Benny opened the door, and Lucian immediately saw the three children waiting to greet him at the door.
“Daddy!”
“Mr. Farwell!” They sounded aggrieved and gazed at him as though he was their savior. Lucian could not resist ruffling their hair affectionately at the sight of their adorable pouting faces. Then he looked up and cast his gaze around the living room. “Where’s your mommy?”
It’s the weekend, so she should be home. “Mommy’s working overtime. She has already been working late the past few days. We’ve had to stay home alone, and it’s so boring!” Benny whined, and Archie and Estella nodded in agreement.
Lucian’s brows drew together slightly when he heard their complaints. No wonder she sounded so tired whenever I called her the last two days. I thought she was exhausted from looking after these three little tykes and purposely came over to take them out for a treat. However, it turns out it’s because she has been working.
Seeing how dispirited the children looked, he suggested, “Why don’t I take you guys out to play? Where would you like to go?” The trio perked up instantly at his words and began chattering away, discussing where they wanted to go.
“I want to watch a movie!” Estella was the first to raise her hand. I saw that there’s a new fairy tale movie and I really want to watch it! But Mommy has been so busy lately.
“We want to go to the amusement park!” Archie and Benny said at the same time. The pair had been so bored recently and just wanted to go out and have fun. After hearing Estella’s suggestion, however, they compromised and said, “All right, then. Let’s go and watch a movie.”
Grinning, Lucian pinched their cheeks gently and replied, “We’ll go to both. We’ll visit the amusement park first, then catch a movie on the way back.”
“Really?” Benny asked, practically bursting with joy. Lucian nodded. “We’ll probably only be able to get movie tickets for tonight if we buy now anyway.”
Archie was also excited for a brief moment. Then, something suddenly seemed to occur to him, and he asked hesitantly, “If we go out, what about Mommy?”
“I’ll let her know,” Lucian reassured him with a smile. And, if it’s possible, I hope she’ll join us. After saying that, Lucian took out his phone in front of the children and called Roxanne immediately, but there was no answer. The same thing happened even after three or four tries.
He frowned. Taking in the children’s cautiously expectant expressions, he said in a low voice, “In that case, I’ll take you three out today first.. We can take your mommy next time.” Archie, Benny, and Estella hesitated briefly before nodding. “Okay!”
After their discussion, Lucian sent Roxanne a text message informing her that he had taken the children out and asked her to give him a call when she was not busy. Then, he led the children out of the house and over to his car.
Lucian thought of something just before starting the car. Glancing at the kids in the rear passenger seat, he said, “Archie, Benny, you have to address me as ‘Daddy’ when we’re outside, okay?”
He had already issued a public statement about the pair’s relationship to him, so if anyone overheard them still addressing him “Mr. Farwell,” he was worried it would invite unnecessary trouble. Benny’s eyes shone with joy, and he nodded emphatically. “Sure! I’ll remember that.”
Lucian turned toward Archie. A faint smile tugged at the corner of the latter’s lips, and he nodded obediently. “Got it.”
