On the other end of the line,n''s deep voice carried a hint ofughter. "Of course I remember."


    "Dad''s busy with meetings, so Mom brought her over to our house," Evelyn


    exined.


    "Did you miss Daddy?"


    "I did."


    "I''lle over now. Should I bring you girls anything?"


    "Yay! Vivian, my dad''s bringing us presents!" Evelyn beamed at her friend.


    Vivian''s eyes sparkled with excitement.


    "Yes, Daddy, we want presents!" Evelyn announced.


    "Alright. I''m driving now, so I''ll see you soon,"n replied.


    "WizWiz, hang up and tell us a story!" Evelyn chimed in, addressing the family''s virtual assistant.


    Upstairs, Eleanor worked in her study. With her daughter happily upied with a friend, she finally had some peace and quiet.


    At six-thirty, the elevator doors of Building 12 in Cloudcrest Manor slid open. Xavier had just finished work, parked his car, and strolled through the garden to Eleanor''s building. He pressed the button, and the elevator-which was idling in the parking garage-soon began its ascent.


    With a soft "ding," the doors opened. Xavier stepped forward, only to freeze when he recognized the man inside.


    Both men stared at each other, momentarily thrown off.


    The air seemed to grow heavier.


    "Well, fancy seeing you here," Xavier broke the silence first.


    Xavier stepped inside, noticing thatn had pressed for the twenty-eighth floor, not the twenty-seventh.


    "Headed to Eleanor''s as well?" Xavier narrowed his eyes, studying him.


    For just a second, Xavier''s expression stiffened.


    The elevator climbed, tension thickening between the two men, as if the air itself might crackle.


    "So, is your ce on the twenty-seventh finished yet? Moving in soon?" Xavier finally asked, making conversation.


    "Probably next week,"n replied, eyes fixed on the flickering floor numbers.


    Xavier let out a faint chuckle. "Makes sense. Even after the divorce, living just below Eleanor''s ce will make it easier to see Evelyn."


    The elevator chimed as they reached their floor. Xavier stepped out first,n following behind, two carefully wrapped gift bags in hand.


    Hearing the doorbell, Joslyn hurried from the kitchen. "Vivian, that must be your uncle!"


    She nced at the video inte and, seeing Xavier''s face, unlocked the door. But when she peeked out and saw both men, she was startled. "Mr. Vaughn, Mr. Goodwin! You''re both here?"


    Xavier offered a polite smile. "I''m here to take Vivian home."


    "Oh! Come in, please!" Joslyn quickly set out two pairs of men''s slippers.


    "The girls are ying in the toy room. Make yourselvesfortable-I''ll go let


    Mrs. Sutton know," she said, hurrying up the spiral staircase.


    In her study, Eleanor was still at herptop when Joslyn entered, slightly flustered. "Ma''am, Mr. Vaughn and Mr. Goodwin arrived together."


    Eleanor''s fingers stilled over the keyboard. Looking up in surprise, she asked, "Together? Why?"


    "You''d bettere down," Joslyn urged, worry creasing her brow. One was the ex-husband, the other a suitor-thest thing anyone needed was for them to fight in the living room.


    Eleanor snapped herptop shut and left the study.


    Downstairs, the two men sat on opposite ends of the sofa, quietly assessing the decor-and, perhaps, each other.


    Descending the stairs, Eleanor''s eyes skipped overn andnded on Xavier. She smiled warmly. "You''re here. Vivian and Evelyn are in the yroom; I''ll go get them."


    Xavier stood. "Thank you for having her."


    "It''s no trouble at all," Eleanor replied with a gentle smile, heading toward the yroom. In a moment, the two girls came bounding over.


    "Thank you, Unclen," Vivian said sweetly.


    Xavier took Vivian''s hand. "Say goodbye to Mrs. Sutton."


    "Goodbye, Mrs. Sutton!" Vivian waved.


    Xavier''s gaze flicked towardn. "We''ll be off, then."


    Once Xavier and Vivian had left, Eleanor''s pleasant expression vanished. She


    turned ton, her tone frosty. "Was there something you needed?"


    "Next time, ask first. I don''t want you showing up unannounced," Eleanor replied bluntly.


    "Apologies for overstepping."


    Eleanor looked away, her face unreadable but clearly unweing.


    Adjusting his suit cuffs,n maintained his usual dignified air, even as he was being shown the door. "Sorry to intrude."


    He strode toward the exit.


    Joslyn hurried over to see him out, butn paused, ncing back. "I''ll schedule visits in advance from now on."


    Joslyn''s heart ached for her former employer. After six years working for his family, she knew just how proud and reserved Mr. Goodwin could be. Seeing Eleanor shut him out like this made her uneasy.


    Back in the yroom, Evelyn was too absorbed in unwrapping her new toy to notice her father had left.


    Oncen was gone, Joslyn looked over at Eleanor, whose face was still icy cold. Poor Mr. Goodwin-he''d looked almost lonely as he walked away. If he hadn''te today, Mrs. Sutton and Mr. Vaughn probably would have ended up having dinner together.