Hearing Lance's words, even though Deanna felt it was inappropriate, she had to accept the gifts prepared by the two old men.
As Lance suggested, she could prepare a few more prescriptions and rare medicinal herbs to give to the two elders in return.
Having thought it through, she nodded to the two little ones and said, "Since it's from Old Wright and Old Hughes, you should accept it and remember to thank them."
"Got it, Mommy," the two little ones responded in unison, then turned to thank Old Hughes and Old Wright.
Their soft, innocent voices made the two elders' hearts melt.
Old Wright, in particular, began to urge Efrain about his personal matters.
"You rascal, look at Anna. She's about your age and already a mother of two. When are you going to find me a granddaughter-in-law so I can hold my great-grandchild while I can still move?"
Efrain immediately regretted coming to this meal today.
With a bitter face, he replied awkwardly, "I'll try my best, I promise."
"I don't want you to try; I want you to take action," Old Wright pressed again.
Efrain could only respond repeatedly.
Seeing his miserable expression, everyone else couldn't help but laugh.
Soon, the meal ended with everyone chatting and laughing.
On the way back, Lance drove Deanna and her two children home.
The two little ones were clearly tired and fell asleep leaning against Deanna shortly after.
Seeing this, Deanna gently adjusted their sleeping positions to make them more comfortable.
Despite the car's movement, her actions were not exactly gentle.
But because of this, the two little ones continued to sleep soundly, making her smile involuntarily.
"It seems they are really exhausted today!" Deanna whispered softly, her face full of affection.
Lance agreed with her.
He looked down at the two sleeping children beside him and couldn't resist reaching out to touch their soft, delicate cheeks.
Soon, the car stopped at the entrance of their community.
The two little ones didn't wake up, and Deanna was reluctant to wake them. However, she couldn't carry both children at once.
Just as she was hesitating, Lance's gentle voice came from beside her, "You carry Gregory, I'll carry Chloe. I'll help you upstairs."
"Thank you, Mr. Mercer," Deanna said as she got out of the car with Gregory in her arms.
When they got home, they saw Old Ashley sitting on the sofa watching TV, clearly waiting for them to return.
Deanna greeted her and then led Lance to the children's room to put the two little ones to bed.
After settling them in, they returned to the living room.
Seeing them come out, Old Ashley smiled and asked, "Why are you back so late today? Have you had dinner? If not, I have some food kept warm in the kitchen."
"We've eaten, but not enough. We can have it as a late-night snack later," Deanna playfully coaxed Old Ashley.
Old Ashley nodded with a smile, "Alright, if you get hungry later, you can have it as a snack."
Lance listened quietly to their conversation, a faint smile on his lips. He felt that such days were very peaceful and more like a family.
He didn't want to leave but had no reason to stay longer, so he said goodbye.
"It's getting late; I should go now."
With that, he turned to leave.
The next second, Deanna called out to him, "Mr. Mercer, wait. Don't go yet. You still need acupuncture treatment today. You can leave after that."
Hearing this, Lance stopped but looked hesitant.
"Maybe we should skip it today. You've been busy all day; you must be tired. How about we do it tomorrow after you've rested?"
He said this because he had seen how tired Deanna was during the day and wanted her to rest well at night.
Deanna understood and felt warm inside but insisted, "Don't worry; I'm fine."
Seeing the determined look on her face, Lance couldn't refuse anymore and followed her to the bedroom.
Although Deanna said she was fine and not tired, she was indeed exhausted after the acupuncture session. Her eyelids were drooping.
In the end, she couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep leaning on the edge of the bed. Lance didn't realize it at first.
Because of the treatment, he was lying on the bed with his upper body bare, his back facing Deanna.
It wasn't until later when time passed without any movement from Deanna that he became suspicious.
"Dr. Deanna?" he called out tentatively but received no response. Turning around, he saw Deanna asleep on the edge of the bed. His eyes filled with heartache for a moment.
Despite his reluctance, he had to wake her up as he couldn't remove the needles himself.
"Dr. Deanna, wake up," Lance said as he sat up and gently pushed her.
This time Deanna barely opened her eyes but was still groggy.
Before she could react, Lance sighed and said, "Dr. Deanna, I think you need an assistant."