Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

Norris was still buzzing, "Man, Owen's a good boy."

Taking a sip of his water, he smacked his lips and added, "Really..."

Roseanne couldn't help but laugh, "Dad, you're looking at him like he's your high school crush or something."

"Nonsense! Your mom's the only crush for me!"

Roseanne just rolled her eyes. Full to the brim!

After a tiring day hiking up the local trails yesterday, Norris and Madge decided to have a laid-back day at home.

Roseanne was all for it.

Refreshed, the family of three ventured out the next day.

Their main agenda was visiting the historical museum downtown.

Roseanne had booked the tickets a week in advance.

Madge even had a photoshoot in vintage attire.

The photographer couldn't help but praise, "Ma'am, you've got such an aura, like you've stepped right out of the past, haha..."

Madge, flattered, joined in the laughter.

No woman dislikes a compliment, after all.

True to the photographer's word, the pictures turned out stunning.

That night, Norris slept alone while Roseanne snuggled next to her mom.

Madge held her like when she was a child.

Breathing in the familiar scent of her mom, Roseanne quickly drifted off to sleep.

In the morning, Roseanne checked her emails as usual and found a response from a biology journal she had submitted to, asking her to fill in some missing references. She had checked before finalizing the draft but wanted to be thorough.

"Dad, Mom, I'll head to the library for a bit. Should be back by noon."

"All right, dear, go ahead. We'll manage."

By noon, the weather had taken a sudden turn.

One minute the sun was blazing, and the next, the skies turned gloomy.

Looking worriedly outside, Madge said, "Looks like a storm's brewing. Anne didn't take an umbrella. Should we drop one off at the library for her? It's not far."

Norris agreed, and they were about to leave when they heard footsteps downstairs.

The motion sensor lights flickered on, showing Owen standing there.

"Owen, back early today?"This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

Norris and Madge had run into Owen frequently over the past few days, gradually striking up a friendship.

"Heading out, Mr. And Mrs. Cole?"

"Yeah, this weather's turned on us. We were about to take an umbrella to Anne at the library."

Owen had noticed the changing weather too. The air was heavy, a storm imminent.

He knew the library had spare umbrellas, but he sensed Norris and Madge's intent wasn't just about delivering an umbrella but also wanting to pick up their daughter.

"The library's a bit of a maze. How about I guide you there?"

"Oh, no need to trouble yourself," Norris waved off, "You've just got back. We found our way there once; we should manage."

"It's no trouble. I actually left some materials at the lab and was heading back anyways."

Owen wasn't entirely fibbing. He did leave materials in the lab, though it wasn't urgent.

After a brief exchange of looks, Norris and Madge accepted, "Well, we appreciate it. We were fretting about navigating those winding paths again. What if we took a wrong turn..."