Tiffany felt troubled. “Oh? You want me to talk to him about that? That’s not a good idea. The last time we had a meal, I told him about my pregnancy. He left without eating a single bite. I haven’t spoken to him in days, and you want me to talk to him about this? I don’t think I can. I had a suspicion that he was interested in me, but now, it’s pretty much confirmed. We’ve stopped talking. I can’t seek him out…”Arianne wasn’t discouraged, despite hearing this. “Fine. It really doesn’t seem like a good idea for you to see him now. I’ll find another way. I want to meet with him. It shouldn’t be a problem for you to set up a meeting for me, right? I’ll speak to him in person.”“Sure.” Tiffany agreed. “Setting a meeting should be fine. I’ll contact him for you later.”Tiffany turned around after ending the call and nearly stumbled into Jackson’s arms. She jumped from fright and stumbled backwards. “How long have you been there?” He couldn’t have heard about her pregnancy, could he?J
Summer was appeased. “You should have done this long ago. I’ve told you, the relationship between you and Jackson doesn’t matter. This is between us. We should talk more often. Your mother and I agree. Come, sit down. We’ll be eating very soon.”Tiffany nodded. She had just sat down when Jackson walked in. The weather was too hot outside, so there were a few extra droplets of sweat on his smooth forehead. He let out a sigh of relief when he felt the air-conditioning in the house. “Mom, I need a glass of water. Do you have any ice?”“Get it from the kitchen yourself,” Summer said, annoyed. “Get Tiffie a glass of fruit juice while you’re at it. You know what she likes. Make it slightly warm; girls should avoid having too much ice.”Jackson shot Tiffany a begrudging glare, then headed straight into the kitchen.Tiffany was feeling slightly pleased and very grateful at the same time. Summer was so nice to her…Suddenly, Summer eyed her tummy and asked, “Have you been sitting around a
Jackson blinked a few times before he helplessly rose to his feet. “For the love of God, can’t the two of you just stop? Or must I be out of here to make y’all shush? Let me be clear. You two better not run around like monkeys after dinner so as to not bring me any trouble, you hear?”Watching him relent made Summer and Tiffany exchange smiles. In that split moment, it felt like they were family again.Tiffany was downright voracious. She appeared to have developed particular cravings. She loved every dish Jackson made but rejected anything that was made by the West family’s hired cook. It was moments like these that helped her growing awareness on the evolution of her taste buds and food cravings. Thankfully, it seemed that she was spared from other less pleasant changes pregnancies typically brought.Jackson seized the chance to jab at her. “Well, well, well! Have you been trapped in a closet under the stairs without food for ages?”Tiffany scowled at him. “Excuuuuse me, mistah!
Jackson was in such a downer mood that he ignored Tiffany’s question. Instead, he hastened his pace, leaving the baffled woman behind.Something finally clicked in Tiffany’s mind, prompting her to quicken her steps and catch up. “You’re referring to what I said at the dinner table, aren’t you?” she called out. “The answer is no. I didn’t say it because I didn’t want dinner to be awkward. I said it because I meant it.”Jackson halted, his steps falling into place as a gust zipped past him and billowed his hair, disrupting both of their hearts.He did not dare to look back, as though he was unsure of the statement’s veracity. “What did you say?”“I said, I didn’t say anything because I was afraid of some awkwardness around the table. I said what I said because I meant it. You and your cooking are alike. They’re both delicious and exactly my type.”Tiffany had always fancied herself a relatively thick-skinned person, but when those words left her lips, she could feel her cheeks warm
Jackson did not release his grip. Instead, he held her more tightly, as though Tiffany was a treasure he had taken too much time to recover. “I can’t sleep, babe. And who says you have to sleep just because you’re tired, huh? Don’t move. I wanna hold onto you a little longer.”Tiffany may say no outwardly, but her body was already submitting to his demand. It changed into a more comfortable position in his embrace for maximum comfort while she continued watching her drama. It was then that he suddenly clapped on her bouncy stomach and remarked, “You’ve gone a little bigger.”Tiffany froze before kicking him away in a sheer act of reflex. “Are you crazy?” she cried.Her reaction startled him. “W-What’d I do?”His action shocked her too much. His force might not have been a lot, but it was not at all light, either, especially when he hit too close to where the baby was. After calming herself, she finally said, “Can you please not hit my stomach like that anymore?”Jackson thought it
He was so anxious that he dared not move. “Can you please not do that? And be gentle with yourself, will you? Take a page out of Arianne’s book from when she was pregnant. She was careful instead of acting like it’s nothing! You know what? I’m sleeping in another room. You’re on your own, so take care. Don’t find yourself rolling off the bed in the morning.”Tiffany was surprised that Jackson would leave her. “Wait, so you’re serious? Really? Uh, whatever then. If it makes you happy, then go sleep elsewhere. Meanwhile, I’m gonna enjoy this big, wide bed for myself to my heart’s content. Move aside! And turn off the lights on your way out.”Jackson made his way out of the bedroom, shooting her multiple worried glances every few steps on his way. Then, on his way out, he switched off the lights and closed the door.Jackson admitted that he might have acted a little too anxiously, but he just could not help becoming more restrained whenever he was reminded of the new life now incubatin
