As a mother herself, Elise could not bring herself to remain indifferent while watching a five-year-old child cry like that.

More importantly, Robin was innocent. He was George Bennett’s son. He was the great-grandson Mrs. Bennett had finally found and embraced after so many years.

The fact that he had spent five years calling Quinn "Mom" had never truly been his choice.

None of it had been.

The person responsible for creating this tangled situation had always been Dylan.

Elise pressed her lips together and released a quiet sigh. Then she stepped forward and crouched slightly so she could meet the little boy’s eyes.

"We’ve only met a few times," she said gently. "Why did you want to come find me?"

Robin’s sobbing gradually subsided.

His tear-filled eyes blinked up at her. He sniffled, then wiped his face with his sleeve before speaking in a small, careful voice.

"Great-Grandma said you’re a very good person." He hesitated. "Dad said the same thing."

The little boy lowered his head for a moment before gathering his courage.

"And... I think you’re really nice too."

Elise fell silent. She could understand Mrs. Bennett’s intentions––the old woman had trusted her character. She knew Elise would never take out adult grievances on an innocent child.

More than that, Mrs. Bennett had probably wanted to leave Robin with one more person who would genuinely care about him.

Dylan’s motives, however, were entirely different.

From the very beginning, he had raised Robin at Orchard Residence and allowed Quinn to play the role of mother.

The message had always been clear––he had never believed Elise should be involved in raising the child.

For five years, Robin had not even known he had a nominal foster mother. That alone proved Dylan had never intended for them to develop any sort of mother-son relationship.

As for telling the child that Elise was a good person?

That only happened because the truth had finally come to light.

Dylan knew her too well. He knew she would never be cruel enough to abandon an innocent child. He knew that for Mrs. Bennett’s sake, she would show at least a little kindness.

The realization felt strangely ironic.

Dylan understood her better than almost anyone, yet he was also the person who had hurt her most.

Again and again.

Somewhere along the way, long before she realized it, they had already begun walking in opposite directions.

Elise suppressed the emotions rising inside her and looked at the little boy once more.

Children were innocent.

How could someone his age possibly understand the complicated calculations and mistakes of adults?

In the end, she relented.

Standing upright again, she turned toward Mrs. Lander.

"For Grandma’s sake, I can agree to let him spend the daytime here."

She paused.

"But he goes home at night."

Mrs. Lander visibly relaxed. She immediately looked down at Robin, her lips stretched into a smile.

"Did you hear that, Robin?"

The little boy blinked his large, wet eyes and looked at Elise.

"Pretty Miss..." His voice was small. "Can’t I stay here?"

He tightened his grip on Mrs. Lander’s hand.

"Great-Grandma isn’t home anymore. Dad isn’t home either."

His lips trembled. "The house feels really big... And really empty."

His voice became even softer. "I’m scared to go back."

Elise’s expression remained calm.

"No." The answer was firm. "I don’t like strangers living in my house." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

She looked directly into his eyes.

"Your father is only in the hospital. He’ll come home eventually."

The little boy’s mouth immediately crumpled. Another wave of tears threatened to spill over.

A faint crease appeared between Elise’s brows. Her voice became slightly more serious now.

"Robin..."

The child froze.

"I don’t know what your father has told you, but I think I need to make something clear."

The little boy stared at her blankly. Even his tears seemed to pause.

Elise continued, "Your father and I have already separated. You have your own mother. You have your own father. And you and I..."

A brief pause followed.

"We’ve never really had any relationship at all."

The words hit harder than she intended. Fresh tears instantly filled the boy’s eyes.

"Don’t cry." Her tone sharpened slightly. "You’re already five years old."

She crouched down again, gently wiping his cheeks.

"I know you’re smart enough to understand what I’m saying." Her voice softened, though only slightly. "And you should know that crying won’t solve anything."

Robin lowered his head. For several seconds, he remained silent.

Then he looked back up at her, pain filling those big dark eyes.

"Pretty Miss..." His voice trembled. "I won’t cry anymore."

He swallowed hard.

"Please don’t send me away."

Nearby, Mrs. Lander and Oliver exchanged a glance.

Both looked as though they wanted to say something in the child’s defense, but before either could speak, Robin suddenly raised his sleeve and vigorously wiped away every trace of tears.

Then he straightened his small back and lifted his chin.

His eyes remained red, but they were determined.

"Pretty Miss, don’t worry... I understand."

A brief pause followed.

"Dad made you angry." He lowered his head for a second. "I’m not going to defend him."

When he looked back up, his expression was surprisingly serious for a child his age.

"I’ll be very good. I’ll listen. And when it gets dark, I’ll go home by myself."

Something dark flickered across Elise’s face. She pressed her lips together before turning toward Oliver.

"I’m only agreeing because of Grandma. And only for two days."

She pointed toward Robin.

"While he’s here during the day, Mrs. Lander stays with him."

The relief that washed across Oliver’s face was immediate.

"Of course." He nodded repeatedly. "Thank you, Madam."

Elise interrupted him before he could say anything else.

"Dylan and I will officially finalize our divorce next week. You don’t need to call me Madam anymore."

The words hung heavily in the air. Oliver’s lips pressed into a thin line.

He looked as though he wanted to argue, but in the end, he said nothing.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Lander seemed afraid Elise might change her mind.

Without wasting another second, she quickly took Robin’s hand and led him inside.

The little boy obediently followed.

Soon only Elise and Oliver remained at the doorway, yet the latter made no move to leave.

Elise looked at him, one eyebrow raised.

"Is there something else?"

The question was simple, but the look in Oliver’s eyes suggested that whatever he had come to say had little to do with the child.