Regretting the Wife He Threw Away novel Chapter 314

"They used to be in the service together," Briony sighed, pressing her lips together. "Let's not worry about them. I'll go upstairs and change out the linens in the guest room. Can you stay with the kids?"

"Of course."

…

Carol was always quick on her feet and attentive to details. While Briony was upstairs swapping the sheets, Carol cleared the dinner table without being asked.

By the time Briony came back down, Carol was already in the kitchen, washing up the dishes.

Briony tried to insist that she stop, but Carol just shook her head and kept going.

Seeing there was no persuading her, and that it was getting late, Briony gathered little Mario and Little Nina and headed upstairs to get them ready for bed.

Little Mario was just starting to recover from his illness, so Briony didn't dare give him a full bath.

Instead, she warmed up a soft towel and gently wiped him down, then helped him change into a set of Little Nina's pajamas.

The pajamas hung off little Mario's small frame, the sleeves and legs a bit too long.

When Briony was cleaning him up, his ribs stood out starkly beneath his pale skin, and it made her heart ache.

No mother could stand to see such a sweet little boy looking so fragile.

She tucked little Mario into bed, then handed him one of Little Nina's favorite picture books.

He loved picture books, his head bent over the pages, completely absorbed.

Briony slipped into the bathroom to give Little Nina a quick bath.

By the time Carol came upstairs, the two little ones were already snuggled up in Briony's bed, yawning and rubbing their eyes.

"I changed the linens, and put fresh toiletries in the bathroom," Briony told Carol quietly. "Little Mario wants to sleep with Little Nina tonight—let's just let him join us."

Carol hesitated. "Will the two of them be too much to handle in one bed?"

"Not at all. Little Mario is as good as gold," Briony smiled. "And the guest room doesn't have a bed rail, but mine does. I'm not worried about them falling out in the night. It's safer this way."

Carol still looked a little uneasy, but she didn't argue.

She headed off to the guest room, and Briony closed the door behind her.

Every night, Briony would read Little Nina a story before bed.

If she was busy, James or even Gwendolyn White would take over story duty.

"Mommy," Little Nina piped up suddenly, "can you sleep in the middle tonight?"

Briony blinked. "Why?"

"Because I want to cuddle with you—and so does little Mario!"

Briony glanced at little Mario.

He looked a bit embarrassed, blinking his big eyes as a flush crept across his pale cheeks.

Briony couldn't help but smile at how adorable he was.

She climbed into bed between the two kids, wrapping an arm around each of them. "All right, no story tonight. How about a lullaby instead?"

"Yes, yes!" Little Nina cheered. "You sing the prettiest lullabies! Little Mario, you're in for a treat!"