Chapter 240 Married
Leopold was so exhausted that he fell asleep right at his desk. By the time he saw Caroline's WhatsApp message, it had been over an hour.
Around this time, she should be home.
Even though it was already midnight in Eldoria, Leopold pressed the video call button anyway.
There's nothing he could do about it. If he didn't see her for a day, it felt like something was missing around him.
Caroline was accompanying Elysia to look at shoes. After dinner, the two went to a nearby mall for a stroll, and Caroline planned to buy a pair of shoes for Elysia.
When Leopold's video call came through, she accepted it. The moment the screen lit up, both Caroline and Elysia appeared in the frame. Leopold immediately switched into good son-in-law mode, his eyes crinkling with a smile as he called out, "Mom."
Elysia said, "Leopold, how are things? Is it tough over there?"
Leopold replied, "Not tough at all. Mom, are you out shopping with Caroline?"
"Yes, we just finished dinner and came out for a walk. Have you had dinner?" Before Leopold could answer, Elysia studied the person on the screen. "Leopold, have you lost weight? You've only been gone a few days. Is the food there not agreeing with you, or are you skipping meals? You need to eat on time, or you'll hurt your stomach."
"Mom, I haven't lost weight. It's probably just the lighting." Leopold touched his cheek and turned on the overhead light. "Mom, do I still look thin now?"
Elysia still shook her head. "Leopold, you still have a few more days there. Come back soon, and I'll cook you something good to build you back up."
Leopold laughed. "You know what, my stomach really is missing your cooking. No Michelin chef can compare to your food, Mom."
Elysia was amused and broke into a big smile. Caroline signaled to the clerk to bring a pair of shoes and said, "Mom, try on the shoes first."
"Leopold, I'm going to try on shoes now. You talk to Caroline."
"Okay, Mom."
Caroline took the phone and walked to the side, looking at the person on the screen. Earlier, the dim lighting hadn't made it obvious, but now with the overhead light on, she could see faint shadows under his eyes.
"Haven't been sleeping well these past few days?" Caroline asked with concern.
Leopold said, "Did you and Mom plan this together? She said I've lost weight, and you're saying I haven't been sleeping well."
Caroline pointed to the area under her eyes. "You've got dark circles. Don't try to fool me."
Because of Dash's arrest, Leopold had been doing damage control overseas, sleeping only two or three hours a day. Of course, he had dark circles.
Public opinion had to be monitored constantly to prevent anyone from deliberately stirring things up and destabilizing the stock price.
Leopold didn't want her to worry, so he answered evasively, "Is there a good eye cream? Recommend one to me. Don't make it too expensive. My money can only be spent on my wife."
It worked. Caroline laughed.
"Oh, please," Caroline said. "You told me not to wear myself out, but look at you, you've only been gone a few days, and you've already got hollow eyes from staying up late."
Leopold helplessly called out, "Honey..."
What could she do! She had zero resistance to that handsome face of his.
"Honey, it's already midnight here. I'm going to rest now. You and Mom should head home early after shopping."
Caroline quickly said, "Go to sleep right away."
Leopold nodded. "You hang up the video."
If this were before, the two would have gone through their childish routine of pushing back and forth about who should hang up first. But today Caroline really wanted him to go rest immediately, so she hung up without hesitation.
Just like that?
He returned to bed, placed his phone on the nightstand to charge, lay down under the covers, and muttered to himself, "Hanging up on me like that, I'll settle this with you when I get back."
Meanwhile, Caroline took the shopping bag from the sales associate. "Let's go, Mom."
As mother and daughter continued browsing the stores, Elysia said, "Leopold is so busy. When you have kids later, he won't have time to help. Your dad and I are about to retire anyway - we'll take care of them."
Why was she bringing up kids again?
Caroline pointed ahead to a beverage bar. "Mom, I'm thirsty. I'm going to get something to drink."
Before Elysia could finish speaking, Caroline had already scurried away.
"Elysia?"
Someone called Elysia from behind. She turned to see her "former friend," Yvonne Hale.
The reason she was called a former friend was that the two hadn't been in touch for a long time, and it was Elysia who had actively distanced herself.
Yvonne had a bad mouth, she liked to gossip behind people's backs and say things people didn't want to hear even to their faces.
You couldn't call her stupid because she knew how to look out for herself. You couldn't call her smart either because she specialized in saying things people didn't want to hear. In Elysia's words, Yvonne was inwardly calculating, only good to herself.
Since she'd already called out her name, Elysia couldn't pretend not to see her.
Elysia smiled. "Yvonne, it's been so long."
Yvonne said excitedly, "Hasn't it! Elysia, I've been in Los Angeles for several months now. My son works at the Los Angeles airport, he's a pilot, makes over a million a year. Such a good son - he insisted on renting me a villa by the beach for me and his dad to stay in. I'm telling you, the air and ocean views in Los Angeles are amazing. You and Elijah should definitely visit sometime."
Elysia didn't take her words to heart and wasn't particularly interested in how excellent her son was, but she still complimented, "Tom Voss really made something of himself. He's good-looking too. You could tell from when he was little that he was talented. Not many people can become pilots - your son really is excellent."
Yvonne beamed. "He's doing alright. Our Tom is a pretty reliable kid. These days, there aren't many young people with his sense of responsibility and work ethic. You know how it is - so many guys in their twenties are still living in their parents' basements. Compared to them, I'm pretty grateful. By the way, how's your Caroline doing? Still working at that power company?"
Elysia said, "Still there."
Yvonne said, "The power company has good benefits. A girl as pretty as Caroline, I just love looking at her. I've watched her grow up, just like our Tom, both reliable people. So, um—"
Before Yvonne could finish, Elysia smiled slightly. "Yes, Caroline is quite reliable. Especially now that she's married, I'm even more at ease. My son-in-law treats her so well... I've never seen a man dote on his wife like that. Our Caroline is blessed."
Yvonne's smile froze slightly, surprise flashing dangerously in her eyes, but she quickly recovered. "When did she get married?"
Elysia said, "Right when you were living in that villa in Los Angeles."
"That's wonderful, really wonderful. And to think I missed her wedding, I must give a gift." She immediately started to reach for her phone in her bag, but Elysia stopped her. "Yvonne, no rush. We'll definitely invite you when Caroline has a baby."
Yvonne deliberately went back and forth with Elysia. "No, no, one thing at a time. A child's wedding is a big deal."
When Caroline came back with water, she saw Elysia pushing back and forth with an unfamiliar woman, and the scene looked pretty hard to control.
"Mom," Caroline stood between them, and only then saw who had their back to her. "Mrs. Voss."