Madeline had her hair pulled back in a simple ponytail. Her tailored outfit hugged her frame, giving her a sharp and capable appearance. She wore a perfectly measured professional smile, but at the same time, her eyes revealed a glimmer of concern while speaking.
Brian was caught off guard at that moment. For a fleeting second, he thought he saw Jessica standing in front of him.
“All right, you’ll be paid ten times your usual overtime.” Thinking of Jacob’s increasingly gaunt face, Brian gave a small nod.
Madeline’s smile turned wider upon hearing that. She wanted to say there was no need to count it as overtime because she was genuinely happy to take care of Jacob.
However, since Brian had not officially divorced Jessica yet, she knew she needed to be patient. There were certain things that should not be made too obvious. She couldn’t let Brian know her intentions.
“Thank you, Mr. Atkinson.” Just as she turned to leave, she paused and glanced back, asking, “By the way, will you be home for dinner?”
Brian hesitated for a moment and nodded. With Jessica gone, if he also stayed away, he feared Jacob would feel even worse.
Satisfied, Madeline left the office.
Brian stared at the door after she left and murmured to himself, “I really miss Jessica, huh?”
Recently, every time he saw Madeline, he was reminded of Jessica.
Later that night, at Grant Manor.
Just as Jessica finished dinner and went upstairs, she saw a new Instagram story Madeline posted. She clicked it without much thought.
The caption said: [Like father, like son. Both finished every bite again tonight. Seems my cooking is not too bad. Brian and Jake finished everything. So sweet.]
The image showed a dining table with nothing but scraps and soup left in the dishes. There was also a side–profile shot of Brian and Jacob during dinner.
From the angle, it appeared Brian and Jacob were eating carefully, while the person seated between them took the photo.
Jessica stared at it for a few seconds. She could not deny that it stirred some emotion inside her. But to her surprise, it did not truly hurt.
She let out a dry, self–mocking laugh and was about to close the app when another story popped up.
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