Chapter 680 A Bit Bitter
Caroline's face went beet red, and her ears felt like they were on fire.
Nicholas's breathing got all heavy. His fingers, so perfectly shaped, twitched like he wanted to pull her into a tight hug.
But this wasn't the right place for that.
Josie quietly covered her mouth, turning her head away, while Sharpe up front had this gentle smile as he looked ahead.
Caroline quickly sat up straight and gave Josie a playful tickle.
"Stop squishing Mommy."
Josie quickly pleaded, "Okay, okay, I got it."
'Emma's trick really works; Mom and Dad don't seem mad anymore,' Josie thought, feeling all happy inside.
In Gabriel's car, Sophia was in the passenger seat, scrolling through trip photos on her phone.
"So, where'd you all go?" Gabriel suddenly broke the silence.
The three kids looked up at Gabriel, all cute and curious.
Sophia glanced at him, a bit puzzled, and said, "We went to a bunch of places."
It was supposed to be a road trip, with them taking turns driving. But on the way back, they decided it was too far, so they had the car shipped and flew back to City B.
Sophia mentioned a few spots, and Emma immediately chimed in, "We went all over Serenity, and lots of people tried to chat with Mommy and asked for her number. Two of them were really handsome."
Gabriel's eyes darkened instantly.
"Handsome?" His tone got colder.
Emma kept going, "Yeah, just like Jake."
'Jake? Jake's not handsome at all!' Gabriel thought.
Gabriel felt annoyed. "More handsome than Daddy?"
Emma started thinking seriously.
Gabriel was getting frustrated, thinking, 'Does Emma really need to think about this for so long?'
After a minute, Emma said, "Daddy's still more handsome."
Gabriel instantly lit up with joy.
"I'll get you that limited edition game gear you wanted tomorrow."
Emma's eyes sparkled. "Thanks, Daddy. Love you."
Sophia stayed quiet.
While Gabriel went to pick up Sophia, Ruth said goodbye to Celeste and took Betty back to The Lancaster Manor, where the servants who had been on leave returned to their duties.
As soon as the car drove into the estate, Gabriel felt that homey vibe come back.
After half a month of loneliness, it finally felt lively again.
Gabriel felt deeply moved and couldn't help but look at Sophia intently.
The luxury car stopped smoothly at the front door, and Betty pushed Ruth to greet them.
As soon as the car door opened, the three kids jumped out, shouting "Great-Grandma" as they ran to Ruth. The place was suddenly buzzing with life, like a big family reunion.
Ruth smiled broadly, responding to them over and over.
Gabriel quickly got out and walked to the passenger side to help Sophia out of the car.
Sophia gave him a strange look, wondering, 'Why does Gabriel seem so different?'
Sophia didn't think much of it. She walked over to push Ruth inside, while Gabriel helplessly carried the luggage into the house.
The three kids shared fun stories from their trip with Ruth, and Sophia added details on the side. Betty went to oversee the kitchen for dinner, and Gabriel quietly joined them, sitting and listening.
This lively and joyful atmosphere was a stark contrast to his half-month of solitude.
After dinner, Gabriel played with the three kids, while Ruth pulled Sophia aside for a private chat.
"Do you think Gabriel is different?"
Sophia replied, "Yeah, he does seem a bit different."
"After this trip, he'll cherish you more and won't dare to mess with you."
"What?" Sophia felt like Ruth had pulled some major strings while she was away.
Ruth grinned and said, "I gave all the servants a holiday and went to The Blackwood Manor to stay with Celeste, leaving Gabriel all alone at home for half a month."
"Plus, you ignored him during your trip, making him even more anxious. Now that you're back, of course, he wants to be around you all the time."
"From now on, you can give him a hard time, and I bet he won't dare to fight back."
Sophia was stunned. No wonder Ruth had kept telling her to cut off all contact with Gabriel during the trip.
She thought Ruth wanted her to teach Gabriel a lesson.
And it did teach Gabriel a lesson, but it was a bit different from what she had imagined.
After the kids fell asleep, Gabriel took a shower, threw on a bathrobe, and knocked on Sophia's bedroom door with a bottle of red wine.
Sophia had just come out of the bathroom, her hair half-dried and hanging over her shoulders. Hearing the knock, she thought for a moment and knew who it was.
She walked over and opened the door.
Seeing the red wine in Gabriel's hand, she looked puzzled.
"Want a drink?" Gabriel raised the bottle of red wine.
Sophia pursed her lips. "Why the sudden urge to drink?"
"I want to chat with you," Gabriel said gently, "If you don't want to drink, that's cool."
Sophia thought for a moment. "Let's go to the rooftop loft."
"Okay."
Sophia went back to grab a coat and then headed to the rooftop loft with Gabriel.
This loft was originally for storage, but Gabriel had renovated it and put several telescopes there. The kids would come here to stargaze and explore the universe.
It was the perfect spot to enjoy the stars and the moon.
The roof was made of transparent glass, and tonight was beautiful. The moon was bright, and a few stars were twinkling, making it a pleasant sight.
Sophia and Gabriel sat on the chairs, and Gabriel poured wine into two glasses, handing one to Sophia.
Sophia took it, and Gabriel immediately clinked glasses with her.
The wine was slightly bitter at first but had a nice sweet finish.
After a few seconds of silence, Gabriel suddenly asked, "Do you want to see fireworks?"
Sophia replied, "Hmm?"
Gabriel asked again, "Do you want to see fireworks?"
Sophia was puzzled. 'Why is Gabriel suddenly asking that? If I say yes, would he set off fireworks for me?'
"No."
Gabriel fell silent and thought, 'Sophia is special and doesn't play by the rules.'
Fireworks were ruled out, so he could only play music.
Soft music that Sophia often listened to started playing. The stars in the sky were sparse, and after a while, they became boring to look at.
Suddenly, a brilliant starry sky appeared on the transparent glass ceiling.
'Why did more stars suddenly appear?' she mused.
And they slowly formed a sentence.
"Sophia, I love you?" Sophia read aloud.
She immediately got it and turned to look at Gabriel.
Gabriel was looking at her with deep affection, and Sophia's heart started to race as she fell into his deep, tender eyes.
Her hand tightened, suddenly feeling at a loss.
"Sophia." Gabriel held her hand.
His gaze was like a magnet, firmly attracting Sophia.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
