Chapter 540 – Her Sudden Departure: A Tale of Love and Redemption (Lucian & Roxanne)

After Roxanne thanked Jack gratefully, the two ended the phone call without saying anything else.

Then, Roxanne hurried back to the children.

“Mommy, we couldn’t get Essie to stop crying.” Benny had disappointment written all over his face.

After patting the boy’s head, Roxanne lowered herself to pick up Estella. “It’s okay now, Essie. You have Archie, Benny, and me here.”

As if she felt a sense of security in Roxanne’s arms, Estella finally opened her tear-filled eyes to look at the woman.

Roxanne quickly patted Estella on the back when she sensed a change in the girl’s emotion, trying to calm her down so she wouldn’t cry too hard.

“I d-don’t want to transfer schools!” uttered Estella, choking on her tears.

Roxanne was relieved to hear Estella speak but quickly became distressed because of what the girl said.

Even though Roxanne knew what Estella wanted, there was nothing she could do about it.

“Ms. Jarvis… I want you, Ms. Jarvis…” voiced Estella as she continued to sob.

Immediately, Roxanne responded, “I’m here. I’m here with you.”

The two boys then climbed up the couch and carefully tugged Estella’s sleeve. “We’re here too, so you don’t have to cry anymore.”

“I…” Roxanne could not bear to see Estella cry again, so she decided to tell a white lie to appease the girl. “I’ll speak to your father about it.”

“I want you to be my Mommy,” added the teary-eyed Estella.

Gulping, Roxanne dared not promise Estella that.

However, her heart could not help but break a little every time she heard the girl sob.

Only after a while did Roxanne respond, “I’ll always like you no matter what our relationship is. Would you dislike me if I couldn’t be your mother, Essie?”

Estella was clearly alarmed by what Roxanne said. She couldn’t stop crying and shaking her head. Roxanne wiped the girl’s tears away and uttered softly, “In that case, don’t cry anymore.” Archie and Benny helped do the same.

After Roxanne said she liked Estella, the two of them repeated their mother’s sentiment. “It doesn’t matter what our relationship is. We’ll still like you, Essie!”

While that stopped Estella from sobbing further, she still felt quite upset. “But… if I change school, I won’t be able to see you two anymore.”

Benny promised, “Even if you do, we’ll still visit you to play with you! If Mr. Farwell and the others forbid us from doing so, we’ll just sneak our way in!”

Having listened to the conversation among the children, Roxanne thought, I don’t think I’ll let them meet each other again after this.

However, Estella seemed to be moved. Roxanne didn’t want to burst their bubbles, so she agreed with her silence.

The three of them talked with Estella for a long while, and only then was her mood finally lifted again.

Benny recounted everything interesting that had happened in the kindergarten over the past two days.

When Roxanne finally saw Estella smiling from listening to Benny’s story, she breathed a sigh of relief.

“You should keep her company for a while, Archie. I have something I need Benny’s help with.” She was still wondering why Benny had called Lucian Daddy and wanted to ask him about it.

The kids were in a happy mood at that moment, so none of them gave her statement much thought.

Benny merely thought his mother needed his aid to decoding something again, so he followed her upstairs enthusiastically.

It wasn’t until he noticed that his mother was heading toward their bedroom instead of the study that he started to feel guilty.

After he entered the room, she closed the door.

“Mommy…” Benny lowered his head guiltily.

Seeing that, Roxanne felt something was amiss.

She knew the children too well. She could tell from a glance what he was feeling.

Suddenly, she panicked a little.

However, lest she misunderstood the boy, she asked, “Earlier, why did you suddenly call Mr. Farwell Daddy?”

Benny lowered his head and was at a loss for words.

He was great at computers, but not confrontations like those.

In the past, his brother would always help him navigate through situations like those, but at that moment, he was alone.

He knew his mother was smart. If he answered her question too slowly, she would get suspicious.

At that thought, he could only steel himself and utter, “I didn’t call Mr. Farwell Daddy. I just wanted to say that he’s Essie’s Daddy and that he can’t make her cry.” He raised his head to look at Roxanne’s countenance. “But I got a little too anxious and only remembered to say the words ‘Daddy.”

Roxanne knitted her eyebrows slightly, unsure of what to believe. The children were shocked by what happened earlier, and Benny’s answer does make sense. However, I can’t help but feel that something’s off.

“Also…” Seeing that his mother was still skeptical of the matter, Benny had a brilliant idea and started acting pitifully. “When I saw Mr. Farwell hugging Essie, I thought Archie and I would be hugged the same way if our daddy was still alive!”

That hit a soft spot in Roxanne’s heart. She put away her suspicions and stared at her boy apologetically.

“I’m sorry.” Roxanne lowered her head. Upon hearing that, Benny knew Roxanne had bought his lie and let out a sigh of relief in secret. He lowered his guard even further when he heard his mother apologizing to him.

He tugged her sleeve obediently. “I don’t blame you, Mommy!” Roxanne forced a smile, but she still felt remorseful. Benny tilted his head and blurted out his thoughts, “If you really feel sorry, make Mr. Farwell our daddy! Archie and I like him a lot!”

Roxanne’s heart clenched when she heard that. It was the first time she had heard the boy express his opinion about Lucian to her. Is it because they’re related by blood that they love him so much?

Roxanne felt the urge to tell Benny about his background, but then she thought about her relationship with Lucian. If Lucian learns that the boys are his children, he won’t let them stay by my side.

At that thought, she pinched her palm silently and swallowed the words on the tip of her tongue.

“Mr. Farwell is going to marry someone else in the future, and there’s nothing I can do about it.” She patted his head comfortingly. “However, I can promise you that your future daddy will be someone you and your brother will like!”

Naturally, Benny was disappointed when his proposal was rejected by his mother. However, he found himself understanding his mother’s decision when he recalled her precarious relationship with his father.

He was determined to help his parents reconcile with each other. Unwilling to face Benny’s disappointed countenance, Roxanne stood up and grabbed his tiny hand. “Come on. Let’s head back to Essie.”

The boy bobbed his head and followed her downstairs. Archie and Estella were planning how to encourage their parents to make peace with each other.

When they heard footsteps, they swiftly separated from one another like frightened little animals and sat on the couch, acting as though nothing had happened.

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