Chapter 26
Franklin looked at her for a moment, then turned his gaze away, replying Hamm
Maggie breathed a quiet sigh of relief, glad that he hadz’t misunderstood. She didn’t say anything more and walked toward the walk–in closet
After getting dressed, she came out of the closet to find that Franklin was still in the room.
She didn’t think they had anything to talk about, so she gave him a quick glance before
walking past him and sitting down at the vanity to do her skincare routine.
Franklin got up, walked to the closet, and headed to the bathroom for his shower.
By the time she finished her skincare, it was already late. She climbed into bed, but despite feeling exhausted, she couldn’t seem to fall asleep. The events of the day had left her mind in a jumble.
The night before, she had slept peacefully beside Franklin, but tonight, her emotions were more complicated.
Not long after, Franklin came out of the bathroom, fresh from his shower. A while later, he turned off the lights and lay down on the other side of the bed.
Maggie could sense the distance between them, though he didn’t say anything.
The room was silent.
It took a long time before Maggie’s thoughts became hazy, and she eventually drifted off to
sleep.
The next morning, Maggie woke up to find that she was the only one in the bed.
After washing up and getting dressed, she went downstairs to find that Grandma Wilson was already awake.
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Grandma Wilson was about to speak when Franklin returned from outside. He was dressed in a gray sports outfit, his hair slightly damp from sweat–he had likely just finished a
morning run.
He nodded at Grandma Wilson, greeting her with a simple “Morning.”
Grandma Wilson looked at the two of them with displeasure. “You two woke up so early?”
Maggie, surprised, thought it was a good thing they both woke up early.
But before she could ponder further, Franklin, his expression calm, spoke up. “I’ve studied pharmacology. The soup you made last night doesn’t work on me.”
He turned and walked upstairs without waiting for a reply.
Maggie froze for a moment, the meaning of his words slowly sinking in. Franklin had
realized that Grandma Wilson had put something in the soup. And from the look of it, he
hadn’t drunk it himself.
She hadn’t expected Grandma Wilson to do such a thing.
She frowned, about to speak when Grandma Wilson sighed.
“Sometimes, knowing too much isn’t always a good thing. Sigh… I still want another
grandson. Mag, if you have time, you and Frank should put in more effort, understand?”
Maggie: “…”
She didn’t know what to say.
Although Franklin had agreed to help her last night, she knew that there was no longer any
possibility of them being together romantically.
If something had happened between them last night, that would have been disastrous.
As for having another child… that was out of the question.
Before she could dwell further on the matter, Isabella came downstairs.
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Upon seeing Maggie, her face softened a little, likely recalling her admiration for Julia.
During breakfast, Franklin once again naturally sat next to her, but neither of them initiated any conversation.
Yesterday, Maggie had taken Isabella to school, but today, Isabella asked if Franklin could
do the same.
Franklin agreed. “Got it.”
Grandma Wilson glanced at Maggie and said, “Frank, take Mag along too. You’re both
heading in the same direction anyway…”
Maggie quickly interrupted, “No need, Grandma. He has too many social engagements and won’t be at the company much. I don’t have a car, so it’s inconvenient for me.”
Grandma Wilson didn’t relent. “He can go to his engagements, but if you don’t have a car
when you get off work, just call the driver to pick you up.”
Before Maggie could say anything, Grandma Wilson had already made up her mind. “It’s
settled then.”
Maggie stood still for a moment, looking at Franklin.
He didn’t say anything. His silence was enough–he had agreed.
After breakfast, she had no choice but to get in the car with Isabella and Franklin.
Isabella, familiar with the routine, happily climbed into the car. The fact that both Maggie
and Franklin were accompanying her made her day especially joyful.
But for Maggie, she couldn’t remember the last time she had ridden in Franklin’s car. It had
been a while.
As Isabella got into the car, Maggie was about to follow, but Franklin suddenly spoke up,
“You sit over there.”
Maggie paused, feeling a little awkward. She hesitated but eventually walked around to the
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other side, where the driver opened the door for her.
The car was a bit cramped with Isabella between them, making any conversation between her and Franklin difficult. He was busy with his phone, typing out replies, clearly preoccupied.
Maggie looked straight ahead, trying to ignore the tension in the air. Meanwhile, Isabella had crawled up into Franklin’s arms, peering over his chest to look at his phone.
“Ah, it’s Aunty Julie,” she said, her voice full of excitement.
Franklin, still focused on his phone, responded with a casual “Hmm.”
Perhaps remembering that Maggie was still there, Isabella glanced at her from the corner of
her eyes.
She then returned to staring at the screen, clearly not mentioning anything about the conversation between Franklin and Julia.
After a while, Isabella seemed to grow bored. She climbed out of Franklin’s arms and opened the car’s storage compartment.
Maggie wasn’t trying to invade her privacy, but as Isabella rummaged through the compartment, her peripheral vision caught a glimpse of what was inside:
a lipstick, a small women’s handbag, and a small backpack that Isabella used to carry around.
It didn’t take much to figure out that the lipstick and handbag probably belonged to Julia.
At that moment, Maggie finally understood why Franklin had told her not to sit in that spot earlier. It was because that seat was always occupied by Julia.
He didn’t want her sitting there.
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