Unfortunately, there was bad blood between both of them and Roxanne, and neither was familiar with Jack. Under such circumstances, Frieda, too, drew at blank. “Have you managed to come up with any ideas?” Aubree began to grow impatient.
Her relationship with Estella had improved due to Frieda’s suggestion. She figured that the latter might be able to give her some useful ideas.
Unfortunately, all she got was silence after waiting for a long time.
Frieda looked troubled. “Given our relationship with them, it would be difficult not to leave any tracks. If you insist on carrying on, we’ll have no choice but to create an accident.”
Especially one that involves Roxanne. Once Jack shows his concern for her, it will be enough for us to make a big fuss out of it.
Aubree rejected the idea outright. “It wasn’t easy to change Lucian’s impression of me. He would definitely cancel our engagement if he were to find out I was behind it.”
“I failed to take that into account,” Frieda admitted with a grim look on her face. “Do we have no choice but to wait for them to develop feelings for each other with the passage of time?” Aubree wondered aloud.
Frieda’s eyes lit up. “Not necessarily!” Aubree gave her a baffled look. “We can’t create an accident to hurt them, but we can increase the time they spend together.
Sooner or later, it won’t come as a surprise if they end up as a couple, will it?” Frieda said.
In other words, the plan is to discreetly matchmake them. Even if Lucian finds out, it will be easy to explain it away, making this a low-risk scheme.
Nodding thoughtfully, Aubree reassured Frieda, “I would have felt so lost if it wasn’t for you. Frieda, don’t you worry. After all that you have done for me, I’ll definitely make it worth your while once I become Mrs. Farwell.”
Frieda forced a smile. “That’s the least I can do for my best friend!” Now that she had a plan, Aubree’s mind began to wander as both of them continued to shop.
When the sky began to darken, Frieda checked the time and reminded Aubree, “Aren’t you supposed to pick Essie up from school? You’re going to be late if you don’t leave now.”
She had assumed the latter had lost track of time.
However, Aubree surprised her by replying matter-of-factly, “What’s the hurry? Even if I’m late, the teacher will wait with her. It’s not like she’ll be lost.”
Her response confused Frieda again. We’re obviously not far from Essie’s kindergarten, so what is Aubree up to now?
Aubree didn’t bother to explain herself. It wasn’t until they shopped for a while longer that she finally decided to drive nonchalantly to the kindergarten.
Meanwhile, Estella and Pamela were the only ones left at the kindergarten entrance. “Essie, who’s coming to pick you up today? Were you always picked up so late in your previous kindergarten?” Pamela patiently clarified the matter with Estella, for it was the first time she had encountered such a situation.
Estella pursed her lips in silence as if she didn’t hear Pamela at all. It was never her desire to come to the new kindergarten, and now that she was left to wait for a long time, she couldn’t help but feel depressed.
Just when Pamela was wondering whether to give Lucian a call, a car gradually rolled up beside them. Aubree alighted from it with an anxious expression on her face.
“I’m sorry for being late, Ms. Yaxley. Traffic was really bad.” After speaking to Pamela, she gave Estella an apologetic look. “I’m sorry to have made you wait, Essie. I’ll definitely come earlier next time!”
Estella continued to pout in silence. Seeing that, Pamela defused the situation with a smile. “It’s normal for kids to throw a tantrum after waiting for such a long time. She’ll be fine after a while.”
Aubree nodded in acknowledgment. She pulled Estella to her side, then bade Pamela goodbye and ushered Estella into the car. Throughout the journey, Aubree kept apologizing to Estella.
“I’m really sorry. I stay far away from your kindergarten, and I also didn’t expect to encounter such heavy traffic?
With her head hung low, Estella ignored Aubree while fiddling with her fingers. When they arrived at the Farwell residence, Lucian was about to give Aubree a call.
The sight of her car coming to a halt elicited a frown from him. “Lucian, I’m sorry I was late picking up Essie. I was stuck in traffic.”
Aubree had already gotten into character, complete with a remorseful expression and reddened eyes. Lucian suppressed his urge to demand an explanation from her.
“This is all my fault. Essie never liked her new kindergarten, and I had to make things worse by letting her wait. It’s no surprise that she’s mad at me,” Aubree blamed herself.
Behind her, Estella looked up to glance at her. Despite the minute change in her face, she didn’t say a word at all. All this while, she had felt that Aubree was just putting on an act. But now, she was no longer as certain.
Ms. Pearson was speaking in that tone inside the car. If this was all just an act, why would she bother to pretend in front of me? As Lucian watched how Aubree blamed herself, his expression changed.
“Why don’t I find a place to stay that’s nearer to Essie’s kindergarten? Otherwise, it would be troublesome if I got caught in traffic again…” Aubree added while discreetly observing Lucian’s expression.
The sight of his furrowed brows filled Aubree with secret delight. She could see that the time was right to pile on the pressure. “I’ll get my mom to look for a place for me once I get back.”
“There’s no such need,” Lucian said in a deep voice. “You can move into the manor for the time being. It will be more convenient for you to pick Essie up and watch over her here.”
Aubree feigned hesitance. “Wouldn’t Essie feel uncomfortable if I were to move in? I feel that we should take it slow when it comes to improving our relationship.”
“Since it’s just a matter of time for us to live together, we might as well let her get used to it earlier.” Lucian then turned around and instructed Catalina, “Prepare the guest room for Ms. Pearson.” Aubree was naturally delighted by the turn of events.
Just as I expected. Lucian’s attitude toward me will soften as long as I demonstrate through my actions that I have Essie’s best interest at heart. From the looks of it, my days in the Farwell residence won’t be as painful anymore.
Archie and Benny didn’t see Estella for another day and didn’t hear from her. Even though the three of them had previously agreed to get Lucian and Roxanne to reconcile, they had no visibility on Lucian’s situation without any feedback from Estella
It was evident that Roxanne had no desire to patch things up with Lucian. The boys couldn’t help but worry about the current state of affairs. After dinner, both of them returned to their room earlier than usual.
“Archie, why don’t we go and see Daddy?” Benny suggested. “If he knows that we’re his sons, I’m sure he will come and see Mommy.”
Even though Archie was anxious for his parents to reconcile, he rejected his brother’s suggestion without any hesitation, “Mommy must have her reasons for hiding the truth from Daddy. If we were to reveal it to him, we would definitely hurt Mommy’s feelings.”
Benny cupped his glum-looking face with his hands. “What should we do, then? We also have no idea what’s going on at Essie’s side.”
Just as they were discussing, a sudden knock was heard at the door. It was then followed by Roxanne’s voice “Archie, Benny, are you asleep? Can I come in?”
The boys held their tongues instantly as they got up to open the door.
Upon entering the room, Roxanne gave both of them a look of concern. “What’s going on with the two of you? Are you mad because of what happened yesterday?”
Usually, they would have stayed back and accompanied her at the table after dinner. If they went up straight, it was clear that something was bothering them. The boys exchanged glances.
Both of them had been discussing how to get Lucian and Roxanne to reconcile, a topic that they could never share with their mother. For a moment, neither of them said a word.
Assuming she had guessed right, Roxanne felt utterly helpless. “Do you dislike Mr. Damaris because you think something is going on between the two of us?”
After all, even the staff at the research institute had such a misconception. It wouldn’t be a surprise for the boys to think the same way.
While Archie pursed his lips in silence, Benny nodded without a second thought. “I don’t like it when you see Mr. Damaris every day, accept his flowers, and invite him to dinner!”
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.