Vincent realized his tone had been off. He reached down and scooped Vanessa into his arms, softening his voice. "Come on, Daddy'll take you to get a burger."
Vanessa didn't argue, but she couldn't bring herself to smile either.
At the food court, Vincent ordered the burgers and sat with her while she ate. Neither of them looked happy.
Vanessa barely touched her food, and Vincent didn't push her to finish. He just picked her up again and carried her out.
When they got back to Ravenshade Villa, Lily was still in the kitchen, working on dinner.
Sabrina was on the couch in the living room, scrolling through her phone.
Hearing the door open, she stood up. "Vincent. Vanessa. You're back."
Vanessa ran over and wrapped her arms around Sabrina's leg.
"Daddy was really scary today," she whispered.
Sabrina glanced at Vincent. His face was dark, not a trace of warmth on it.
She reached down and gently pinched Vanessa's cheek. "Daddy's just in a bad mood, sweetheart. You understand, don't you?"
Vanessa didn't answer that. Instead, she looked up at Sabrina with hopeful eyes. "Can you pick me up from school from now on? Please? All the other kids have their moms pick them up. I want you to be the one."
Sabrina's face softened into a warm smile. "Okay."
Vincent watched the two of them, so close, so comfortable with each other. Something tightened in his chest. Without a word, he headed upstairs.
Lily heard the commotion and hurried out of the kitchen. Seeing them both home, she looked flustered. "Mr. Stewart, dinner's almost ready. We can eat soon."
She'd kept things simple to save time, and now she was worried—worried the food wouldn't be good enough, worried they'd be disappointed.
Vanessa shook her head. "Lily, I already ate a burger. Daddy had some too, so he's probably not hungry. You and Sabrina can just eat without us."
Lily blinked, caught off guard. She turned to look at Sabrina.
Sabrina met her gaze, her expression cool and controlled.
And in that moment, Lily understood. Sabrina had done this on purpose.
But Lily didn't let it show. She managed a tight smile. "Alright then. You go on upstairs and rest. After I finish eating, I'll come help you get ready for bed."
Sabrina cut her off smoothly. "That won't be necessary. Just focus on the kitchen. Vanessa has sensitive skin—it's not really something your hands should be handling."



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