Chapter 16 A Restless Mind

"Felix, brother," Isabella jumped onto the dock before the boat had even come to a stop, affectionately grabbing Felix's hand. "Felix, I've missed you so much! Why have you been gone for so long?"

"I was doing business, which naturally took some time."

"I've missed you so much." Isabella nestled into Felix's embrace, not wanting to part from him for even a moment.

Felix looked awkward; he clearly wasn't comfortable with Isabella's enthusiastic display of affection.

"Isabella, let's talk after we get off the boat. Come on, let go of my hand…"

"No!" Isabella clung to Felix's arm. "I don't want to let go. What's wrong with you, Felix? You used to like me being this way."

Isabella had admired Felix for many years and wished to marry him immediately. Felix felt helpless; it was one thing when Isabella was younger, but now that they were older, it felt inappropriate to embrace like this.

"I have a friend here; you need to let go," Felix said with resignation.

"A friend? What friend?" Isabella looked around.

Blanche was not far away, holding Jason's little hand, still lost in thought about where they would go after getting off the boat. Seeing Blanche's confused expression made Felix feel a pang of pity. "Shirley, why don't you come with me?"

Blanche shook her head. She only knew Felix from one encounter; although they were friends, it wouldn't be good to trouble him. Moreover, she noticed Isabella's gaze suddenly filled with hostility, making her hair stand on end.

This woman couldn't possibly see her as a rival, could she?

"Felix, brother, who is she?" Isabella pointed at Blanche.

Sure enough, with a woman's keen intuition, Isabella misunderstood the situation. Blanche sighed, wondering how she had gotten into trouble even before disembarking.

"Isabella, don't be ridiculous. This is a friend of mine," Felix said.

Isabella scrutinized Blanche. She was just an ordinary woman, though she had decent looks and a good demeanor, she was no match for Isabella.

"Really?"

"Of course," Felix replied.

Felix hadn't yet noticed Isabella's hostility toward Blanche; his only goal at the moment was to keep Blanche around.

"Shirley, Jason is still a child. Don't run around before you've found a place to stay; safety is the most important thing," Felix said gently.

Isabella had never seen Felix care so much for a woman, and she didn't believe he was just talking about a friend.

"Hey, who are you? You come here without a place to stay, are you here illegally?"

"We're not here illegally!" Jason puffed out his cheeks and said, "My mom and I are here for vacation. We want to explore and see the sights."

The little guy was good at helping Blanche out of tight spots; his words subtly rejected Felix's offer.

"Exactly, we want to explore," Blanche said with a smile.

Felix knew that Blanche was trying to reject him, but he couldn't help but feel uneasy watching her leave with Jason.

"Shirley, don't be stubborn. If you need anything, you can find me," Felix said, his brow furrowed and his expression serious.

Isabella couldn't hold back any longer. It was clear that Felix had feelings for this woman; she had never seen him show such concern for anyone else.

"Hey! Who are you, and what are you doing here?!" Isabella asked, her tone full of hostility.

"Isabella!" Felix scolded, displeased with her rudeness.

Isabella felt even angrier when Felix raised his voice for a woman he barely knew. "What's wrong?! Did I say something wrong? This woman is obviously trying to get your attention. Why are you so concerned about her? Your fiancée is me! Why are you caring about another woman? And didn't you see? She has a child—she's bringing along a burden!"

Isabella had always been straightforward, saying whatever came to her mind. But her words made Blanche feel a pang of bitterness. Was this how others viewed Jason? A child without a father was just a burden? Or did that mean she was unqualified to raise Jason…

Felix felt embarrassed by Isabella's remarks, glancing at Blanche as if wanting to explain that it wasn't like that, but deep down, he truly didn't want her to leave.

Blanche avoided Felix's gaze and said to Isabella, "Miss Shirley, I'm sorry, but you might have misunderstood. I'm not as pathetic as you think. My child is not a burden; he has a father. We just happen to be separated. In the future, please choose your words carefully. Otherwise, when people talk about the Harrington family's young lady, they might not think of grace and elegance."

