Later, Xavier brought a female attendant to help Deanna pack her luggage.
After about half an hour, once everything was packed, the group headed down the mountain.
Back home, Old Ashley was startled to see her granddaughter being carried in by Lance.
"What happened?"
"I'm fine, just twisted my ankle."
Deanna knew her grandmother was worried and briefly explained while holding her hand.
Old Ashley immediately felt distressed. "How could you be so careless?"
She scolded Deanna lightly but didn't forget to thank Lance.
"Mr. Mercer, thank you for bringing Deanna back."
"It was nothing, you're welcome."
Lance responded with a gentle smile and then instructed Deanna, "Dr. Deanna, take these next few days to rest at home."
Deanna nodded.
Afterwards, Lance said goodbye to the two children and left.
The two little ones reluctantly saw him off at the door. Even after he was out of sight, they still stood there, looking longingly towards the elevator.
Old Ashley found it amusing.
"Gregory, Chloe, close the door and come here. Great-grandma has something to ask you."
Hearing this, the two obediently closed the door and ran over.
"What does Great-grandma want to ask?"
Chloe and Gregory each hugged one side of her, asking in their sweet voices.
Old Ashley hugged them and then inquired about their trip.
"What did you do there?"
"We saw a maple forest and a lake."
"Uncle also took us and Mommy to a hot spring, and today we went to an amusement park."
The two children eagerly shared everything with Old Ashley.
Old Ashley listened with great interest and smiled. "It sounds like you had a lot of fun. That's good."
Though she said this, her eyes were filled with worry.
Deanna didn't notice and sat nearby, smiling as she watched the interaction between her grandmother and children.
That night, after dinner, perhaps due to the car ride, the two children became sleepy early.
Deanna took them to the children's room and put them to bed.
About half an hour later, seeing the two little ones sleeping soundly, Deanna quietly left the room. She was about to go to the kitchen for a glass of water when she saw her grandmother still sitting in the living room.
"Grandma, it's so late. Why aren't you asleep yet?"
"I'll sleep in a bit. Come sit with me; I have something to talk to you about."
Old Ashley gestured for Deanna to sit beside her.
Deanna walked over, puzzled. "What do you want to talk about, Grandma?"
Old Ashley spoke directly about her concerns.
"Deanna, don't you think Gregory and Chloe are a bit too close to Mr. Mercer?"
It turned out that Old Ashley had also noticed the children's unusual attachment to Lance and was worried.
She looked at Deanna and continued, "I want to know what you think. Do you have any feelings for Mr. Mercer?"
Though she asked gently, Deanna was taken aback by the implication.
"Grandma, how could you think that?!"
She exclaimed and quickly explained, "Mr. Mercer and I are just doctor and patient. Don't overthink it."
Old Ashley looked at her in silence for a moment before speaking slowly, "If that's the case, then don't let Gregory and Chloe get too close to Mr. Mercer. It will only lead to disappointment."
"I understand." Deanna nodded seriously.
In fact, even if her grandmother hadn't mentioned it, she had already planned to do so.
After talking for a while longer, Old Ashley grew tired and went to bed first.
Deanna remained alone in the living room.
Under the bright light, she stared ahead, lost in thought.
After a while, she went to the kitchen for a glass of water and then headed to the study to review her mentor's notes.
She didn't know how much time had passed when she stretched and noticed it was very late. She got up to go to bed but first checked on the children.
Seeing them sleeping peacefully brought a gentle smile to her face.
She carefully tucked them in and stood there, recalling that night with the stranger.
That unexpected night had given her two precious lives.
But she knew nothing about the man.
She had considered finding him but worried that he might already have a family.
Because of this, she hadn't taken any action over the years.
However, her grandmother's words and the children's attachment to Lance made her reconsider.
Perhaps she could ask Lance for help.
With Mercer Group's resources, finding someone should be easy.
With this thought, Deanna made up her mind.
The next time she saw Lance, she would definitely bring it up.