Liberty instinctively responded. She did not read too much into the situation. Firstly, Liberty was past the age of dreaming. Secondly, she was married, and thirdly, she was no longer the belle she was before marriage. Liberty had now gained some weight and her appearance had changed.Duncan grinned. “Let’s talk about the repairs.” It threw Liberty into a tizzy. She did not have much savings left. Judging by the damages this time, the repairs must cost a lot more. She would have to drain her bank account to pay Duncan and endure Hank’s name-calling for being pathetic. The stroller merely scraped Duncan’s vehicle in the last incident, but she had to fork out nine thousand bucks. “Where do you live?”“Bright Boulevard.” “That’s a good catchment area. You made a good choice and bought the place quickly.” The houses at Bright Boulevard were all sold. “My husband bought the house before we got married. He’s still paying the mortgage. Mr. Lewis, how much would the repairs
Liberty looked at Duncan. Duncan knew that she was overthinking it again. The woman was rather distrustful of him. He explained, “My point is, don’t leave your son home alone while you come down to take the things if there’s no one else in the house. It’s not safe.” Her son looked to be around two or three years old. Kids that age tended to be active and cheeky, intrigued to touch and play with anything and everything. There was no turning back if something happened to the kid for fooling around with something dangerous. “Thank you for your advice, Mr. Lewis. I’ll head upstairs now.” Liberty carried the packs of diapers and thanked Duncan before hurrying back upstairs. She thought to herself that Duncan might not look the part of a nice guy since he was big, strong, and had a terrifying scar on his face, but he was a considerate and attentive man. It was a reminder never to judge a book by its cover. Duncan waited until Liberty was gone before returning to his car and
Grandma May must have her reasons to take a shine to Serenity. Zachary fell silent for a while before replying, “What’s there to see? She has two eyes, a nose, and a mouth just like everyone else.” “Haha.” Duncan burst out laughing. He got the hint that his best friend had no intentions to let them meet with Serenity. Josh probably had met Serenity and knew her well because Josh was nosy and had an information network to get all the info on her.Duncan left the conversation at that. Knowing that his best friend was busy, he quickly hung up the call. Time passed quickly. It was soon dead into the night. Sitting inside the Rolls Royce, Zachary knitted between his brows as the weariness began to take its effect. He must be in over his head in the last few days for trying to cram three days of work into one. Of course, he was tired. “Sir, should I drive to Regent Residences?” The chauffeur asked. Slumping against the seat, Zachary closed his eyes and took his time
Zachary picked up the maneki-neko once more as his wife said, “I made your maneki-neko bigger than the one I gave Ms. Stone. I put a lot of effort into it. What do you think? Doesn’t it look lifelike?” The mention that his was bigger than Ms. Stone’s made Zachary feel good. However, he did not show it on his face and simply hummed faintly, “Yes.” Serenity grinned. “I’m glad you like them.” She put her car keys on the coffee table and turned around to head to the kitchen. “I’m making pasta for supper. Do you want any?” She then answered on her own before Zachary could reply, “Oh, I forgot. You don’t have the habit of eating supper because it adds pounds.” Zachary thought to himself, ‘… What more can I say? You said it all.’Nevertheless, he was not hungry. Serenity was boiling a pot of pasta in the kitchen. Zachary stood there for a moment before making his way to the kitchen door. Instead of stepping into the kitchen, he stood by the door and watched as Serenity sliced the
Josh was able to figure it was Shawn mainly because the latter attended the business event at the hotel tonight. Shawn might only hold a small position at Lowe Enterprise, but he was the predetermined successor of the company. His title as the heir of the Lowes would put him like a duck to water at the center of flattery and snow jobs at social events. Zachary’s silence was all the answer Josh needed. “How about I deliver the file to you now? Are you staying at Brynfield?” Josh knew that his best friend kept the marriage under wraps and bought a furnished place at Brynfield to put Serenity’s character to the test. “No need for that. Just give it to me tomorrow. It’s late. You should rest. I’m going to wash up and head to bed.” Although Josh had front-row seat to the progress of Zachary and Serenity’s relationship, Zachary was not in the mood to go into detail with Josh about it. Zachary quickly hung up the phone. Josh murmured under his breath, “Can you sleep well tonight?
