Roxanne smiled and planted a kiss on each of their foreheads. “Thank you for comforting me, Darlings. Mommy loves you forever.”
The boys smiled adorably.
Her sons’ words lightened the weight of the guilt in her heart. After some contemplation, she pulled out her phone and made a call to Lucian.
Just as the call connected, the doorbell rang.
“Oh, is that Mr. Farwell?”
The boys’ eyes lit up as they looked at Roxanne expectantly.
Roxanne, too, hoped that it would be Lucian. She got up quickly and pulled open the door.
The boys looked crestfallen as the person at the door came into view.
Roxanne’s hopes, too, were quickly dashed.
“Ms. Jarvis.” Jack stood at the door with his assistant in tow. His brows twitched when he saw the expression on Roxanne’s face. “Did I come at the wrong time?”
Roxanne swallowed her disappointment and plastered a smile on her face. “No, no, I’ve just got home.”
Jack nodded lightly at her reply. His eyes swept past her and landed on the two boys. “Hello, Mr. Damaris,” the boys greeted him politely as he surveyed them.
Jack nodded at them in acknowledgment before turning back to Roxanne. “The children are looking much better.”
Roxanne was surprised and confused by Jack’s remark. After a while, she recalled that the two boys had pretended to be sick earlier that morning.
She was so preoccupied with her worries about Estella that she had momentarily forgotten about that.
Now that Jack had reminded her of it, Roxanne glanced at her sons.
“Thank you for your concern, Mr. Damaris. We’ve taken some medicine and are feeling much better,” the boys said dutifully.
“Why are you here, Mr. Damaris?” Roxanne asked, guiltily changing the subject.
Jack smiled indifferently, then turned and angled his head toward his car parked in the distance. “The medicine that you requested is ready. Why don’t you have a look at it?”
Roxanne nodded and followed him to his car.
“Lucky for us, we got there just in time,” Jack said as Roxanne was inspecting the medicine. “As soon as you left, Herbscape Group was immediately seized and taken over. If we had been one step too late, we wouldn’t be able to secure anything.”
Roxanne gave a faint smile. Her thoughts drifted to Estella again.
It was because of this medicine that she did not manage to reach Estella in time.
Guilt clouded over Roxanne’s eyes. She slowed down her inspection of the medicine as her focus drifted to Estella.
Jack noticed her unusual behavior and raised his eyebrows questioningly.
He had personally brought the medicine to Roxanne because he was curious as to why she had left in such a hurry.
Before he had arrived at her house, he had thought that it was because of her two sons.
However, now that he had seen her, he did not think that the boys were the true cause.
“It looks good. Thanks for the trouble, Mr. Damaris.” Roxanne nodded at Jack gratefully.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m just worried that it’ll affect your research,” Jack replied calmly, pulling his gaze away from her.
His eyes slid over to the two boys standing behind Roxanne.
He was not sure if it was just in his head, but it seemed that the two boys had been wary of him from their very first time meeting him.
They acted as if he was trying to steal something away from them.
“Mommy!”
When they caught sight of him, the boys immediately crowded around Roxanne possessively as if they were afraid that she would follow Jack away again.
Roxanne looked down at her sons, a bewildered expression on her face. They had each grabbed a handful of her skirt tightly in their little fists.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
The boys opened their mouths but quickly shut them again. They shook their heads, embarrassed. “It’s nothing.”
They had wanted to make up an excuse to persuade Roxanne not to leave with Jack, but they could not think of anything to say.
They had pretended to be sick earlier that morning, and Jack had seen right through their little act.
Even if we want Mommy to take us out to play right now, Mommy surely isn’t in the mood…
The boys fretted at the thought.
“Do you want me to keep this medicine for you?” Jack didn’t take those kids seriously. Instead, he turned around and threw the question at Roxanne.
Roxanne frowned as she pondered it for a while. “It’s better to send it to the research institute. There’s no point in keeping this with me.”
“Then I will need you to come with us,” Jack said. Hearing that, Archie and Benny tensed up. The grips on the hem of Roxanne’s dress tightened.
Just when she was about to agree to his request, she noticed the boys’ unusual reaction. She glanced at them with concern. The boys looked at their mother. “Mommy, aren’t you unwell?”
It was only after the boys contemplated for some time that they finally came up with those words.
Roxanne’s expression changed slightly. Her eyes grew gloomy as she thought of Estella. “Forget it if you’re not feeling well. I’ll just tell the staff over there,” Jack said.
Roxanne pulled herself together and shook her head with a smile on her face. “It’s better for me to go over there so that nothing will go wrong again.”
Jack arched an eyebrow imperceptibly and decided not to be polite to her anymore. The boys were anxious when they heard that Roxanne wanted to leave.
Mr. Damaris already said that she didn’t have to go there. Why does Mommy insist on going?
“The kids seem to have something to say to you.” Jack got into the car first. “I’ll wait for you in the car.” Roxanne nodded gratefully. After that, she returned to the entrance of the mansion with the kids.
“Mommy, are you going out again?” Benny tugged at the hem of Roxanne’s dress pitifully. Roxanne ruffed the boys’ hair apologetically. “I’m going to the research institute and will be right back.”
A slight crease appeared between Archie’s eyebrows. “But what if Essie and Mr. Farwell come here when you’re out?”
His words hit Roxanne right in the gut. For a moment, she was hesitant about her decision. Benny chimed in, “Essie will surely feel more upset if she doesn’t see you when she gets here.”
Moreover, Daddy will be mad as well. Compared to Estella, the kids were more worried about Lucian. After all, Estella was easy to please. As for Lucian, it was hard to tell.
Roxanne did not know what to do. However, on second thought, she felt that the chances Lucian would bring Estella over were low, as he was still mad at her.
It wasn’t easy for them to get hold of this batch of medicine, so she couldn’t afford to see something go wrong at this point.
Furthermore, she had agreed to go with Jack, and the man was waiting for her in the car.
After mulling over the matter for some time, Roxanne decided to stick to her original plan.
“I’ll be right back. Be good and wait at home. If Essie comes over, ask her to stay here and quickly give me a call. I’ll come back immediately, okay?”
Both Estella and this batch of medicine were important. It was the only way Roxanne could think of at that moment to deal with both sides at the same time.
Since Roxanne had said so, Archie and Benny had no choice but to nod obediently. “Mommy, you have to come back soon.”
Roxanne nodded with a smile. “You guys get inside now.”
Archie and Benny reluctantly entered the mansion.
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.