Isabella returned home, and Charlotte greeted her with a smile.

 

"Isabella, you're back. You didn't come home all night last night, and your dad and I were worried," she said.

 

She listened, her expression inscrutable. If they were truly concerned, they would have at least called her.

 

"I'm sorry for worrying you and Dad. I'll make sure to call ahead next time," she replied but didn't explain her whereabouts from the previous night.

 

Charlotte, however, didn't seem to care much. She wasn't Isabella's biological mother, so she had no reason to be concerned about who Isabella was spending her time with.

 

"Why do you look so tired? You probably didn't...