As Celeste stepped inside, she immediately noticed many of her belongings scattered around the room.

“Sorry! I didn’t ask for your permission before I brought the stuff over…”

Celeste glanced at Eloise, who was playing with building blocks in the living room, and then focused her attention on Annie’s face. “You didn’t get kicked out by the landlord, did you?”

“You’re spot on!” Annie gave her a thumbs-up. “The landlord said her son was coming back and told me to vacate the place. I’ve been so busy lately that I didn’t have time to deal with it. His son came back earlier than expected, so I had no choice but to move everything here.”

“Why don’t you just move in with us from now on?”

Celeste took out her slippers, smiling brightly.

“Really? You’re sure it’s okay?” Annie’s eyes lit up with excitement. “I don’t want to be a burden.”

“Of course! It’ll be just me and Eloise here. If you move in, you can help me look after her when you have the time. Plus, once the clinic opens, I’ll likely get very busy.”

“Sounds good!”

Without hesitation, Annie agreed. They discussed the day’s events over dinner.

“By the way, how did it go with the contract today?”

Celeste’s hand paused as she was serving herself. After a moment of thought, she decided to tell Annie everything that had happened earlier.

“When I helped you look for a place, I did check the area out. The starting price was 10,000 dollars a month…” Annie’s eyes widened in surprise. “But how did Adrian’s friend rent it to you for such a low price? Even with a family or friend discount, it shouldn’t be that low.”

“I don’t get it either,” Celeste replied with a faint smile, choosing not to dwell on it.

Annie changed the subject. “Have you found a school for Eloise?”

Celeste nodded. “I’ve already found one. She can start tomorrow.”

At that moment, a soft voice broke the calm atmosphere.

“Ms. Morin, I don’t want to go to school…”

Celeste’s gaze flickered to Eloise beside her, who seemed ready to say something but then fell silent.

Seeing that Celeste didn’t respond, Annie asked, “Why don’t you want to go to school, Eloise?”

“I know the kids at school. I just want to be with you two…”

A note of vulnerability crept into Eloise’s voice, as if tears were just beneath the surface. Celeste noticed the tremor in Eloise’s lips, a clear indication that she was fighting back tears. When she had taken Eloise from the orphanage, the director had warned her that, due to the abuse Eloise had suffered from her father, she had some social withdrawal and might need professional psychological help.

“Don’t be afraid, Eloise. The kids at school are all nice. They won’t bully you. And if they do, you can always come to me, or tell the teacher…” Celeste lowered herself and gently placed a hand on Eloise’s shoulder, her voice softening. “Okay?”

Eloise pouted, but after a moment, nodded. “Okay.”

Celeste smiled and gently ruffled her hair. “You’re so brave, Eloise. Next time, I’ll take you to the amusement park to play.”

Eloise’s face finally brightened with a smile.

Just then, Celeste’s phone rang. She picked it up and glanced at the screen; her face immediately darkened. The caller was Damien. Without thinking, she rejected the call. The phone rang twice more, but she didn’t pick up either time. When the phone rang for the fourth time, Celeste nearly hung up instinctively, but her gaze landed on the contact name, and her body stiffened. The name on the screen read: Adrian.

Chapter 49