“Mommy, are you going to let Mr. Damaris become our daddy?” Benny blurted out.
Roxanne paused for several seconds and finally understood the children’s concerns. She did not know whether to be amused or upset as she assured them, “Mr. Damaris and I are work partners, nothing more. He’s like the others you’ve met when we were overseas.” She locked her eyes on both Benny and Archie intensely. “Both of you need not worry. I’ll ask for your opinions first if I ever have any plans to do so. I won’t let someone you dislike become your daddy.”
The weight on the children’s hearts had finally been lifted as they inclined their heads compliantly.
Roxanne let out a sigh of relief now that Benny and Archie understood her.
Checking the time and seeing that it was getting late, Roxanne got to her feet and patted Benny’s and Archie’s heads affectionately. “I’d better get going, or it’d affect my work. Both of you, wait for me at home. I’ll be back soon. We’ll go out together and have fun later.”
They promised to be obedient and apologized to Roxanne once more. “We’re sorry for scaring you just now, Mommy.”
Roxanne smiled. “It’s all right as long as you’re aware of your mistakes. Don’t hesitate to tell me anything next time and don’t pretend to be sick again. I’ll be worried.”
The children agreed to that. Then Roxanne turned to make her way downstairs.
Jack was sitting on the couch downstairs. He got to his feet at the sight of her and asked, “How are the children?”
Roxanne gave a sheepish grin as she recalled the children’s words. “They might have gotten a cold last night. I gave them some medicine and told them to get some rest.”
Jack inclined his head slightly. “If that’s the case, you need not trouble yourself. I can head to Herbscape Group myself.”
“It’s all right. We’ll just come back sooner.”
Jack did not bother convincing her any further and assented at once.
Meanwhile, Lucian left the Farwell residence in a hurry without eating breakfast.
Estella lost her appetite and was fuming, as she didn’t get to finish saying what she wanted to say.
Catalina tried coaxing her for some time, but she shook her head stubbornly and refused to open her mouth.
“Ms. Estella…” Catalina glanced at Estella helplessly.
Estella raised her head and looked at Catalina pitifully. “Ms. Catalina, I want to go and play with Archie and Benny.”
She had no idea how to tell her father that she needed help from the brothers.
Catalina’s heart went out to Estella. However, she had no choice but to feign ignorance as she recalled Lucian’s orders before he left the premises.
Estella’s mood turned sullen when Catalina didn’t respond. A few minutes later, Catalina gave in and explained, “Mr. Farewell is very busy these days. He ordered me to make sure that you stay at home obediently. If you want to go anywhere, you’ll have to ask him when he’s back.”
The thought of her father had Estella turn her head to the side in frustration. Catalina let out a sigh and called Lucian.
Lucian was having a meeting at the office when his phone vibrated. Seeing Catalina’s name flashing across the screen, he hesitated briefly before leaving the room to take the call. “What is it?”
Catalina shot a glance at the still-upset Estella before speaking into the phone. “Ms. Estella has been sulking since morning, Mr. Farwell, and she didn’t even touch her breakfast.”
When Estella heard Catalina talking to her father on the phone, she slowly turned around and stared at the phone.
She wanted to talk to her father too.
Noticing Estella’s intention, Catalina passed her the phone.
Lucian was about to ask for the reason when he heard his daughter’s voice.
“Daddy, I want to play with Archie and Benny.”
Estella’s voice reflected her surly mood.
When Lucian recalled Estella’s anxious and sad expression before he left for work that morning, his heart softened.
Yet remembering Roxanne’s ruthlessness had him frowning with displeasure. “Ms. Jarvis is very busy lately, so be a good girl and stay at home, okay? Don’t create trouble for Ms. Jarvis.”
Estella harrumphed.
Lucian rubbed his temples, feeling the throbbing in his head. “Be good. I’ll bring you to the amusement park after work.”
“No!” Estella pouted. “I want to play with Archie and Benny.”
Lucian looked toward the conference room and coaxed, “I still have some work to do. We’ll talk about this tonight.”
Naturally, Estella wouldn’t take his words seriously after last night’s incident. Not only did she defy him, she even moved the topic to something that worsened Lucian’s headache.
“You said you were going to make Ms. Jarvis my mommy. Why are you not letting me go and play at her house? You’re just angry at her!”
Estella brought up the issue she had raised that morning. Lucian didn’t reply to her and merely scrunched up his brows.
He was unsatisfied with Roxanne, but if Estella found out about it, surely she would blame him.
Yet he didn’t want to lie to her.
Estella knew her father’s character. She sniffled, and her eyes turned red.
Hearing her sniffle, Lucian said resignedly, “I’ll help you find a mommy. It won’t necessarily be Ms. Jarvis, but I’m sure you’ll like her.”
“No!”
Tears started streaming down Estella’s cheeks as she sobbed, “I want Ms. Jarvis! I only want her! Bad Daddy!”
Catalina didn’t expect that a phone call would send the child into a crying fit. She hurried over to Estella’s side to comfort her. “What’s wrong, Ms. Estella?”
Alas, Cataline’s soothing words fell on deaf ears as Estella began bawling harder.
Lucian’s brows creased when he heard the chaos on the other side. “Catalina, please look after Estella. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay.”
After hanging up the call, Lucian strode back into the conference room, handed over his position as the chairperson of the meeting to his vice president, and raced back to the Farwell residence.
When Lucian returned to the Farwell residence, Estella was no longer in the living room, and Catalina was nowhere to be found.
“Mr. Farwell.” He reached for his phone, about to call Catalina when she came down the stairs with a grim expression. His eyebrows drew together as he asked, “Where’s Essie?”
Catalina pointed at Estella’s room on the second floor and said, “Ms. Estella has locked herself in her room again. I don’t know how to get her out.”
Estella had been crying non-stop since the call ended. No matter how much Catalina consoled her, she refused to calm down. After bawling for a while, Estella abruptly picked herself up and dashed to her room upstairs.
Catalina’s reaction was merely slower by a split second. By the time she reached the second floor, Estella had already locked herself in her room. No matter what Catalina said, Estella would not open her door.
At first, Cataline could still hear Estella’s muffled sobs. But the muffled crying died down after a while, leaving only silence.
Catalina panicked and called Lucian, but Lucian didn’t pick up any of her calls. She wanted to get the keys to Estella’s room but had no idea where Lucian kept them.
Just as she was losing hope, she heard movement at the front door. Catalina rushed down the stairs, hoping it was Lucian at the front door, and relief flooded her at the sight of him.
Lucian frowned after hearing about Estella’s behavior. He marched up the stairs without changing into indoor slippers.
Catalina hurriedly trailed after him, and they stood at the door to Estella’s room.
Lucian suppressed the unease pricking his chest and knocked on the door. “Open up, Essie. I’m home.”
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.