What Seraphina said seemed to be true. Hayden's company was facing a crisis, and Hayden would never turn to Elliot for help. Shelly felt both worried and conflicted as she could not help Hayden in any way. If Hayden found himself a more capable wife, he might not have to struggle alone. This was just the beginning. Hayden would run into countless crises and difficulties ahead, and the thought that she could not help filled Shelly with shame. "Shelly, it will be enough for you to support him," Avery said with a smile. "He will handle work himself, so you don't need to worry about him." "Aunty Avery, is that how it is for you and Uncle Elliot?" Shelly curiously asked. Avery blushed. "Elliot is someone who appears cold on the surface but has a warm heart underneath. When I was starting my own business, I faced many difficulties, and he always found ways to help me. I would accept his assistance every now and then." "And have you helped Uncle before?" Shelly inquired. Ave
The nanny could not help but take a photo of such a harmonious scene. Just then, Elliot walked over and asked Shelly where Avery was. "Aunty Avery is in the backyard checking out her fruit trees," Shelly said. Elliot nodded before saying hesitantly, "It's normal for kids to fight. You don't have to worry too much about it. Robert used to get beaten by Layla all the time when they were little! There's no big issue as long as no one is severely injured." Elliot only brushed it off because Aiden was the one who had been hit. He would not have reacted the same way if Audrey had been beaten. "I know," Shelly said with a smile. "When will Hayden come home?" Elliot asked. Shelly had not contacted Hayden during the day, nor had Hayden contacted her to inform her when he would return. "Let me call him and ask," she said, and the two nannies immediately hurried over to take the twins away. Shelly took out her phone and called Hayden. Hayden answered the call promptly. "When
At ten that night, Hayden drove his car into the yard, and Shelly, who had stayed awake, immediately got up to turn on the lights in her room. Hayden noticed the lights in the bedroom on the third floor turn on as he got out of the car. "That's my bedroom," he thought. "Is Shelly still awake? Are the kids still awake, too? It's bad for kids to stay up." Hayden hurried into the house and entered the elevator to reach the third floor. As he entered the bedroom, he noticed that the bed was empty and heard noises coming from the bathroom. "Shelly, where are the children?" Hayden walked to the bathroom door and saw that Shelly had already prepared the bathwater for him. "Today, Aunty Avery told the nanny to take care of Audrey." Shelly's blushed slightly. "Do you always work this late? It must be exhausting!" Hayden entered the bathroom. "In the past, when I was busy, I sometimes came home even later than this. From now on, I'll try to come back earlier." "I see. You must be
Hayden finally realized that Shelly was not joking. "Who told you to do this?" Hayden's voice grew colder. Shelly had always been obedient and compliant, so Hayden believed that someone must have influenced her to break up with him. "No one. I just realized that the gap between us is too big. Even if we're together now, we won't be happy in the long run," Shelly explained. "Hayden, I'm sure there are many women better than me around you. Try to interact with others more, and you'll see that I'm just an ordinary person who isn't fit to be by your side." "Nonsense!" Hayden shouted in anger. "Where are you now? We can't discuss this over the phone. Come back, and we'll talk face to face." "I'm not coming back," Shelly immediately refused without a second thought. "I plan to study abroad and won't be coming back for a while. You are all outstanding, and I want to improve myself." "Can't you study and improve yourself while being with me?" Hayden retorted. "Even if I improve,
Mrs. Taylor immediately spoke up. "I'll call her right away and find out!" She dialed Shelly's phone number, and after a few seconds, the call was answered. "Shelly, what's wrong?" Mrs. Taylor walked toward the adjacent restroom, holding her phone. "Why are you breaking up with Hayden all of a sudden? Did he do something to you? Tell Mom. I'll definitely stand by your side." Shelly choked on her tears. "Mom, Hayden didn't do anything wrong. I just realized that we're not compatible. He doesn't depend on me. The only reason he stays with me is because I gave birth to our two children. If another woman had children with him, he could marry her as well." Mrs. Taylor's expression was filled with disappointment. "But didn't you say you really liked him? Didn't you want to fight for this opportunity?" "I did think that way before, but I regret it now. I'm scared. I don't deserve him at all, so why should I hold him back?" Shelly wiped away her tears. "Mom, I'm sorry. I've let you d
Over an hour later, a new name was given to Aiden: Austin. When everyone struggled to come up with a nice-sounding name, Mr. Taylor suggested, "Why not call him Aid? It's easy to remember and sounds good." Elliot and Avery were startled, knowing that Aiden would definitely be teased by his classmates when he grew up and went to school. In the end, they settled for Austin instead. After lunch, Hayden drove Shelly's family to the villa in the city center. "When Shelly comes back, I will transfer this villa to her name. This will be your home from now on," Hayden said. Hayden thought it was only fair to give Shelly a villa as compensation for giving birth to their two children. Mr. and Mrs. Taylor did not dare accept it. "Let's talk about it when Shelly comes back. We'll rest for the night and leave," they said. Meanwhile, on the way back to Elliot's mansion, Ivy noticed the serious look on her parents' faces and broke the silence. "Mom, should I go find Shelly?" "Even y
Ivy looked backward. "Shelly!" Ivy immediately walked over to Shelly. Shelly was surprised to see Ivy. "Ivy, why are you here?" "I'm here to look for you!" Ivy held Shelly's hand. "I begged Courtney to give me your address." Shelly blushed. "Does your family know you're here? Are you here alone?" "Yeah! My parents didn't want me to come alone, but they couldn't stop me." Just then, the receptionist called Ivy's name. Ivy grabbed her room card, while Shelly carried her suitcase for her as the two walked toward the elevator. "Shelly, have you eaten? I'm starving. Let's go eat after I set my suitcase into my room!" Ivy did not have an appetite on the flight and was now starving. "Sure. Let's not eat here in the hotel. I know a restaurant nearby that serves great food." "Okay." After settling Ivy's luggage, the two of them went to the restaurant that Shelly knew. Ivy did not know what to order, so she let Shelly decide. After ordering and handing the menu back to
Hayden instantly fell silent, and Shelly bowed her head. Ivy immediately said to Hayden, "Since the trouble in your company has been resolved, why don't you come over here and spend a few relaxing days with Shelly? Shelly never really meant to break up with you. She was just informed that your company is in trouble, and she felt guilty for not being able to help. I understand how she feels. She only feels this way because she loves you, or she wouldn't care at all!" "Hand her your phone," he said. Ivy immediately handed her phone to Shelly, who accepted it after a moment's hesitation. Worried that she might get in the way, Ivy said, "I will go to the bathroom." Once Ivy left, Shelly took a deep breath and said, "I'm sorry, Hayden." "Why didn't you tell me the truth? Why did you tell my sister instead when she came to see you?" Hayden was utterly confused. "Because Ivy has experienced hardships before, she might be more empathetic toward me." "But what if my sister didn'