Archie and Benny’s faces immediately fell. I wonder how Essie is doing…“Don’t worry. Mr. Farwell will take good care
Frowning, Lucian fell silent for several seconds. Within several short seconds, the smile slid off Aubree’s face.Until Lucian’s voice sounded once more.“Judging by Essie’s demeanor this morning, the relationship between you seemed to have improved by a lot.”Aubree froze for several seconds at his words before she registered what he said.It was true that the child had been receptive toward her that morning.Aside from rejecting her touch, Estella had responded to almost everything she had said.It was a big improvement compared to before.“I was the one at fault back then,” Aubree replied with a laugh. “I wasn’t patient enough with Essie. Now that I’m a little more patient, Essie can sense it and responds accordingly.”“That’s good,” Lucian answered solemnly. “Enjoy each other’s company.”Smiling, Aubree a*sured him she would.Without discussing it any further, Lucian ended the call on the pretext of work.Though he had already decided to proceed with the engagement, he did not ha
Estella’s resolve wavered at the mention of Lucian. She had seen how drunk Lucian was the night before and surmised he must have drunk a lot.I wonder what Daddy was up to.Aubree delighted at the indecision in Estella’s eyes and continued, “If you don’t want to attend school, I can help put in a word or two when your daddy’s feeling better.”It was only then that Estella relented and allowed her entry into the room.Aubree got to her feet to let Estella get dressed while she picked out the clothes she would wear to school.Once the clothes were selected, she a*sisted Estella to brush her teeth.Estella gradually began to let her guard down.Aubree used to threaten her whenever they spent time together.Estella supposed Aubree wouldn’t try anything since she didn’t seem inclined to do so this time.Moreover, Aubree brought up Lucian in their conversation.Estella was docile and compliant to her demands as she did not want to trouble Lucian. Nonetheless, her expression was still sulle
Aubree spent the night in the same guest room she stayed in during her previous visit. As she entered the room, she could not help but recall what she had done last time.For a moment, I even thought of using the same method to teach that little b*tch another lesson to see if she dares to be disobedient again!However, it was only a fleeting thought because, ultimately, she was still afraid Lucian would find out about it.Now that she had hope, she would never be able to forgive herself if she lost it due to another mistake she made.As Aubree lay in bed, the scene from earlier in Lucian’s bedroom kept playing through her head.I was so close to becoming Mrs. Farwell! If only Cayden hadn’t appeared!Aubree stayed up all night, waiting for Cayden to come over and inform her that Lucian had woken up.She never expected to wait until the sun was high in the sky, and he still had not come over.The memory of Cayden’s attitude toward her the night before made Aubree grit her teeth. She go
When the two women arrived at the club, Jonathan had already sobered up a little. He tensed up when he saw Aubree entering the room with his sister.Jonathan vaguely recalled Lucian making a call in his drunken stupor earlier, but he thought Lucian had made a call of regret to Roxanne with the courage of his drunken state.Even if it was not a call to Roxanne, Lucian should have called Cayden instead.Alas, Lucian had called Aubree.So all that talk earlier was a waste of my breath! Lucian has really given up on Roxanne.“Lucian, how do you feel?”Aubree instantly went to Lucian’s side the moment she stepped into the room, and she began studying the man with concern.Lucian had drunk more than Jonathan, and by then, he was already out of his mind.His only reaction to Aubree’s voice was a small nod and a slight furrow of his brows.“Aubree, you should bring Lucian back first. Leave my brother to me,” Frieda suggested.Aubree agreed to it with no hesitance. Nonetheless, she had troubl
Just as those words went past Jonathan’s lips, Lucian tightened his grip on his gla*s. Six years ago…“You must have treated Dr. Jarvis far worse six years ago than how Dr. Jarvis is treating you now,” Jonathan went on. “Back then, I wondered about what she would feel about you focusing on work and Aubree only. I thought she would have left in no time, but to my surprise, she actually lived with you for so many years and even gave birth to your children.”At that moment, a thought seemed to have popped up in Jonathan’s head. “It looks like Dr. Jarvis was deeply in love with you back then. You say you’re a persevering man, but you’re giving up on her in mere months just because she’s a little more serious about her work. In contrast, Dr. Jarvis had stayed by your side for years.”Jonathan even felt bad for Roxanne when he thought about the things she had to go through during those years. Once he was done saying his piece, he clicked his tongue and shook his head.Lucian’s expression d