Chapter 413: Chapter 413

In the silent carriage, the two locked eyes through the rearview mirror.

"It’s rare for you to come back. If you have time, spend more with the kids," Caleb Grant said after a long silence, "if you’re willing."

Sheila Yardley looked at him, feeling neither hate nor fondness towards him.

She didn’t know if Caleb let Peach see her merely for the child’s sake or if there were other reasons.

She always felt he wasn’t that considerate a person.

After a pause, Sheila voiced something she’d held back for a long time: "...If you think the child is a burden, I’m willing to raise her on my own."

Caleb Grant didn’t understand where she got the impression that he viewed Peach as a burden or where such thoughts originated.

He replied to her, saying, "To be honest, since you left, it’s largely been Peach that’s kept me going. I’ve never considered her a burden."

Seeing his sincere expression, Sheila believed he wasn’t lying.

Caleb said, "I just feel indebted to you and the child. I don’t expect your forgiveness, but if you ever miss the child, you can always come back to see her."

At one point, Sheila thought Caleb was just playing the victim, trying to make her soften with a ruse.

She often told herself not to cling to past pains and to learn to embrace a new life.

But that didn’t mean she would risk falling back into old pitfalls and return to him.

The child was theirs together; she could spend time with the child but would absolutely not go back.

Caleb had hoped she would say something in response, but what she ended up saying was that she was leaving.

He unlocked the car door, and she pushed it open and got out.

She didn’t look back.

Caleb watched her figure disappear from sight, the car stayed parked without immediately driving off.

He took out a pack of cigarettes, pulled one out, lit it, and brought it to his mouth...

The smoke dissipated into the air, but it couldn’t disperse the sorrow in his heart.

Countless times he searched for reasons, reminiscing about their past.

If he could start over, he would try harder to find a more suitable way to love her.

He didn’t know if everything would lead to the ending he desired.

Nor was there any way back.

Ronan Rhodes sat alone by the window, swirling the glass in his hand, eyes hazily fixed on a spot.

This artistic bar didn’t match his usual style.

And yet, for the past few days, he came here every night.

Looking at the place across the street where Charlotte Sheffield had sold flowers, wondering if she would ever appear again.

Since that day, he hadn’t seen her again.

Every night, he came here to wait.

He also thought maybe she’d gone somewhere else to sell flowers, but walking the street from end to end, he couldn’t find her.

Eventually, he started coming to this bar every night because it happened to face where she used to sell flowers from the opposite side of the street.

He didn’t know where his patience came from, always believing she would show up.

It was the first time he’d realized he hadn’t been with a woman for so many days and didn’t feel any discomfort.

Yet another night, the bar was closing, and the street vendors were packing up to leave.

Ronan settled the bill and walked out of the bar, standing on the street, looking at the quiet road after the bustle, and sighed.

He walked to the parking spot, got in the car but didn’t know where to go.

Distracted during work these few days, more troubled outside of it.

He texted his friends, planning to drive back to the bar to hang out some more.

Persistence pays off.

After days of waiting in vain, he saw her on the road this time.

It happened by chance, catching a glimpse of a figure with the corner of his eye. Had he not looked, he might have driven on.

Ronan slowed his car, watching Charlotte walk into a roadside convenience store.

This road wasn’t busy; most buildings awaited demolition.

It was an old urban village, set for redevelopment.

Ronan parked by the roadside, and within minutes, watched Charlotte come out of the store with a black plastic bag. He couldn’t tell what was inside.

As she walked out and turned into a nearby alley after a few steps.

Ronan immediately pulled out the car key and followed her.

The surrounding buildings were shabby, only the one at the corner had a light, with bugs flying around it.

Beyond the light, the alley was pitch black.

Charlotte used her phone’s flashlight to illuminate the path ahead.

At this hour, the alley felt eerie and creepy.

Especially when hearing footsteps following her.

This place had its share of thugs, and drunkards weren’t rare at midnight.

Charlotte didn’t dare glance back, only quickened her pace.

Ronan realized she’d noticed him but didn’t want to alarm her, so he didn’t speed up, simply kept watch from afar.

She entered a five-story building, and the motion sensor light on the first floor turned on as she slipped inside.

Ronan deliberately waited a few seconds before following.

He tread lightly, trying not to make a sound.

When he reached her floor and saw her unlocking her door. This content belongs to novel·fire·net

He realized how unsafe it was where she lived.

If it had been someone with ill intentions following her tonight, they might have succeeded as she unlocked her door.

Charlotte sensed someone still behind her, she didn’t dare look back, entered her house quickly.

As she was closing the door, there was a force that stopped it.

When Ronan pulled the door open, he clearly saw the fear in her eyes.

He immediately said, "It’s me."

When Charlotte saw it was him, she felt a bit relieved.

But she wasn’t familiar with Ronan.

Compared to those strange thugs and drunkards, he seemed a bit safer, just a bit.

Charlotte stood at the door and asked him, "What do you want?"

Ronan glanced around at the surroundings; on the way up, only the light on the second floor had lit up.

Charlotte didn’t answer, but the answer was obvious.

Ronan had suspected she wasn’t well-off, but for a girl, out of safety concerns, she should avoid living alone in such a place if she could afford not to.

So he quickly asked, "Living with a boyfriend?"

Charlotte didn’t answer but asked instead, "Why are you following me?"

Ronan raised an eyebrow and said, "I happened to see you. Where have you been these days? Why didn’t you sell flowers?"

Charlotte lowered her gaze and paused, saying, "Had something to do."

Ronan asked again, "Are you still in school?"

Hearing footsteps approaching from downstairs, someone was coming up, Charlotte thought for a moment, stepped aside, and opened the door, "Come in first."

Ronan was happy to oblige, entering the house while she turned on the light and closed the door.

The room was even more rundown than he imagined, with a worn-out leather sofa, a chipped wooden coffee table, and the walls scribbled with graffiti, likely left by children of previous tenants.