Will distributed the drinks.He thought of how much Julian had spent to get them to put in good words for him to Quinn. Whenever he visited the gym, he would treat everyone to food and even cater to their requests. He would send the food over himself and ensure there was enough food for everyone. They could not even finish the food sometimes. With the large number of people Julian treated every time, the money he needed to spend was definitely not a small sum for ordinary people like them. As Quinn mentioned, how often could she treat everyone to a meal with her meager income? Will thought, โMy salary is the highest among the coaches, but even I canโt do what Julian can.โJulian was for sure filthy rich, as expected of a mega corporationโs CEO. Will looked around for Julian and Quinn as he handed out the drinks. When he saw they were still outside, he thought, โJulian mustโve fallen in love with Quinn at first sight.โThat was why Julian traveled a great distance to Summerva
โLetโs go inside. Itโs cold out here,โ Quinn said with the bouquet and lunch box in hand. Julian followed her inside. When everyone saw the bouquet of roses in Quinnโs arms, their gazes turned playful. Even the children sensed something was different when they saw their coach holding that bouquet. Quinn walked toward them. โCoach Quinn, the flowers are so pretty.โโDo you want some fried chicken? Itโs almost finished.โโDid Julian give you the roses, Coach Quinn? Why did he do that?โQuinn smiled and said, โYou guys can finish the rest of the chicken. Donโt worry about me. Julian packed a separate serving for me. He said he noticed the roses were lovely when he passed by the florist, so he bought a bouquet for me to admire them.โDonโt the roses look beautiful? I think the bouquet is gorgeous. I like it.โEveryone complimented the beauty of the flowers. On the other hand, the gazes of Quinnโs training mates shifted from Quinn to Julian, who had a sly smile, and lastly
Everyone laughed. โWe werenโt bribed by Julian. Weโre just speaking the truth. Julian is genuinely good and is a perfect match for Quinn.โAnother coach whispered, โI think Julian also likes Quinn. Mainly because, of all the young men Quinn has encountered, apart from us seniors, there hasnโt been a decent one. Mr. and Mrs. Crawford are also worried.โโIf Julian wasnโt good, we wouldnโt approve of him pursuing Quinn. I see that Quinn gets along well with Julian. But I always feel that Quinn treats Julian the same as she treats us.โThese words made everyone involuntarily nod, feeling deeply resonant.There were many seniors and juniors, but it was Quinn, their junior, who made them worry. The main issue was that Quinn habitually treated males as buddies, and they felt helpless.They had thought about introducing a boyfriend to Quinn, but her requirement was for the person to be skilled in martial arts. Those who could not match Quinnโs martial prowess would sneak into the martial
โQuinn, about this bouquet of flowers, I mean, when you received it, did you have any thoughts?โJulian gathered his courage and asked Quinn.Quinn finished eating the fried chicken wing. While eating, she said, โThoughts? Yes, I just think this bouquet is really beautiful. I wonder who grew these flowers, theyโre so well taken care of. If it were me taking care of them, they wouldโve wilted long ago.โJulian did not utter a word.โAlso, when I received the bouquet and looked at the roses, I thought of pancakes. Suddenly, I wanted to eat pancakes. Iโm going to order now.โWhile saying so, Quinn took out her phone and was about to order pancakes online.โIโll buy you some. I have a friend traveling from the south. Iโll ask him to bring some pancakes for you. Theyโre definitely better than what you can order here online.โQuinn said, โUnless itโs the freshly made ones, buying it online or not doesnโt make much difference, right? I heard the freshly made ones are delicious. Next ye
Quinn thought about mentioning that it would be too troublesome for him, but she changed her mind at the last moment. She then nodded and said, โIโll take up your offer then.โQuinn treated Julian when he was in Summervale. Now that she was planning to visit Wiltspoon, he would be treating her. That way, they would not owe each other anything.โQuinn, besides pancakes, whatโs on your mind?โJulian got back to the main topic.They looked at each other.After a moment of eye contact, Quinn tentatively asked, โWhat else would I think of? Something like thinking that you like me just because you gave me flowers?โI know that you like me. I like you too. If we didnโt mutually like each other, we wouldnโt have become friends.โAfter a brief silence, Julian said in a low voice, โHave you never thought that my affection for you isnโt just platonic, but the affection a man has for a woman?โโYouโre a man, and Iโm a woman. Your affection for me is exactly a manโs affection for a woman. W
