Free Web NovelChapter 215: Not even if she begged him with a hundred exceptional merits.
Xavier couldn’t sleep the entire night.
He waited. free𝑤ebnovel.com
... waited to hear what he so desperately wanted to hear.
However, time refused to pass easily for him. Every second stretched longer than it should have, weighing heavily on his mind ...
And when dawn finally arrived, exhaustion caught up with him, and he dozed off unwillingly.
He only woke when his phone rang on the table beside him.
It took him a second to register the sound. But the moment he did, he grabbed the phone almost instantly and answered the call.
"Dr. Colsen," the person spoke from the other end.
Xavier didn’t bother with any formalities. Instead, he asked directly, "Were you able to find it?"
There was a brief pause on the other end ...
Before the person finally spoke again.
"Yes, Dr. Colsen. I did. But ... you need to be mentally prepared."
——————————
The morning, in contrast, unfolded far more smoothly for Adelyn.
She woke up feeling refreshed.
Sitting up on her bed, the first thing she did was pick up her phone and send Eira a loving good morning text.
With her phone still in hand, she waited.
And just as she expected, the reply came almost immediately, not much later.
The girl had clearly been upset the previous evening —so much so that she had gone to sleep crying.
Yet today, her message sounded exactly the same as always —sweet, bright, and innocent —as though she had already forgotten everything that had happened.
Adelyn stared at the message a moment longer and couldn’t stop herself.
Without wasting another second, she dialed her number and initiated a video call.
The moment it rang, Eira picked up on the other end.
Her small, delicate face appeared on the screen, her little hands rubbing her sleepy eyes. And at that sight, Adelyn’s heart softened instantly.
She didn’t know before. But now, she realized, she loved seeing her like this.
So much that, if she could, she would have preserved this exact moment as the perfect way to begin every morning.
Only if she could steal this little one away for herself.
But she knew she couldn’t.
Her father would never allow it.
Not even if she begged him with a hundred exceptional merits.
And truthfully ... she couldn’t blame him.
Because if she were in his place, she wouldn’t trade this little girl even for a million world-saving merits.
"Good morning, Mama," Eira greeted in her soft, baby-like voice the moment Adelyn’s face appeared on the screen.
"Good morning, darling. Rise and shine!!" Adelyn smiled warmly at her. "Did you sleep well last night?"
Eira nodded.
"Really?" Adelyn raised a brow slightly.
The girl hesitated for a moment ... but then nodded again.
"Then how come you didn’t even talk to me yesterday?" Adelyn asked, pouting slightly. "I was waiting for your call."
"Did Mama somehow make you upset?"
Eira paused.
She stared at Adelyn without saying a word.
And even though she remained silent, Adelyn could read everything clearly in her little eyes.
"Baby ... tell Mama. Did I upset you?"
Eira slowly turned her head.
"Mama didn’t upset Eira," she said softly. "Eira slept early and couldn’t wait to talk to Mama."
It was only a half-truth.
And Adelyn knew and also could see right through it.
But she chose not to expose her.
"Is that so?" she asked gently.
When Eira nodded again, Adelyn smiled and accepted it.
"Then it’s fine. But sweetheart, you need to know something."
She paused briefly.
Eira listened attentively.
"If you don’t express your feelings, people won’t understand them. So, you should always tell others what you want —loud and clear. If Eira doesn’t tell Mama or Dada what she wishes for, how will we know?"
She leaned slightly closer to the screen.
"And if you cry afterwards, wouldn’t you be wasting your precious tears?"
Eira nodded slowly in understanding.
"Then ... what should you do in that case?" Adelyn asked, waiting to hear it from her.
And the girl answered at once, "Eira should tell Mama and Dada what she wants."
Adelyn’s lips curved up in a satisfied smile.
"Exactly," she praised her warmly. "So, can Mama expect Eira to tell her wishes from now on?"
This time, Eira didn’t answer immediately.
But after a moment, she nodded.
And seeing that, Adelyn’s smile only deepened further.
"Good. My baby Eira is so smart. No wonder Mama keeps loving you more and more every day."
Eira giggled happily at that.
"Eira also loves Mama more and more ... every day!"
"Oh really?"
Eira nodded again.
They continued talking for a few more minutes before Adelyn finally glanced at the clock.
Realizing that she might end up running late, she decided to wrap up their conversation as soon as possible.
"Baby ... it’s getting late," she said gently. "We cannot sit like this the whole day. Go get ready and have your breakfast properly. Mama will also do the same."
Eira nodded obediently.
And soon after, the call ended.
Adelyn got out of bed and began preparing for the day.
However, as she moved through her routine, she remained completely unaware of the storm quietly gathering somewhere —waiting for the right moment to disrupt her life.
When she was finally ready to leave—
Her phone rang again.
She glanced at the screen.
It was an unfamiliar number.
Still, she accepted the call.
"Hello?"
"Adelyn," came the voice from the other end.
She immediately recognized it.
Her expression relaxed slightly.
"Madam Scott," she said calmly. "Is there something you need?"
There was a pause.
A long one.
But Adelyn didn’t interrupt.
Instead, she continued with what she was doing —picking up her bag and stepping out of her apartment, locking the door behind her.
Just as she was about to continue with it and walk away, Charlotte finally spoke.
"There’s something I need to discuss with you. Where can we meet?"
Adelyn paused mid-step.
"Didn’t we meet recently?" she asked, clearly implying that another meeting wasn’t necessary.
There was again a pause on the line.
After that —
"We did," Charlotte admitted.
"But this is different. I want to meet you for something else. Something important."
