Eva was surprised when Callum insisted on them being dropped back off by his personal driver, Robert. But she didn't argue. It was one thing to run around frantically in pyjamas through the night, and another to do so on Sunday morning when families were going for a walk or run church or whatever else families usually did on Sunday mornings.
"When will you see the girls?" Eva asked as the girls were putting the jackets on by the door.
"I'll drop you a message." Callum answered coldly. Yep, he hated her. She was sure of that.
"Okay." Eva replied. She was struggling to feel optimistic about Callum and him having contact with the girls.
Being back in the apartment definitely made them feel at ease.
Eva was quick to shower and change, and as promised, they went to the park with a ball. Donna met them there awaiting to hear all about the girls first time with Callum. But as soon as found out about Eva having to go to help Suzie, her attention very quickly was diverted to how Eva felt about Callum. This did end up with Donna swearing at the existence of men again which made Eva smile a bit.
"Let me get this straight, you went in pyjamas with cartoons to his villa?"
"Yeah. Messy bun and all." Eva admitted in embarrassment.
"An she was there in full tuxedo and all."
"Yep."
"You need to step up your game, Evie. Show him who you truly are. And you're the badass who shouldn't be messed with."
"I'm a person who runs around in messy bun and pyjamas."
"You're that too. You're both. Which is great. Use it to your advantage. Play the game to your advantage. Put on your fancy dresses and expensive perfume. Be smart."
"I'm no longer that, Donna." Eva said with some sadness in her voice. Her past was coming back to remind her of itself more and more in recent days.
"You are though. You're used to fancy circles. You are used to spotlight. That Evie is still there. Just a little buried at the moment."
"Nah, I think I've put it past me. Besides, I'm not here to impress anyone. I'm here for the girls."
"Maybe. But just imagine all the fun you could have by driving him insane."
"I think I can do that in my cartoon pyjamas and fluffy slippers." Eva laughed.
Donna shook her head but laughed too.
They had brilliant time in the park with a picnic and lots of games. Then they went back to the apartment to make dinner. Girls liked to help in the kitchen and mix the cake batter for the dessert while Donna entertained them with a story of her travel to Egypt a few weeks earlier.
The following days seemed like going back to normal. Eva dropped the kids to school and then run to work, and then back again.
She received a call on Thursday from Simon, Callum's personal assistant.
"Good evening, Miss Green. I am Simon Gold and I am calling on behalf of Mr Anderson." Simon introduced herself.
"Good evening, Mr Gold."
"Mr Anderson would like to pick up Emmeline, Suzanne and yourself around 1pm on Saturday. He has an important meeting on Saturday morning so it might be expected that he will be late."
"Oh, okay."
"Could you recommend an activity for the day which might be of interest to Misses Webb?"
"Hmm…" Eva felt uneasy at Emmi and Suzie being called Misses Webb but she suppressed it. "They wanted to go to the zoo for a while."
"That's a splendid idea." Simon said with a surprising amount of enthusiasm. "I was also wondering if you could provide me with the list of things they like or need."
"I may need a think. I don't think they need anything. But I can send you a list of their interests. I'm sure that they would appreciate Callum knowing a bit more about them."
"Thank you, Miss Green."
If anyone has mastered their customer service voice, it was definitely Simon.
"Thank you, Mr Gold. I really appreciate your care on this matter." Eva smiled as she looked out of the window at her work. It was sunny again. The spring was in full swing.
"It's not a problem. Would you like to provide me with a list of anything you might need for your stay in the villa?"
"My stay?" Eva repeated returning to the call.
"Mr Anderson has said that he expects you to stay with Misses Webb while they acclimatise to the new arrangements."
"I see." Indeed, Callum mentioned his wish for her to stick around while the girls get used to him. But they never fully agreed on it. Eva was slightly irritated that he just expected her to do as he wishes. But she quickly pushed it away as she wanted to be there for the girls.
"I do not need anything, Mr Gold." Eva replied. "Thank you."
"Thank you, Miss Green. I shall see you soon. Have a good rest of your day."
"You too."
Eva disconnected and returned to working. Her work was so different to what she used to do. But it paid the bills. She was managing small projects of a retail company. Her job seemed to boil down to spreadsheets, reports, and meetings. She was now a senior to five people which she often managed. But… it was the kind of a job that sucked her soul out. She lacked the creative outlet that she had in the past but she also lost all of her flair.
She returned to filling out the spreadsheet with yet another set of equations.