Pippa was already waiting by the gate when Roxanne arrived with her boys. She smiled and grected
them.
“Hi, Ms. Jarvis. It has been a long time!” Pippa said.
Roxanne politely smiled and replied, “I’ve been busy at work lately. Did Archie and Benny give you any
trouble?”
Roxanne suspected the boys might have done something wrong in school, resulting in their strange
behavior that morning.
Surprisingly, Pippa shook her head and said, “Not at all! Archie and Benny are really good boys.
Sometimes, they even help me look after other kids. I have to thank you for bringing up such sensible
boys!”
Roxanne lowered her eyes and looked at the two boys that were standing by her side. They looked up
to her with wide-eyed innocence, leaving her perplexed.
Seeing that they were not going to let her in on their secret, she gave up and looked away.
“Ms. Jarvis!”
A sweet, child-like voice rang out from behind Roxanne.
Roxanne turned around and saw Estella running toward her as fast as her tiny legs could take her. Her
chubby little face was turning red from the exertion. The little girl was dressed in an adorable dress and
had a head full of curly hair.
Roxanne was stunned by the sight of Estella’s curly hair. She bent over and hesitantly asked, “What
happened to your hair, Essie?”.
She remembered Estella had naturally straight hair and wondered who styled her hair.
Estella tugged at her own hair and innocently said, “Grandma! Grandma said all princesses have curly
hair!”
Sonya was aware of the kindergarten’s anniversary celebration. She heard Estella was going to act in
the play, so she excitedly brought the little girl to the salon to style her hair.
Lucian did not want to quarrel with his mother over such a small matter, so he let her be.
When Estella mentioned Sonya, Roxanne’s heart became heavy, and she instinctively stood up and
took a step away from the little girl.
Estella could sense ber change in attitude. She tilted her head in confusion and looked disappointed.
It pained Roxanne to have to put a distance between herself and the little girl, but she had to do so.
Realizing she had overlooked something, Roxanne looked behind Estella, and true enough, she saw
Lucian walking toward them.
Dressed in an expensive tailored suit, Lucian strode regally in her direction, his gaze fixed intently on
Estella and her.
Roxanne quickly looked away when her eyes met Lucian’s. She grabbed her boys’ hands and turned to
walk into the school compound.
Although she knew she would have to work with Lucian and Estella due to their collaboration in the
play, she wanted to delay their interactions as long as possible.
“Hello, Mr. Farwell!” Roxanne heard Pippa greet Lucian respectfully as she hurried past the gate. She
was too slow as Lucian had already caught up with them.
Lucian gave Pippa a small nod in acknowledgment. Then his gaze swiftly swept to Roxanne, who was
back facing him and walking away in a hurry.
Roxanne had a prickling feeling on her back and could sense he was looking at her.
“It has been a long time, Ms. Jarvis,” Lucian greeted her as he walked to her side, Estella in tow.
Roxanne’s heart skipped a beat when she heard his voice. Scenes of them parting unhappily after their
last meeting juxtaposed with the kissing scene in Sleeping Beauty and flashed in her mind. She got
flustered and did not know how to face him.
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