Nicole gave Patricia a knowing look and simply said, "You're back."Now that Ellar was out of the hospital, it was normal for Patricia to resume her regular responsibilities at the company."Ms. Riddle, it seems clear Lawrence was involved with what happened to Everett, but he's covered his tracks too well for us to prove anything," Patricia reported, her frustration apparent. 'We've caught the people who did it, but linking them to Lawrence is proving impossible.'Nicole wasn't shocked. "That's to be expected," she acknowledged. Lawrence would naturally ensure his involvement was untraceable.Patricia, looking concerned, asked, "What's our next move?" The inability to directly connect Lawrence to the crime was troubling."We stay vigilant and wait," Nicole replied calmly, maintaining a composed demeanor. They needed to keep their cool, especially when Lawrence was likely feeling the heat.Patricia nodded, understanding the cautious strategy.Just then, Lulu burst in, delighted
"Yes, sir," Ian said.Lawrence looked up a bit at Ian and asked, "How are Nicole and Jared doing?""They went back to the Riddle family's house yesterday. It looks like they sorted out the problem with Everett. Everyone seems pretty calm; I think they feel it's all settled," Ian answered."That's good. They haven't caught on to us," Lawrence said, with a pleased look. He thought if Nicole and Jared had found out sooner, it would have messed up his plans.****In the afternoon, when the sun was brightest, Nicole was relaxing in her office after lunch.Suddenly, there was a quick knock on the door. Lulu came in, looking very happy, and said, "Nicole, Sally had her baby."Nicole got up quickly. "When?""Just now, Steve called. Your mom and dad are already at the hospital. Do you want to go see?" Lulu was smiling with excitement, looking forward to meeting the new baby."Let's go." Nicole was already heading out as she spoke, and Lulu quickly followed.No sooner had they left the
"I don't have kids yet, but when I do, Grandpa will pick a special name for them too. The most important thing is that the child is healthy and happy," Sean said, giving Steve a teasing look to show that he shouldn't worry too much about it.Steve, smiling widely, scratched his head and replied, "Okay, then let's name him Lucian.""Should we have a big party for Lucian's post-birth celebration?" Lulu asked Benjamin, smiling. In Hustuaburg, this celebration was a big deal for families, usually held when the baby turned 100 days old."Definitely, we'll invite Maximillian first. He always talks about how Nolan is the oldest great-grandson in his family. Now that we have a great-grandchild too, he can't make fun of me anymore," Benjamin said, with a cheeky grin.Everyone laughed together, shaking their heads and teasing, "Grandpa, are you and Jared's grandpa still acting like children?"Everyone was happy and joking around, it didn't matter if Nolan was a Johnston or a Riddle; everyon
June couldn't help but laugh, "He's too little right now. It will be a few months before he needs toys to help with hand-eye coordination. What's the rush?"Lulu raised an eyebrow. "Who said I was rushing? Seems like you're the keen one, knowing all this. Nicole understands because she's a mom. You're not yet, are you? Have you started looking this up?"June's smile briefly stiffened as she awkwardly said, "I was just making a guess.""Really? Guessing about hand-eye coordination? You're quite the predictor," Lulu joked, playfully turning the tables on June after her earlier remark.Nicole watched their friendly teasing, smiling, and feeling like they were back in their school days, enjoying each other's company.Eventually, they arrived at the mall and headed straight to the baby and maternity section, browsing for gifts.As dusk settled and lights began to twinkle, Nicole returned home to find dinner preparations underway."Mommy!" Nolan and Lana ran to greet Nicole happily up
"Okay," the family agreed, heading toward the dining room.Jared gently held Nicole's hand, smiling. "You seemed to have a lot of fun today.""Yes, the three of us haven't had such a relaxed outing in a long time," Nicole nodded, clearly happy."In the future, when you're off, you should hang out with them more," Jared suggested, pleased to see her joyful."With our own families, we are all so busy. How can we just go out and play whenever we're off?" Nicole chuckled, finding occasional outings like this quite nice.Jared smiled tenderly, content to see her happy.After dinner, the children were brought back by the butler because it had gotten quite dark outside. Concerned that they might get too excited and accidentally hurt themselves, he had them come in.Nolan was so fascinated with his new drone that he insisted on keeping it beside his pillow at night.Nicole, with a face full of indulgent laughter, agreed, and Nolan went to bed satisfied.After the children were asleep,
'But without Lawrence's confession, there wouldn't be any concrete evidence, would there?' Nicole thought"Sambawe must have disclosed something," Jared hinted vaguely, not going into detail but guessing that Zane's sudden decision to capture Lawrence was probably linked to Sambawe."I get it," Nicole acknowledged, her eyes narrowing slightly. After Zane rescued her, Sambawe had agreed to cooperate and likely spill a lot of information.Nicole had an inkling about Lawrence's influence in Mecrounia and his possible involvement in illegal activities. Those in his inner circle, like Sambawe, would have a better idea.Jared gave Nicole's hand a gentle squeeze, hinting, "It might not be long now." Now, they were now just waiting for Lawrence to slip up so they could bring him to justice."Got it," Nicole nodded slightly, realizing that Lawrence must be feeling the pressure.The car came to a stop, and they had arrived at Riddle Corporation.As they got out of the car, Nicole entered
Not long after Doretta left, Lulu knocked on the door and came in, her curiosity piqued, "Was that Doretta just now? Why did she come here? Is there something going on?""Nothing much." Nicole didn't elaborate further and turned to Lulu, saying, "Tia and Stanley's wedding is the day after tomorrow. Have you got the big gift you mentioned ready?""It's all set. I went shopping for it with June," Lulu replied, then asked Nicole, "What about you? Is everything prepared on your end?""Yes," Nicole confirmed."Time flies, doesn't it? It feels like just a moment since you've been back, over a year now. Thinking about all these years, we've all changed so much and now have our own families," Lulu remarked, reflecting on the upcoming wedding."Indeed, but while it seems there have been changes, it also feels like nothing has changed at all," Nicole said with a light smile.Lulu looked at Nicole and said, "It's because you're back."Her return seemed to have brought back the vibrancy of
Meanwhile, Patricia sat in Ellar's car, looking concerned. "What's so urgent that we had to discuss it now?" she asked, worry flickering in her eyes.His call had sounded serious, leading her to believe something bad had occurred.To her surprise, Ellar handed her an invitation and said, "It's about Stanley's wedding. You're invited."As she opened it and saw her name, she bit her lip slightly. 'So, it wasn't that I hadn't been given an invitation; it was with Ellar all along.'"Come with me, be my date. Let's attend together," Ellar said, his eyes earnestly hoping for her acceptance.Patricia hesitated, still biting her lip as she held the invitation."I know you're not used to wearing evening gowns. You can wear whatever you like. If you're worried about what others might think, I won't wear a suit either," Ellar quickly added, seeing her hesitation.Hearing this, Patricia looked at Ellar with a complex expression. Due to her work, she rarely wore dresses or high heels, but sh