Before Skylar could dial Logan’s number, Samantha hurried over. "Y-Young Master, I’m afraid we can’t go there."
Skylar looked at her innocently. "Why not?"
"Because..." Samantha hesitated. "Your mom and dad are on their honeymoon."
Arthur immediately cleared his throat loudly and, with a subtle look, shook his head at her, silently telling her to stop before she made things even harder to explain.
Unfortunately for them, the unfamiliar word had already caught Skylar’s attention. He tilted his head curiously.
He blinked twice, then looked from Samantha to Arthur. "What is a honeymoon? I remember hearing the word, but I don’t understand what it means," he asked innocently.
Arthur closed his eyes for a brief moment. ’Of all the questions, why did it have to be that one?’
Samantha quietly looked away as if the ceiling had suddenly become fascinating.
Arthur rubbed his forehead before forcing a smile.
"Oh, uhm, a honeymoon is..." He paused, desperately searching for an answer that a six-year-old could understand. "It’s... a special vacation for husbands and wives and usually is taken immediately after they get married."
Skylar nodded thoughtfully. "Hmm... So it’s like a special vacation after school graduation?"
Arthur hesitated before nodding thoughtfully, "...Yes, young master, something like that."
Skylar’s eyes lit up. "Oh!"
Arthur finally relaxed.
Then Skylar added, "If it’s just a vacation, I can go too!"
Arthur’s smile froze, and his mouth slightly dropped.
Samantha quickly covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing.
Arthur looked toward the ceiling again and silently prayed that his master would call soon, because he had a feeling convincing a determined Skylar not to interrupt his parents’ honeymoon was about to become the hardest job of his career.
...
The Island.
Zachary gently pulled his exhausted wife closer, making sure the blanket was wrapped securely around her. Only her neck and face remained visible while the rest of her body stayed comfortably covered. Satisfied that she was warm enough, he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.
"You can sleep now..." he whispered. "I’m going out for a while to check on all the staff."
Sienna slowly forced her heavy eyelids open and looked at him, her eyes sleepy.
"The staff?" she asked softly. "So... are there other people on this island?"
Zachary smiled and brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face.
"Hmm. The old caretaker and his quiet but diligent wife, who look after this place, have a small cabin on the other side of the island," he explained casually. "I wasn’t planning to ask them to come today, but the master bedroom and the kitchen are a bit... messy. We need the room spotless cleaned before leaving."
The corners of Sienna’s lips lifted into a tired smile. She didn’t need to ask why the bedroom was such a mess. The memory alone made her cheeks warm.
As she lay quietly in his embrace, another question suddenly crossed her mind. She had been meaning to ask him ever since they arrived, but had never found the right moment.
"Zach..."
"Hmm?"
"How long are we staying here?"
He gently stroked her hair while answering.
"We’ll head home tomorrow."
She nodded weakly.
"Hmm..."
He looked at her for a moment before smiling.
"Do you want to stay longer?"
She thought about it for a second. Although the island was peaceful and beautiful, she missed Skylar. She also knew they couldn’t stay away from work forever.
"No."
"Then tomorrow it is." He leaned down once more and kissed her forehead. "Get some more sleep, my love."
Sienna smiled faintly before she closed her eyes again.
Within moments, her breathing slowed and steadied.
Zachary remained beside her instead of leaving immediately. He continued to hold her gently, watching her peaceful sleeping face with a soft smile. Seeing her so exhausted made him feel a little guilty, but at the same time, he couldn’t help feeling grateful.
Several more minutes passed before he carefully loosened his embrace.
He moved as quietly as possible so he wouldn’t wake her, making sure the blanket remained properly covering her.
After confirming that she was sleeping soundly, he quietly got out of bed, picked up his phone from the bedside table, and left the room without making a sound.
Outside, the bedroom had already returned to its usual neat appearance.
The old caretaker and his wife had finished cleaning to perfection. And with a slight respectful bow at Zach, they quietly returned to their cabin on the other side of the island.
Zachary walked into the living room and sat comfortably on the sofa before unlocking his phone.
The moment the screen lit up, his eyebrows rose.
Ten missed calls from Skylar.
Four missed calls from Arthur.
"...What happened?"
His relaxed expression immediately disappeared.
Arthur rarely called him repeatedly unless something important had happened.
A faint sense of worry crept into his heart. "Did something happen at home?" he murmured.
Without wasting another second, he opened Arthur’s messages.
The first text appeared.
"Master, please call Young Master Sky immediately. He wants to come to the island."
Zachary frowned.
He opened the next message.
"Master, this is urgent. Young Master has already packed his luggage."
His eyebrows lifted higher.
Then another message appeared.
"Young Master has called Logan and asked him to come to the main house. He plans to leave this afternoon unless you call him."
Zachary couldn’t help smiling. The final message made him laugh out loud.
"Master, Young Master said he will definitely go to the island if you don’t call him before four o’clock."
He let out a helpless chuckle and leaned back against the sofa.
For a moment, he had genuinely thought something terrible had happened.
Instead...
His little boy simply missed his parents.
He checked the time. It had already been an hour since Arthur sent the last message.
"No wonder Arthur sounded so desperate."
Shaking his head with amusement, Zachary immediately closed the messaging app and dialed Skylar’s number.
The phone barely rang once before it connected.
"Daddy!"
Skylar’s voice burst through the speaker before Zachary even had a chance to greet him.
"You finally answered your phone!"
"I’m here, buddy."
"Are you okay? Is Mommy okay? Did pirates attack your island? Did you get lost? Did your phone fall into the sea? Arthur said maybe there was no signal, but I called you, and it rang!"
The barrage of questions came one after another so quickly that Zachary couldn’t stop smiling.