My Mirror Image by Maybe Not (Candice And Alex’s)

Chapter 303

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They arrived at the old man’s place well after midnight. Shawn was still awake. The elderly man was immersed in a book on the sofa, his reading spectacles perched on his nose.

When Candice and Alex arrived, he set the book down.

He cleared his throat. "Why are you just getting here now? Bruno, what about the hot chocolate that I asked you to make for Candy? Please bring it to her."

Still carrying the cold from the rain, Candice kept her distance from the old man. "What made you suddenly sick?"

"Just age catching up with me, still getting used to the weather here, plus the sudden drop in temperature with the change of seasons," old Mr. Elysian dismissed further discussion with a hand gesture. He glanced at Alex, who'd been on his phone since they arrived, and asked Candice directly, "Did that troublemaker pick you up?"

Candice confirmed with a nod, glancing back at Alex as Shawn did.

Alex had held the umbrella as they came inside, so Candice was spared from getting drenched, though she now noticed that Alex's shoulder was completely wet. He appeared to be engrossed in a serious phone conversation.

Kayla had recently informed her that Sawyer was called in for late work, implying Alex might have had similar plans to head back to work.

Old Mr. Elysian wasn't really paying attention to Alex. He drew Candice to the sofa just as Bruno brought over the hot cocoa and encouraged her to quickly drink up.

"You should have gone to bed earlier," Candice suggested.

With a light-hearted laugh, Shawn replied, "And miss your arrival? Impossible."

Candice quietly enjoyed her cocoa.

Upon ending his call, Alex came over and asked, "Grandfather, are you feeling unwell anywhere else?"

Shawn responded irritably. "I'm perfectly fine as long as you don't bother me."

Alex momentarily froze at his grandfather's sharp retort.

With a wave of dismissal and a frown, Shawn told him, "You'll find more cocoa in the kitchen."

Alex briefly looked at the cocoa cup in Candice's hands, his eyes deepening, but remained silent.

Due to his age, old Mr. Elysian wasn’t able to remain downstairs long after speaking with Candice before he had to retire to his room.

Before doing so, he made a point to ask Candice not to leave. "Please stay the night,” he suggested. “Stay here. We can have breakfast together tomorrow.” He turned and addressed Alex. "You shouldn't drive in the rain like that. It's far too dangerous to drive in conditions like these."

Not wanting to seem rude, Candice agreed to stay and followed Bruno to her assigned room. It was just across from Alex's. It was the same room she had stayed in when they had visited as a couple on previous occasions.

Just before she closed her door for the night, Candice noticed Alex engaged in another phone conversation, his expression even graver than before.

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Rainy nights were normally beneficial to good sleep, but Candice slept poorly, perhaps owing to the change in the environment. She got up extremely early the next morning. Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

As she stepped out of her room, Alex was leaving his room.

He looked visibly tired, with slight dark circles under his eyes and his shirt partly unbuttoned, revealing a glimpse of his collarbone and Adam's apple.

Candice could feel the harshness in his gaze, he seemed to have woken up on the wrong side of the bed. After a brief pause, she proceeded downstairs without showing any emotion.

Shawn was already up and about. He expressed his surprise at their early waking. "It's just six, what has you both up at this hour?"

As Alex was fastening his shirt, he mentioned in a deep voice, "I've got to head to the office."

"It's rare for Candy to be with us. Have breakfast before you go, would you?" Shawn suggested warmly.