Hearing these words and seeing her grandmother's scrutinizing gaze, Deanna felt that if they continued talking, she wouldn't be able to clear her name.
"What twice? It was just once."
After saying this, she realized it didn't sound right and quickly added, "Anyway, it was an accident, an accident!"
She emphasized the last two words seriously.
Unfortunately, Julia didn't listen at all and retorted, "An accident doesn't hide the fact that you kissed."
"Exactly!"
The two little ones nodded in agreement.
Deanna found it both amusing and exasperating.
She glared at the two little ones and pretended to be fierce, "I'll deal with you later!"
The two little ones were frightened and quickly ran to Old Ashley, pitifully shouting, "Great-grandma, Mommy wants to hit us."
Old Ashley immediately protected them and glared at Deanna.
"It's clearly your problem. How can you blame Gregory and Chloe? If you dare hit them, I'll hit you!"
Deanna was both amused and helpless.
Looking at the two little ones smugly nestled in her grandmother's arms, she said helplessly, "Grandma, if you keep spoiling Gregory and Chloe like this, they'll end up sending me away."
"I think it's fine. But have you thought about why they are doing this?"
Old Ashley glanced at her granddaughter.
Deanna fell silent.
She naturally knew what the two little ones were thinking.
Seeing her expression, Old Ashley didn't continue the conversation. Some things couldn't be said just yet.
Later that evening after dinner, Julia played with the two little ones while Old Ashley took Deanna to the pharmacy for a talk.
"What exactly is going on between you and Mr. Mercer? Are you together or not planning to be together?"
"... I haven't decided yet."
Deanna honestly shared her thoughts.
Old Ashley frowned, "You haven't decided now. Then when? The kids want a father."
Hearing this, Deanna pursed her lips and mumbled softly, "I haven't stopped them from seeing their father."
"You haven't stopped them, but Gregory and Chloe don't know Mr. Mercer is their father. They just want you and Mr. Mercer to be together."
Old Ashley continued and then remembered something else. She looked at Deanna with some dissatisfaction and asked, "When do you plan to tell the kids about this?"
Sensing her grandmother's displeasure, Deanna defended herself, "It's not that I don't want to tell them; he said not to tell them for now because he's afraid they won't be able to handle it."
Hearing this, Old Ashley fell silent.
After a moment, she sighed and said, "Fine. You young people can make your own decisions. But remember one thing: don't let yourself or the children suffer."
"I understand."
Deanna nodded warmly.
She knew her grandmother didn't want to make things difficult for her and had said this on purpose.
Soon after, Old Ashley left the room.
Deanna stayed in the pharmacy for a while longer, looking pensive as if lost in thought.
After a while, she stood up from her chair and began sorting herbs.
It was unclear how much time had passed when the two little ones burst through the door excitedly saying, "Mommy, Uncle is here to pick us up."
Deanna was momentarily stunned. She grabbed a packed bag of herbs and walked out to see Lance standing in the living room.
"What are you doing here?"
She asked instinctively.
Lance smiled, "Work at the company is done for now, so I came to pick you all up."
"In that case, let's go. I've almost finished packing."
Deanna nodded.
Then she turned to Old Ashley and said, "Grandma, we're leaving now. See you later."
"Goodbye! Goodbye! Hurry up and go."
Julia waved her hand urging Deanna to leave.
Deanna frowned slightly; her friend's attitude seemed odd.
Little did she know that Julia felt guilty.
Lance seemed aware of something and gave Julia a meaningful look before inviting her warmly. "Dr. Deanna will be staying at Hencard Villa for a while. Miss King, if you have time, you're welcome to visit Dr. Deanna there."
"Uh..."
Julia was clearly surprised by Lance's invitation and froze for a moment before awkwardly nodding with a smile. "Sure, I'll come over if I have time."
Though she said so, she had no intention of visiting.
After exchanging a few more words, Deanna left with Lance.
After they left, Julia curiously approached Old Ashley with a gossipy look on her face. "Grandma, why is Deanna staying at Mr. Mercer's house?"
"Mr. Mercer hasn't recovered yet; Deanna is going to take care of him," Old Ashley explained briefly.
Julia couldn't help but mutter under her breath, "Even so, there's no need for her to move in with him along with the kids."
Old Ashley heard this but only smiled without saying anything further.
In her view, although her granddaughter claimed she hadn't decided yet, she had actually made up her mind but had unresolved issues to deal with.
All of this was caused by those people from the Jones family!