With the lights turned off, the room became too dim for Mark to see the alluring contours of her body. Still, his tactile senses became sensitive to the suppleness of her skin.Perhaps all these nights neglecting the physical aspects of love made today’s act noticeably shorter than it usually was. As passion eased, Mark breathed into her ear, “I’m a bit… tired…”Arianne had not yet recovered from her daze. “Mm, understandable. You’ve spent your whole evening handling Smore. I would have been just as tired if it were me. Go to sleep.”The lingering yearning in him prompted him to nibble her earlobe. “Fine.”Arianne waited until Mark was soundly asleep before pulling out her phone. She had not had the time to check her notifications just now. Just as she thought, Tiffany’s texts were there. Apparently, her best friend had already booked Alejandro’s time for Arianne. The two of them were to meet each other in a café by tomorrow noontime.Arianne had not expected Tiffany to be so effi
She took advantage of the silence in the night and crept to the door of the guest bedroom. “Jackson… Are you asleep?”Less than two seconds later, the room door opened. Jackson appeared, barefoot and staring at her. “What?”She buried herself into his arms. “We’re back together again. Aren’t you happy? Why aren’t you reacting?”He pursed his lips. “What reaction did you expect from me? What kind of reaction could I possibly have at a time like this? That’s enough, go to bed. Get an early night’s rest. It’s late. Staying up like this would be bad for the baby.”Tiffany was extremely disappointed. It was as if the fire in her loins had been doused by a block of ice. “Fine, I’m going. I hate you!”Jackson rubbed his eyes as he watched her go back into her room. In reality, he was wide awake from excitement. He leaped off the bed to open the door and forgot to put on his slippers when he heard her voice. Except… He was too afraid to sleep with her. Only god knew how much she was suffe
Arianne had not heard that name for so long, she had to reel back in bemusement for a few seconds before finally remembering her face.Shelly-Ann Leigh… She must have spent all those years in the mental institution, right? God knows if the woman’s hair was now grey and white all over.When someone was near death, one could stand to forgive all of the history between them—even the dark ones, even if the ledger was brimming—for good. So, Arianne replied, “I’ll go with you. No matter what happened, she’s still your mother.”Mark did not expect that answer from her at all. In his surprise, he bent down and left a kiss on her lips. “I knew I picked the right woman as my wife. I thought you wouldn’t agree to let me accompany her for the last of her days…”Arianne replied nothing. She was not so obtuse that she would try to win over a woman whose days were numbered. No matter how much of an a**hole Shelly was, Arianne was still the one who came out on top. That victory was all she needed.
Arianne sneered. “You confused, little thing. I wouldn’t be daft enough to anger the mother of the man I like if I were you, girl. I would especially not say anything as low IQ as that, too. Let me be completely frank with you: no one who bears the surname of Leigh will ever get the better of me—the last one failed. Hard. I can guarantee that you’ll leave us in the span of three days. If I lose, you can stay here forever. Wanna bet? I dare you.”She left her threat hanging at that and turned her wheelchair away, leaving the scorned young woman behind.Rage came out of Raven as waves of quakes all over her body. She was lurching close to hyperventilation, but right before it became impossible to stop, she came around and battled herself to calm down. She had a feeling that even if she fainted right there and then, no one would discover her, would they?Now that Arianne and Mark had returned, the Tremont Estate had recovered its vivacity and life. It had become merry.And Raven Leigh
Melissa was the type who always pushed things to go as festive as logically possible. She leaped to her feet and raised her cup, “Yo, everyone! Let’s toast to Cindy becoming my cousin-in-law!”The crowd answered enthusiastically with their cups in the air and a roar—except Raven, who remained seated. “I have a sickly constitution. I can’t drink. I’m sorry.”Her smile was so mechanical, her face too ashen. Something flickered in Arianne’s eyes before she replied, “Sure.”After the revelry faded, Arianne steered her wheelchair to the courtyard. The outward appearance of the Tremont Estate seemed to have frozen in time, which was why being here made her feel so… safe.Of course, that was despite Henry and Mary’s passing. In the end, time passed and things changed, characters and objects came and went, and all these missing years left lingering regrets in their wake.Arianne espied the silhouette standing alone at a distance and approached her, sighing, “Nothing beats being home.”Ra
