His Wicked Obsession (Archer and Virginia) novel Chapter 24

Passing by the consultation room, he heard the conversation inside, and his footsteps dragged to an uncontrollable halt. His gaze swept involuntarily through the crack in the half-open door.

The lid of the trash can near the doorway was pushed ajar, revealing that striking, dark green box resting quietly at the bottom. Amedei. Raspberry dark chocolate...

He froze for two agonizing seconds. His expression remained utterly blank, but his predatory gaze turned terrifyingly somber.

"Archer?" Chloe called out from the far end of the corridor.

Archer snapped his eyes away, turned on his heel, and walked off.

...

Two weeks later, at eight o'clock on a Tuesday evening, Virginia's phone rang, demanding she bring Cindy back to the Caldwell Estate immediately.

Though she had no idea what the emergency was, she brought her daughter along anyway.

The moment she stepped into the grand foyer, Madeline Caldwell's shrill voice sliced through the air.

"Virginia, what on earth has Cindy been doing at kindergarten? Toby came home with a massive bruise on his arm! Chloe is so frantic her head is splitting again. Do you have any idea how fragile her condition is right now? She can't handle this kind of stress!"

Cindy jumped at the loud tone, shrinking back nervously behind Virginia's legs.

Virginia's heart ached. She squeezed Cindy's chubby little hand reassuringly and spoke in a steady voice, "Mom, this has nothing to do with Cindy. Another kid pushed him."

Before she could even finish explaining, Madeline continued her relentless barrage.

"Did you completely forget what I told you? Cindy is older, she is supposed to look out for Toby at school. Even if some other kid pushed him, she was right there! She could have pulled him out of the way! I don't know what kind of older cousin she's supposed to be!"

"...She's a four-year-old girl, not a bodyguard!"

Chloe's voice drifted over from the living room sofa, thick with tears. "Virginia, Mom isn't blaming Cindy... It's just that Toby has been so frail since he was a baby. We thought that if the kids went to the same school, Cindy could help look after him..."

Her sentence broke off into heavy, dramatic sobbing.

Madeline's face turned completely thunderous. "You hear that? Chloe's crying so hard she's losing her voice. Cindy needs to watch out for Toby at kindergarten. Do I seriously have to spell this out for you?!"

The words died in Virginia's throat, a faint tremor running down her spine.

Archer's footsteps approached, his pace unhurried. "The kindergarten has full security footage. The kid who pushed Toby is a boy in his own class. It has absolutely nothing to do with Cindy."

Chloe's sobbing ceased instantly. Her eyes darted toward Archer, filled with a nervous, searching panic.

But when he walked right past Virginia without so much as throwing her a single glance, Chloe's tense shoulders finally relaxed.

"My assistant has already contacted the boy's parents to deal with it. I will personally handle Toby's security arrangements at the school moving forward."

Archer paused before delivering one final blow. "Cindy is just a kid. She shouldn't be burdened with responsibilities that don't belong to her."

Virginia's mind reeled, buzzing with pure shock.

Was he... actually defending Cindy?