While feasting on her pasta, Serenity sent a text message to her sister, asking if the latter was asleep. Instead of writing back, Liberty immediately rang Serenity. Since typing took a lot of time, Liberty would rather communicate directly on the phone. “Seren, I’m awake. Did you just return home?” Liberty had a clear idea of her sister’s routine. Back when Serenity was living in Liberty’s place, Serenity was the last to sleep but the first to wake up. Liberty was aware that to appease her husband, Serenity would get up first thing in the morning to prepare breakfast and manage some house chores. Her sister had done so much for the family, and yet Hank kicked up a fuss about Serenity mooching off him. Serenity had, in fact, chipped in on the household expenses… Judging by his cold and empty side of the bed, it did not matter to Liberty anymore. All she cared about was her sister. “Yeah. I’m having supper. Liberty, Shawn said he ran into my brother-in-law with a beau
Wiping away her tears, Liberty got a grip on herself and tried to sound normal. “I figured, but I didn’t expect it to happen so soon.” Despite having an affair, Hank kept it from Liberty and had not brought up a divorce. If her guess was right, it was because of Sonny. Sonny was young and could not deal with separation anxiety. Liberty’s parents-in-law were helping Chelsea to look after her kids and cook while Hank only had eyes for his family. Even Hank put his sister as his priority over her. He did not think there was anything wrong with his parents assisting only his sister. Once they were divorced, the Browns would certainly fight for Sonny’s custody. However, Hank would feel sorry to put the burden of child-raising on his parents unless Sonny was already in kindergarten. Hank was probably waiting for Sonny to start attending kindergarten before asking for a divorce. The only thing he could do now was to go passive-aggressive on her. “Liberty, you might want to keep
Liberty cried for a long time and only put away the tears when Hank came home. She pretended to be asleep, but her ears were pricked up for the noise outside. Ever since the domestic abuse, the couple had slept in separate rooms. Hank must be scared Liberty might cut him up in the middle of his sleep. The bedroom door was pushed open, but Hank did not enter. Instead, he looked in from the door. Seeing that his wife and child were asleep, he closed the door and went to the bedroom next door. With the door shut, he phoned Jessica. “Mr. Brown.” “We’re not in the office. Call me Hank.” Hank spoke in a hushed tone so his wife could not hear him from the next room. “Are you home, Hank? I was so worried about you. You drove home even though you had a lot to drink. I was worried sick. Don’t do that again. It’s dangerous to drink and drive. You’ll be in trouble if the traffic officer catches you driving under the influence.” Jessica expressed her concern for Hank over the phone
“She lost the child when she fell on her own. That was our family’s flesh and blood, too!”Since Sonny did not live with the Browns, and despite her many objections, Olivia did not voice her criticisms toward Jessica when she was pregnant, out of consideration that Jessica was carrying the Brown family’s child.It was Jessica’s bad luck that she fell and lost the child, which made Olivia lose a grandson. If she had just one more grandson, she would not be waiting so eagerly for Sonny to return. It was all karmic retribution! “Mom, that's all in the past. I'm doing fine now. If the child wasn't meant to be, then it wasn't meant to be. They just didn't want to come into our lives. Anyway, Jessica is still my wife. I should go and see her. If I hadn’t corrupted her, she wouldn’t have ended up like this. It’s my fault, I ruined her.”When Jessica first became his secretary, she was still innocent and never thought of seducing him. It was he who fell for Jessica, and it was also he wh
Unfortunately, their regret and realization came too late. “I heard from Sonny that you and Mr. Lewis are getting married soon. When will the marriage be?”Olivia tried to make herself sound calmer. “We’ll be heading to the City Hall to complete the procedures later.”Olivia went silent. After some time, she said, “Oh, today? Congratulations, Liberty. I wish you both a happy marriage.”“Thank you.”Olivia initially had a lot of things to say. However, upon discovering Liberty and Duncan were getting their marriage license that day, the words got stuck in her throat. Saying anything was meaningless.Soon, Olivia hung up. Once the call ended, Luke, who had been sitting beside his wife, asked, “How did it go? Did Liberty agree to Sonny staying with us for a few days?”Olivia was still stunned and did not immediately reply to her husband’s question. At that moment, Hank came out of his room in his pajamas. When he saw his parents sitting on the sofa, he yawned and asked, “Wha
Serenity asked, “Duncan has no comments about it, right?”“No. He said that Hank would always be Sonny’s biological father. Sonny’s surname won’t be changed to Lewis as well. He’ll remain a Brown. That’s part of Hank’s and my divorce agreement.”Since Liberty had signed the agreement, she would keep her promise. No matter Sonny’s surname, the fact that he was a member of the Brown family would not change. If so, there was no point in changing his surname. “Duncan is so easygoing.”At that moment, Liberty’s phone rang.It was Olivia. When Liberty recognized her voice through the phone, she whispered to Serenity, “Speak of the devil. Olivia is calling me.”“What did you say, Liberty?”Olivia heard Liberty whispering but could not hear her clearly. She asked Liberty to repeat herself.“I was talking to my sister, Olivia. Why did you call?”It was still early in the morning. “You’re back from Jensburg, right, Liberty?”“Yes.”“That was what I heard. Look. The year is almo
