Hearing Raegan's reply, Mitchel went silent.
Raegan was puzzled by Mitchel's unusual silence tonight.
Right when she was about to inquire further, she heard a soft cough. It sounded like Austin was the one coughing.
Startled, Raegan quickly covered the mouthpiece and whispered softly, "I'm going to bed. Let's talk tomorrow." With that, Raegan ended the call.
"Beep..." Mitchel let out a self-mocking smile. The busy tone, playing a mocking melody, seemingly laughed at him. His turmoil inside went beyond words.
Mitchel regretted wrapping up the meeting earlier than scheduled all because he was in a hurry to get back to Ardlens. He felt he shouldn't frantically search for Raegan after failing to reach her by phone. He regretted rushing to Ashfield upon discovering her location.
Just a short while ago, Mitchel was reassuring himself. He
told himself repeatedly that Raegan and Stefan were probably just sorting out some issue, which was why they ended up at the hotel together.
‘When Mitchel saw Stefan enter with a bag of medicine, his first thought was whether Raegan was sick.
Mitchel had a strong urge to barge in, yet he decided to stay put in the car, waiting on Raegan's call. He was doing everything in his power to avoid doing anything Raegan might loathe.
Just before Raegan called, Mitchel was reminding himself, "As long as she says she's with Stefan, | have to trust her.
| can't let myself get irrationally jealous and upset her." But Raegan didn't mention Stefan. Instead, she mentioned it was someone he didn't know. So, Raegan lied to her again.
Mitchel felt his grip on his phone tighten and then relax.
"Just head back," he instructed.
Matteo, caught off guard, stuttered, "Mr. Dixon, are you sure?" Matteo hadn't caught what Raegan said, so he was
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇta bit confused. After all, Mitchel had been non-stop all day, rushing back to Ardlens from Berton after wrapping up his meetings. Upon discovering Raegan's location, he rushed from Ardlens to Ashfield. All that effort was to see Raegan.
The sudden decision to return without laying eyes on Raegan baffled Matteo.
"Yeah." The heavy, disheartened reply came from Mitchel.
Matteo, sensing his foul mood, didn't press further and swiftly got the car moving.
Back in Ardlens, Mitchel stepped out of the car, silent.
Matteo, pulling a large box from the trunk, questioned, "Mr.
Dixon, do you want me to bring this upstairs for you?" The box was filled with fresh seafood Mitchel had picked out himself, having cleared out the seafood market.
Mitchel had looked forward to a joyful dinner with Raegan, who had completely forgotten about.
Mitchel looked away, his face showing disappointment.
"You can have it." Matteo, surprised, put the box back in the car.
The next day.
Raegan had breakfast delivered to the hotel room.
After eating, the woman and Austin headed down first, followed by Raegan.
Once everyone was ready, Stefan drove them to the destination, arriving swiftly.
Judd had cleaned the house the day before, even replacing all the bedding and kitchen items.
The woman who took care of Austin expressed her deep appreciation to Raegan. Previously, she worked as a kitchen assistant for the Lawrence family, her life tough.
Her husband and only son had passed away in an overseas car accident.
The woman traveled abroad to handle the situation and collapsed from exhaustion, which led to her being hospitalized. There, she met Nicole.
Once Nicole heard the woman's story, she asked the woman to look after newborn Austin.
This arrangement continued for years, with the woman always treating Austin as if he were her own child.
Raegan got maids for the woman, recruiting more trustworthy bodyguards for Austin. She also arranged for the woman to speak with Nicole on the phone.
Once everything was in place, Raegan shared a ride back with Judd.
Stefan had to rush off because of school commitments.
Inside the car, Raegan set up the new phone Judd had given her and put in her SIM card.
The moment it turned on, Raegan saw several missed calls from a number she recognized, which made her smile. Just as she had expected, Mitchel cared for her.
But as she checked the messages, her smile slowly disappeared.
The missed calls had all come before their midnight talk.
There had been no attempt from Mitchel to reach out to her again after that.
Raegan figured Mitchel might be tied up, knowing there were days she herself was too busy to even look at her phone.
She decided to drop Mitchel a message. "I'm back." After sending it, Raegan asked Judd to make a stop at the fresh market. She wanted to cook the dinner she missed out on making last night, planning to do it tonight.
After spending close to an hour in the supermarket, Raegan had everything she needed.
Back at home, she didn't let the kitchen staff help her. She handled everything on her own, carefully washing and prepping the food.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmOnce she was done with the prep, Raegan found herself reaching for her phone again. There was no message waiting for her.
A wave of disappointment washed over Raegan. It seemed Mitchel was swamped with work.
She considered calling him but worried he might be in a
meeting. Instead, she decided to call Matteo.
Matteo answered right away. "Miss Foster, how can | help you?" "Matteo, is Mitchel busy?" "Yes, Mr. Dixon is in a meeting right now. | can pass on any message for you." "Just let him know not to miss dinner at my place tonight." Matteo peered into the office and saw Mitchel getting ready to leave. He hesitated and then said, "Miss Foster, Mr.
Dixon might be caught up with work until very late." Raegan missed the hint in Matteo's voice and simply said, "That's fine. | can wait for him." Suddenly, there was a burst of laughter from Janey on the line. Raegan quickly added, "Matteo, go ahead with your work. | won't hold you up any longer." After hanging up, Matteo rushed to catch up with Mitchel, out of breath. "Mrs..." Upon seeing Mitchel's stern look, Matteo quickly corrected,
"Miss Foster reminded you to remember dinner at her place tonight." Mitchel, without showing any emotion, continued on his way. It wasn't until he entered the elevator that he allowed his emotions to surface. Raegan invited him over for dinner, probably just to return the favor. How ludicrous it was he felt cheerful in her invitation. It was silly of him, really.
In the kitchen.
Janey came bouncing in. Noticing her mother busy cooking, she used her most adorable voice and asked, "Mommy, what are you doing?" "I'm preparing dinner, sweetheart." Raegan smiled.
"Wow, is someone special coming? Can we ask daddy to join us? | miss him." Janey's eyes, large and full of hope, sparkled with excitement.
Raegan, softened by her daughter's adorable face, couldn't
help but smile. "Actually, the guest is your daddy." "What?" Janey's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Really?" Raegan gave a nod.
Janey bounced with joy. "That's amazing! Mommy, | love you so much!" Janey's joy spread like wildfire.
Raegan gently squeezed Janey's cheek and asked, "Janey, would you be happy if your daddy lived with us all the time?" "I would love that!" Janey beamed. "I wish daddy could always be with us and never leave." Raegan saw the genuine affection Janey had for Mitchel.
But was this affection born out of a longing for a father figure, or was it the natural bond of kinship? Raegan bent down to Janey's level and asked, "Janey, do you like Mitchel because he's your daddy, or because you genuinely like him as a person?" Janey, puzzled by Raegan's question, offered her own
understanding. "My teacher says people have auras. If you like someone, it's because you can feel they like you back.
| feel daddy loves me just as much as | love him." Raegan was surprised. It seemed even a child not yet five had deeper insights than she did.
After Annis took Janey outside to play, Raegan's mind was still racing. She knew her heart was unsettled because of Mitchel.
She remembered the question Mitchel had asked at the door of her villa last time, and she decided she wanted to answer it tonight.
She didn't want to push him away anymore. She wanted to give them a try. For Janey, and for herself, it was time to move on from the past.