Chapter 116 I'm Her Husband
Gabriel followed behind, carrying a wailing Isabella as they exited the bathroom.
His mind was in complete chaos—he'd forgotten to soothe Isabella until Arabella hurriedly threw on her nightgown and emerged from the walk-in closet. Only then did he slowly come back to his senses, his gaze refocusing on her.
Without time to dry her hair, Arabella stepped forward and swept Isabella from Gabriel's arms.
With his arms suddenly empty and the crying moving away, Gabriel finally snapped back to reality. His hands hung somewhat helplessly at his sides before he shoved them into his pockets, clearing his throat.
Arabella didn't dare look at him, nor did she want to imagine what inappropriate thoughts might be running through his head. She simply carried Isabella away, hurriedly cooing to comfort her.
Once she'd gotten Isabella to latch on again and the crying subsided, Gabriel slowly approached from behind.
"Your... hair's still wet," his low, hoarse voice broke the silence awkwardly.
Of course Arabella knew that, but she hardly had time to worry about it right now, so she didn't respond.
Seeing her lack of reaction, Gabriel awkwardly touched his nose and cleared his throat again before turning to leave.
Hearing his footsteps fade away, Arabella thought he'd left entirely and quietly exhaled in relief. Looking down at Isabella with her damp lashes, her emotions were a complicated tangle.
She had to find a place quickly and move out fast!
Living under the same roof was just too embarrassing!
Every moment could bring another mortifying accident like that.
Arabella closed her eyes, trying to calm her chaotic emotions. Her mood had barely settled when footsteps approached from behind again.
She turned around to see Gabriel approaching with a hair dryer.
"Let me dry your hair," Gabriel said softly, meeting her eyes.
"No need. I'll do it myself after I finish nursing," she refused without hesitation.
But Gabriel acted as if he hadn't heard her, plugging in the dryer and switching it on anyway.
She was holding Isabella and couldn't move, and before she could dodge, Gabriel had already gathered up her hair.
In the end, she had no choice but to sit there and let him tend to her.
How strange—the more strained their relationship became, the more considerate he seemed to grow.
Though his moods remained as unpredictable as ever, leaving her with an uneasy feeling.
The dryer's humming surrounded them both, keeping Arabella's emotions in constant flux, unable to settle.
Gabriel, meanwhile, looked down at Arabella's silhouette from above, feeling the subtle sensation of her damp, silky hair flowing and turning between his fingers, his own emotions still churning.
So many words gathered at the tip of his tongue—like wanting to say she'd worked hard this past year, or expressing how his feelings for her had changed, or seriously discussing whether they could avoid divorce and continue their life together.
A thousand thoughts converged in his heart, yet he ultimately hesitated to speak.
He feared she'd be suspicious, feared she'd mock him, and most of all feared she'd misunderstand that his sudden kindness was some new scheme.
Between them, trust had plummeted to freezing point.
The awkwardly intimate atmosphere continued until a knock came at the bedroom door, and Mary entered.
Gabriel startled, turning as Mary spoke, but her words were drowned out by the hair dryer's noise. He immediately switched it off. "What is it?"
Mary asked, "Mr. Sterling, should Henry have breast milk or formula?"
After all, with Mom home and Henry feeling unwell, it would be best if Mom could hold and comfort him while nursing.
Before Gabriel could respond, Arabella turned around, her hair cascading over her shoulders. "Mary, bring Henry here. Isabella's almost finished."
Isabella had been fussing for so long without much sleep that she was now drowsily nursing, her eyes gradually closing with only her little mouth occasionally suckling.
Arabella carefully lifted Isabella and placed her on the large bed behind her.
"Your hair's dry now," Gabriel said quietly, looking at her.
"Mm, thank you," she replied without glancing at him, equally keeping her voice low.
It was a weekday—Gabriel should be at work.
But it was already afternoon, and he couldn't be bothered going in now. He made a quick call to his assistant to delegate tasks and decided to stay home caring for the children.
While Arabella was nursing Henry, Isabella on the bed started whimpering again.
The nanny gently and carefully soothed her.
Finally, once Henry was fed, Arabella was about to go downstairs for lunch when Isabella had another bout of diarrhea.
With both Mary and the other nanny handling the cleanup, she didn't need to help and finally had a chance to grab some food.
"Mrs. Sterling, Isabella's uncomfortable and sleeping fitfully. Why don't you nap with her?" Mary suggested softly after getting Isabella cleaned up and seeing Arabella return upstairs.
Arabella checked the time—she should be heading back to the office.
But with both children in their current state, she really couldn't feel at ease leaving.
Gabriel entered the room and noticed her hesitation, his eyes darkening. "If you're afraid to ask your company for time off, I'll call your boss myself."
"No, no, that's not necessary. I'll handle it myself," she quickly refused. She couldn't let him get involved.
If word got around to her colleagues, how could she comfortably work there anymore?
Holding the restless Isabella, she tried to soothe her while carefully considering how to phrase her request, reluctantly dialing the number.
No answer.
She couldn't reach Zane—he must be busy with something.
She could only call Ella instead, explaining the situation at home. Hearing the baby's crying in the background, Ella quickly consoled her, "Don't worry about it, take the time off. We've got this project handled, and things can slow down a bit. I'll talk to Zane later."
"Okay, thanks, Ella."
After hanging up, her phone showed low battery. She was looking for a charger when Gabriel approached. "What's wrong? Looking for something?"
She glanced at Gabriel while holding the baby. "My phone's dead."
"Give it here."
Gabriel extended his hand. Without much hesitation, she handed it over.
Gabriel took the phone to the coffee table, found an outlet, and plugged it in.
Isabella was difficult to soothe—probably hungry again after her upset stomach. Arabella had no choice but to nurse her to sleep.
She ended up getting drowsy herself and dozed off too.
Gabriel had planned to work in his study, but worried there might be something here he needed to help with, so he fetched his laptop and worked from the master bedroom sofa instead.
Hearing the steady, gentle breathing behind him, he turned to see both mother and daughter fast asleep.
Her blouse was still unbuttoned, her chest facing Isabella's little face.
Gabriel quietly walked over, staring at them in a daze for a while, his Adam's apple bobbing as his eyes grew infinitely dark and deep.
After a long moment, he slowly came back to himself, bending down to pull up the down comforter and gently covering both mother and daughter.
Returning to the sofa, he continued working.
Suddenly, Arabella's charging phone screen lit up.
Zane...
Afraid of waking the sleeping mother and daughter, Gabriel quickly silenced it, then unplugged the charging cable and took the phone outside.
"Hello."
Just as Gabriel spoke, the voice on the other end said simultaneously, "Arabella, Ella said you're not coming back this afternoon?"
Gabriel frowned in surprise. Hearing the gentle tone on the other end, even carrying a hint of abnormal affection, his expression immediately darkened. He said coldly, "The children at home are sick. She's taking the afternoon off."
This response startled Zane on the other end of the line. After a pause, he said, "You... you're Arabella's..."
"I'm her husband."