“You did a good job, Yohan. I’m proud of you,” Estelle complimented him with a smile. Seeing this, Cristofer was left speechless. He had initially wanted to hire nannies for the children to keep them from thinking about Estelle and to prevent her from having a chance to see them. But things had turned out differently, and he had unintentionally given Estelle an opportunity to reunite with the children.
With a slight frown, he said to Estelle, “Miss Hudson, you should leave.” Then he turned his face away and added, “Please go.” Despite his attempt to appear indifferent, his voice, which was less composed than before, revealed his true feelings. It was clear that he still cared about Estelle. He had to admit that, whether in the past or now, Estelle had a way of stirring his emotions.
Upon hearing Cristofer’s words, Estelle stood up and looked at him sitting in the wheelchair. She restrained her urge to ask how things had gone. She asserted her right with a matter-of-fact tone, “Mr. Hans, our personal history shouldn’t affect the children. I’m their mother, and I have the right to see them.”
Cristofer avoided eye contact with her, and she continued, “Tell me the reason you don’t want to hire me. I want to know how I fall short compared to the others. Except for my educational background, I believe I’m better than them in every aspect.”
Having known Cristofer for years, Estelle was aware that he would likely decline to hire her based on her lower education level. She said these words to preemptively address that issue.
Cristofer was momentarily at a loss for words. After a pause, he said in a subdued voice, “You have visitation rights.” He avoided looking at her, fearing he might relent if he met her eyes.
Estelle’s eyes welled up with tears as she replied, “So I can stay, right? Mr. Hans, the children need me.”
Listening to their conversation, the three children sensed something was wrong. They understood that Cristofer wanted Estelle to leave and began doing their best to persuade him to let her stay. Yvonne and Christina each held one of Cristofer’s hands after exchanging glances.
“Dad, did you and Mom have a fight?” Yvonne asked in a heartwarming voice as she gently patted Cristofer’s hand. “Dad, please forgive Mom. I want to see both of you happy together.”
“Dad, I promise to be good from now on. Can Mom stay, please?” Christina added softly.
Seeing his lovely daughters, Cristofer didn’t want to let them down, but he also didn’t want to change his mind. Feeling helpless, he stroked their heads and said in a sad voice, “You are too young to understand what happened between adults. Sometimes things are not as simple as you think.”
Christina stubbornly said, “Dad, tell us what happened between you and Mom, and we will understand it. Even if Yvonne and I don’t understand, Yohan will understand it!”
Hearing this, Cristofer didn’t know what to say. With a forced smile, he pulled Christina’s arm and stopped her from beckoning Yohan over. Since he had decided not to let Estelle stay, he didn’t change his mind, no matter how hard Christina and Yvonne tried to persuade him.
At the moment, Yohan, who was afraid that Estelle would go, was holding Estelle’s hand tightly and anxiously thinking about how to persuade Cristofer.
Seeing his anxious look, Estelle comforted him, “Yohan, don’t worry. I’ll stay here.”
After thinking for a while, Yohan came up with an idea. Seeing that Yvonne and Christina couldn’t persuade Cristofer, he directly pulled Estelle’s hand and walked towards the children’s room. While walking, he deliberately said in a clear and loud voice that Cristofer could hear, “Mom, we all miss you very much. We want to sleep with you tonight.”
Looking at their backs, Cristofer wanted to say something but then swallowed back the words on the tip of his tongue. Seeing that Cristofer didn’t stop Yohan, Yvonne and Christina cheered up and said at the same time, “Thank you, Dad!”
With a helpless look, Cristofer forced a smile and said gently, “You’re welcome. You can go back to your room and continue to play now.”
The two little girls then ran back to their room happily, their laughter sounding like tinkling bells. Letting out a short sigh, Cristofer controlled the wheelchair, moved in the opposite direction, and left the living room. He didn’t notice that Estelle had stopped her steps and was looking back at him with her eyes full of concern.
Standing at the door of the children’s room, Estelle looked in the direction that Cristofer had left for a long time. It was not until Yohan shook her hand that she came back to her senses.
“Mom, go catch up with Dad if you want to!” Yohan suggested.
Estelle just shook her head and caressed his head. Then she picked up Christina, took Yvonne’s hand, and softly said, “I was away for so long and forgot to bring you gifts. Tell me what you want. I’ll buy them for you.”
Upon hearing this, Christina rested her head on Estelle’s shoulder and said in a low voice, “Mom, your coming back is the best gift for us.”
“Mom, you won’t leave us again, will you?” Yohan asked, “We don’t want gifts. We just want you to stay with us all the time.”
“Mom, could you tell me a story?” Yvonne asked softly with a sweet smile on her face. “Yohan told us bedtime stories when you were away. But his stories are all about dinosaurs and monsters. I’m not interested in them. I want to listen to fairy tales.”
In the past few months, it had been Yohan who lulled Yvonne and Christina to sleep. And as a caring brother, he always told them stories before they went to bed. However, the stories that he loved were not to Yvonne’s taste.
The three children had grown up a little, and they kept talking to Estelle. Looking at them lovingly, Estelle felt happy. With a smile, she said gently, “Okay. I’ll tell you a story tonight, but you should promise me that you will go to bed early, okay?”
“Okay!” the three children said in a monotone.
Nearby, watching the happy scene, Luke knew that he had made the right decision just now. Then he entered the reception room and said to the other four candidates, “Ladies, Mr. Hans’ children have chosen the nanny they want, and now only one nanny is enough for them. I will arrange a driver to drive you home. Thanks for coming to take part in the interview.”