“Why are you here?”The person mentioned in the news was standing at her door. He was dressed in a thin shirt, and his hair was slightly messy.After their previous fight, she knew Lucian would often come to visit.However, he was tactful enough to not show himself before her.This was the first time they met in person after the fight.After hearing the news earlier, Roxanne had no idea how she should face him.As the newscaster’s sound could be heard faintly, Lucian knew Roxanne should’ve heard about his engagement. He studied her carefully but realized she seemed calm.Shortly after, he broke the silence. “I’m here to pay Essie a visit. How is she doing?”Roxanne stepped aside to allow him entry. “She’s upstairs. I need to talk to you about her.”They entered the living room one after another. Roxanne gestured for him to take a seat on the couch while she occupied a single couch aside.Catalina served them coffee and left after realizing they had something to discuss.“What is it?”
With that, the door to the mansion slowly closed, and Estella‘s tiny figure was gone from Roxanne‘s sight.Missing the little girl dearly, Roxanne took a deep breath and forced her tears back in.They had spent quite some time together, and the kid had obviously grown fond of her and the boys. On top of that, her illness showed evident signs of improvementIf at all possible, Roxanne wished that she could continue to stay with Estella and take care of the latter until she had completely recovered. How I wish I could hear her say a full sentence…Unfortunately, it seemed that was no longer possible.As Archie and Benny walked down the stairs after Roxanne and Estella, the boys could tell that their mother was sad to send Estella away. Although they, too, felt the same, they kept their words to themselves.When they saw how saddened their mother was, they snuggled up in her arms and promised, “Don‘t be sad, Mommy. We promise we will always be with you.”Roxanne hugged the cuddly kids in
Larry trusted her, so he nodded and agreed to let her work her magic.Roxanne ended up spending most of her time at the hospital over the next two days.She discussed the matter with a few domestic experts who were renowned in that field. After that, she came up with a new medical proposal, but even then, the chances of success were only forty percent.On the day of the surgery, Roxanne dropped her kids off at the kindergarten early in the morning. She hurried to the hospital immediately after to confirm the surgical procedure with the other experts. The preparation for the surgery was done following that.The surgery would begin at one o’clock in the afternoon, and if everything went smoothly, the entire process would take about five or six hours. That would give her just enough time to go pick up her kids.Roxanne’s confidence caused her to dismiss the idea of asking Lysa to pick up the kids.Soon, it was one o’clock, and the surgery began officially.Roxanne and the other medical
Archie and Benny were used to her being late, so they didn’t mind and shook their heads when they heard what she said. They were actually worried about her. “Mommy, have you been working all this time? Are you tired?”“Not at all,” replied Roxanne while grinning.Despite her words, her body was actually exhausted.If it weren‘t for her kids, she wouldn‘t even have the strength to lift her arm.Years ago, a complication occurred when she gave birth to her kids, and she lost a lot of blood. As a result, she had been frail and weak.It was also why she would be exhausted every time she operated for an extended period and would need to rest a lot to recuperate.“Why is Essie…?” asked Roxanne as she stared at Estella in confusion.Lucian is already here to pick her up, so why hasn‘t she gone home yet? Or… did he stay out of the courtesy to take care of Archie and Benny?Conflicting emotions welled up in Roxanne when she came to that conclusionNo one knew when Lucian had made his way to th
Lysa was worried about Roxanne, who was all alone at home at the time. Hearing that question brought a worried frown to Lysa’s brows. “Ms. Jarvis is sick and is resting at home. Let’s hurry back.”Both boys became anxious when they heard that.They had assumed their mommy would recover soon after resting for a bit, just like usual. They didn’t expect her to be so tired that she fell ill.Estella refused to go home with him because she wanted to see Roxanne. That was why Lucian had no choice but to wait at a corner.Never had he expected to hear such news.Estella gave Lucian an anxious look and grabbed his sleeve. “Ms. Jarvis-”Lucian knew what his daughter wanted to ask, so he helped her finish her question. “What happened to Ms. Jarvis?”Lysa, who knew nothing about their story, told them what happened to Roxanne, “Ms. Jarvis hadn’t been feeling well when she got home last night. I thought she was exhausted, but when I checked on her at noon, she had already come down with a fever.
