shuhaige
Chapter 296
Chapter 296
The words cut like a double-edged sword.
They wounded Harrison just as much as they wounded Roxanne. She figured she had said all there
was to say. There was no need to drag it out any longer.
She tossed the trash she had collected into the bin and stood up.
“I have things to get done. I’m sure you’re busy too, so after you’re done eating, you should head off.
Next time you want to see Angela, just give me a call. I’ll bring her to you. There’s no need for you to
come to my office.”
With that, she turned and left. Her slender figure quickly disappeared from Harrison’s sight.
From beginning to end, Harrison hardly had a bite of his meal. Now, he had completely lost his
appetite.
It wasn’t because of the mere curry chicken in his takeout box; it was because the person who had
been eating with him had left.
He cleared up the table and left in a dignified manner.
In the Rodriguez Villa.
Vincent and his adorable granddaughter had spent most of the day playing on the farm.
Living in the bustling city of Seraphim Haven, Angela didn’t often get to experience farm life. Feeding
chickens, ducks, cows, sheep, and bunnies with her grandfather was fascinating to her.
The little darling loved being close to the animals. After spending half the day using up her energy,
Angela was tired and hungry.
She sat down on the muddy ground and looked up at her grandfather, her long eyelashes raised, eyes
dripping with joy; she patted the spot next to her.
“Grandpa Vincent, sit down and rest for a bit.”
“Alright, I will sit down next to Angela.”
Perhaps it was due to his age, but Vincent was a bit slow to sit down.
The housekeeper Zoey, quickly brought over two small stools, “Chairman Rodriguez, you and Angela
should sit on the stools; the ground is dirty.”
“It’s okay.” Vincent dismissed with a wave of his hand, “Kids need to be close to nature to grow up
healthy.”
Nowadays, most children lived in cities and rarely had any chance to be in touch with nature. They
often had weak immune systems.
His precious granddaughter might be pampered, but her immune system had to be strong. Moreover,
he had specifically asked Roxanne’s opinion about bringing Angela to the farm. Roxanne had agreed
wholeheartedly, saying Angela should get close to nature.
Vincent gently patted Angela’s soft little head, “Are you thirsty? Do you want some water?”
“Grandpa Vincent, I’m hungry. I want milk.”
Vincent’s heart melted at the sound of her sweet voice. He quickly prepared a bottle of formula for
Angela.
The three-year-old held the bottle and gulped down more than half of it. In between sips, Angela let go
of the bottle and looked at her grandpa in confusion, “Grandpa Vincent, are you very poor?”
Vincent and Zoey both blinked at her question.
“Why do you think I’m poor?” Vincent asked, patting Angela’s head.
Angela furrowed her brow, “Because Grandpa Vincent works hard every day to raise chickens and
ducks.”
Vincent laughed. So, raising chickens and ducks made him poor. This little girl didn’t know how rich
their family was.
After taking another sip of her milk, Angela released the teat and said with certainty, “Grandpa Vincent,
no matter how poor you are, I won’t look down on you. When I grow up and start earning money, I’ll
take care of you.”
Vincent was touched beyond words.
Just like her mother, Angela had a kind and generous heart. She didn’t look down on old people.
Thinking back to when Roxanne didn’t know he was the Chairman of the Rodriguez Group and insisted
on giving him two hundred dollars for living expenses, he felt a lump in his throat.
He wasn’t sure he would live long enough to see Angela grow up and earn money, let alone see
Roxanne and Harrison get back together.
Vincent knew Roxanne well. Harrison had hurt her deeply. She probably didn’t want to talk about
marriage anymore.
In the evening, Harrison returned to the villa alone.
Seeing that Roxanne wasn’t there, Vincent looked disappointed, “Didn’t I tell you to bring Roxanne
back using the excuse of having dinner with me and Angela?”
“She didn’t want to,” Harrison looked defeated.
Looking at him, Vincent felt like he was a despondent general who had lost a battle, devoid of any
fighting spirit.
Vincent urged, “If Roxanne doesn’t want to, then you should come up with a solution. You can always
find a way if you try. Don’t you want to win her back?”
“I don’t want to be persistent and make her unhappy,” weary, Harrison furrowed his brows.
From now on, he didn’t want to do anything that would upset her.
At night, it was stormy and thunderous. Vincent called Roxanne, “Anne, you’re not here, and Angela is
scared. She can’t sleep well. Can you come over and accompany her? I’ve already sent a driver to pick Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
you up.”
Roxanne cut straight to the chase, “Dad, you’re trying to create an opportunity for me and Harrison to
spend time together, aren’t you?”
Angela had been with her since she was a baby. The little darling slept like a log. She could sleep
through a storm, even an earthquake, and still sleep soundly and sweetly, even drooling a little.
Moreover, Angela didn’t have any problems sleeping in different places and wasn’t shy around new
people. Even if she wasn’t frequently at her grandpa’s house, a storm didn’t affect her sleep at all.
“Dad, you’ll always be my elder, and I’ll always treat you like a father. But Harrison and I won’t get back
together. For Angela’s sake, I’ll get along with him like family. Don’t worry about anything else.”
“I won’t come over tonight. Angela is with you, and I’m completely at ease.”
“Tell the driver to go back. It’s late and raining. Make sure he’s careful.”
Actually, the driver was Harrison, Roxanne knew.
She sent a WhatsApp message to Harrison saying, "Angela is with her grandpa; I'm completely at
ease. I won't come over to the villa tonight. It's stormy, be careful on your way back."
Harrison in the basement received the WhatsApp message. His chest tightened inexplicably; his broad
shoulders slumped as he took a deep breath.
Roxanne's message expressed her concern for him but also kept a distance. It didn't seem like she
didn't care about him, but she was concerned about his safety.
This relationship, neither lover nor kin, was one that left him scrabbling for answers.
On a stormy night, Harrison drove back to the villa. The rain poured outside the car windows. He drove
slowly; for as long as he had been driving, Roxanne had been waiting by the window.
Approximating the time, she sent him another message on WhatsApp, "Are you back at the villa yet?"
Harrison had just entered the glass elevator of the villa.
Those few words of concern made his heart throb. His face was clouded with deep worry.
He almost instantly replied to Roxanne, "You clearly still care for me."
Roxanne responded, "I care because you're Angela's dad. I don't want anything to happen to you.
That's all."
Ding!
The elevator arrived at the second floor of the villa. The doors opened and closed.
Harrison still stood in the elevator, his eyebrows drawn together in worry and pain, staring at the last
message Roxanne had sent.
He didn't know how to respond, so he didn't continue the conversation.
Vincent, who was in the living room, walked over to the elevator and pressed the button to open the
doors, "What are you daydreaming about?"
The elevator was empty except for him.
Vincent sighed in disappointment, "I knew you didn't pick Roxanne up."
"Is Angela asleep?" Harrison stepped out of the elevator, "I'll go check on her."
When he reached Angela's bedside, Harrison carefully sat down. Really, he didn't need to tread so
lightly. The storm outside the window could not wake the deeply sleeping Angela.
"Sweetie, I couldn't give you a complete family. It’s my fault," Harrison gently stroked his daughter's
chubby cheeks, wiping off the drool that was trickling down her mouth in her sleep.
She must be dreaming about snacks, her lips smacking in her sleep. She smiled in her sleep,
whispering, "Yummy, yummy, I want more."
Finally, a smile broke out on Harrison's troubled face, "Little foodie!"