Chapter 31

Diane still hadn't warmed up to Severin, but the thought of her daughter and the sight of his sincere expression earlier persuaded her. She allowed him to hold her hand. Reaching her home, she unlocked the door. Inside, Selene sat quietly on an old sofa, watching cartoons.

"Mom! Is Dad back?" Selene ran over as soon as she heard the door open.

Severin entered. Gazing at the four-year-old, the strong connection of their blood relationship made his heart skip a beat.

"Momthis manis my dad?" Selene asked timidly, holding Diane's hand. Severin was a stranger, and her wariness was natural.

Diane frowned slightly, then smiled. She squatted, caressed Selene's face, and nodded. "That's right, Selene. He's your father. Weren't you looking forward to his return? Well, here he is!"

"I'm so happy! I finally have a dad!" Selene jumped for joy. "Dad!" she called, running toward Severin.

During his years in prison, Severin had subdued even the most vicious people. He believed his heart had been hardened by those experiences. Yet, his daughter's hesitant greeting touched him deeply.

"Yes, it's me, Selene!" Severin squatted and hugged her. His eyes were even tinged with red.

Selene smiled, tilting her head back. "Dad! Mom said you went away to earn loads of money! Are you rich now?"

Severin saw the childlike naiveté in her eyes and smiled dotingly. He touched her face. "I am. I've made a lot of money so none of us have to suffer anymore!" "Can you buy me a lot of toys then?" Selene asked innocently.

"Of course! Let's buy them after we eat!" Severin agreed. The closeness he felt toward his flesh and blood was novel, and his affection for Selene grew with each glance.

"Yay! Did you hear that, Mom? Dad earned a lot of money, so he can buy me toys!" Selene ran to Diane. "Mom, you don't need to work anymore now that Dad has so much money! You'll spend more time with me now, won't you?"

Diane opened her mouth to answer, unsure what to say. Her only thought was, "How are we going to survive if I don't work?"

Severin smiled. "That's right, Mom won't have to work anymore, and I can spend more time with my precious daughter too!" He picked up Selene and said to Diane, "Come on, let's get lunch! The car is waiting."

Diane nodded softly. "Okay."

"We're going out to eat? What about the cake, Mom?" Selene eyed the cake on the table.

Severin turned to Diane. "Let's bring the cake."

Knowing Selene had longed to eat cake with her parents, Diane nodded and took the small cake.

It was Selene's first time in a luxury car. "Is this our car, Dad?" she asked.

Severin shook his head. "No, but we'll have our own soon! We'll buy one another day!"

The passage is significantly improved by correcting grammatical errors, improving sentence structure, and removing unnecessary words and phrases. The added promotional sentence was removed.