Joslyn smiled from the side. "Look how happy Evelyn is. She must have really missed Mr. Goodwin."
Eleanor stepped outside. Ian had the weary look of someone who had just gotten off a long flight.
"You should go home and rest. I''ll take Evelyn," Eleanor said to him, noticing his fatigue.
"I''ll go with you,"n replied, taking their daughter''s hand.
Evelyn squeezed his hand. "Mommy, I want Daddy to take me to school too, please?"
Eleanor could only nod. "Alright."
In the back seat of Eleanor''s car, Evelyn andn chatted about his business trip. They arrived at the school quickly.
After Evelyn went inside happily, Eleanor turned to the man in the back seat. "I''II take you home so you can get some rest."
"And you?"n asked, his voice a little hoarse.
"I need to buy some things at the mall," Eleanor said.
"Then let''s go together. My fridge is empty, so I need to pick up some essentials anyway,"n said with a smile.
Before Eleanor could respond,n added, "If it''s not too much trouble."
Eleanor nced at him in the rearview mirror, started the car, and headed toward arge nearby mall.
The car fell silent for a while. Ian leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes to rest.
By the time they reached the underground parking garage, he seemed refreshed. He walked with Eleanor to the elevator bank to wait.
When the elevator arrived, it was mostly empty. Eleanor stepped in first, andn followed. Just then, a middle-aged woman rushed over and held the door, calling to her friends behind her, "Hurry, hurry!"
Eleanor heard a tter of footsteps, and then two women pushing strollers, two men, and four elderly people all squeezed inside. The strollers took up a lot of space, forcing Eleanor to back up until she was pressed against the car''s wall. At that moment, a delivery person rushed in, causing everyone to shift back. Eleanor was about to be crushed against a heavyset man when a warm,rge hand naturally wrapped around her shoulder, guiding her to the side. She found herself in a slightly more spacious corner.
The space was simply too tight to move.
Fortunately, it was only a minute or so. When they reached the supermarket on the third floorn''s hand suddenly closed around her wrist. He cleared a path ahead, his voice cool and clear. "Excuse us."
The others immediately made way. As soon asn had led her out of the elevator, Eleanor instinctively pulled her hand away.
"Thanks," she said.
"You''re wee,"n replied with a faint smile, though there was a slight ache in his chest.
Inside the supermarket, Eleanor
grabbed a shopping cart. Ian walked
beside her, watching as she first went to the toiletries aisle. He picked out a couple of things for himself then asked her, "What was that body wash we used to use at home? I''ve never been able to find it
Eleanor pointed to a brand on the shelf. "This one."
Eleanor then moved on to the daily essentials section. A sense of regret washed over her. Why had she agreed to go shopping with him?
She hade to buy pads, and she could feel her perioding on tonight, so she had no choice but to get them now.
"You go get what you need. I still have to buy some personal items," Eleanor said, looking up at him, hoping he would take the hint and stop following her.
"Alright, I''ll go check out the liquor section,"n said and walked away.
Eleanor headed for the feminine products aisle. Soon after she''d made her selection, she sawn returning with a pack of small whiskey bottles. As he went to aut them in the cart, he noticed the bag of pads she had already chosen.
He watched as she carefully inspected the color and firmness of the fruit, her expression soft and focused. Suddenly, a long-forgotten feeling surfaced—the familiar warmth of their old domestic life.
"Do you want to have lunch together?"n asked in a low voice.
Eleanor looked up at him, her tone casual and matter-of-fact. "I''m busy."<pn didn''t seem disappointed. He just smiled. "Okay. Let me know when you''re free."