Regardless of whether Julia was willing or not, Lance entered the apartment forcefully after answering her questions.
Out of courtesy, he didn't wander around. He turned to Julia at the door and asked, "Where is the room?"
Julia rolled her eyes but obediently led the way.
Soon, Lance saw Deanna sleeping in the bedroom.
Deanna didn't seem to be sleeping well; her brows were tightly furrowed.
"Mom, don't go..."
She murmured, and a tear slid from the corner of her eye, which Lance noticed.
Julia, standing nearby, also saw Deanna's tear. Her eyes filled with heartache as she slowly spoke, "It seems I misunderstood you, Mr. Mercer."
Lance didn't respond. He just stepped forward, bent down, and gently wiped away Deanna's tears.
As he was about to pick her up, Deanna seemed to sense something and grabbed his hand, her voice light and choked with sobs, "Mom, don't leave me. I'm not that kind of person... believe me..."
"I didn't kill my mom..."
"It wasn't me..."
Her sorrowful whispers echoed in the room.
Julia felt uncomfortable listening to these words and felt sad for her friend.
She had thought that after all these years, her friend had moved past those events. But it turned out that those memories were just buried deep in her heart, becoming a scar that would never heal.
Lance's emotions were also complex.
Although he was a victim of the events five years ago, he had indirectly caused Deanna's misfortune.
This was why he had been hesitant to confess to Deanna.
After crying for a while, Deanna fell into a deep sleep again.
Looking at the tear-stained face of the woman in his arms, Lance pursed his lips, picked her up from the bed, and turned to leave.
Julia called out to him, "Mr. Mercer!"
Lance stopped and turned to look at her.
Although he didn't speak, his eyes clearly conveyed his question.
What is it?
"Treat Deanna well. If I find out you've let her down, even if you're the powerful head of the Mercer family, I won't let you off!"
Julia's expression was serious and stern.
Lance gave her a deep look but said nothing. He turned and left with large strides.
The next day, Deanna woke up from her hangover feeling like her head was going to explode. She felt extremely uncomfortable.
Not only did her head hurt, but her eyes were also dry and sore, even a bit swollen.
"Did I accidentally hit my eye while drunk last night?"
She rubbed her head and muttered to herself.
At that moment, she inadvertently noticed the decorations around her and froze.
The reason was simple: this was her room.
But she had been drinking at Julia's house last night.
Did Julia send her back because she didn't want her house to smell like alcohol?
As Deanna was lost in thought, the door opened from the outside, and Lance stood at the entrance.
"You're awake."
He looked at Deanna with gentle eyes.
Deanna felt a bit unnatural and surprised to see him. "Why are you here?"
"Your grandmother couldn't reach you yesterday afternoon and asked me to help find you. That's how I found out you went to your friend's house to drink."
Lance briefly explained and then asked with concern, "Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere now?"
Deanna pressed her lips together and then forced a smile. "I'm fine. Thank you for taking care of my grandmother, Mr. Mercer. Now, could you please step outside? I need to change my clothes."
"Alright, I'll wait outside."
Lance gave Deanna a deep look before turning and leaving, thoughtfully closing the door behind him.
As soon as the door closed, Deanna's shoulders slumped.
She didn't want to see Lance right now, so she dawdled in her room for almost an hour before finally coming out.
When she did, she saw only her grandmother in the living room and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Good morning, Grandma." She forced herself to greet cheerfully.
Old Ashley looked at Deanna's haggard appearance and spoke grumpily, "Good morning? It's almost noon. Why didn't you stay in your room until the afternoon?"
"Hehe, I drank last night and felt unwell this morning, so it took me a bit longer."
Deanna awkwardly rubbed her nose, making up an excuse.
But this only made Old Ashley more displeased. She began lecturing, "I don't mind you drinking with Julia, but you shouldn't go all afternoon without calling home. Do you know how worried I was? I almost thought something happened to you. If Mr. Mercer hadn't been there, I might have called the police!"
"I know I was wrong, Grandma. Please don't be mad."
Deanna quickly lowered her head and apologized sincerely.
Seeing her good attitude in apologizing, Old Ashley didn't know what else to say.
She glared at Deanna but didn't continue lecturing. Instead, she changed the subject, "You should thank Mr. Mercer properly. He took care of you last night. Let's invite him over for dinner tonight."