Chapter 616 – His Second Chance Love: The Freezing Silence

Chapter 616 – His Second Chance Love: The Freezing Silence

Summer was brimming with excitement. It was well past her bedtime, but she remained in my arms without any trace of sleepiness. Cameron had to gently remind her several times before she finally dragged her feet back to her room.

After a short while, however, she padded out of her room again to climb on my lap, asking softly, “Mommy, can I sleep with you tonight? I wanna hug you to sleep. It’s been so long since we slept together, Mommy. I miss you!”

Any mother who had been away from her child for too long wouldn’t be able to refuse her child’s requests, and I was no exception.

Hence, I nodded with a helpless smile.

After having something to eat, Hunter came home with my suitcase and brought it upstairs before carrying his baby boy over. Because he was in a hurry earlier, he didn’t get to see his son before leaving.

Before I knew it, I was reaching out to take the four-month-old baby from Emery’s arms. He was so tiny and chubby that merely looking at him seemed to fill my heart with joy. All women probably had a soft spot for children and would inevitably develop a sense of adoration for them.

Summer leaned against me to peer at the baby and said innocently, “Mommy, you should give me a little brother like Xavier too. Granny said that when I get older, I can help you take care of him. That way, you won’t be too tired.”

Surprised by her words, I glanced at her with a smile. “Summer, I’m happy with just you.”

Emery eyed me and queried, “Are you and Anthony really not going to have a child?”

I nodded wordlessly, signifying the end of this topic.

We sat together as the night deepened. Summer had fallen asleep against me. Emery and Hunter carried their child upstairs to sleep, while Zachary went to his study, saying he had some matters to handle.

Cameron noticed the exhaustion lining my features and advised, “It’s getting late. Staying up late isn’t good for women, especially at your age. Go back to your room and have a good rest. Summer misses you a lot after not seeing you for so long. You should take her with you and sleep with her tonight.”

I nodded and carried Summer upstairs. The Moore Residence was an enormous three-story villa with an extravagant interior design. Not just any wealthy family had the luxury of living in this five-hundred- square-meter residence located in the city center.

“This room was prepared by your father ever since he found out about your existence. Rylee stayed here before. He was worried you would mind, so he got people to change everything, but he was afraid his tastes wouldn’t suit yours, so he insisted on asking Anthony about your preferences. Some time ago, he brought Summer to R Province and looked for John. Then, he visited the place you lived in when you were young to see what kind of design you liked.”

Cameron led me into a large bedroom that had at least a hundred square meters and was comparable to an ordinary family’s entire house. The interior design was mainly elegant and simple. Indeed, it was my favorite style.

After I placed Summer on the bed, Cameron explained, “Some of the clothes in the wardrobe were chosen by your father, and some by me. I noticed that you usually dress plainly, so I picked the clothes based on your style. I’m not sure whether you’ll like them, but that’s okay. If you don’t, we can switch them out for something you prefer. The bags and jewelry were brought back by your father in recent years. They’re all boutique items from famous fashion shows. I know Anthony treats you very well and you’ve seen your fair share of luxury items, so you may not be impressed by these things, but as your parents, it’s the least we can do. We just want to give you the best. We’ve made many unforgivable mistakes these past few years and we wish to make it up to you. I know you resent us for what happened to your child, so we won’t force you to accept us. We’d be happy as long as you’re willing to come home and visit us.”

As Cameron spoke, tears rolled down her cheeks. Hearing her voice that was thick with emotion, I placed my hands on her shoulders and reassured her. “Everything will be better in the future.”

I didn’t know what the future held, but the hardest thing to understand in the world was kinship. Concurrently, kinship was what helped us find our way home when we were lost. Although I didn’t share a familial bond with them, we were still related by blood. In the decades to come, perhaps I would learn to understand the concept of family.

She gazed at me and smiled in relief. Certain things didn’t need to be said out loud to be understood. Sometimes, a look or a gesture could convey what a thousand words couldn’t.

In fact, I had already thought things through when I was in the morgue. Nothing came for free in this world. We had to work hard for whatever we wanted, otherwise, regret would be the only thing remaining at our moment of death.

Since I was still alive and kicking, I had to cherish everything I had.

“It’s getting late. You should rest early. What do you want to eat tomorrow? I’ll make it for you. Since Summer doesn’t have school tomorrow, we can all get together.” Cameron couldn’t conceal the delight on her face.

I smiled faintly and replied, “I’m not a picky eater. Anything’s fine for me.” I was being honest. Although I wasn’t a big eater, I was never picky with my food. I basically ate everything that could be eaten.

She nodded. “Alright, then. I’ll make all my signature dishes!” After making sure I had everything I needed, she left so that I could rest earlier.

Feeling a little sleepy, I nodded in response.

She walked to the door, but before she could leave, she abruptly looked back at me with a serious expression as though a thought struck her. “Did you and Anthony quarrel?”

Her question was like a bolt from the blue and I froze for a second before smiling. “No. I just missed Summer too much, so I called Emery as soon as I got off the plane and haven’t had the chance to tell Anthony about my return.”

