Chapter 173 Let's Take It Slow
"Sorry I couldn't pick you up tonight. Something unexpected came up. Have you eaten yet?" Riley gently asked as she let the little ones out of her arms.
They nodded obediently. "Yeah, we have. We've been playing for a while."
Riley felt relieved and stood up. "What were you playing? Show me."
Winston excitedly ran to the living room. "We were playing with the Lego set Uncle gave us. It's so much fun!"
Landon and Finley stayed by Riley's side, each holding one of her hands, while Riley watched Winston with amusement.
The Lego set Donovan gave them was a hit. They loved the model and the challenge.
In just one evening, the three kids had already built a base.
But the Lego set looked pretty boyish.
Riley looked at Finley with concern. "Finley, do you like this Lego set?"
Finley's eyes sparkled, and she nodded eagerly.
As long as she could play with her brothers, she liked anything.
Seeing this, Riley felt reassured. Since it was still early, she decided to play with them a bit longer.
Landon and Winston were used to building Legos with her, each seriously working on their part. Riley picked a section to build too.
While searching for small parts, she felt a tug on her clothes.
Riley turned around, confused, to see Finley looking at her pitifully, holding the assembly instructions and pointing to a small part on it, her face full of helplessness.
Apparently, Finley couldn't find the part she wanted.
Riley smiled and was about to help her when she remembered Finley's occasional attempts to speak.
If she wasn't mistaken, Finley only spoke a word or two when she was very emotional.
Thinking of this, Riley pretended to be puzzled and looked at Finley. "What's wrong?"
Finley pointed to the part on the instructions again, but Riley kept up the puzzled act.
After a few tries, Finley got anxious, her mouth pouting.
Riley couldn't help but soften, patting Finley's head. "If you want Auntie to do something, you have to tell Auntie, okay?"
Finley blinked and opened her mouth.
Riley thought she was about to speak and was full of anticipation.
Finley seemed to be trying, but after a while, she still couldn't say anything. Frustrated, she poked the two boys who were focused on their building.
Landon and Winston had been building with Finley for a long time and could guess her meaning from her actions. They were about to help when they saw their mommy shaking her head behind the girl.
Seeing this, the two boys, though unsure of what their mother wanted, obediently sat back down.
Riley patiently said, "Finley can talk, right? Come on, tell Auntie and my sons what you want us to do."
Landon and Winston understood and nodded. "What's wrong, Finley?"
Three pairs of eyes looked at Finley expectantly.
Finley sensed their anticipation, her face turning red as she tried hard to speak, but no sound came out. After a while, Finley became anxious and aggrieved, her eyes slowly reddening.
Riley had been watching her expression and quickly patted her cheek, apologizing, "I'm sorry, Auntie was too impatient. We'll take it slow. Finley, be good, don't cry."
Landon and Winston had already found the part Finley needed from the pile and held it up in front of her. "Finley, is this what you wanted? We found it for you!"
Finley took the part, sniffled, and a smile slowly reappeared on her face.
