Upon returning home, Isabella discovered that Amelia was off duty today. Dinner had already been cooked, and after Amelia handed Asher over to them, she left.
It was a rare occasion in the apartment with just the three of them. After dinner, Andrew went into the study to handle some paperwork. When he emerged, the living room looked as if it had been ransacked: toys were scattered everywhere, clothes and shoes were strewn across the floor.
By the French window, Isabella was playfully pretending to be a big tiger, startling her son. The little one ran while calling out, eventually jumping into Andrew’s arms.
Seeing Andrew, Isabella seemed to have found a savior. “I’m so tired! Can you take care of him for a while? I’ll go to the kitchen for a drink.”
Isabella and Asher had gotten quite parched from their play. She fished out a cola from the kitchen fridge and quickly drank most of it.
After finishing her drink and leaving the kitchen, she saw Asher sitting quietly on the couch watching cartoons, while Andrew was tidying up the floor.
He wore a navy blue striped shirt, with the sleeves rolled up, squatting to pick up the scattered toys.
“Come and help,” he said, looking at her.
Isabella regretted drinking the water too quickly; she should have waited for him to finish cleaning up before coming over. She wasn’t sure if she could slip back into the kitchen now.
She took hesitant steps, putting the scattered clothes and shoes back in place.
After watching about five episodes of cartoons, twenty minutes later, Andrew turned off the TV.
Asher seemed a little dissatisfied, pouting, but Andrew had a fatherly authority, and the baby didn’t dare to be unruly in front of his dad, obediently going to his room for a bath.
Neither Andrew nor Isabella was very skilled at bathing the child, so the bathroom turned into a battlefield. Fortunately, they eventually emerged victorious, and Asher was put to bed, smelling fresh after his bath.
The three of them lay on a large bed, Asher in the middle, with Dad on the right and Mom on the left.
The baby rarely slept with both parents and seemed especially happy. He turned his head from left to right, and after a while of twisting and turning, he fell asleep.
Isabella, tired from the day, also fell asleep beside them. Just as she was sleeping soundly, she vaguely heard the ringtone of her phone.
She subconsciously reached out to touch the phone but found a warm, sturdy chest instead.
Isabella was suddenly half awake, opening her eyes without warning, meeting his deep, sapphire-like eyes in the dim night, which seemed especially radiant.
She moved subconsciously, only to realize she was sleeping on his arm, and Asher had been moved to the edge of the bed at some point.
“Awake?” a magnetic and deep voice sounded in this quiet night, exceptionally pleasant.
“Yes,” Isabella mumbled, “I think my phone rang.”
Just as she finished speaking, she saw her silver-white phone in Andrew’s hand, the screen flashing incessantly, indicating James was calling.
“Are you going to see him?” Andrew asked indifferently. His tone didn’t reveal any emotional fluctuations, yet his eyes emitted a deep blue light.
Isabella felt inexplicably guilty. The next moment, she directly hung up the call.
“I’m really tired. Let’s sleep,” she said, turning over, facing away from him, and closing her eyes.
“Alright,” came the man’s faint response by her ear. He extended his arm and embraced her again.
Isabella’s back was pressed firmly against his firm chest, feeling as if the warmth from his chest was burning. Slightly moist kisses landed on her snow-white neck, trailing along her beautiful collarbone all the way up, finally sealing her lips.
Isabella’s mind remained foggy until a sweet childish voice sounded near her ear.
“Daddy, Mommy.”
Apparently too engrossed, they hadn’t noticed when the baby woke up. They only saw him sitting beside them, chubby little hands rubbing his eyes, a pair of bright eyes full of confusion and curiosity, looking at his embracing parents.
There was a brief silence in the room, so quiet that not even a breath could be heard.
The next moment, Isabella hurriedly pushed Andrew away, clumsily rearranging her clothes and re-buttoning them.
Compared to Isabella’s chaotic state, Andrew remained relatively composed, reaching out to pick up the child. However, even his handsome face revealed a hint of embarrassment.
The baby, unaware that he had interrupted his father’s moment, turned over in the warmth of his father’s chest, raised his little bottom, and continued to sleep soundly.
Andrew: “…”
Suppressing his anger, if this brat wasn’t his own, he’d be downstairs cooling off by now.
Asher returned to the middle position between his parents, sleeping peacefully and sweetly.
At this moment, Andrew felt his little wolf cub was somewhat obstructive. Ah, if only he could toss him away.
“I, I’ll go take a shower,” Isabella took the opportunity to sneak back to the guest room.
The next morning, Asher woke up from a good sleep, and Amelia had returned.
Amelia washed Asher’s face, helped him brush his teeth, then carried the child downstairs for breakfast.
Isabella, rarely an early riser, joined them for breakfast.
“Why not sleep a little longer?” Andrew asked. He knew she had been on vacation recently.
“I have to go back to the Harris family for a while,” she didn’t hide it from him.
Early in the morning, the Harris family called her, urging her to return. She guessed it wouldn’t be for a good reason. She had just teased their daughter yesterday, and today, the mother would surely hold her accountable.
Isabella wasn’t afraid of Charlotte; she just enjoyed the feeling of having a mother.
Andrew raised an eyebrow upon hearing she was going back to the Harris family. “If you don’t want to do something, don’t force yourself.”
“Yeah, I know,” she replied with a smile, picking up a piece of meat with chopsticks and putting it in Andrew’s bowl.
After breakfast, Amelia took Asher for an early education class, Andrew went to the company, and Isabella was the last to leave. After applying makeup, she drove back to the Harris family.
Her car was parked as usual in the yard. Ava heard the car and anxiously greeted her.
“Emily’s back, David and Charlotte don’t look good. Miss, please be careful,” Ava said worriedly as she walked with Isabella into the mansion.
“I understand,” she replied calmly.
In the living room, it was a rare gathering of everyone, even Victoria had returned.