“It‘s getting late,” Lucian said in a low voice. “We should head back.”
His words roused Roxanne from her reverie, She slowly let go of the two boys, stood up, and led them to follow Lucian.
Roxanne was about to bring the two boys up upon arriving back at the hotel when she felt a pair of resentful eyes on her back. Frowning, Roxanne glanced behind her and saw Estella hesitantly shuffling after her three paces behind
The child stopped in her tracks when she noticed her quarry had turned her head. Her little face was alight with anticipation. Not far away, Lucian pretended not to see them as he busied himself with pouring a glass of water from the bar.
Roxanne walked toward the child. “Do you want to sleep with me, Essie?”
The child nodded vigorously before asking cautiously, “Is that okay?”
Roxanne‘s heart softened at the child‘s tentativeness. “Go ask your Daddy,” she said softly as she gazed at the man in the vicinity. “If he says yes, I‘ll take you upstairs.”
The child‘s eyes brightened. She strode to Lucian‘s side with her stubby legs, but the man ignored the child‘s approach.
Knowing that her father would agree, Estella tugged the hem of his shirt fearlessly. “Can I sleep with Ms. Jarvis, Daddy?”
It was only then that Lucian lowered his gaze to look at his daughter before looking at Roxanne, who was standing nearby. “Okay,” he said with a slight frown, “but don‘t give Ms. Jarvis any trouble.”
The child nodded obediently before sprinting back to Roxanne with a wide grin. “Daddy said yes!”
Roxanne returned the smile as she caressed the child‘s head, then said to Lucian, “I‘ll take Essie upstairs, then.”
The man nodded casually. “If she‘s beginning to feel like a handful, Ms. Jarvis, you can send her back to me any time.”
Roxanne was taken aback. She wondered why the man was acting so distant all of a sudden.
Upon regaining her composure, she said, “Don‘t worry, Mr. Farwell. Essie will be in good hands.”
Lucian did not respond further. Instead, he turned to open a bottle of wine and
poured himself a glass. Roxanne gazed at the man‘s back, confused. “We‘ll be heading up, then. Good night. Mr. Farwell.”
Lucian grunted in response.
Roxanne said nothing as she took the children upstairs.
After an entire day‘s worth of excitement and running on the beach for hours, the children were so sweaty that Roxanne bathed them all.
“Ms. Jarvis, will you still be picking the boys up in the future?” asked Estella suddenly during her bath.
Roxanne‘s hands froze. She could almost guess the child‘s intentions and was, at the moment, at a loss for words.
After a long silence, Roxanne answered evasively, “I will go if work permits.”
Estella pursed her lips and gave Roxanne a piercing gaze as though she could see through the deception. The corners of her eyes drooped sadly.
Roxanne‘s heart ached when she took in the child‘s disappointed look, but she was determined to stand by her word.
Fortunately, Estella said no more throughout the rest of her bath, and Roxanne heaved a sigh of relief.
Roxanne was tucking the children in after their baths when Estella spoke. “I want to hear a bedtime story, Ms. Jarvis.”
Roxanne agreed without hesitation, as she felt guilty. “All right, I‘ll tell you one.”
“I want to hear the story of Sleeping Beauty.”
Roxanne was stunned as she instinctively recalled the sudden kiss on the stage at the mention of Sleeping Beauty. “Ms. Jarvis?” Jerking out of her reverie, Roxanne forced a smile at Estella before telling her the tale of Sleeping Beauty.
The child paid close attention and fell asleep shortly after Roxanne finished. Covering the child with the quilt, Roxanne lay down beside her.
Although she felt physically tired after running around an entire day, her mind was still in restless turmoil when she closed her eyes.
She couldn‘t help blaming herself despite having found Benny.
Aside from that, Estella‘s mention of Sleeping Beauty kept reminding her of the kiss during the play, and she couldn‘t seem to shake it off her mind.
Despite lying in bed for an indeterminate amount of time, Roxanne could not fall asleep.
Looking at the time and seeing that it was almost midnight, Roxanne promptly got out of bed and went downstairs.
If I‘m right, there are a few red wine bottles at the bar. Maybe I‘ll sleep better after having some red wine.
Emerging from her room, she frowned slightly when she saw that it was brightly lit downstairs.
Lucian is alone downstairs. Could he be awake as well?
Roxanne slowed down.
She did not want to go down and face the man alone at that hour.
As she was debating with herself whether or not to return to her room, Lucian‘s voice sounded. “Can‘t sleep, Ms. Jarvis?”
Roxanne paused in her steps. After a long hesitation, she decided to go down.
“How did you know it was me?”
Lucian was seated on the couch, dealing with some work. He glanced up upon hearing her words. “I heard the door open, and the kids should be asleep now. You are the only one left.”
Roxanne nodded in comprehension. “Are you not done with work?” she asked with polite concern.
“Yeah. What about you? Why can‘t you sleep?”
Roxanne frowned, wondering how she should broach the subject.
Aside from losing Benny, the other reason was more difficult for her to discuss.
Lucian‘s voice sounded again before she could speak. “Are you still not over the incident of losing Benny?”
The man‘s eyes remained fixated in her direction.
Roxanne hesitated for a moment before nodding in silent admittance.
Lucian‘s eyes grew slightly dim.
He had expected it. The woman did not look good when the child had gone missing. He reckoned she would not recover from it that easily.
He had also anticipated that the woman might not be able to fall asleep that night.
The living room plunged into silence.
Roxanne felt awkward. She cleared her throat to speak, but the man‘s voice sounded again.
“It wasn‘t your fault that Benny went missing. It was my fault for not keeping a closer eye on all of you, as I was by your side,” Lucian said in a low voice. “You don‘t have to blame yourself. Rest assured that something like this will never happen again.”
His speech surprised Roxanne.
He sounded as though they would be living together in the future and that he would help to care for the two boys.
Such a thought had only flashed across her mind once.
Roxanne quickly regained her composure and said, “I appreciate your gesture, Mr. Farwell, but there is no need to take all the responsibility upon yourself. I will take better care of my children.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
Leave a Reply