In the high-end hospital room, Gregory lay on the bed with a slightly pale face, a cooling patch on his forehead.
Chloe sat beside him, looking at him with worry. "Brother, how are you feeling? Does your head still hurt?"
"Not really, it's much better now. Don't worry about me," Gregory reassured his little sister like an adult.
Watching their affectionate interaction, Old Ashley felt comforted but turned to Lance with some concern. "Shouldn't we inform Deanna about this? We're all not at home; she will definitely get suspicious."
"Although Gregory's condition has improved, he's still weak. The doctor suggested he stay overnight for observation. I'll instruct Sam to tell her that my parents wanted to see their grandchildren, so you, Gregory, and Chloe went to the old mansion," Lance suggested.
Just as he finished speaking, the door to the hospital room was pushed open from the outside, and Deanna walked in.
"Gregory!" Deanna's eyes filled with pain as she saw the frail Gregory lying on the bed.
Everyone in the room was taken aback by her sudden appearance.
"Deanna, why are you here?" Old Ashley asked in surprise.
Lance didn't say anything but was equally astonished.
The two little ones also realized what was happening and looked at Deanna with guilty expressions, softly calling out, "Mommy."
Deanna didn't notice their guilty looks; her eyes were fixed on her son. She quickly walked over and reached out to touch his forehead but changed direction upon seeing the cooling patch, touching his cheek instead. It was still warm.
"How did you get a fever? Did you secretly open the window while sleeping?" Although it was almost summer, the nights were still cold, and she had repeatedly told them not to open the windows at night.
The two little ones felt even guiltier upon hearing Deanna's words. Last night had been too stuffy, so they had opened a window halfway, thinking it would be fine as long as they stayed under the covers.
Seeing their silence, Deanna knew she had guessed correctly and didn't know whether to criticize them or feel sorry for them.
The two little ones could see that Deanna was unhappy and obediently admitted their mistake. "Mommy, we were wrong. Please don't be angry."
"Now you know it was wrong," Deanna said with a hint of exasperation before asking with concern, "Is there anywhere else you feel uncomfortable?"
Gregory shook his head. "After taking the medicine from the doctor, I don't feel uncomfortable anywhere."
"That's good," Deanna sighed in relief.
At this moment, Lance walked over and tried to reassure her. "Don't worry, with me and Grandma here, Gregory will be fine."
However, Deanna glared at him as soon as he finished speaking. Especially since she thought about how Gregory got sick and this man had instructed the butler to keep it from her, even trying to involve Grandma in deceiving her.
"Don't say anything right now," she snapped before turning to Grandma and the two kids. "Have you had dinner?"
Seeing that Mommy was angry with Daddy, the two little ones tried to speak up for him. "Mommy, don't be mad. Daddy had someone bring us food. He didn't mean to hide it from you; he just didn't want you to worry and affect your work."
Hearing this, Deanna felt a mix of emotions but mostly guilt. She knew she had been neglecting her family and children due to her high workload and study commitments recently.
In essence, Lance had kept Gregory's illness from her for her sake. She had no right to blame him.
"Don't worry; Mommy is not angry," she said, rubbing the heads of her sensible children.
Lance also breathed a sigh of relief and gave their children a grateful look.
Later that evening, seeing that it was getting late, Deanna asked Lance to take Grandma and Chloe home and bring back a change of clothes and toiletries for Gregory.
Lance nodded and left with Grandma and Chloe but returned shortly after with a bag of clothes.
By then, Gregory had fallen asleep. Deanna sat on the sofa beside him, reading a notebook. Hearing movement at the door, she looked up to see Lance entering with a backpack.
"You're back," Deanna whispered as she got up to take the bag from him.
Lance handed over the bag and asked in a low voice, "Is Gregory asleep?"
"Yes," Deanna nodded and began organizing the toiletries and clothes from the bag.
Watching her busy figure, Lance suddenly apologized. "I didn't mean to hide Gregory's illness from you; I just didn't want you to worry."
"I know. I don't blame you. In fact, it's my fault as a mother for neglecting the children," Deanna said with a look of guilt.
She used to check on the kids every night before bed to make sure they were covered properly. But lately, she had skipped this routine to make more time for her studies.