Lance glanced at Chloe, recalling the moment when she had asked him with her innocent voice.
His eyes flickered as he said, "Well, Chloe came to talk to me about the kindergarten parent meeting..."
Before he could finish, Deanna interrupted him.
She nodded and smiled lightly, "Well, you don't need to pay attention to what she said. It's not a big deal. I've talked to the teacher. I'll go by myself; there's no need to trouble you, Mr. Mercer."
She knew that Chloe must have come over because of the kindergarten parent meeting.
This was their family matter, and she didn't want to trouble Lance.
However, Lance shook his head and explained, "Dr. Deanna, that's not what I meant."
"I was saying that if needed, I can make time to go."
Deanna was stunned for a moment.
She hadn't expected Lance to agree to such a request.
The two little ones were also surprised, their big eyes blinking. "Really? Handsome Uncle!"
Next to them, Xavier was even more astonished.
He had thought that Mr. Mercer would never agree to such an unreasonable request.
But unexpectedly, he did!
He quickly rubbed his ears, afraid he had misheard.
Deanna frowned, hiding her surprise, and still politely declined, "Mr. Mercer, thank you for your kindness, but I think it would be too much trouble for you. Let's forget about it."
She didn't want to owe Lance any favors.
Lance smiled and continued, "It's no trouble."
He looked at the two little ones with affection in his eyes and said softly, "I quite like these two little ones. It's rare that they need my help; I must go!"
"Besides, Dr. Deanna, given our current relationship, we shouldn't be so distant, right?"
For some reason, every time Deanna tried to draw a clear line between them, Lance felt uncomfortable.
Deanna bit her lip, hesitant.
Lance was so busy every day; she really didn't want to trouble him.
Just as she was about to refuse again, she saw the expressions on the two little ones' faces. Their anticipation was too obvious.
They must really want a dad to attend the parent meeting...
After struggling internally for a while, Deanna finally nodded.
"Mr. Mercer, then I'll trouble you."
Lance nodded, "It's no trouble."
The two little ones standing nearby cheered almost immediately.
Chloe nearly jumped up.
Their eyes sparkled as they laughed. "Great!"
"We have a daddy going to the parent meeting! Yay!"
"Thank you, Handsome Uncle!"
Seeing the two little ones so happy, Lance's smile grew wider.
He crouched down and patted their heads. "No need to thank me."
With the major issue resolved, the smiles on the little ones' faces grew even brighter.
Seeing them like this, Deanna smiled.
Noticing the time, she stood up. "It's getting late; we should go now. We won't bother you anymore, Mr. Mercer."
Lance nodded. "Alright, I'll have someone take you home."
He gave Xavier a look.
Deanna nodded and left with the two little ones.
Back home, Deanna looked at Chloe and still felt a bit scared.
Chloe was so young and had run out of the kindergarten by herself. Luckily, she found Lance and didn't encounter any bad people.
What if she had met bad people? What would have happened?
Thinking about it made Deanna's face turn serious again.
She pulled Chloe over and started educating her.
"Chloe, do you realize your mistake today?"
Seeing her mommy's serious expression, Chloe quickly nodded and said obediently, "Mommy, I know I was wrong. I won't run away again."
Deanna's tone softened a bit. "You can't be so willful in the future. You can't just go looking for Mr. Mercer, understand?"
"This time you could ask Mr. Mercer for help, but what about next time? We can't always rely on Mr. Mercer for help, right?"
She sighed again.
"I know I haven't given you a complete family; that's my fault. But... we can't always trouble Mr. Mercer, understand?"
Saying this made Deanna feel a bit bitter inside.
Looking at the two little ones' eyes filled her with guilt.
Chloe obediently nodded and agreed. "Mommy, I understand. I won't do it again."
She appeared obedient but had a sly look in her eyes when Deanna wasn't paying attention.
They shouldn't trouble Handsome Uncle too much.
But if Mommy and Handsome Uncle were together, then he would be her daddy forever!
Then it wouldn't be troublesome at all.