Pampered by my three brothers: the return of the neglected heiress novel Chapter 71

Chapter 71: Too distracted

Haines had never heard Allison and Charles fight. This was the first. Hence, to respect their privacy, Haines found a stop at the end of the hallway.

"Haist!"

Haines snapped his eyes when Charles stepped out of the room. The latter ruffled his hair in irritation before noticing the figure casually leaning on the corner.

The two men stared at each other wordlessly before Charles sighed heavily.

Without a word, Charles and Haines found themselves heading into the garden as if that was the only place they could talk to right now.

"Today of all times..." Charles massaged his brows to ease his headache. "Allison wants to keep Nina just to appease everyone."

Haines didn’t react and simply stared at the flowers.

Hearing no response, Charles glanced at him and sighed. "I told her no."

"I know."

"Did you listen to us?"

"No." Haines’s face didn’t carry any change, but his quiet but stern voice laced with certainty. "If you did, then I guess the Bennet Family needs a new head."

Charles frowned, but he could understand Haines. Growing up, Charles and Haines had always been compared to the point people wanted them to compete. At one point, Charles even saw Haines his competition because Haines was truly a remarkable man worthy to be the head of the entire clan.

Thankfully, despite that phase, both of them grew mature enough to know they weren’t enemies. Rather, they were each other’s strongest allies. It was why Charles appointed Haines to run their international branch — which almost carried the same position as him.

"Being a parent is hard," said Charles while sighing for the umpteenth time. "Allison and I had to thread on eggshells and wonder if what we were doing was right. We always ask ourselves, "Would they carry this habit or event as a trauma in the future?"

His eyes drooped as his lips curved down. "We carried our own traumas caused by our elders, but at the same time, we were aware they did what they did because they only had our best interest in mind. That is why as much as possible, Ali and I want to shower them with all the love and understanding."

Charles paused as he thought of the good old days. They never claimed to be perfect, but until Nina got sick and they found out about the truth, he always felt like the eggshells they had been walking on thinned out.

It wasn’t Penny, but it was the fact they also wanted to please her so much without making their other children feel left out. But with this? It truly challenged the couple.

"Strangely enough though, I felt much lighter now after that argument," Charles subtly smiled. "I’m more grateful than stressed that this happened because if it didn’t, I would probably forget I’m the man of the house."

This time, Haines slowly peeled his eyes from the flower to him. "Butler Jen told me that Penny was waiting for us earlier to tell us she wants to coax her auntie to delay Nina’s departure."

"Huh?" Charles furrowed his brows. "She said that?"

"She was thinking about the boys," Haines summarized because Charles quickly understood the entire context with just that. "I’m glad you’re still sending Nina away."

"Haines, are you still going to hold on to that?" Charles frowned. "Nina hadn’t done anything to you." _{freёwebnoѵel.com}

"She did something to me."

"What?"

"Stir trouble to this family."

"Haines, Nina didn’t —"

’She got a cat, a frog, and that unknown creature. Is she into insects now and she’s checking how it feels to be one?’ Slater pressed his lips as he foresees another ominous addition to her animal kingdom.

"Slater, what are you doing here?"

Slater’s silly thoughts halted upon her question. "Uh, Penny, can I come in?"

"Sure."

"I can?"

"Mhm." Penny bobbed her head. "But I’m not putting Tiana and Chunchun away."

"..." Slater was speechless. "I’ll stay here."

Her round eyes blinked as she waited for him to state his intentions. She could see the hesitation on his face as if debating whether or not he should embrace his fear.

"Thing is..." Slater scratched his temple and sighed. "I can’t study."

"Huh?"

"I want to distract myself, but I’m too distracted and disappointed that I can’t distract myself."

This time, it was Penny’s turn to not have any rebuttal. "That’s a lot of distractions you’re near destruction."

"Don’t mock me for once, can you?"

"Fine." Penny unrolled herself until she was free from the blanket. She looked at him dead in the eye and said, "Come in. Don’t worry. I’ll keep them away — Second Brother?"