Deanna heard this and immediately knew that Lance must have instructed the little girl to say it. Thinking of that clingy man, she smiled slightly and teased the little girl in front of her, "You only remember that your daddy might be hungry, but don't you worry that your great-grandma might be hungry too?"
"Uh..."
Chloe seemed stumped, her little face wrinkled in confusion, unsure how to respond.
After a moment, as if making a difficult decision, she said, "How about this, we deliver the meal to daddy but don't stay to eat with him. Then we can go to the hospital and eat with great-grandma."
By the end of her suggestion, she felt it was a good idea and looked at Deanna with expectant eyes.
Deanna was charmed by her innocence and finally gave in, saying, "Alright, we'll do as you say."
"Great! I'll help mommy pack things up."
The little girl happily put down her phone and came over to help.
Half an hour later, the mother and her two children set off for Mercer Group with Shannon and Nightingale.
The journey was smooth.
However, upon arriving at Mercer Group, Deanna showed no intention of getting out of the car.
She mischievously said to the little girl, "Since you want to deliver the meal to your daddy, you should take the lunch box up yourself. Your brother and I will wait for you downstairs."
"Huh?"
Chloe hadn't expected this and was momentarily stunned.
Before she could react, Shannon had already led her out of the car.
"Mommy..." Chloe wanted to act spoiled and have Deanna accompany her upstairs.
Unfortunately for her, Deanna had seen through her act. Smiling, she waved and said, "Go quickly and come back soon. Mommy and your brother will wait for you in the car."
With no other choice, the little girl followed Shannon into Mercer Group.
A few minutes later, Deanna received a call from Lance, as expected.
"Deanna."
His voice on the phone was filled with helpless affection.
Leaning back in her seat, Deanna smiled lightly and said, "Didn't you ask Chloe to bring you lunch? What, didn't she deliver it?"
"You know that's not what I meant."
Hearing her cheerful tone, Lance knew he was being teased by Deanna.
Deanna blinked and feigned ignorance, "You didn't tell me your intentions. How would I know?"
Lance was momentarily at a loss for words.
But soon he turned the tables and asked, "My dear fiancee, I wonder if you have time to come up and have lunch with me?"
"Not now, but I have time in the evening."
Deanna didn't completely refuse.
Knowing when to stop pushing his luck, Lance laughed and said, "Then I'll pick you up from the hospital in the evening, and we can go home together to cook."
"Alright." Deanna nodded. Then, as if remembering something, she added, "In the future, don't have others relay your sweet words. I prefer to hear them directly from you."
Hearing this, Lance's deep laughter came through the phone.
"It won't happen again."
After hanging up, Deanna waited for the little girl to return and then instructed the driver to head to the hospital.
On the way, the little girl pouted and complained to Deanna, "Mommy is mean. You bullied me."
"How did I bully you? Wasn't it you who said you wanted to deliver lunch to your daddy?"
Deanna didn't feel bad about teasing her child; instead, she found it increasingly amusing.
Unaware of her mommy's mischievous nature, Chloe listened to her words and furrowed her delicate brows in confusion. Her small face looked very conflicted.
Mommy seemed right; it was Chloe who suggested delivering lunch to daddy. Mommy asking her to do it wasn't wrong either.
Seeing his sister being tricked by their mommy, Gregory laughed unkindly, "Silly sister!"
"I'm not silly! Mommy, brother called me silly!"
Chloe immediately got upset and started bickering with Gregory.
Amid their playful banter, the mother and her two children arrived at the hospital.
"Great-grandma, we came with mommy to see you."
As soon as they entered, the two children cheerfully announced.
They proudly presented the lunch Deanna had prepared.
After a warm meal together, it was clear that Old Ashley had something to discuss with Deanna. She asked Shannon to take the two children downstairs to play.
Once they left, Old Ashley asked, "Yesterday you went to the Mercer family residence for dinner. Did Lance and his parents discuss the wedding with you?"
"They did bring it up. Lance and the Mercer family want to hold the wedding as soon as possible, but I refused."
Deanna honestly recounted last night's events.
Old Ashley was surprised, "You refused? Why?"
"I've lost my memory and don't want to get married under these circumstances. Besides, there are still some issues on Lance's side that need resolving. I don't want our future marriage to be plagued by problems."
Deanna shared her thoughts openly.
Old Ashley paused for a moment before understanding Deanna's reasoning. "You're right. It's better to resolve all negative factors before marriage so that it can be peaceful afterward. Otherwise, problems will arise sooner or later. You've suffered enough; I hope you'll have a happy and peaceful future."