Forbidden Passion
Chapter 644 Ice Cream

Evelyn's eyes flickered. When Phoebe was pregnant and secretly went to Canada, Cindy had a part in it.

"If you had told me back then, I could've been the first to hold them."

Cindy was dumbfounded, seeing the fleeting resentment on Evelyn's face. She awkwardly laughed twice, "Evelyn, I'm gonna hang with Hubert, Boris, and Noomi for a bit." "Go ahead." Evelyn waved her hand.

Seeing Phoebe walk in, Evelyn asked, "How'd it go? Everything cool?"

"Just a scare, nothing more," Phoebe summed up the afternoon's hospital drama in one sentence, not wanting to worry Evelyn.

"Had dinner yet? Want me to whip up something?" Evelyn glanced at Cindy, who had quickly blended in with the triplets, feeling a bit jealous.

"We ate at Cindy's place. No need to trouble yourself. If you're tired, go crash in your room. Cindy and I got the kids," Phoebe said.

Evelyn felt even more bitter. Phoebe mentioned Cindy at every turn. The first person Phoebe told about her pregnancy was Cindy, and Cindy was also the one who accompanied her during childbirth. As a mom, Evelyn felt increasingly useless. "Got it; I'm useless now. It's only nine o'clock and I already need to go to rest," Evelyn said sarcastically.

Phoebe was speechless.

She didn't get what was up with Evelyn again. Seeing Evelyn head to the bedroom, she pinched her nose, "If you don't wanna rest, you can chill a bit longer. I was just worried you might be tired from watching the kids all day." "I'm not tired. I used to play cards all night without getting tired," Evelyn stubbornly refused to admit she was getting old.

Phoebe was at a loss for words.

She pushed the suitcase into the living room and saw Cindy sitting cross-legged on the play mat, with the triplets climbing all over her like monkeys. Cindy was having a blast.

Phoebe went to the kitchen to pour Cindy a glass of water and placed it where the three ones couldn't reach. She then sat down on the play mat. Noomi, tired from playing "climbing trees," collapsed on Phoebe's lap, whining, "Mom, I was really good today. Can I have an ice cream as a reward?"

Noomi had been banned from snacks for a week for running around in the morning. In the afternoon, when Hubert and Boris were eating ice cream, she watched longingly and even sneaked a few licks when they weren't looking. Indeed, stolen treats tasted all the sweeter.

Phoebe gently tapped Noomi's nose, "It's too late today. Eating ice cream isn't good for your stomach. If you behave well tomorrow, you can ask Grandma for an ice cream in the afternoon."

"But I want to taste it today. It'll make my dreams so sweet," Noomi pleaded softly.

Phoebe looked at her lovingly, "Do you want to wake up in the middle of the night with a stomachache?"

Noomi had experienced gastroenteritis before from eating something she shouldn't have, and she had suffered from vomiting and diarrhea for three days, losing several pounds.

Remembering that painful experience, Noomi naturally didn't want to go through it again, "No."

Phoebe nodded in satisfaction, "Then we'll have it tomorrow afternoon, okay?"

Noomi's little face scrunched up in a dilemma. If Hubert and Boris also had ice cream tomorrow afternoon, she would get one less. She bargained with Phoebe, "Mom, can I have two tomorrow afternoon?" Phoebe saw through Noomi's little scheme immediately and shook her head, "No, you can't."

"Okay." Noomi failed in her negotiation but didn't get angry. She flipped over, got up, and ran to Cindy to play "climbing trees" again.

At ten, Phoebe wrangled the three sweaty little ones into the bath. Despite their boundless energy, they were wiped from all the playing.

Phoebe handed each kid a bottle of milk. They lay in bed, sipping away, getting sleepier with each gulp. Eventually, they finished, tossed the bottles aside, and crashed, hugging their favorite toys.

Phoebe put away the bottles and saw Cindy still sprawled out on the play mat, looking totally drained.

Phoebe went to the kitchen, washed the bottles, popped them in the sterilizer, and heated up a cup of milk. She brought it out, sat next to Cindy, and touched her cheek with the cup.

Cindy opened her eyes wearily, clearly exhausted.

Cindy glanced at Phoebe and then closed her eyes again, "They're getting more energetic. Evelyn must be really tired watching them."

"Yeah, kids at this age are curious about everything. The moment they wake up, they're bouncing around. It's really tiring," Phoebe said, recalling how exhausting it was when they lost track of Noomi for a moment during the day. Cindy asked, "Have you hired a nanny?"

"Yeah, the company you recommended has high standards. But my mom isn't very comfortable with it. She doesn't let the nanny stay overnight," Phoebe sighed.

Although Evelyn often complained about the hardships, she was very attentive to her grandchildren's safety. Until Evelyn fully trusted Pamela, she wouldn't let her stay overnight.

Cindy nodded, "It's good that Evelyn is cautious. After all, it's triplets."

"Yeah," Phoebe leaned against the railing, "Why don't you stay over tonight? It's too late to go back."

Cindy yawned, "I was thinking the same."

Phoebe handed her the cup of milk, "Drink this and go wash up."

Cindy lay there for a while before sitting up. She took the milk and drank it in one go, slumping her shoulders, "Taking care of kids is exhausting."

Phoebe couldn't help but laugh, "Yeah, when they were in my belly, I kept thinking it would be easier once they were born. Now I realize the easiest time was when they were in my belly. I could go anywhere I wanted. Now, it's so hard to go out."

"But it's still better to have them born."

Phoebe took the cup from Cindy, "Go wash up. The toothbrush and towel are in the cabinet. Help yourself."

Phoebe washed the cup and put it back in the cabinet. She then went to the bedroom to take a shower. Coming out, she sat on the bed, looking at Hubert, Boris, and Noomi's synchronized sleeping positions, and couldn't help but laugh. Phoebe picked up her phone and scrolled through Facebook.

There were no trending topics about Noah anymore. Using a secondary account, she browsed Noah's Facebook page. Fans were promoting Noah's work, with almost no mention of the afternoon's chaos.

Stanley had done a reliable job. She needed to talk to Stanley about an annual service plan; given how often situations like today's occurred, it was wise to establish a good line of communication with Facebook in advance. Putting down her phone, the bedroom door opened, and Cindy walked in, marveling at Phoebe's large bed.

"What a big bed. Am I sleeping here tonight?"

Phoebe smiled and patted the pillow she had just taken out of the closet, "You sleep next to me. Hubert, Boris, and Noomi roll all over the bed when they sleep."

Cindy lay down next to Phoebe and patted the spot beside her, "Lie down, I'm so tired."

Almost as soon as she said it, Cindy had already fallen asleep. Phoebe smiled helplessly, reached out to turn off the light, and lay down to sleep.