Shrouded Affections Winning Back My CEO Wife

Chapter 61

Chapter 61:

Eileen pondered why Benjamin, always chasing personal benefit, would risk upsetting Jonathan for her sake. Something didn’t add up. Restless, she spent the night wrestling with her sheets, sleep elusive. Then her phone rang, startling her into action, careful not to disturb Bailee, who was asleep beside her.

“Hello?” she said.

A pause stretched on the line before a voice, tentative yet familiar, broke the silence. “Is this Miss Curtis? It’s Aaron.”

Recognition dawned slowly for Eileen. It was Aaron Clarkson, Harlan’s son.

“Yes,” Eileen replied.

“It’s really you!” Aaron’s tone, laced with astonishment, carried across the line. “I never thought we’d speak again.”

Eileen remembered their brief time together. Aaron had leaned heavily on her guidance. The years had created distance, yet here he was, reaching out as if no time had passed at all.

Eileen found a quiet corner on the couch downstairs, her voice a whisper. “How have you been, Aaron?”

Aaron’s words flowed, not typical of teens his age. Eileen noticed he hadn’t changed much from the child she remembered. They lost themselves in conversation for well over an hour. During this, Eileen’s phone buzzed with an incoming call, but she chose to let it go unanswered.

After a while, she decided to broach the topic of grades. “Aaron, what’s been going on with your grades lately?”

Aaron gave a dismissive snort. “Figured you’d get to that. My dad’s pretty mad, too, but I keep it to myself. If I tell you, you’d just report back to him, wouldn’t you?”

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Eileen held her silence, her answer clear in the quiet between them.

Aaron’s voice took on an edge. “I trusted you because I thought you were on my team. If you’re just gonna spill to him, I won’t tell you.”

“Best to leave it unsaid, then,” Eileen replied, keeping the peace. Wanting to steer away from the tension, she changed the topic. “Do you want me to tutor you? Regardless of the whys and wherefores, focusing on your education is key.”

From the other end of the line, Aaron’s voice came with a teasing edge. “Don’t you want to convince me a little?”

At Aaron’s teasing remark, Eileen couldn’t suppress a chuckle. “Just tell me, are you in for tutoring?”

Aaron didn’t hesitate. “Yes. I don’t want to fall behind in my studies either. But it’s too hard for me to catch up now. When will you come to tutor me?”

Eileen considered for a moment. “I can only provide you with some study materials for you to work through. You need to complete a practice test for each subject so I can assess your understanding.”

the face-to-face session wasn’t on the table. “Okay, I’ll get it done and

now; it’s late,” Eileen reminded him before ending

a missed call from Bryan, followed by a text, a question mark. Unsure if Bryan was already asleep, Eileen opted not to call. She sent

“Mr. Dawson, any instructions?”

so Eileen booted up her computer to pore over the eighth-grade curriculum. Her impromptu study session stretched into the wee hours, ending only at three in the morning. Knowing she needed some sleep to function at work, she finally went

dark circles still underscored her when she arrived at work, having taken the bus because Bryan had taken away the car. It was her first time being

the words “You are late,” many employees looked at

made you take the

the elevator’s wall and spoke without lifting

and Judie felt her words getting stuck in her throat. The elevator halted, yet

the doors again, fixing Judie with a look. “Aren’t you going back to the

yes,” Judie responded, stepping out with a backward glance that conveyed her concern

out her phone and moved down the corridor. “Roderick, there’s trouble

scooter, demanded, “What

Judie relayed urgently. “She’s worn out, sporting dark circles, and she was fuming. Looks like she’s had a rough time with Mr. Dawson and is keeping it to herself. She seemed so

my house-buying plan. Now what? Do you think Mr. Dawson

aware of this habit. He

settlement on that lost cause,” Judie said, her voice laden with disdain as she pressed about

a file to Bryan when he asked, “Rough

stayed up too late,” Eileen

to on the phone last

conversation. “A friend. Did you need me for something last night, Mr.

with the documents, he replied, “Just wanted to

was taken aback. “You don’t know where he lives? Where did you take

his chair, eyebrows arched as he regarded Eileen.

shaking her head lightly. “Just concerned that he would be a hassle for

gaze, a thoughtful look in his eyes. “Don’t worry about it. Just focus

that Bryan wasn’t sure of Huey’s address,

in her own space, she quickly texted Bailee,

Vivian. When she and Bryan departed,

A WhatsApp notification glowed. Bryan took a brief look; the

light, Bryan reached out to grab Eileen’s phone, but

she said, her voice betraying her fatigue and

private tutoring sessions with Aaron and the impact on her rest

on the wheel, and studied her momentarily with a thoughtful look before