Bride behind the mask novel (Marguerite) novel Chapter 888

The man left without another word, leaving Marguerite staring blankly at the ice pack on the table.

What now?

It seemed the misunderstanding between her and Silas was only getting worse.

But if she was honest, she had to admit all these problems started with her.

She’d made her choices—she couldn’t expect unconditional trust from anyone else.

The fiasco weighed on her all day. As the workday ended, Chuck approached her desk.

“Marguerite, it’s about time for Hayes and Manley to get out of school. Summer break starts tomorrow—would you like to come with me to pick them up?”

Marguerite caught her reflection in the glass. The swelling on her face was starting to go down, but Daphne’s fingerprints were still starkly visible.

Not wanting Hayes and Manley to worry, she dug out a face mask, slipped it on, grabbed her purse, and got to her feet.

“Sure, let’s go together.”

Soon, they arrived at Cresthaven Sunshine Preschool.

Maybe because it was the start of summer vacation, the entrance was even more crowded than usual with parents and children.

The kids’ laughter filled the air. When Hayes and Manley clambered into the car, the very first thing they asked was whether Marguerite had a good day.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Marguerite schooled her face into a cheerful expression, even though her heart still ached from the day’s events. She answered brightly, “Not bad at all.”

Hayes eyed her, confused by the mask in the summer heat. “Mom, why are you wearing a mask?”

Marguerite winked at him. “I broke out a little today, sweetheart—just a few pimples. I didn’t want anyone to see them, so I’m covering up.”

Manley burst into peals of laughter. “Ms. Marguerite is just like a teenager—she gets pimples too!”

Marguerite couldn’t help but smile at Manley’s teasing. There was something about the way children tried to comfort you that always felt more genuine than when adults did it.

Chuck’s reasoning made sense. Marguerite finally agreed.

In the backseat, Hayes listened to their conversation, rubbing his chin anxiously.

Things were tense between Mom and Dad? Why?

But it didn’t matter—once he and Teresa set their plan in motion, surely all the misunderstandings would melt away!

A little while later, Chuck dropped them off at the house.

Marguerite had barely stepped out of the car when her phone rang. It was Laura, one of the hospital aides. “Ms. Lockwood, please—can you talk to Mr. Winston for me? I swear, I didn’t do it on purpose.”

Marguerite was thrown. “What happened?”

“Just now, Mr. Winston wanted to use the restroom, so I helped him out of bed. I don’t know what went wrong—he just slipped and fell. But I was sure I had a good grip on him…”