The Queen was very busy; Maeve only saw her for fittings. Loren, on the other hand, frequently visited for meals or to bring Theo high-tech toys. Even with her other identity, Maeve never went out of her way to please them, offering only basic human decency.

After a brief chat, Karina returned to work. Just then, Theo spotted Maeve. His eyes lit up, and he rushed to her.

“Mommy! I missed you so much!”

Maeve chuckled, unsure whether to laugh or cry. “You’ve only been gone less than an hour. Did you miss me that much?”

Theodore shook his head. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder, Mommy! Especially mine!”

“You and your silly ideas,” Maeve said, lifting him and tapping his nose. “If you missed me so much, why didn’t you stay?”

“Hehe, I was gathering information!” Theo patted a notebook.

Maeve looked at it curiously. “What’s this?”

“Mommy’s court uniform research report!” Theo replied.

Maeve hadn’t expected Theo to be researching in the palace.

“Thank you, Theo,” she said, kissing his cheek. “You’ve really helped me.”

Theo blushed, wringing his hands. “Not really, just a little.”

Maeve carried him to the palace car and they drove home. As she opened the door, she asked, “Have you finished your homework? Don’t wait for Jaylen to check; he’ll give you extra if he does.”

Theodore wrinkled his nose. “Mommy, let’s lock the door tonight and keep Jaylen out!”

“Who are you keeping out?” a disgruntled voice came from the living room.

Maeve was startled. Before she could react, Theo was lifted from her arms. The man, dressed in gray traditional clothing, looked more mature and gentler than before.

“Jaylen?” Maeve was surprised. “Weren’t you supposed to return in two days? Did you finish?”

Jaylen nodded, weighing Theo. “No wonder your mother calls you Theo. You’re getting chubbier. Eat less.”

Theo puffed his cheeks. “I’m a child! I’ll be thin as a lightning bolt when I grow up!”

“A lightning bolt sixteen feet in diameter?” Jaylen retorted.

Theo grabbed Jaylen’s face. “Jaylen, if you keep talking like that, you’ll never get married!”

Jaylen subconsciously looked at Maeve, who smiled gently. He snorted. “Children should drink more milk and worry less. And you’re to call me Godfather, not Jaylen.”

“I don’t want to!” Theo refused. “Once a brother, always a brother! Don’t change our seniority just because I’m younger!”

Jaylen was speechless. Maeve laughed until she bent over.

“You’re laughing?” Jaylen’s face fell.

“Sorry, I couldn’t help it,” Maeve gasped. “You should have just taken Theo as a student. Why go through all that?” She alluded to the fact that he had lost a student to his master. Theo was now the youngest disciple of Jaylen's master. Jaylen had been upset for a long time and hadn't returned to the sect.

Theo patted Jaylen’s shoulder. “Jaylen, that’s what we call wasted effort.”

“You brat,” Jaylen said, leading him to the study. “I’m testing your progress. Did you slack off?”

Theodore whined. Maeve shook her head, unsure who was more childish, and went to the kitchen.

Soon, Jaylen joined her, helping with vegetables. His voice was low. “I heard from Loren you plan to go back. Aren’t you afraid of seeing him?”

Maeve paused, her chopping slowing.

“Of course, I’m afraid,” she said gently. “But there’s no point in running anymore. Theo’s grown up. I want to… go back and bury the child’s body.”

For four years, Maeve hadn’t forgotten her child's death. It was a deep scar, causing her pain even with the slightest touch. Jaylen knew this; he’d heard her crying in her sleep. This unresolved grief prevented her from moving on.

Jaylen looked at her. “When are you going?”

“The day after tomorrow,” Maeve replied.

“That soon?”

Maeve nodded. “A fashion show in Kleymond; I’m a judge. A short holiday.”

Jaylen raised an eyebrow. “I forgot MR is internationally renowned. If you weren’t hiding in the palace, you’d be drowning in invitations.”

“Nothing compared to Dr. Chatterly’s popularity. You get approached daily,” she teased.

After some playful banter, Jaylen hesitated. “What about him? What are your plans?”

Silence fell. After a long moment, Maeve said calmly, “I don’t care about him anymore. He’s a stranger.”

Jaylen smiled. “That’s good. I was worried you’d be sad. There’s something I haven’t told you.”

“What?”

“The year you left, he had a child with Lynn.”

Maeve’s grip tightened on the knife; she cut her finger. Jaylen quickly rinsed the wound.

“How did you cut yourself? What are you thinking?”

Maeve smiled casually. “The knife was slippery. I even cut my glove last time.”

Jaylen bandaged her finger and sent her to check on Theo.

“Go see if Theo’s slacking. Leave this to me.”

Maeve walked to the study, her forced smile fading. She looked at the bandage, a frown creasing her brow.

“Strange. It’s just a small wound, why does it feel so uncomfortable?” she wondered.

Unseen by Maeve, Theo dashed back to the study, locking the door. He held his chin thoughtfully. “So Mommy had another child? My older… or younger twin?”

Maeve glared toward the living room, then deliberately asked Theo, “If I’m the baby, what are you?”

Joy, her young daughter, looked distressed, then her eyes lit up. “I’m Mommy and Daddy’s silly child!”

Maeve, charmed by her daughter’s seriousness, nuzzled her cheek. “Don’t listen to your daddy. You’re our baby.”

“No!” Joy insisted. “Only Mama is his baby.”

Maeve blushed, wondering when her husband would stop treating her like a child. After conveying her message, Joy went to watch cartoons.

Maeve thought that would be the end of it, but the next day at kindergarten, parents and teachers looked at her with ridicule. The group chat revealed everything. Joy had announced to the class: "My Daddy is so clingy! He clings to Mommy every day! Can't he look for his own Mommy? Also, why does Mommy get so angry when Daddy calls her his baby?"

The revelation that the CEO of the McDaniel Group was so clingy to his wife and called her "baby" was astonishing. Maeve's embarrassment was immense. Byron McDaniel kicked her calf. "Byron McDaniel, look what you've done!"