In the following days, Lance was quite busy. One day, he even had to travel to a neighboring city for business. As a result, he hadn't had time to visit Deanna and the children.
Finally, when he returned to Cloudmere, he went straight to see the kids as soon as he got off the plane. The children were at home, studying advanced math, unaware of his arrival. Landon was with them, and Deanna was reading her mentor's medical notes.
Later, the doorbell rang. "I'll get it. You all continue with what you're doing," Old Ashley said as she got up to answer the door. She was surprised to see the travel-worn man outside. "Mr. Mercer, what brings you here?"
"I came to see the kids," Lance replied, glancing inside the house. He saw Deanna and a man chatting happily in the living room. The man was none other than Landon, the young president of Sherman Group. The children were sitting beside Landon, their faces full of joy.
Deanna and the kids hadn't noticed Lance's arrival. Gregory approached Landon with a math problem he couldn't solve. "Uncle, do you know how to do this one?"
"Let me take a look," Landon said, leaning in to examine the problem, his expression freezing momentarily. Gregory didn't notice and looked at him expectantly.
Deanna saw this and couldn't help but tease, "Gregory, don't make it hard for your uncle. He probably doesn't remember any of this stuff from school."
Landon felt his image being shattered in front of the kids. "Who says I can't do it? I just forgot for a moment," he retorted.
Deanna chuckled. "Stop struggling. I know you too well. You were always busy chasing girls in school and never paid attention in class. If it weren't for your grandfather forcing you with a stick, you probably wouldn't have gotten into college."
"Uncle, you were such a flirt even as a kid?" Chloe looked at him in amazement.
Gregory added, "No wonder you couldn't solve the problem. You're an academic failure."
Landon pretended to be angry and said to Deanna, "Can you stop embarrassing me in front of the kids? How am I supposed to play with them now?"
Deanna laughed heartily at her friend's frustration. Gregory patted Landon's arm and comforted him, "Don't worry, Uncle. Even if you're an academic failure, I won't look down on you. I'll still play with you."
"Me too. I won't look down on you either," Chloe chimed in.
Landon felt a pang of sadness hearing their words. So what if he was an academic failure? He still graduated from college. But he didn't say this out loud, fearing Deanna would mock him again.
Unbeknownst to him, Deanna had already figured it out and mischievously asked the kids, "Do you want to hear some embarrassing stories about your uncle from when he was little? Mommy knows them all."
"Yes! Tell us, Mommy!" the kids responded in unison.
Landon panicked and shouted at Deanna, "Don't you dare!"
If Deanna revealed his embarrassing childhood stories, how could he face the kids afterward?
Deanna glanced at him and smiled. "If I don't tell them, I'll lose face."
Ignoring him, she began recounting some amusing incidents from his childhood. "Your uncle was very naughty and foolish when he was little. He often got punished by his grandfather. I remember once he was even hung up and spanked. His screams could be heard throughout the neighborhood."
"Ah-Deanna, stop!" Landon exclaimed.
He couldn't believe Deanna remembered these things. He lunged at her as if he wanted to strangle her.
Just as his hands were about to reach her neck, a large hand grabbed his wrist tightly. A cold voice sounded above them.
Lance had entered unnoticed and stood by the sofa, his face dark and eyes filled with anger. "Joking is fine, but Mr. Sherman, keep your hands to yourself!"
"Mr. Mercer?" Landon was taken aback by the man's presence.
Deanna and the children also looked over in surprise.
"Mr. Mercer, when did you arrive?" Deanna asked quickly.
"Just now," Lance replied coolly.
His gaze returned to Landon. Meeting those deep, dark eyes, Landon couldn't help but shiver.
For some reason, he felt that Mr. Mercer's gaze was hostile and somewhat terrifying.
Had he somehow offended him?