He made it clear with those words that she would not have the chance to become Estella’s mother.
Although Aubree had long learned of his stance on the matter, when she heard him say that again, she still felt a stab in her heart. At the same time, her resentment for Roxanne and Estella grew even more.
For a long while, Aubree found herself at a loss for words.
Taking advantage of the tense atmosphere, Estella quickly finished her meal. This time, she put down the fork, jumped out of the chair, and dashed toward the stairs without asking for her father’s permission.
An insidious glint flashed across Aubree’s eyes as she watched Estella climb up the stairs.
Lucian didn’t think much about it. Without saying another word to Aubree, he rose to his feet as well and followed Estella up the stairs.
When he saw that Estella had gone into her room, he turned to the study.
The father-daughter duo acted as though the woman downstairs were not there at all.
Aubree had a cold look in her eyes as she watched them leave.
That little girl will regret it later!
In the room, Estella felt upset when she thought of Aubree’s expression the moment she walked through the door just now. I really don’t want to stay with Ms. Pearson, but Daddy won’t tell me when he will chase her away.
After dwelling on that for quite some time, Estella couldn’t hold it back anymore and called Roxanne. Thankfully, Roxanne answered the call rather quickly.
“Essie, what’s the matter?” When Roxanne saw that it was a call from Estella, she couldn’t help but feel her heart clench. She was afraid that Aubree had bullied her again.
Hearing Roxanne’s voice, Estella felt even more aggrieved. She mumbled sadly, “Ms. Jarvis, can you pick me up from my house?”
Roxanne frowned, her eyes filled with concern. “Why? Did Ms. Pearson get mad at you?”
Estella shook her head. “Daddy is here. She wouldn’t dare.”
Only then did Roxanne feel at ease. “Why did you ask me to fetch you, then?” she asked caringly.
It had not been long since Lucian brought Estella back. She thought Estella had been wronged now that she had called all of a sudden.
However, that did not seem to be the case.
Estella pouted. “I don’t like Ms. Pearson, but she keeps talking to me.”
I want to avoid Ms. Pearson.
Roxanne sighed inwardly upon hearing her response.
I’ve promised Essie that I will help her to talk to Lucian. But judging from his reaction just now, I’m not sure if he’d listened to my words or not… At the end of the day, I’ve still failed to help Essie. If I had known this was going to happen, I would have insisted on letting Essie stay.
After beating herself up for a while, Roxanne replied to Estella in a gentle tone, “Essie, I can’t bring you over now. If you really don’t like Ms. Pearson, just stay in your room and try not to be with her when you’re alone, okay?”
She was worried that Estella would be mistreated if she was alone with Aubree.
Luckily, Estella had learned her lesson. Upon hearing Roxanne’s words, she agreed obediently, “Okay.”
Roxanne breathed a sigh of relief and continued to comfort Estella. “Your daddy probably won’t let Ms. Pearson stay for long. Don’t worry, Essie.”
At the mention of that, Estella recalled the answer her father had given to her just now and puckered her lips in disbelief.
Seeing that Estella didn’t reply to her, Roxanne knew that Estella didn’t quite believe it, but she couldn’t do anything about it. She could only divert Estella’s attention.
“Archie and Benny said that you all have learned to make paper roses in kindergarten. Can you make one for me?” Roxanne asked gently.
Hearing that Roxanne wanted a gift, Estella agreed right away, “No problem!”
I will not just make one paper rose for her. I’m going to make a bouquet of paper roses for her!
Roxanne chuckled lightly, but she still seemed to be worried.
Just when she didn’t know what else to say, Archie and Benny came downstairs and stared at her expectantly. “Mommy, are you on the phone with Essie?”
Roxanne nodded in response.
Archie and Benny immediately jumped for joy and wanted to take her phone. “We want to talk to Essie too!”
They wanted to ask Estella if she had found anything on her side.
Not thinking much about it, Roxanne told Estella about it first before passing the phone to Archie and Benny. “Have a nice chat with Essie.”
Archie and Benny bobbed their heads obediently and ran to the side with the phone in their hands.
Archie and Benny ran to a corner. They glanced furtively over their shoulders at Roxanne, making sure she was out of earshot before asking in a whisper, “Well? What did Mr. Farwell say?”
Upon hearing their question, Estella recalled her conversation with Lucian during their journey and answered, “Daddy said it was his fault, and he won’t do it again.”
The two boys heaved a sigh of relief when they heard that. Then they remarked chidingly, “Hmph! Mr. Farwell is the one who wants to pursue Mommy, yet he made her angry.”
If it weren’t because he has appeared sincere up until now, we wouldn’t bother helping him.
Despite Lucian being the one in the wrong, Estella could not help feeling guilty. She said softly, “Daddy already knows he made a mistake, so don’t stop helping him…”
She sounded so pitiful that Archie and Benny also softened their tones as they replied, “Don’t worry. We’ll help him.”
Then, they could not resist asking curiously, “By the way, did you call Mommy at such a late hour just to tell us this?”
There was a brief silence on the other end of the line, and the boys started getting worried.
After a while, Estella finally spoke again. “I want to be with the two of you and Ms. Jarvis. I don’t want Ms. Pearson…”
Regret washed over Archie and Benny when they heard how upset Estella was. They said apologetically, “We’re sorry. If we’d known, we would’ve said something to Mr. Farwell so that you could stay.”
Estella shook her head. “I don’t blame you. It’s all Ms. Pearson’s fault.”
“That evil woman… If she dares to bully you, you must let us know. We’ll get back at her for you,” the boys replied indignantly.
Their response made Estella press her lips together in a shy smile. She sounded much more relaxed as she murmured, “Thank you, Archie. Thank you, Benny.”
The children chatted for a while before reluctantly ending the call.
After hanging up, Estelle remembered what Roxanne had said earlier. She took some kraft paper and started making paper roses for her.
Just imagining the look on Roxanne’s face when she received the flowers filled Estella’s heart with anticipation.
Seeing that it was getting late, Catalina went upstairs to give Estella a bath.
She had to knock some time before getting a response.
As Estella stood in the doorway, Catalina gazed at her and asked curiously, “What were you busy with, Ms. Estella?”
Estella’s eyes crinkled as she pointed at the paper roses on the table.
Catalina looked toward where Estella was pointing, then patted her head. “You’ve done a good job. They look beautiful!”
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.
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