Chapter 112

Eleanor turned, arms folded, a mocking half-smile curling on her lips as she looked at the man behind her. Without a word, she headed upstairs.

lan clenched his jaw, a storm of emotions flickering in his eyes beneath furrowed brows.

Later, after Eleanor had tucked their daughter into bed, lan-fresh from his shower-came to say goodnight. Evelyn’s sweet, sleepy babble made him laugh softly more than once.

“My precious little girl.” lan hugged his daughter, planting a gentle kiss on her cheek before leaving the room.

But then, he paused. Leaning over, he pressed a kiss to Eleanor’s forehead.

She froze for a moment, her entire body tense. Determined not to react in front of their daughter, she waited until he left, then hastily rubbed her sleeve across the spot he’d kissed.

In the early hours of the morning, lan lay in bed, propped on one arm, scrolling through his phone. He found an old video-eight years old, now.

In the video, a teenage girl sat beside his hospital bed, holding his hand and singing softly.

“Do you like it? It’s a song I just learned. Consider it your new lullaby, okay?” Her voice was clear and full of youthful warmth.

“Now I’ll read you a new fairy tale! If you think I sound silly, just wake up and tell me. Otherwise, I’ll keep reading to you until you can’t stand it anymore p>

In the quiet ICU, the girl leaned over the rails, animatedly reading her story.

lan set his phone aside and closed his eyes, head resting against his arm.

Eleanor’s distant manner these past months-he saw it for what it was: the silent treatment. But he knew, no one could possibly love him more than she did.

The next morning, Eleanor took Evelyn out for breakfast, with Joslyn tagging along since it was her day off. Afterwards, they all went to the amusement park.

Eleanor was endlessly patient, accompanying Evelyn on ride after ride until the little girl was beside herself with joy.

After the carousel, Eleanor led them to a nearby café. By the time they’d finished their meal, it was already past two in the afternoon.

At half past three, noticing Evelyn growing drowsy, Eleanor gathered Joslyn and headed home.

Sure enough, Evelyn fell asleep in the car.

The roads were jammed with holiday traffic, and it was nearly five by the time they reached home. Eleanor carried her sleeping daughter upstairs, settled her in bed, then went to shower off the day’s sweat.

She finished her shower, towel-dried her hair, and came out of the bathroom- only to discover the bed was empty. Evelyn was gone.

Eleanor stepped out and called downstairs, “Evelyn p>

No answer.

She hurried down and asked Joslyn, “Joslyn, where’s Evelyn p>

“Miss Goodwin just came by. She took Evelyn with her,” Joslyn replied.

A surge of fury shot through Eleanor. Serena hadn’t even bothered to let her know

—she’d just whisked her daughter away to Vanessa’s concert?

Eleanor strode back to her room, grabbed her phone, and dialed lan.

The call rang and rang. No answer.

Fuming, she snatched up her purse and phone and marched for the door.

“Ma’am, are you heading out?” Joslyn called in surprise.

Eleanor responded quickly and hurried toward her car.

She was barely out of the driveway when her car’s Bluetooth rang. It was Joy.

She picked up.

“Ellie, do you want to bring Evelyn over for a playdate p>

“My daughter’s been taken by Serena to Vanessa’s concert p>

“What? I thought you said you didn’t want her to go p>

“She waited until I was in the shower and just took her. I tried calling lan, but he’s not answering. I have no choice-I’m heading to the stadium to find my daughter myself p>