The Abandoned Wife

Upon seeing that Roxanne was still in a daze, Lucian couldn't resist lifting his hand and caressing her face. "You..." Roxanne was stupefied for several seconds before she belatedly snapped back to her senses. Mild embarrassment showed in her eyes. While the man had sneaked up on her countless times when they were in Miralaea, she could more or less postulate the reason after the fact. But this time, I didn't do anything. Why did he simply kiss me? Innocence was written all over Lucian's face. "Sorry, I lost control." At that answer, Roxanne's eyes went wide in fury. However, she couldn't really censure him either. All she could do was turn around as though nothing had happened and put the washed tableware aside. The two of them spent some time doing the dishes. When they exited the kitchen, Archie, Benny, and Estella pestered Lucian to play with them for a while. Only when it was rather late did Lucian drive home. Needless to say, Roxanne saw him off with the three children. When they had gone back into the mansion, she watched as Archie and Benny got into bed before making her way to her bedroom to take care of Estella. "Essie, would you like to go home with your grandpa and grandma tomorrow?" Lying on the bed, Roxanne only started coaxing Estella after spending a long time bracing herself mentally. As soon as Estella heard that, her initially smiling face fell. She clutched at Roxanne's arm tightly. "No! I want to be with you, Mommy!" Roxanne hugged her comfortingly. "I want to be with you too, Essie, but your grandpa and grandma miss you. Why don't you go back and keep them company for two days? Then, I'll go over and bring you back here again. How about that?" It took a lengthy persuasion before Estella was finally less averse to that idea. Early the following morning, Roxanne sent all three children to the kindergarten. When she was planning to leave, Estella clung onto the hem of her clothes, unwilling to loosen her grip. She patiently cajoled the little girl for a while before the latter entered the