Leaving right away? Mrs. Vaughn had finally gotten the words she was waiting for. She couldn’t be happier.
But she couldn’t let it show.
"What do you mean by that? Am I kicking you out? Forbidding you from staying with the Vaughn family? Don’t tell me you’re going to run to Damien and say something to ruin the relationship between mother and son, are you?"
Cecelia Archer was utterly speechless.
"If you’re that concerned, why don’t you watch me until I’m out the front door, all right?"
The two of them stopped talking, and the ride home was silent. Cecelia Archer got out of the car, ready to go inside, find Candy, pack a few clothes, and leave with her. To her surprise, Damien Vaughn was in the living room, playing with Candy.
’Shouldn’t he be at work at this hour? Why is he back so early?’
In reality, Damien Vaughn had driven straight home after receiving a message from the driver.
Cecelia Archer walked in, and their eyes met. Her clothes were indeed dirty, but her expression was quite calm, as if she really wasn’t angry.
"Damien, why are you back so early?"
Mrs. Vaughn was a little surprised to see him home.
Damien Vaughn stood up, looking nonchalant.
"I forgot a document at home, so I came back to get it. Did you have a good time today?"
"It was lovely. Your uncles and aunts hadn’t seen me in a long time and were incredibly warm. Everyone really liked Cecelia, too. It’s just that the lunch wasn’t quite to Cecelia’s taste, so she didn’t eat much. We only stayed for a little while before coming back..."
Cecelia Archer couldn’t be bothered to watch her act. "You two chat. I’m going upstairs to change."
She went back to her room, showered, and changed. Just as she was packing her bags, Damien Vaughn suddenly walked in.
Seeing Cecelia Archer folding clothes and putting them into a suitcase, his brow furrowed.
"What are you doing?"
Cecelia Archer made up an excuse, "Isn’t Candy’s surgery soon? I’ll definitely have to stay at the hospital with her for a while, so I’m getting her luggage ready in advance."
Although she seemed calm, it was precisely her excessive calmness—a stark contrast to his mother’s cheerful enthusiasm—coupled with the fact that she was packing, that made Damien Vaughn sense something was wrong.
"The surgery date hasn’t even been set yet. There’s no need to prepare this early."
He walked over and took out the clothes Cecelia Archer had already packed.
"How have you been getting along with my mom these past two days?"
’Why is he asking this? Why is he stopping me from leaving?’
’Gwen Morgan is going to marry him soon, and Mrs. Vaughn likes her so much. Even if it’s hard to explain the situation with Candy to Grandfather, once Gwen gets pregnant, his attention will quickly shift. Is it really that hard to bring up?’
’Why does he have to keep me here and make things so complicated?’
Cecelia Archer was so tired. She really didn’t want to be entangled with them anymore.
"Mr. Vaughn, I think we need to have a serious talk."
’Still calling me Mr. Vaughn? What’s there to talk about? Did she not get along with my mother these past two days?’
Seeing that Cecelia Archer looked ready to speak her mind, Damien Vaughn prepared himself for a serious conversation.
But just as Cecelia Archer finished speaking, her phone rang. It was the hospital.
Cecelia Archer answered. After listening to the person on the other end for a moment, her expression turned ugly.
"What’s wrong?" Damien Vaughn asked her. "Is there a problem with Candy’s surgery?"
"There’s no problem. But the surgery has been postponed again. They told me to continue her medication and prepare to wait for another month. Some important client’s son isn’t doing well, so he’s been moved ahead of Candy in the queue."
After finishing his call, Damien Vaughn came downstairs. His mother was sipping tea by the floor-to-ceiling windows, while Cecelia Archer and Candy were on the floor on the other side of the room, building blocks.
He glanced at both sides and was about to walk over to Cecelia Archer when his mother called out to him.
"Damien, come over here for a moment."
Damien Vaughn paused, then walked to her side.
"What is it?"
"I’ve been back for two days, and we haven’t had a proper mother-son chat. Spend some time with me today. Come, sit down, son."
Damien Vaughn frowned slightly and sat down across from her.
Mrs. Vaughn put down her teacup, looked him over and over with a loving expression, and reached out to touch his hand.
"You’ve gotten thinner, Damien."
Damien Vaughn instantly got goosebumps and pulled his hand back.
"Mom, if you have something to say, just say it. If not, I have work to do."
Ever since she had abandoned him at the age of twelve, Damien Vaughn had been unable to feel close to his mother.
No matter how hard Mrs. Vaughn tried to get close to him, it always ended like this.
Before, without Gwen Morgan’s advice, Mrs. Vaughn had been too proud; if he didn’t care, she wouldn’t deign to soften her stance with Damien Vaughn.
But this time, she had returned truly determined to change.
"Alright, alright. If you don’t like hearing Mom say things like that, I’ll stop. But don’t go yet, son. I hear the food in Veridia is famous nationwide now, even creating its own culinary style. Why don’t you take me to try it tonight? We can invite Gwen Morgan along, and we can all have a good chat."
’If she wants to eat good food, she can just go. If she doesn’t want to go out, she can have the chef come back. Why must I be the one to take her?’

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