Chapter 873 The Child's Secret
Nathaniel glanced down at Saskia's hand gripping his, a faint smile in his eyes, though the sadness on his face lingered.
Saskia thought he was upset.
Not knowing how to comfort him, she just held his hand the whole time.
Nathaniel's goal was achieved.
"It's time to pick up Benjamin," Saskia said, finally finishing the documents and stretching, glancing at the clock.
It was already 4 PM.
Preschool let out at 4:30, so if they left now, they could wait a bit and pick up Benjamin when he got out.
Nathaniel had already grabbed the car keys. "Yeah, let's roll."
There was no traffic this time, and they quickly arrived at the preschool.
Saskia was looking at her phone when she suddenly spoke up, "Pearl said she's swamped today and can't pick up Christopher. She asked if we could do it."
They exchanged a glance.
Nathaniel didn't react much; picking up one more kid didn't make a difference to him.
Saskia, however, thought about their fridge, which was running low on food. "I don't think we have enough groceries."
It would have been enough, but with one more kid, it might not be.
Christopher didn't come over often, and Pearl had helped her a lot, so she didn't want to shortchange Christopher.
Nathaniel replied casually, "Then let's eat out."
Saskia thought about it and agreed. They decided to go out for dinner.
After picking up Benjamin, she told him about the plan.
Benjamin was thrilled to hear there would be another kid joining them for dinner. "Awesome! Mom, let's go pick up Christopher right now!"
"Sit properly, we're going now," Saskia said, correcting Benjamin's posture before starting the car.
Christopher was in first grade, and his school was conveniently close to the preschool, so they quickly picked him up too.
With the two kids together, Saskia finally understood what it meant to be noisy.
The chatter never stopped.
Christopher and Benjamin had been friends for a long time and had a lot to catch up on.
Saskia listened in for a bit, but Benjamin caught her. He put his hands on his hips and pouted, "Mom, how can you eavesdrop on us? You said that's wrong!"
Christopher chimed in, "Yeah, Benjamin's right."
Nathaniel chuckled.
Caught eavesdropping, Saskia coughed and glared at Nathaniel, explaining to maintain her image, "It's because you weren't talking to me, and Christopher wasn't either. I just wanted to hear what interesting things you were discussing."
Benjamin gave her a knowing look.
A mother knew her child, and a child knew his mother. Benjamin could tell if Saskia was lying.
Feeling embarrassed, Saskia rubbed her nose and promised not to listen anymore.
Once Benjamin was sure she wasn't eavesdropping, he continued talking to Christopher.
"What do you think is a good gift? I've been thinking for days and can't decide. Mom's birthday is in a few days," Benjamin said, looking uncertain.
Christopher leaned in to give him advice, "I have an idea. Do this."
They huddled together, showing only their occasional expressions.
As for their voices, they were quieter than a whisper.
Saskia sighed, realizing Benjamin was growing up and had secrets from her. She felt a bit melancholic but mostly relieved.
Nathaniel said, "It's good that Benjamin has his secrets. There will come a day when you have to get used to it."
Knowing he was trying to comfort her, Saskia sighed again, feeling a bit down but quickly recovering.
She didn't expect their whispers to continue from the car to the dinner table.
Even while eating, they were huddled together.
It was as if no one else could join their conversation.
Seeing they hadn't eaten much, Saskia knocked on the table, "You two, eat properly. No whispering during meals. Didn't your teacher teach you that?"
Benjamin could tell when Saskia was joking and when she was genuinely a bit upset.
This time, it was the latter.
So Benjamin immediately adopted a well-behaved demeanor, moved his body, and picked up his utensils. "Okay, Mom, I'll eat properly now."
Saskia turned to Christopher.
Christopher, a bit afraid of Saskia, quickly promised to eat properly too.
With both kids settled, Saskia was pleased.
Seeing her happy, Nathaniel couldn't help but smile and pour her another glass of juice. "You're really that happy?"
Saskia hummed softly and whispered to him, "He lectured me in the car today, so I just lectured him back."
Nathaniel smiled, looking at her indulgently, "You have a childish streak. Benjamin is still so young, and you're holding a grudge."
Saskia didn't listen to him. It wasn't a big deal, just a way to tease the kids.
Having kids without teasing them would be losing half the fun.
After dinner, Pearl picked up Christopher.
Pearl specifically thanked Saskia for today.
"It's nothing. No need to thank me. I like Christopher a lot," Saskia said, waving her hand and gently touching the sleeping Christopher in her arms.
Who didn't like a well-behaved child?
Pearl smiled, glanced at the quiet living room, and saw Nathaniel walking over, clearly looking for Saskia.
She immediately understood and teased, "Looks like someone thinks I'm taking up too much of your time. Alright, I won't interrupt your couple's night. I'll head out."
Saskia blushed at Pearl's words. As soon as she turned around, she fell into Nathaniel's warm embrace.
Nathaniel gently held her, stroking her hair, his voice low, "Everything's done. You can rest now. You've had a long day."
His gentle touch carried no hint of desire.
Saskia's tense back instantly relaxed.
She hadn't felt tired, but his words seemed to bring on a wave of sleepiness, and she yawned.
Just as she was about to get up, Nathaniel scooped her up.
She was startled."Nathaniel, what are you doing?"
Nathaniel chuckled softly above her head, walking steadily, "Carrying you to rest. Consider it a special reward for your long day."
The warm embrace felt especially comforting, and since she was genuinely tired, Saskia didn't resist.
In the end, she didn't even know when she fell into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, since Amy was caught, Electra hadn't been doing well either.
After all, when a friend was in trouble, who could live comfortably? Electra was constantly resentful of Saskia and Nathaniel for causing Amy's downfall and genuinely pitied Amy's unfortunate situation.
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