Win My Husband Over to Find My Child
Chapter 180: Would He Learn Something Else?

Chapter 180: Would He Learn Something Else?

"...lix? Calix... do you hear me?"

The tug at the hem of his shirt pulled Calix out of his stupor.

Blinking his eyes, his mind slowly regained its clarity. His chin followed the direction of the familiar voice, looking at the woman sitting in the wheelchair next to the bench he occupied.

The hanging fairy lights around the wooden deck and the pavilion cast a glow on Leslie’s countenance. Her almond eyes were staring directly into his.

"Oh... what did you say?" Calix shook his head, his lips curving into an apologetic smile, "Sorry, I didn’t catch it."

Leslie simply smiled. Throwing her gaze to the shimmering surface of the lake, she said, "I think it’s enough... for tonight... Let’s head back..."

"What? Ah, we’ve just come here," Calix glanced at his wristwatch, "It’s only been fifteen minutes."

"It’s fine... aren’t you tired?" Leslie kept persuading Calix to return to the main building, her voice softening, "You drove Irene back... yourself... Maybe we can... call the night earlier..."

Leslie woke up from her nap just before lunchtime. Irene became a chatterbox as she kept talking during their meal, surpassing Calix who didn’t speak as much as usual.

Before four in the afternoon, Irene got ready to head back to Sunnyside Ridge. As promised, Calix drove her there instead of having Rowan’s driver come.

Pursing his lips, Calix pondered for a moment before finally nodding. He let out a helpless chuckle, "Sorry, I’m a bit tired today."

Among the many things Calix wanted to say to Leslie, he ended up settling on the random one. His mind was in a disheveled state ever since his conversation with Irene at the rooftop.

Hours had passed since then but, Calix kept replaying Irene’s words in his mind. He tried to stop them altogether yet, his attempts were futile.

Despite not wanting to, questions to questions form in Calix’s mind following those remarks coming from Irene. He desperately wanted to ask Leslie about some of them.

But...

He couldn’t.

Leslie was unaware of the storm causing chaos within Calix. He was less chatty tonight but she assumed his distracted state was due to exhaustion.

"Why are you... sorry? It’s good to rest earlier... You’ll head to work... tomorrow..."

Calix had been out and about since this morning. Because he needed to entertain Irene as the guest alongside her, Leslie knew that he hadn’t taken some quiet time for himself today.

"Haa... I don’t wanna go to work tomorrow," tilting his head, Calix grinned lopsidedly, "But, I have to. It’ll be another busy Monday for me. Should I skip work?"

Unwilling to make Leslie worry or suspect anything, Calix made up the lame joke. Hearing her mellow chuckles softened the look in his eyes.

"Hehe... you should set up a... good example for your... staff... CEO Xu, remember... who you are..."

"Sucks," Calix deliberately made a face. Rising to his feet, he rounded the wheelchair to stand behind Leslie, "I’ll go to work obediently. I need to earn money to raise my wife."

"Oh, I’ve forgotten... you promise to give me... your black card later..." replied Leslie jokingly. She was reminded of one of their conversations before.

"Hurry up and get better, Mrs. Xu," Calix bent his body, trying to look at Leslie from above, "Let’s go on a shopping spree. You can swipe my card as many as you like."

Leslie blinked, dazedly staring at Calix’s smile. His face was upside down because of his position.

If he moved slightly backward, his lips might touch the top of her head. The warmth of his breath fanned over her face, spreading heat from her cheeks down to her neck.

"W-well, keep your promise..." disconcerted, Leslie almost stuttered, "One day surely... I’ll go shopping... with your card...

"Hehe, feel free to do so, Mrs. Xu."

Pulling his upper body back, Calix straightened his posture. He grabbed the handles of the wheelchair, "Let’s head inside. I need to review something before going to bed."

"...en."

Calix moved the wheelchair toward the ramp built next to the short staircase of the wooden deck. The warm white lights of the fairy lights glowed on their backs, bidding them farewell for the night.

After putting Leslie in bed, Calix didn’t stay longer in the bedroom than usual. He told Mrs. Su, the caretaker on duty tonight to help Leslie get ready for bed.

’What should I do? I don’t think I can ask her just like that.’

Once Calix returned to his own bedroom, he threw himself on the bed. The mattress sank under his weight.

Staring at the ceiling, Calix muttered under his breath, "Edward should find something new by next week, en?"

After his conversation with Leslie on the night he returned from the orphanage, Calix proceeded with his plan. Edward was tasked with several urgent matters related to Leslie and the little girl named Calliope.

’Irene lived longer with Leslie, but... what if she’s mistaken?’

Leslie had never shown anxiety whenever she went close to any big body of water. Her fondness for spending time near the lake, pool and even the river back in Rome made Calix doubt Irene’s claim.

But, the teenager had no motive to lie about it.

Scouring his memories, Calix recalled one of the times he and Leslie relaxing by the poolside. She mentioned how much she wanted to swim there after she regained her body.

’That means she knows how to swim, unlike Irene’s claims. What the hell is happening now?’

Before Calix got married to the comatose Leslie, he ordered Edward to find some information about her. But, he only asked for the superficial ones. No in-depth inquiry was done.

"Seems like Edward will get another task."

Calix actually wanted to ask Irene further about Leslie’s apprehension toward swimming and bodies of water in general but, he didn’t want to confuse the teenager further.

Asking Rowan and Bianca also were out of questions. He was more inclined to run the investigation behind the scenes.

"...will I learn something else?"

Closing his eyes, Calix furrowed his brows.