Chapter 476 The Master of Disguise
Fiona was somewhat speechless as she found herself in several bizarre moments today.
She shook her head and headed straight to the Solomon.
To avoid drawing unnecessary attention, Fiona now took the CEO's private elevator to Solomon, avoiding interactions with other employees.
When she reached the conference room floor, the elevator doors opened, and Fiona immediately saw Darwin, who had just finished a meeting.
Few people followed behind him, all of them looking disheveled.
Darwin's face also looked terrible at first.
However, the moment he saw Fiona, his gloom turned to sunshine, and he greeted her with a smile, "All done?"
“Yeah.”
Fiona moved inside.
Darwin followed with his group, casually taking the items from Fiona's hands.
“It’s hot outside, isn’t it?”
"A bit."
"I figured you'd arrive around this time, so I secretly ordered an avocado yogurt for you. You can grab it in the break room later, just make sure Chicago doesn't see it," Darwin whispered to Fiona, completely disregarding anyone else around.
The individuals who were supposed to be scolded in the CEO's office displayed a mix of emotions on their faces. They wanted to laugh but dared not, and their expressions simultaneously turned to utter shock.
There were rumors circulated online that Darwin was afraid of his wife. None of them believed that. Even though Fiona was an heiress of the Rhoads family, they found the gossip ridiculously amusing.
Those who said Darwin feared his wife obviously hadn't seen him angry.
However, at that moment, it all felt surreal to them.
As they reached the CEO's office in the elevator, Fiona wanted to disappear into a hole due to Darwin's clinginess. He truly seemed to abandon his image in front of her.
The elevator quickly arrived at their floor.
"You guys go ahead." Darwin turned to the employees with a fierce look once again.
They hurriedly acknowledged and scampered off to Darwin's office.
"Putting on an act?" Fiona commented with a hint of exasperation. "You sure scared them."
"They've been fumbling the same minor issues for days; how can I possibly show them a pleasant face?" Darwin retorted, displeased.
Exiting the elevator, the two headed straight for the office they previously occupied, now repurposed for Chicago and Charles's use.
"Next time I'm in the elevator, you better not come in," Fiona continued, "or your people might start saying Mr. Darwin has a split personality."
Darwin shrugged it off. "That's better than rumors of us splitting up."
Fiona laughed without a word.
In the secretarial office, Chicago was having a lesson. The teacher who once found Chicago a headache now adored her.
"Chicago is doing wonderfully, with rapid progress in her studies. She won't have any problems integrating into the new class when school starts," Fiona overheard the teacher's high-pitched praises as she walked in.
Chicago indeed had that kind of charm; even burly men like Stuart, Mike, and Xavier would soften their voices when speaking with her.
"It's all thanks to the teacher's excellent instruction," Chicago sweetly remarked.
After her comment, she noticed Fiona smiling at her from the door. She quickly said goodbye to her teacher, ended the video call, and ran toward Fiona.
Whenever they parted, regardless of the length of time, their reunions were always characterized by a rush into her mother's embrace, where she would lavish upon her the warmest and most affectionate of hugs.
Fiona was always ready to play along.
Lifting her daughter up into a hug, she said, "I heard your teacher praising you today."
"Yeah!" Chicago beamed with pride. "Now no one has to worry about Chicago being illiterate!"
The comment sent Fiona and Darwin into fits of laughter.
Since the day Darwin got hurt and Chicago called him 'Daddy,' she hadn't used the term again. Nevertheless, it was evident to anyone looking that the father-daughter bond was incredibly strong.
A couple of days ago, Chicago heard from someone that the ice cream at Solomon's restaurant was to die for. She mentioned it casually to Darwin, and he went to the cafeteria personally to buy her a cup.
Chicago wasn't fond of drinking water. Even when Darwin was in meetings, he'd call the executive office to have his assistants ensure the little one stayed hydrated.
The tale of Darwin's devotion to Chicago's whims had become legendary around the office, talked about by everyone.
Yet despite all of this, every night before bed, Chicago would wrap her arms around Fiona's neck, repeatedly pressing her cheek against her mother's and showering her with kisses, telling Fiona that she was Chicago's most beloved person.
"Chicago," Fiona, suddenly amused by the memory of Darwin's stern demeanor with his subordinates, teased, "Do you want to go to work with Daddy?"
Chicago's eyes sparkled with excitement. She was very good about not bothering Darwin when he was working, but the curiosity was there.
"Can I?" she looked at Darwin expectantly.
Darwin couldn’t resist his little girl's wish. "Of course, you can!"
"That's what I want to do!" Chicago exclaimed.
Without hesitation, Fiona handed the child over to Darwin, her smile tender. "Just don't be too scary at work, or you'll have Chicago frightened and me to answer to."
Darwin cradled his daughter with one arm and playfully whispered in Fiona's ear, "You're doing this on purpose."
Fiona feigned ignorance and turned to head toward the lounge, her face barely containing her smiles.
"Are you scary when you work?" Chicago asked innocently.
Darwin was quick to deny it seriously, "Me? Scary? I am nothing but nice..."
Listening to Darwin's blithe fibbing, Fiona pushed open the door to the lounge.
Charles was already awake, sitting cross-legged on a lounge chair, soaking up the sun.
"Mommy."
Before even opening his eyes, Charles accurately identified Fiona's presence.
You knew it was me without even looking back?" Fiona asked with a chuckle.
Charles turned to face Fiona and patted the space next to him, inviting her to join in basking in the sunshine.
Fiona walked over and took a seat.
She had been coming over quite often lately, but mostly it was just for a quick meal before leaving.
This was the first time she had set foot in the lounge.
"I used to love sunbathing here," Fiona remarked with a hint of nostalgia in her voice.
Charles nodded. "How's work going? Everything running smoothly?"
"Very smoothly. I will have a lot more time now to spend with you and Chicago," Fiona said with a smile, looking at him. "Is there anywhere you'd like to go, Charles?"
"Aren't you supposed to meet your in-laws?" Charles said slowly. "You seemed nervous about it. Should we go with you for support?"
"Are you worried they'll give Thalassa a hard time?" Fiona asked soothingly, stroking Charles's head.
Charles pondered for a moment. "Stepdad's family is quite prestigious. I've heard families like Armie Country have many rules and really care about matching social status."
"So, our Charles wants to go and back up his godmother?" Fiona asked with a smile.
"Yeah," Charles replied seriously, then followed up, "So, are we going?"
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