At a time like this, Anthony would usually accompany me, but since I came here alone, it would inevitably evoke their suspicion.

She nodded subtly in response to my explanation but didn’t ask anything else.

After a busy day, I was tired down to the bones. Once Cameron left the villa, I washed up and climbed into bed. Sensing my presence, Summer groggily nestled herself into my arms, offering me the warmth I didn’t realize I had been craving for.

Children possessed healing powers that specifically worked on their mothers. This statement held true. As long as Summer was beside me, all of the despair from before, no matter how overwhelming, would dissolve into nothing.

I seemed to be able to understand the meticulous care and tentative love Cameron had for me. If it wasn’t for our complicated history, would we have turned out as a loving family instead?

The next day, the gloomy weather in K City was no more.

The sun’s rays finally broke through the clouds and filtered into the bedroom, making the morning especially warm.

Having some difficulty breathing, I woke up to the sight of Summer sprawled on my chest like a baby. I watched as her mouth opened and closed in tandem with her breathing, finding it incredibly cute. Thanks to her, there was a damp patch of drool on my shirt.

From her rosy and chubby cheeks, I realized that she seemed to have put on some weight recently. As I observed her features, I found that she bore a strong resemblance to Jared.

Knock, knock! Someone was knocking on the door, so I shifted Summer onto the bed.

Then, I rolled out of bed and opened the door to see that it was Emery. She was sporting dark circles beneath her eyes as she bemoaned, “Can I crash in your room? Xavier will be the death of me. Why do creatures like children exist in the world, huh? I’m going crazy! I couldn’t get a wink of sleep because of him and I’m so tired!”

She ranted pitifully while making her way to the bed before flopping down like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Then, she hugged Summer and started snoring loudly, seemingly really exhausted.

The bed was huge and could easily accommodate three people, but I checked the time and found that it was already eight. I felt well-rested, so I doubted that I could fall asleep again. After washing up in the bathroom, I went to the wardrobe and searched for some clothes to wear.

Just like what Cameron said, the clothes she selected were simple yet elegant. But things that were simple and elegant often came with a hefty price tag because plain didn’t necessarily equate to cheap.

As I walked toward the stairs, I heard voices and laughter coming from the living room. It seemed like there were guests present, which came as a surprise to me because it was still very early in the morning.

Upon reaching the top of the spiral staircase, I peered down at the people seated in the living room. Without needing to take a closer look, I could immediately recognize the person who had his back to me. After a mental calculation, I realized that we hadn’t seen each other for quite some time.

After the argument we had, I thought that perhaps it would be a long time before we meet again. After all, with the number of hurtful things I said, his anger probably wouldn’t subside so soon.

Suddenly, a voice sounded in my mind. Sienna, you clearly knew that he’d come back to get you no matter what you did, that’s why you brazenly said all those hurtful words to him. You blatantly hurt his feelings because you knew that he would never leave you, isn’t that right? Have you ever thought that you could be the one at fault?

While I was lost in my thoughts, these words pierced through my consciousness. Stunned by that revelation, I suddenly realized that whenever Anthony and I argued, I never seemed to have reflected on myself. In fact, I would hurt him even deeper the next time.

The chatter stopped abruptly, snapping me back to my senses. Everyone in the living room had turned their attention to me. Right then, Cameron brought out some fruits from the kitchen and saw me.

“You’re awake. Mr. Featherstone has been here for quite some time already. Come down quick and have your breakfast. I heard that the aquarium in the North District has opened for business. Summer has been wanting to go there for a long time. Both of you should take her there later. That little girl has been going on and on about it.”

I descended the stairs but didn’t look at Anthony once. After giving an indifferent response, I went to the kitchen. A scrumptious breakfast prepared by the housekeeper was spread out on the table. Because everyone had varying daily routines, whoever woke up first would get to eat. Emery mentioned this to me once, but besides Cameron and Zachary, the rest of us couldn’t seem to wake up early. Hence, it didn’t really matter.

Cameron brought some breakfast to the living room, then came back to the dining table and glanced at me. “The Stanhopes called this morning and invited us for dinner. Everyone knows that you’re back and they’re all asking for a gathering.”

I stuffed a pastry into my mouth and spoke in a garbled voice, “Mm, I need to pay Uncle Louis a visit anyway.”

When she saw the way I was wolfing down the food, she placed a glass of milk in front of me and said in fond exasperation, “Slow down. What’s the rush? No one’s going to take your food. Now, be honest with me. What’s going on between you and Anthony?”

I took a sip of milk and feigned cluelessness. “What do you mean what’s going on?”

She clucked her tongue and chided, “Do you take us for blind fools? If there’s nothing wrong, why did you ignore him completely and come in here on your own? You two weren’t like this before!”

I pursed my lips and countered, “Oh? How were we before?”

She sighed. “It’s normal for couples to quarrel, but Mr. Featherstone treats you well in every way possible and we can all see that. Don’t do anything foolish. Live a peaceful life with him and stop kicking up a fuss!”

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