"Mom, they went home with Claire," Gilbert said, his expression cooling as he forced a faint smile.
"Her home?" Amanda blinked, clearly surprised.
"Claire has a home of her own?"
"Yes. She rented a place."
"Rented?" Amanda's voice turned uneasy. "What kind of place could that be? A rented apartment... how decent can it really be? A woman raising three children on her own, it's not easy. How is she supposed to manage that? Why didn't you bring the children back here?"
Gilbert let out a weary sigh. He looked helpless.
"Mom, besides Adam and Dean, Claire also has another child. They all need her. It wouldn't be fair to that child if Claire stayed here all the time. That's why I didn't stop her from going back."
"And you're just fine with her taking Adam and Dean with her?" Amanda frowned.
"I'm not fine with it," he admitted. "But what can I do? It's not like she kidnapped them. It's only for a week. They'll come back next week."