"You…" Isabella didn't expect this woman to dare to retort. However, she couldn't deny that Blanche had a point. If she continued to argue, she might end up being the subject of gossip.

Felix felt the awkwardness in the air as he observed Blanche's cold demeanor. He was at a loss for words; it seemed that Isabella had put his thoughts out in the open, making him feel embarrassed and uncomfortable.

"Uncle, Mom and I are leaving. Hopefully, we can meet again sometime. Bye!" Jason, not fully understanding the situation, simply knew that he liked Felix and wanted to see him again.

Felix smiled, "Goodbye…"

Isabella was even more upset seeing how Felix was kinder to a child than to her. Not wanting to make Felix dislike her, she pouted and said, "Felix, we haven't seen each other for so many days. Why aren't you talking to me? Instead, you're chatting happily with a child?"

Felix looked at Isabella, feeling even more helpless. When would this girl grow up? It wasn't good for her to cling to him like this…

"No, I just really like that kid, so I talked to him a bit more."

"Oh, so you like children? Then we should have one in the future," Isabella said cheerfully.

Thinking about their marriage, Felix felt a weight in his heart, but he still replied, "We'll talk about that later."

Isabella was lost in her own joy, completely unaware that Felix's heart was focused on that woman…

Blanche held Jason's little hand as they discussed where to go. Although Jason was just a child, Blanche often respected his opinions.

"Jason, what kind of house do you like?"

They needed to find a place to stay, and Blanche wanted to settle down for a few days to rest, as Jason was still feeling weak from the change in environment.

"As long as I can stay with Mommy, I like any kind of house."

"Jason is always so understanding." Blanche smiled and tapped his nose.

Jason giggled, "Mommy, if we stay here, will Daddy come find us?"

Mentioning Allen made Blanche pause. The little guy, with his big eyes, had no idea that Allen had almost harmed him before…

"Daddy will probably come after a while," Blanche replied.

Since Jason was still a child, she didn't want to burden him with too much information. She would explain everything to him gradually as he grew up.

"Okay, I hope that when Daddy comes next time, he can control his bad temper. He clearly cares about Mommy, yet he uses Mommy's photo as his phone wallpaper. Why does he always look so fierce when he's with Mommy? No wonder Mommy doesn't like Daddy," Jason chattered on.

"Jason, where did you hear all this?" Blanche asked, looking puzzled.

"I didn't hear it anywhere; it's just what I saw," Jason said, tilting his little face up. "I played games on Daddy's phone before and saw that his wallpaper was a picture of Mommy. There were also a lot of photos in the album, including your wedding photo. Mommy, you looked so beautiful back then…"

Blanche's mind went blank. Allen… still had her photos, and he even used one as his wallpaper? Didn't he hate her?

Blanche felt unsettled, her emotions becoming complicated. She didn't know what Allen truly felt for her. If that was the case, why did he still act against her and Jason?

"Mommy, Mommy, what's wrong?" Jason noticed that Blanche was lost in thought and asked.

"Nothing," Blanche said, pulling herself back to reality. Since they had arrived in a new place, she decided not to think about Allen anymore. Just let it go…

Blanche found a mid-range apartment in a nice community. The environment was good, the rent was reasonable, and the area felt safe, which eased her mind.

She thought about calling home but hesitated, fearing that if she did, Allen might come after her. She looked at Jason's peaceful sleeping face, and her anxiety quietly transformed into strength. As long as Jason was safe and sound, she would find peace.

When Allen returned to the Smith family home, Blanche's father was sitting in the living room, clearly angry and waiting for him. Beside him stood Leslie, her eyes red from crying.

Without needing to say anything, Allen already knew the reason.

Leslie had informed Blanche's father that Allen was looking for Blanche and even planned to go to Miami, which had led to the current situation.

Allen's expression was cold as he didn't even glance at them and went straight upstairs.