Chapter 5 I Kind of Miss Mom a Little

The moonlight was bright, and it was another beautiful night with stars twinkling in the sky.

In the lavishly decorated villa, Sophia wore a light-colored camisole and lounged casually on the sofa.

Gone was her fragile, pitiful appearance, replaced by an air of arrogance.

"Now that Megan has slunk away with her tail between her legs, I'm the rightful lady of this house. If she thinks she can compete with me for Tristan, she should take a good look at herself and see if she's even capable of winning his heart."

A satisfied smile curved at the corner of Sophia's lips.

Just then, a commotion came from outside the door.

"Daddy, why did you come pick me up today?"

Ivy looked at Tristan with confusion, and his body suddenly stiffened.

A shadow flickered in Tristan's eyes.

In the past, Megan always picked up and dropped off Ivy herself, bringing all sorts of gifts and surprises.

But now Megan had turned and left, blocking all his contact information and moving on to a bigger company.

Tristan couldn't very well tell Ivy that mommy had gotten bored with them and abandoned both father and daughter.

At this thought, Tristan forced a smile and gently ruffled Ivy's hair.

"Daddy had time to pick up Ivy today. Isn't Ivy happy about that?"

"Of course Ivy is happy! I love Daddy the most!"

Ivy looked up with her little face and answered in a crisp voice.

A few words were enough to make Tristan beam with joy.

At this moment, Sophia also walked over with a gentle manner. She reached out and took Ivy's hand.

"Alright Tristan, you've had a hard day at work and picked up Ivy too. Go upstairs and wash up and rest. Leave Ivy to me."

Secretly pulling Ivy closer to herself, Sophia looked up at Tristan with a soft smile.

The picture of gentle reliability.

Tristan tiredly pinched the bridge of his nose and said helplessly, "Then take Ivy upstairs to wash up first. I still have some things to handle."

"Okay."

Sophia's voice was soft in agreement, but her clingy gaze stayed fixed on Tristan, watching his back as he went upstairs.

"Aunt Sophie...?"

Feeling the cold wind from the doorway, Ivy couldn't help but shiver.

She tugged at Sophia's sleeve, finally bringing her back to her senses.

"Alright Ivy, let's go upstairs and rest. Daddy is very tired, so don't disturb him tonight, okay?"

Sophia held Ivy's hand.

More than half an hour later, Tristan's tightly closed bedroom door slowly opened inward.

"Tristan, you've worked so hard today. I poured you a glass of warm milk. Drink it while it's hot."

Sophia swayed her body as she slowly approached Tristan, her seductive eyes seeming to drip with water.

Just as she was about to take another step forward, her foot seemed to catch on something, and her body stumbled.

"Ah!"

Sophia let out a scream, but her body fell perfectly into Tristan's arms.

"Careful."

Catching Sophia in his arms, the glass of warm milk spilled all over Tristan.

Tristan couldn't help but frown.

Although it was just ordinary warm milk, a whole glass spilled on him completely soaked through his pajamas.

"I didn't mean to... I just felt a bit dizzy."

Leaning completely against Tristan, Sophia tremblingly lifted her chin, the picture of delicate weakness.

But her fingers were tightly wrapped around his firm waist and abs, even with a subtle downward movement...

Tristan looked down, meeting Sophia's tender, watery gaze.

"Tristan..."

Gently biting her red lips, Sophia slowly closed her eyes, about to press her lips forward.

In her thin, alluring nightgown, with her pitiful, weak posture, plus their intimate position, Sophia was confident that no man could resist this temptation.

But Tristan didn't let her have her way.

His hands gently but firmly pressed on Sophia's shoulders.

Under her incredulous and even humiliated gaze, Tristan said in a hoarse voice, "I have a lot of things to handle tonight, and these wet clothes are uncomfortable."

At this point, Tristan's voice paused.

"Since you warmed up milk, take a glass to Ivy. She used to have one every night."

As if remembering something, Tristan's brow furrowed deeply.

What was wrong with the household staff? How could they not arrange Ivy's milk now that Megan was gone?

Not noticing Tristan's current annoyance, Sophia froze like a statue under a spell, sitting there motionless.

Her body still maintained the ridiculous posture of throwing herself into Tristan's arms.

Tristan, Tristan actually rejected her...???

Sophia forced out a smile. Instead of leaving immediately, she followed through with her body's motion and nestled further into Tristan's arms, her voice soft as water.

"Of course I know to care for Ivy, but I need to care for you even more. You're the support and pillar for both Ivy and me. If you don't take care of yourself, what am I supposed to do?"

Sophia's tone grew more and more aggrieved, on the verge of tears.

Whenever Ivy and this family were mentioned, Tristan couldn't help but soften.

He pulled Sophia into his arms and gently patted her.

"You're a grown woman acting like a child. Of course I remember how good you are to me, but Ivy is my child after all..."

Sophia's body stiffened for a moment, then melted like water.

The atmosphere between them grew increasingly intimate.

Just then, Ivy's crisp voice rang out again.

"Daddy, and Aunt Sophie, what are you doing?"

Ivy rubbed her eyes. Without her usual warm milk and gentle lullaby, she hadn't fallen asleep yet.

The two people whose moment had been interrupted by Ivy froze in place.

Casually pushing Sophia out of his arms, Tristan straightened his clothes and walked over to Ivy.

At an angle he couldn't see, Sophia's gaze fixed on Ivy as if looking at a mortal enemy.

Damn kid, always jumping out to ruin things just when she was about to succeed.

Sensing Sophia's gaze, although her face still wore a smile, Ivy couldn't help but shudder.

Why has Aunt Sophie become so scary?

Ivy misses Mommy so much...

The grievance in her heart grew bigger and bigger, and tears welled up in Ivy's bright black and white eyes.

"Ivy, it's okay, it's okay. Auntie is here. How about Auntie takes you back to your room to rest?"

Before Tristan's comfort could arrive, Sophia's soothing voice came first.

She quickly pulled Ivy into her arms and comforted her softly, completely blocking Tristan's view of Ivy.

"I'll take Ivy back to her room to rest first. Be careful not to catch a cold."

Hurriedly looking up to meet Tristan's eyes.

Although Sophia was reluctant, for the sake of her position as lady of the house, she could only hold back her frustration.

After taking Ivy back to her room, Sophia turned and left without the slightest intention of comforting her.

Naturally, she didn't notice Ivy's sneaky movements either.

"Daddy and Aunt Sophie have become so strange. Ivy misses Mommy... I miss Mommy..."

When children feel most helpless, they naturally think of the person who treats them best.

Ivy secretly got out of bed and ran toward the closet.

In the cabinet there was a phone watch that Megan had prepared for her before, saying to use it to contact Mommy immediately if anything urgent came up.