“He doesn’t even want kids and said having Sonny was enough.”Duncan did not care about blood relations. Liberty believed him. He only cared about her. If Liberty had not had to manage the Fisher family, she probably would have taken more time to consider whether she wanted a second child. However, Duncan's love for her ran deep. She decided to try for another child so that he could have a child of his own. Liberty did not want to be selfish. She could not prioritize only herself and Sonny. She had to be considerate of Duncan as well. “By the way, there’s something that I need your help with.”Serenity said, “Oh you, don’t sound like a stranger. We’re sisters. I’m ready to help with whatever you need.”“I have to go to Jensburg next year. I think I’ll leave Sonny here in Wiltspoon for his studies. I’ll ask for Sonny’s opinion again once my situation in Jensburg is stable. If he wants to move to Jensburg to live with me, I'll bring him over.“If he says no, I’ll need y
“Morning, Liberty. The housekeeper said you weren’t out yet, so I didn’t want to disturb you.”Serenity stood and smiled when she saw Liberty enter. “I woke up when you arrived.”Liberty whispered, “Sonny is still asleep. Let’s go downstairs. You can accompany me on a walk outside too.”“What time are you and Duncan meeting?”Serenity was worried that Liberty would be late. Liberty said, “We still have to wait until the City Hall opens. Duncan and I agreed to meet at nine. It’s still early.”The three adults exited the child’s bedroom and went downstairs. Zachary remained in the house while Liberty and Serenity went on a stroll in the garden. Liberty’s villa initially belonged to Zachary. Although he sold it to Liberty, it was also considered a gift. She was the one who insisted on paying and refused to accept it as a gift. Therefore, Zachary accepted some money from her so that she would take it. The villas Zachary owned were never small. They usually came with garden
“As expected of a child’s skin. It’s so smooth,” said Serenity. “Catch me if you can, Isaac…”Sonny spoke in his sleep and even giggled. He dreamt of him and Isaac playing tag. When Isaac started running after him, he quickly turned to escape while laughing. He did not realize that he was dreaming. “I have two dads, Isaac…”Sonny spoke again.Serenity laughed and told Zachary, “Sonny must’ve had a blast yesterday. Even his sleep talking is related to playing.”She pinched Sonny’s face lightly. “You do have two dads, Sonny. They love you a lot, so you have double the love.”Serenity spoke gently, regardless of whether he could hear her. She bent over and left a soft kiss on his cheek. “That’s why you must be happy. I wish you a carefree life ahead.”She hoped he would grow up healthily and be worry-free. Sonny was in a deep sleep and did not reply to her. Liberty watched them from the door with an affectionate gaze. She felt content. Zachary and Serenity had a st
The night went by peacefully. The next morning, Liberty could hear her gates opening when she stirred in her bed. Soon, she heard her housekeeper talking. “You’re early, Mrs. York.”“Mm. My sister is getting married today. I couldn’t go back to sleep after I woke up, so I decided to come over.”While Serenity could not help Liberty and Zachary out with anything, she was excited to the point she could not sleep. It took Zachary a lot of effort to persuade her to sleep. However, she woke up at dawn after having a dream about her parents. She could not go back to sleep afterward and insisted on going to her sister’s place. Zachary thought he could sleep in since he was on break, but his wife just could not fall asleep. There was no helping it. The doting husband accompanied his wife to her sister’s house early in the morning. The housekeeper smiled. “Ms. Hunt isn’t awake yet.”“It’s okay. I won’t wake my sister.”Serenity finally felt at ease when she was at Liberty’s ho
After a pause, she said, “Let’s meet at nine in the morning. Seren and Zachary will come over to my place. They’ll be looking after Sonny for me. I’ll head out after they arrive. You can wait for me at the City Hall’s entrance.”“No. I want to go to the City Hall with you.”Duncan did not want to wait for her at the City Hall. He wanted to go together.“Bring Sonny along.“We’ll be a family of three from tomorrow onward. We should bring him along.”He would officially become Sonny’s father tomorrow. It did not matter that he was a stepfather. It was Duncan’s first time adoring a child that much, and he did not expect that he would later become that child’s father.After giving it some thought, Liberty said, “Okay. Let’s take Sonny with us.“By the way, Sonny won’t change his surname after we get married. That was Hank’s condition when we got divorced. Since I promised him, I’ll keep to my word.”Sonny would still be the grandson of the Browns. He would not become a Lewis.
Although Sonny was backed by a few wealthy families and would be well-supported even if he was incompetent, they still hoped he would turn out to be an outstanding individual. That way, he could be independent and achieve his goals without much help. Duncan had not thought about Sonny’s education plan. However, he knew Liberty had high hopes for Sonny. Even Serenity had never neglected Sonny’s nurturing. Despite only being in preschool, Sonny had started various hobby classes. It was to build a solid foundation and develop his interest in certain hobbies while still young. The only time he could fully enjoy playing was during winter and summer vacations. Liberty and Serenity had similar philosophies when it came to children’s education. They believed children had to study hard and play hard. Liberty nodded and said, “Sonny can have all the fun he wants when he’s young. Once the situation in Jensburg is stable, he’ll have to study and live there.“I wonder if he’ll be willing