Theodore had never thought that he would use the phrase "she's married" as an excuse to get rid of Everleigh's persistent suitor.
However, that day, when he saw Everleigh and Stainley talking and laughing together, his jealousy went through the roof and he didn't care about what excuse he used at all.
Didn't she say that they were just friends? Well, friends also had the obligation to persuade them to mind their own ethics.
Theodore's words caused Stainley to be slightly taken aback, and he looked at Theodore with surprise.
After a long while, Stainley replied, "I know."
It was only two simple words. His tone was very casual and even somewhat helpless. His calm reaction was far beyond Theodore's expectations.
His eyes darkened. "You know?"
Stainley repeated, "I always knew, and on the day when Everleigh and Christopher were at the City Hall in Maniville, I was there."
"Is this what you want to say? Is this what you want to remind others of?" As if listening to a joke, Everleigh's face quickly soured, and she went straight upstairs to pick up Adrienne. Without saying a word, she walked past Theodore without looking back.
On the way out of the Godfrey Mansion, Everleigh kept a straight face.
Theodore actually thought that she would pretend to be single just to interact with other men? What kind of person did he think she was?
In the back seat, the two children had fallen asleep.
Stainley was holding the steering wheel and driving the car slowly. "Don't be angry. He is not such an impulsive person usually. Maybe he is really anxious?"
"Even if he's anxious, does that mean that he can think of me that way? Also, what's there to be anxious about?"
"In fact, if it was me, I might act like that as well."
"Hm?" Everleigh raised her head, and she looked at him with puzzlement.
"When we were eating, I told you that I regretted the fact that I went back two months earlier during the Africa mission. Do you remember?"
She remained silent.
"Sometimes I wonder if we would be married if I did not go back early."
Hearing this, Everleigh was dumbstruck.
She married Christopher after she came back from the medical branch in Africa. They had spent the better half of the year together, and their close friendship became intimate. If not, there wouldn't be a marriage at all.
"It wasn't anything good anyway." Everleigh said slowly, "You know that Christopher and I only got married because of the kids. He never wanted to get married, and he only did it because he wanted to get out of an arranged marriage. We both had selfish intentions for it, so how could I implicate you?"
"What if I said that I was willing to do it?"
Stainley's voice echoed in the car. His tone was as gentle and calm as ever, as if he was talking about the weather.
Everleigh's eyebrows twitched violently.
Why were all of these things happening all at once? She hadn't settled Theodore's matter yet, but what was Stainley doing? It was impossible for her to say that she didn't understand what he was thinking, but she had already kept a distance from him over the past few years.
"When we were in college, I knew that you were in love with Theodore and I didn't have a chance. Later, after you two broke up, you were busy taking care of the children and didn't have time to be distracted. I thought about many reasons, but I still thought that I was too cautious and never showed my attitude to you seriously."
The more Everleigh listened, the more her scalp tingled.
"I know it won't be easy for you to accept it. I'm not as interesting as Christopher, but I really want to take care of you and the kids."
She didn't know how to respond.
"I'm not in a hurry. Everleigh, you can take your time to think about it."
Theodore was right. As a mother, she shouldn't blow up at her children as it was her fault as a parent for not teaching them properly. What happened that day was her fault.
Recently, she'd left her children in the care of others far too often as she hardly had time to spend with them.
After returning to the bedroom, Everleigh video called Cecil.
The call was connected quickly and an alabaster white face appeared on the other end of the call. Everleigh was shocked for a moment, but when she took a closer look, she realized that Cecil was putting on a mask.
"Did hell freeze over? You actually took the initiative to call me today despite being MIA for God knows how long." On the other end of the video, Cecil's ghostly white face seemed even scarier as she spoke in a deadpan tone.
Then, Everleigh confessed, "Theodore has been discharged from the hospital."
"I knew it."
"Also, Stainley was transferred to our hospital."
"Oh, nice one, Dr. Smith. I've often said that it's useless to be a nice guy all the time. If you want to pursue a woman, you have to take the initiative."
"Why aren't you surprised at all?" Everleigh frowned.
"Whafs there to be surprised about? Back in Maniville, everyone could see that he liked you. He stayed by your side silently for seven years. If it was me, I'd already marry him. It's only you. You have a heart of steel."
"Are you trying to be sarcastic right now?"
"Of course not," Cecil said as she leaned closer to the camera with the mask on. "Do you want to hear the truth?"
"Go ahead." "Even if he waits for another ten years, you won't even call him," Cecil said directly. "Let's put it this way and find a comparison. How did you feel during this period of time when you took care of Theodore?"
When Everleigh heard "Theodore" from the other end of the video, her eyes narrowed a little.
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