Arianne grabbed the two beauties by the hands and smiled. “Thank you! Gosh, to me… it’s like you two have grown older in the blink of an eye! How gorgeous the two of you are! Cindy, where’s your brother? Plato hasn’t come home yet?”Mentioning the name of her dear brother made Cynthia pout. “He said he was coming home half a month ago—that’s what he said. Who knows what he’s actually doing, though? Anyway, who cares about that no-good. He’s always like this anyway. Oh, um, the weather is quite hot. We should probably get inside.”Arianne nodded and shot a brief, uneasy look at Aristotle. Not once did he look like he wanted to talk to her… Could the boy be counting his grievances in his mind? Mark and Arianne had stayed in Switzerland for so long; life must have been hard for him all alone.It took until she reached the living room to finally notice Raven. “Millie, is this your younger sister?”Melissa quickly sprung to correct her. “What? Noooo. This is Ares’ classmate or something
Aristotle’s entire being stilled.He had waited for this news for nineteen years. As time passed, the flames died little by little, the heart grew more numb, until the very thought of it was no different from a pipe dream. But today, news of it coming true reached him and plunged him into a torrent of feelings.A long while later, he finally muttered under his breath, “When… When will they be back?”Jackson closed the distance between them and gave the young man a light, comforting pat on the shoulders. “Not so soon, I bet; not when your mother has just woken up and is in need of some time to recover. She did sleep for nineteen years, you know. So maybe after she’s recuperated enough for a while…” he answered. “We’ve waited for nineteen years for this, right? What’s waiting for just a little bit more compared to that? The most important thing for you to do is to manage the company to the best of your abilities. That’s the way to not disappoint your father’s expectation.”Aristotle
Cynthia had never had a relationship before, so she did not know what love was. However, one thing was for certain. She loved the feeling of being with Aristotle and how he had protected her since they were kids. Even though Aristotle had become a little domineering and “naughty”, she was not taken aback by him. Instead, she even felt a little moved, which was amazing.It wasn’t known how they ended up in bed, with their breaths synchronized. Apart from the final step, they had done just about everything else that could be done.Just as they were about to hit the final step, Aristotle suddenly stopped and helped pull the covers over Cynthia. “Let’s sleep, good night.”Cynthia was still lost in a daze from before. She did not know why Aristotle had suddenly stopped, nor did she have the courage to ask him. She had struggled for so long before having persuaded herself to go with the flow…The next day, when Cynthia woke up, Aristotle had already long gone to his company.She took a
Cynthia heard what Aristotle said, but her hands did not stop doing what they were doing. Her head was in a complete mess. “There’s no… no need. I’ll be able to be done with these now. Go ahead and get some sleep first. By the way, where am I sleeping tonight? There are so many rooms here, I’ll ask Agnes to help me clear one up.”Aristotle walked up to her and squatted. He grabbed onto her arm with one hand while the other closed the luggage. “Just sleep with me here and stop tidying already.”Cynthia suspected that she might have misheard. She took a look at the big bed behind him in a daze and suddenly felt her palm, which was held by him, burning up. “Y… You’re kidding, aren’t you, Ares? Although we used to sleep with each other a lot when we were kids, we’re all grown ups now, so wouldn’t that be a little inappropriate?”Aristotle said with a straight face, “I wasn't joking.”Cynthia panicked a little and recalled Melissa’s words once again. ‘Would Ares, whom I’ve known for so
Melissa knew that Aristotle had kissed Cynthia, so she knew what was going on. Hence, she very naturally boasted, “Of course, they’ve been engaged to each other since they were born. Coincidentally, the both of them felt the same way about each other as they grew up, so wouldn’t this make it even better? From the way I see it, your illness isn’t going to recover for the rest of your life and the both of them are probably going to have to wait until Cindy graduates before they get married. So, you’d be better off moving back to France as early as possible. Don’t worry, you’ve saved Aristotle’s life before, so he wouldn’t be stingy with you financially.”Raven wanted to control the unhappiness she had in her heart very much, but her emotions refused to follow her will. Hence, she fiercely struggled to wring free from Melissa’s grasp. Melissa was startled for a moment. “Are you crazy?”After that, Raven regained her senses and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry… I was a little unwell just n
‘You’re not that worried?’ Melissa was so furious that she laughed. “Am I the only one who’s being worried for nothing? I thought you loved my brother, didn’t you? The man you’ve been dreaming of every day has returned from France but brought a woman with him, yet you’re actually not that worried? Let’s put aside your parents’ intentions for a moment. Do you dare to say that you don’t love him? I’m only helping you because you’re my best friend, so could you not be so relaxed, as if I’m helping you for no reason?”Cynthia shook her head and lowered her volume as she said, “He… might have confessed to me. We also… did that already. So, I think he doesn’t feel that way towards Raven. It’s purely because she saved his life once. I trust that Ares will be able to handle the situation properly.”Melissa’s eyes opened wide. “What? He’s only returned for a few days, yet the two of you have already had sex? That fast?! I never knew it, but you’ve really got it in you!”Cynthia’s face flushe