The warm and cozy atmosphere in the car made Roxanne want to fall asleep, but when she thought of the man sitting next to her, she forced herself to stay awake.Due to her fever, despite trying her best to stay awake by digging her nails into her palms, she soon fell into a deep slumber.“How do you feel?” Lucian expressed his concern as they were caught in a traffic snarl.When he did not get a reply, he looked to the side and noticed the woman was sound asleep.Overwhelmed by complicated emotions, Lucian looked away and ordered the driver, “Drive slower.”Soon, he felt a weight on his shoulder.Lucian turned around and looked at the side of the woman‘s sleeping face with a subtle gentleness in his eyes. Roxanne slept throughout the journey.She did not wake up even when they arrived at the hospital.Lucian hesitated for a moment and decided not to wake Roxanne up. After instructing the driver to open the door, he covered the woman with his coat and carried her out of the car.The e
Frowning, Roxanne insisted, “I’m fine, and I don’t need special care anymore. It’s unnecessary for you to stay back. You can’t get a good rest here, anyway.”She did not want to owe him anything more than she already did.Her voice sounded awkwardly loud in the quiet hospital ward at midnight.Dead silence filled the room upon her words.However, the man did not seem to have any intention of leaving.She dug her fingernails into her palms as she explained in a slightly friendlier tone of voice, “We aren’t in any relationship. Hence, there’s no reason for you to take special care of me, Mr. Farwell. I actually feel burdened when you do that.”Upon saying so, she gave the man sitting opposite her a solemn look.Never in a million years would Lucian have thought that caring for her would create a rift between them. He was utterly displeased.Yet, there was no way he could just leave the woman alone.After moments of pin-drop silence, he managed to suppress his anger. “Don’t you misunders
Benny nodded his head vigorously. “Archie and I will be obedient boys from now on. Mommy, please don‘t overwork yourself, okay?”With a sullen expression, Archie said nothing. Yet, one could tell that he concurred with his brother on this matter.Roxanne chuckled before replying, “Sure, I‘ll take good care of myself.”Lysa placed a thermal lunch box on the bedside table and said, “Have you had breakfast? I brought some for you both. Hurry up and eat it while it‘s still hot.”Then, she proceeded to take out two bowls to serve them soup and some side dishes.In response, Roxanne nodded. “Thank you so much.”Seeing that Lysa had already prepared the food for him, Lucian could not bring himself to decline her kind gesture even though he had no appetite to eat.Simultaneously, the two of them reached for the bowls, which had been placed side by side. Their fingers then accidentally brushed against each other.Roxanne froze, and she subconsciously looked up at the man, who was coincidentall
Estella was confused, but she still smiled innocently, for she knew Roxanne was praising her. The former then retracted her hand obediently. Subsequently, Roxanne took out the tools she had prepared and carefully scooped out the yellow flower along with its roots.Estella cocked her head to one side, confused by what she saw.“For medicinal herbs like this, we need to preserve their roots as well,” Roxanne explained patiently.Hearing that, the girl nodded even though she did not understand Roxanne’s words completely.Now that Estella knew Roxanne was looking for that kind of flower, the former quickly got up and scoured the area.It did not take long for Estella to find a huge area of it, so Roxanne collected a few more to be preserved.Soon, noon arrived. The children were clearly hungry because their pace had slowed.Noting that, Roxanne brought them back to the tent to prepare food for them.She had woken up early that morning to prepare a various selection of food for the childr
“What is…” Estella carefully placed the wreath in her hand and shot Roxanne a delighted look. Smiling, Roxanne patted Estella’s head and said, “It looks a little funny because I haven’t made one in a long time.”In response, Estella shook her head fervently. “I love it!”As if to prove how much she loved it, Estella placed it gently in front of her and began drawing it.Seeing that, Roxanne and the boys scooted over curiously, only to be shocked by Estella’s drawing, which was slowly becoming complete.Her previous drawing of the plants was rather decent, though her brushstrokes were a little childish.However, her drawing of the wreath was unbelievable. In fact, it almost looked real.“Essie, you’re amazing!” Benny breathed.Roxanne, too, smiled and nodded in agreement.By the time Estella was done with the drawing, Benny could not help but ask, “Essie, have you taken art cla*ses before?”However, Estella shook her head in confusion.The look of surprise in Benny’s eyes only intensi
The camping location Roxanne had picked was in the suburbs near a mountain. It was a two-hour drive from the city, so they only arrived when it was close to noon. When Roxanne got out of the car, she could not help but sigh in awe while scanning the surroundings. The two-hour drive was worth it.Their camping location was on a lush field with tiny flowers growing all over the place.Roxanne had purposely chosen a wider area to set up their tent. There was also a little forest not far from their spot.The vegetation in the forest was denser, and rabbits would hop out and encircle their visitors from time to time.On the other side was a tiny waterfall, and thanks to the moving water, the surrounding air was quite refreshing and cool.The gurgling sound of water also created a serene vibe. It could not be a more suitable camping site.Happiness was written all over the children’s faces.“It’s so beautiful!” Estella gazed at the scenery, forgetting all the unhappy events that happened t
