Chapter 977 Being Followed
Seeing Violet, Carter's eyes narrowed.
After finding out what she did, he couldn't look at her the same way. The loving dad image? Gone.
Charles, on the other hand, was cool as a cucumber, his face giving nothing away.
"How'd you know we were back?" Charles asked.
Violet, all focused on Charles, didn't even notice Carter's weird vibe. She said, all sweet-like, "I've been waiting for you. Heard footsteps, so I came to open the door."
Then she asked, "What were you guys up to? Why'd it take so long? Didn't you say IntelliMerge Technologies was on break?"
She just assumed they were out on business.
Carter didn't bother answering. He squeezed past her into the house, just as Lassie came out holding Shirley's hand.
Seeing him, Lassie shook her head, looking a bit helpless. "When Shirley heard she could stay at Charles' place for a few days, she got super excited!"
Violet's eyes went wide. "Shirley's staying at Charles' place? Why?" Before anyone could answer, she blurted out, "I wanna go too. I wanna stay with Shirley."
Carter's already dark mood got even darker. No more Mr. Nice Dad. "No," he said firmly.
Violet pouted, "Why can Shirley go but not me?"
Carter frowned. "How old are you? How old is Shirley? It's fine for her to stay at Charles' place, but you? What if someone finds out? What about your reputation? What about Charles'?"
Lassie, who knew Carter inside out, sensed something was off. She frowned but didn't push it. She knew there had to be a reason for Carter's change.
Violet's tears started falling, and she sobbed, "Daddy, you're so unfair! I'm supposed to marry Charles after I get better. What's wrong with staying together? Besides, Shirley will be there too. You just like Shirley more than me."
In the past, her tears would've broken Carter's heart. But now, knowing her true colors, her crying just seemed fake to him.
He had raised such a hypocritical daughter.
Seeing her cry, Shirley wanted to comfort her, but Carter stopped her.
Carter gave Charles a look, signaling him to take Shirley away.
Charles took Shirley's hand and grabbed her suitcase from Lassie, leaving with a worried Shirley.
As the door closed, Violet's hysterical screams and shouts echoed through the house.
Even with the door shut, you could still hear her yelling.
But Charles felt nothing.
Any guilt he had for Violet was long gone.
Shirley looked up, worried. "Charles, are we really leaving? I'm worried about Violet. She seems to be having another episode."
Charles gently ruffled her hair. "It's okay. Your parents will calm her down."
As they walked to the elevator with their suitcase, he asked, "Shirley, do you want to stay with me?"
Shirley nodded eagerly. "Yes! Can I see Hannah?"
Charles smiled. "You really like her, huh?"
Shirley nodded again, even more enthusiastically. "Yes, I really like Hannah. Even though we've only met once, I just really like her."
Afraid Charles wouldn't believe her, she repeated it several times.
Charles chuckled at her cuteness. "Funny thing, she likes you a lot too."
He hadn't expected that the two of them, who'd only met once, would hit it off so well.
That morning, Hannah had even texted him, saying she missed Shirley and asking when they could hang out again.
Just then, the elevator doors opened.
Charles held Shirley's hand and stepped inside. It wasn't until the doors closed that Violet's voice finally faded away.
All he wanted now was to get Shirley away from Violet. How Carter handled things? Not his problem anymore.
By the time they got home, it was already late.
The house was warm and cozy, thanks to the heating.
Charles let Shirley watch some TV while he tidied up her room, folding her clothes and putting them away neatly.
When he came back out, Shirley was already curled up on the sofa, fast asleep.
Kids were used to going to bed early and waking up early. Staying up late tonight had worn her out.
Charles smiled, scooped her up gently, and carried her to her room. He helped her change into her pajamas and tucked her in.
Worried she might need to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, he left a dim bedside lamp on for her.
When he finally left Shirley's room, it was already eleven.
Charles took a quick shower and then called Hannah.
Hannah had just finished her shower too and was lying in bed.
Charles filled her in on everything that had happened.
Hannah didn't care much about Violet. Hearing that Shirley was staying at Charles's place, she couldn't hide her excitement. "Shirley's staying with you? If I'd known, I would've come over right after work."
Charles knew how much she liked Shirley and smiled. "It's okay. I promised her I'd take her to see you at work tomorrow."
Hannah said, "Great! I start at eight in the morning and finish at four in the afternoon."
"Got it!"
Charles couldn't help but smile. After checking the time, he said, "It's getting late. You should get some rest. See you tomorrow."
Hannah replied, "See you tomorrow!"
"Good night!"
"Good night!"
After saying good night, they hung up.
The next day.
Charles was an early riser. No matter how late he stayed up, he was always up by six, unless Hannah was with him, then he'd sleep in a bit.
When he got up, Shirley was still asleep.
After washing up, he made breakfast. Only then did Shirley come out of her room, rubbing her sleepy eyes and clutching her pillow.
She was still half-asleep, not quite aware of her surroundings.
"Charles, why are you at my house?" she asked groggily.
Charles walked over and ruffled her hair. "I brought you back last night! Go wash up. Breakfast is ready. After we eat, we'll go see Hannah."
Hearing that, Shirley's thoughts started to clear. The idea of seeing Hannah woke her up more. She nodded eagerly, put her pillow back in her room, and ran to the bathroom.
At the sink, Charles had already squeezed some toothpaste for her.
After washing up, Shirley had breakfast with Charles, then found her clothes and got dressed. They held hands and left the house.
Hannah was working part-time at a fried chicken shop.
On their way to see her, they had no idea that a blue taxi was following them at a leisurely pace.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
