NovelEnglish“What's wrong?” Noticing the grim look on her face, Jack frowned and inquired.
However, Roxanne just waved at him before throwing Jessica a glance.
Did Jessica do this on purpose? Why did she choose such a strong wine for dinner? Nevertheless, when Roxanne didn’t notice anything amiss after drinking it, she wondered if she had been overthinking what was going on.
After downing two glasses of wine, the three of them fell into another awkward silence.
After all, the reason they were gathered was just to hear Jessica's apology.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtCognizant of the tension, Jessica exchanged pleasantries briefly before getting up to take her leave.
Once she was gone, Jack turned toward Roxanne. “Are you hungry? Do you want to eat someplace else?” Both of them barely ate and the food was already cold.
Nonetheless, Roxanne, feeling a little woozy, wondered what sort of wine had Jessica ordered. Although she only had a small glass, the after-effects were extremely strong.
In response to Jack's question, she shook her head with a frown. “It's fine. | should head back earlier anyway, as the children should be home by now. | can't let them wait up for me.” Naturally, Jack didn't insist and got up to leave with her.
When they went down the stairs upon leaving the restaurant, Roxanne accidentally slipped and almost fell down.
Fortunately, Jack noticed it and turned around to catch her in the nick of time.
“Thank you,” Roxanne murmured before retracting her hand.
Jack flashed a smile. “No problem.” After they got into the car one after the other, Jack—who didn’t drink—decided to drive Roxanne home to not trouble the driver.
On the way home, a black sedan followed them from a safe distance.
With his attention entirely focused on Roxanne, Jack didn’t notice the car at all.
As the traffic jam had cleared, it took them less than ten minutes to reach Roxanne’s home.
“It's getting late, so forgive me for not inviting you in,” Roxanne explained in a cursory tone.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmJack gave her a casual nod. “You should hurry back in. As for Archie and Benny's presents, I'll hand them over the next time | see them.” After acknowledging him with a smile, Roxanne alighted and headed home.
It wasn't until he saw her go back in that Jack drove leisurely back to the Damaris residence.
“Mommy!” The moment Roxanne stepped through the door, the two boys beamed and rushed up to her side.
She tousled their hair with a smile before changing out of her shoes.
Meanwhile, they gave her a puzzled look. “Why didn’t you pick us up tonight?” After the interaction from the day before, the boys and Estella assumed that Roxanne would pick them up as usual.
Thus, the sight of Madilyn surprised them.
While Estella was visibly disappointed, the boys were worried that their mother had a new tiff with their father.
Consequently, Roxanne was baffled to see the children’s anxious looks. “I had a last-minute appointment tonight. What's wrong?” Upon exchanging glances, the boys observed Roxanne for a while. Only after they determined she wasn't lying did relief descend upon them. Smiling gleefully, they replied, “Nothing. We're just curious. That's all.” Roxanne grinned apologetically. “I'm sorry | didn’t inform you ahead of time. Going forward, I'll try my best to pick you up on time, all right?” Hearing Roxanne’s promise, there was a glint in the boys’ eyes and they jumped in joy.
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