Chapter 164

It was already evening. "How come you're not back yet? Are you busy with work?"

Faced with Abigail's question, Trent glanced at the time.

He replied with a slightly sheepish tone, still working through the documents in front of him.

"Yeah, there's a lot going on at the company today. I'm still not done. It'll probably be another hour or two before I'm back."

Trent made a rough estimate, then said to Abigail, "Just go ahead and eat without me tonight. Don't wait up."

Abigail thought about it for a moment and didn't argue.

"Okay, focus on work then. Call me if you need anything."

"Sure."

When he heard the call end, Trent put down his phone and buried himself in work again.

"Mr. Smith, there's another meeting in a bit."

He had barely set down his phone when his assistant knocked and came in to remind him.

"Got it."

Trent was absolutely slammed at this point.

He picked up the latest documents he'd finished, thought about the meeting agenda, grabbed another file on impulse, and headed straight to the conference room.

The meeting ran for half an hour.

When it finally wrapped up, Trent's workload eased up for the time being.

He rubbed his aching temples, took a deep breath to collect himself, and went back to his office to pack up.

Down in the parking garage, Trent sat in the driver's seat.

Since he hadn't been able to pick up Abigail himself that day, he'd arranged for Aiden to do it, so he'd let Aiden leave early.

He leaned back in his seat for a moment to rest, then started the car and headed home.

But on the highway, watching the traffic come to a complete standstill, Trent cursed under his breath.

He'd been hoping to get home quickly, and now his car had broken down halfway there.

Trent set up the warning triangle in front and behind the car, turned on his hazard lights, and reported the breakdown to the traffic authority.

He leaned against the guardrail and lit a cigarette.

The smoke drifted off in the breeze. Trent had already called the repair crew — they'd be there soon.

He watched the steady flow of cars below the overpass, his mind beginning to wander.

He wasn't sure what he was thinking about, but he snapped back to reality when he heard a voice.

"Mr. Smith, what a coincidence."

At the sound of that voice, Trent instinctively turned toward it and spotted a figure not far away, dressed in a white skirt.

She was in a white dress, her makeup flawless, walking toward him with a handbag.

"Mr. Smith, do you need any help?"

As she drew closer, Trent's expression went cold.

On the other side of town, Abigail checked the time and decided to cook a meal and leave it in the fridge for Trent. That way, when he got home, he could just heat it up and eat.

"Mommy, what are you doing?"

Seeing Abigail busy in the kitchen, Paxton put down his toys and trotted over to her.

"I'm making dinner for your dad. He's still not home this late, and Ava left early today."

Ava had had a family emergency and taken the day off. She was already gone, and with Trent getting home so late, there wasn't much of an option besides ordering takeout.

That was why Abigail had decided to cook herself.

"Then I want to help too."

Before Abigail could say anything else, Paxton's eyes lit up, and he looked at her eagerly.

"Mommy, is there anything I can do?"

Looking at Paxton's eager little face, Abigail couldn't help but smile.

She thought about it and decided not to turn down his offer. She pointed at the vegetables nearby. "Then can you wash all of these for me?"

"Mission accepted!"

Paxton gave a little salute, grabbed the vegetable basket, and climbed up to the kitchen island to start washing.

A few small steps had been placed under the island so they could wash their hands there occasionally — which also happened to be the perfect height for Paxton to stand on.

Watching Paxton work away with such a serious look on his face, Abigail let out a soft laugh.

Just then, Daphne wandered over and tugged at the hem of Abigail's shirt. "Mrs. Smith, can I help too?"

Benjamin was also stuck at work and hadn't come home, so he'd asked Abigail to keep an eye on Daphne. Paxton and Daphne had been playing together just a moment ago. But now that Paxton was helping out, Daphne didn't feel like playing alone anymore and came over to pitch in.

"Of course. Why don't you go wash the vegetables with Paxton?"

Abigail smiled at the sweet little girl and gently patted her on the head.

To her, even though Daphne wasn't her own child, she felt just like a daughter.

Whenever Benjamin got caught up in work, Daphne would come over to play with Paxton. Over time, the two families had grown close.

To keep things from getting awkward, Benjamin had even proactively offered to pay a "childcare fee" for Daphne. Abigail refused to take it, but he pressed it into Ava's hands anyway, calling it a little extra for the kids' meals.

Benjamin did have a nanny, but Daphne simply preferred being with Paxton. Since Abigail didn't mind at all, the two kids had plenty of chances to play together.

Over time, Abigail had come to think of Daphne as one of her own. So when Daphne offered to help, she didn't say no.

The house was warm and lively. Meanwhile, back out on the highway, Trent's face had gone cold as Serenity stepped toward him. He backed up two steps.

"What are you doing here?"

At his question, Serenity blinked and smiled softly.

"I just happened to be passing by."

As she said this, she casually tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, exposing the smooth curve of her neck.

"I noticed someone standing by the road who had a certain presence about them, and they looked familiar."

Serenity smiled and stepped closer to Trent. "I didn't expect it to actually be you, Mr. Smith. What a small world."

She said it as if it were a coincidence, but her eyes held very little surprise.

Trent didn't buy it for a second.

His car had broken down on the ring highway, and Serenity had somehow pinpointed his exact location — even managing to recognize his face at highway speed. That was no coincidence.

Someone had clearly been pulling strings behind the scenes.

And the most obvious suspect was Serenity's backer, Lian.

Trent's gaze darkened. Serenity, seemingly unbothered, stepped closer and glanced at his car.

"Mr. Smith, it's not really safe for you to be out here alone. The traffic moves fast, and there's a lot of it. Why don't I give you a lift?"

Faced with Serenity's "kind" offer, Trent turned it down flat.

"No need. I already called a ride."

He hadn't planned on driving that car home anyway.

He was just waiting for the repair crew to come assess the situation and tow the car in for service.