Penelope smiled and realized they were genuinely inviting her, so she softened her tone. “Well, I can give it a try. But I don’t need to go to the audition room. I’ll send you an audio of me singing a song I’ve done before. If you think it’s okay, I’ll join your group.”
“That works,” the boy nodded eagerly.
“Let’s connect on Instagram,” the girl suggested, taking out her phone.
Penelope took out her phone, too. She asked somewhat awkwardly, “By the way, I don’t know your names yet.”
“I’m Max Brown.”
“I’m Abby Black.”
“Got it,” Penelope sent the audio she had saved on her phone to Abby. She added, “I need to rush home now. Let’s stay in touch on Instagram, okay?”
The two nodded and watched her leave.
Abby playfully poked Max’s arm and said, “We invited her to the welcome party. Will it cause her any trouble?”
“What kind of trouble?” Max asked, gazing at the bus that was slowly pulling away, his eyes fixed on the figure inside.
Abby knocked on his head and said teasingly, “Trouble like you!”
****
Penelope quietly entered the room, finding no one in the living room. She hurried upstairs with her bag. Meanwhile, Mrs. Brown emerged from the kitchen, having caught a faint sound.
“Mr. Duncan won’t be joining us for dinner,” Mrs. Brown informed her.
“What? He’s not coming back for dinner?” Penelope looked shocked.
“No, he mentioned having a late meeting today,” Mrs. Brown replied while cooking.
Late… this could disrupt her plan.
No, she needed to act quickly. How could she attend the hundred-day birth party otherwise? Would he even take her with him?
“Mrs. Brown, I think I’ll pass on dinner tonight. You and the others can go ahead,” Penelope said, turning to head upstairs.
“It’s not good for your health,” Mrs. Brown tried to persuade her, knowing she was upset.
Penelope shook her head and ascended the stairs.
Mrs. Brown sighed and went back to the kitchen, shaking her head as well.
Penelope sat on the edge of the bed, eyeing her “props” and then glancing at her phone.
‘Should I get him back… will it mess up terribly?’ she wondered.
But who cared? Their relationship was already falling apart, and she wasn’t afraid of judgment.
To avoid being caught, she’d been careful to use the school’s address. The plan was incredibly detailed.
“Oh my goodness…” When she opened the package, she couldn’t help but blush.
Could these candy underwear even cover anything?
The store really saved on material!
Penelope opened another package, revealing a silk-like pajama set. She reached out to touch it, then compared it to her own sheets. It was pretty clear she’d bought a knockoff. With the props ready, timing was all that mattered.
Step one of the plan: get Chris to sleep. Penelope took care of his shower and feeding, then placed him in his crib and coaxed him to sleep.
“Baby, Mommy has something important to take care of. You go to sleep first,” Penelope gently swayed the cradle.
Chris had always been a good sleeper, but today, he stared at Penelope with wide eyes.
“Mom will tell you a story. After the story, can you go to sleep?” Penelope asked patiently as she grabbed a children’s book from the bookshelf.
Chris sucked on his fingers, his big eyes wandering around the room.
After thirty minutes, Penelope was feeling thirsty, but Chris showed no signs of nodding off.
“Well, you’ve made your choice,” Penelope sighed. Chris continued to stare at her.
Penelope gently pushed him out of the bedroom and handed him over to Mrs. Jones. “I’ve fed him; you just need to get him to sleep.”
“Of course, you can trust me to take care of the young master,” Mrs. Jones replied happily, as it was her first time being entrusted with such an important task since she started working there.
Penelope patted Chris’ head before leaving.
In the master bedroom, Penelope prepared a bath in the bathtub.
The petals were already placed in the basket, clean and fragrant.
Penelope locked the bathroom door and slipped into the bathtub as quietly as a thief.
Perhaps she was a bit too excited because, as she raised her hand, she accidentally knocked over the bottle of essential oil. Luckily, it didn’t break, and she quickly picked it up.
“This is so relaxing,” she thought, closing her eyes. It had been a while since she had the chance to enjoy a bath like this because of her ongoing cold war with Warren.
After about half an hour, she stood up, and her whole body still carried the scent of rose oil.
Penelope gazed at herself in the mirror, feeling pretty attractive.
She looked at the candy underwear again and decided to put it on. According to the comments, it wasn’t sticky when dry, but once it got wet… well, she might need to take a shower later. However, she struggled with the tricky button closure and wondered if Warren would even appreciate it.
The bathroom floor was slippery, and the spilled essential oil worsened it.
Penelope accidentally stepped on it and slipped, exclaiming, “Ouch!” as she clutched her ankle in pain.
She slowly got up, holding onto the washstand for support.
Struggling to get dressed, she took a few painful steps, only to find her ankle was already swollen when she sat on the bed.
“Talk about starting on the wrong foot,” she sighed.
But then she had a sudden idea. Hadn’t she just said she wanted to win him back? Wasn’t this just an excuse? However, her enthusiasm waned. She decided to forget it; he’d probably just be annoyed if he knew how clumsy she was.
Mrs. Brown was downstairs, sweeping the floor, when she suddenly heard Penelope shout from the second-floor corridor.
“What happened to your foot?” Mrs. Brown asked, ready to rush upstairs.
“I sprained my ankle while taking a bath. It hurts. Could you help me find some medicine?” Penelope asked, frowning.
“Sprained? Don’t move; go lie down,” Mrs. Brown insisted.
“It’s not that serious…”
Mrs. Brown saw Penelope’s swollen foot and exclaimed, “Oh my goodness, you must go to the hospital!”
“Please, just find some medicine for me. I don’t want to go to the hospital,” Penelope pleaded.
Mrs. Brown insisted, “I’ll call a doctor for you.”