Chapter 73

Chapter 73

As the amusement park closed for the evening, Patricia and her group returned to Rosewood Estate.

Emily was the first to hop out of the car, her stomach growling with hunger. She dashed into the house, calling for Ellie.

Patricia and Charles followed behind, when Patricia's phone buzzed twice in her bag.

She pulled it out and was surprised to see Missy calling. 

Missy never called her directly, so Patricia found it odd.

She had already handed over the dress to Missy, so there shouldn't be any reason for her to call. Patricia glanced at Charles.

Charles nodded, signaling her to answer.

"Missy," Patricia said, pressing the answer button, her tone slightly distant as she walked into the house.

"Patricia, how did Emily's preschool interview go?" Missy's familiar, warm voice came through the phone.

Before Patricia could respond, Emily, who had been sitting in the living room, heard Missy's voice and immediately ran over to the phone, sounding a bit upset. "Grandma, I don't think I did very well. They didn't really smile."

"Oh, my sweetie," Missy's heart melted at Emily's little voice. "It's okay, Emily. You did great. Grandma knows a better preschool where the teachers are all from abroad. I'll have your grandpa make some calls tomorrow to get you in."

Emily's eyes lit up as she looked at Charles and Patricia. "Is Grandma serious?"

"Of course, Grandma never lies to Emily," Missy chuckled. "And I'll get you your favorite strawberry cake too."

Charles took the phone, tapping the case lightly with his fingers. "Mom, we're waiting to hear back from Golden Radiance Academy."

"What's the point of waiting?" Missy dismissed. "Your dad's friend owns a preschool. He can pull some strings. We can't delay our precious granddaughter's education."

"Send me the details of the preschool you mentioned," Charles said.

But before he could finish, Missy had already hung up.

Charles and Patricia exchanged glances, unsure if Missy had heard his last request.

Patricia raised an eyebrow. "Are you really considering switching Emily's preschool?"

"Having more options is always good," Charles replied, sending Missy a message to remind her to send the preschool details.

But after waiting for a while, there was no response.

"Did she not see it?" He lowered his eyes, his long lashes casting a small shadow.

Patricia couldn't help but laugh. "You should have spoken faster. She probably thinks you weren't interested."

Charles looked up, a hint of embarrassment in his eyes, and shook his head helplessly.

It seemed that in his mother's eyes, he was still the inflexible son.

Later that night, Patricia had just finished her evening routine and saw Charles sitting on the carpet with Emily, reading a storybook.

Charles was getting better at reading the storybooks, and Emily looked at him with admiration. "Daddy, you're so good at this! Much better than before!"

Patricia found it amusing. Since when did Emily learn to flatter?

She walked over to the nightstand, picked up her phone, and saw a message from Calvin reminding her about her trip to Regal City the next day.

Patricia smiled and replied with an "OK" before putting her phone down.

She nudged Charles' leg lightly. "Go take a shower. I'll take over with Emily."

Charles nodded and handed over the bedtime duties to Patricia before heading to the bathroom.

Patricia pulled Emily onto the bed and noticed the loose braid on her head. "Daddy's still not great at braiding, huh?"

Emily, facing away, protested, "Daddy did a great job! I'll encourage him!"

Patricia chuckled and successfully untied the braid.

Charles emerged from the bathroom, dressed in his pajamas, his hair still damp. He saw Emily already asleep in the corner, and Patricia sitting on the bed, looking at her phone.

He approached the bed, lifting the covers gently as if not to disturb anything, and lay down, keeping a respectful distance from Patricia.

After a moment of silence, he spoke softly, "Emily said she wants to try sleeping with Mommy and Daddy tonight."

"Got it," Patricia moved over a bit to make room, teasing, "What's up, Mr. Anderson? Afraid I'll trick you again?"

Charles' ears turned slightly red, knowing she was referring to the time he mistakenly thought she had set him up for a one-night stand.

He cleared his throat, looking out the window. "I didn't think things through before. We're a family. We should be closer."

Patricia ignored him, putting her phone down and turning away to sleep.

After a while, Charles heard her steady breathing, indicating she was asleep.

He quietly turned over, gently wrapping his arm around her.

In the dim light, he looked at Patricia's sleeping face. Her brows were furrowed, as if she was having a bad dream.

He reached out to smooth her brow and touched her nose lightly. "Patricia, I'm sorry for before... I'll do better. Please give me another chance."

Patricia, half-asleep, vaguely heard someone calling her name, but it wasn't clear.

In her drowsy state, she couldn't tell if it was a dream or reality, thinking it was Charles from her past life standing before her.

Her heart trembled, and she blurted out, "I won't forgive you."

Charles' hand froze in mid-air, his heart pounding as he stared at Patricia in shock.

He instinctively asked, "Patricia, what did you say?"

The person beside him breathed evenly, clearly asleep.

Charles opened his mouth, his lips moving, but he eventually closed his eyes again, his breathing uneven.

He pulled Patricia closer, holding her tighter.

Maybe she was just talking in her sleep.

The next morning, Patricia was ready to leave for Regal City, dragging her suitcase.

Charles stood at the bedroom door, holding out her scarf. "It's windy outside."

"I'll be in the car soon, no big deal." Despite her words, Patricia took the scarf and wrapped it around her neck.

"I'll drive you," Charles offered, but his phone buzzed with a meeting reminder.

He stared at the phone for a moment.

"I'll take a quick meeting and then drive you," Charles said, looking into her eyes with a hint of pleading. "Wait for me."

"No need, I can go by myself." Patricia picked up her suitcase. "You handle your work."

Charles watched her walk away, his hand clenching and unclenching at his side, but he didn't insist.

He went to his study, quickly joining the meeting, while mentally calculating Patricia's flight time.

After the meeting, he grabbed his coat and headed out, but as he reached the entrance of Rosewood Estate, he saw Ruben standing there, looking grim.

"What's going on?" Charles stopped, waiting for Ruben to speak.

"Where are you rushing off to?" Ruben's face was stern, especially seeing Charles' confused look, which only fueled his anger.

Missy had sent him to give his eldest son a piece of his mind!

Seeing Charles eager to leave, Ruben's anger flared. "What could be so urgent? It's the weekend, the company is closed!"

"To the airport," Charles replied, glancing at the driver outside. "Dad, if it's urgent, text me. I need to go."

"You're not going anywhere!" Ruben blocked his path again.