The next day, Estella got out of bed and waited outside Lucian’s room. She still wanted to convince him to go camping with them. When Lucian opened the door and was about to leave the room, he noticed the girl was standing right before him.Needless to say, Lucian knew her motive.Instead of giving her a chance to speak, he said, “Come. Let’s go and have breakfast. Ms. Jarvis should be arriving shortly.”The girl shook her head, but before she could say something, Lucian interrupted again. “I need to go to the office now. You must obey Ms. Jarvis, okay? Call me if you need anything.”Before Estella could open her mouth and speak, he immediately walked past her and went downstairs.Meanwhile, Catalina was preparing breakfast for them in the dining area.When she saw him walking to the door, she asked in concern, “Breakfast’s ready, Mr. Farwell. Would you like to eat some before leaving?”Lucian continued walking. “I have to leave now. Remember to open the door for Ms. Jarvis later. Sh
On the way to the Farwell residence, Estella puffed up her cheeks as she sat in the backseat. She stared at her father through the rearview mirror. “Daddy, did you make Ms. Jarvis angry again?”Lucian frowned slightly when he heard Estella’s soft and adorable voice.Estella caught on to the change in Lucian’s expression and knew that she had guessed correctly. She snorted angrily.She had thought that Lucian wanted to bring her to meet Roxanne.However, it turned out he had gone to create trouble for Roxanne instead.“I won’t listen to you anymore, Daddy!” Estella said gloomily.Lucian’s frown deepened. He patiently explained, “It’s because of work.”It’s this excuse again!Estella looked at the rearview mirror unhappily and said, “You only know how to lie to little kids, Daddy.”Lucian’s eye twitched in anger when he heard that.Estella continued listing out her grievances. “You also said that to me the previous time! Earlier tonight, you tricked me into bringing you to Ms. Jarvis t
Lucian stared at Roxanne with a grim expression. Even if she did not say it out explicitly, he could tell that she was still being suspicious of him.Realizing that, Lucian’s expression darkened terribly, while the tone of his voice became colder.“Since you are refusing my offer, Ms. Jarvis, I won’t insist upon it anymore.”With that, he turned around and left the study.As she watched his retreating figure, Roxanne’s eyes glinted with an unfathomable emotion. Confusion filled her heart at that moment.Lucian’s words still left her wondering why he had decided to come all the way to see her in the first place.She wouldn’t believe his claim that he was merely here to provide the medicinal herbs.However, Lucian did not mention anything else besides that.Roxanne mulled over it in the study alone, but she could not find an answer to her doubts.After quite some time, she finally decided to leave the room.Meanwhile, the children had finished their dinner and were playing in the livin
Roxanne could feel Lucian’s heavy gaze on her back. Although her back was facing him, she still could not ignore the fact he was staring at her.Due to Lucian’s presence, she was no longer in the mood to eat anything.“You kids go ahead. I have something to discuss with Mr. Farwell,” said Roxanne softly after taking several quick bites and placing away her cutleries.She could not stand having Lucian staring at her all the time, and she wanted to know why he came to her place.The kids did not think too much about that and nodded obediently in response.Seeing that the kids had agreed to let her go, Roxanne stood up and walked over to Lucian. “Let’s talk in the study.”Lucian nodded casually and stood up, following her to the study.“Mr. Farwell, to what do I owe this pleasure of having you over at my place? Do you have something important to tell me?” Roxanne stood in the center of the study, looking at him warily. “If you’re here to offer me the technical advisor’s position for Her
That night, Lucian went to the kindergarten to pick Estella up. It was already late by the time he arrived, so Estella was the only kid left at the kindergarten.“Daddy,” Estella greeted him aggrievedly after noticing his arrival.He patted her head apologetically. “I’m sorry that I’m late.”Then, he looked up and nodded at Pippa.Pippa had waited with Estella the whole night. Now that Lucian had finally shown up, she could rest a*sured and let him take the little girl home.After bringing Estella into the car, Lucian sat idly for some time instead of starting the vehicle.Estella urged him in puzzlement, “Daddy?” Her voice pulled him back to reality.He glanced at the little girl through the rearview mirror and saw a bewildered expression spread across her face.“Have you seen Ms. Jarvis in the past few days?” he asked.Estella became crestfallen upon listening to his question and shook her head dejectedly.However, she quickly turned delighted. “Archie and Benny said I’ll be able t
Jonathan cleared his throat at Lucian’s lack of response.“I heard a fire broke out in Dr. Jarvis’ research institute two days ago.”Hearing that, Lucian snapped his brows together.Jonathan was satisfied to see his response. “What’s the matter? Did you not know about this?”Lucian nodded, his expression somber.He had not seen Roxanne since the kiss the other night.Therefore, he knew nothing of what happened to her.Although Estella would try to get news about Roxanne from Archie and Benny before telling her father what she learned, Lucian knew that Roxanne would not let the boys know that she had been in danger.Jonathan fell silent when he saw his friend’s grim expression, and he waited for Lucian to speak instead.“Was the fire a bad one? Was she hurt?” Lucian could not help but ask.Jonathan lifted a brow. “Won’t you know if you go and take a look at her?”At that, Lucian’s expression turned dark again.Jonathan was bewildered by that.What does this mean? Did they have a fight