Julian stood up to go after her but was stopped by Will.He turned to see Will and had to suppress his temper. โWill, Iโm going to check on her.โโDonโt go now. Let my sister calm down, and think about it. Itโs not that she doesnโt like you, she just needs time to digest this news and accept that your feelings for her are romantic and not just platonic.โJulian said, โItโs very cold outside, and itโs snowing. Iโm afraid she might feel cold.โโYou might feel cold, but she wonโt. Weโre born and raised in Summervale, accustomed to this kind of winter since childhood. Itโs different for you. You came from Wiltspoon, where thereโs barely a winter. Quinn wonโt get cold. Donโt worry. Let her go outside, get some fresh air, calm down, and think it over.โWill understood his sister very well.โYour sudden confession caught her off guard. She needs time to process it. Itโs just temporary confusion, thereโs no big problem. But you, canโt you wait for a more opportune time to confess? Sendin
โWill, what can I do now?โKnowing that Will acknowledged him, Julian regarded Will as an ally and could not help but ask for guidance.Will answered, โYou can either stay here and watch, or you can go back and help my mom cook. Anyway, you donโt need to worry about what Quinn is doing. Sheโll come back in the evening, and after she returns, the two of you can have a good talk.โYou just need to make her believe that your feelings for her are sincere.โJulian said, โI understand. Thank you, Will. Iโll go back and help with the cooking.โAppealing to the future mother-in-law was the battle half won. Quinn was not frightened by Julianโs confession. She just found it hard to believe and heard a man say he loved her for the first time.She came out of the gym shivering, braving the cold wind, and her mind became clear.She did not spend much time outside and quickly ran back home.Fortunately, the gym was very close to her house.Zoey was still preparing the ingredients for toni
When she first met Julian, her heart beat faster and she would drift into daydreams upon seeing him. As time went by and they became closer, interactions with him were no different from those with her fellow coaches. When alone with Julian, everything felt natural; her heart did not race, and there were no more wandering thoughts.She thought the relationship with Julian was more of a camaraderie between brothers.She never expected Julian to express his love for her.Quinn felt her face heating up.She touched her face and even gave it a light pat, muttering to herself, โQuinn, are you feeling shy? Is it because a man said he likes you, and now youโre all fluttery? Stay calm, stay calm.โJulian would not worry about future domestic violence issues as her previous blind dates did. After all, he was a formidable martial artist himself, capable of defeating Will.She was no match for Will.If Julian could beat him, it meant his skills exceeded hers. What was there to worry about?
Austin replied, โBoth Mr. Louis and Mr. Phillip woke up very early, especially Mr. Phillip. He gets up earlier than Mr. Louis every morning. Itโs really hard on him, getting up so early in such cold weather.โSometimes, he himself felt like staying in bed a little longer, reluctant to leave the warm comfort of his blankets.Even after the New Year, Satbury remained quite cold. In contrast, over in Wiltspoon, the temperatures had begun to reach a high of over seventy degrees Fahrenheit in the daytime, with nighttime lows around fifty degrees.The two provinces and cities were simply incomparable. The temperatures in Wiltspoon were just so very comfortable for Satbury locals.Isabella smiled and said, โPhillip is just afraid heโll get here too late and that youโll assume heโs not coming over for breakfast, then not prepare any for him. He's such a little foodie.โThe house was never short of snacks for the little ones. In fact, any goodies were always reserved for them first.Yet,
Even when she attended banquets, she would show up in formal clothing. Isabella did not remember the last time she wore a dress. Perhaps it was when she was in third grade. In fact, she liked wearing pretty princessy dresses when she was young. Her mother had told her that.As Isabella was the first child and extremely adorable, Delphine had dolled her up like a princess. Her pretty dresses filled the closet. Her parents, aunts, uncles, and relatives would always gift her many beautiful dresses. As she grew up, perhaps when she was in fourth grade, she stopped wearing dresses. Regardless of who gave her new pieces, she would refuse to wear them and give them to her cousins instead. After everyone realized she disliked dresses, they gradually stopped giving her them. Delphine had asked Isabella why she disliked wearing dresses. Isabella reasoned that she could not walk quickly enough while wearing one. She valued speed and efficiency. Delphine said she had alway
While the private chefs Ms. Isabella had hired in the past were respectful, they were leaning toward flattery instead of sincere dedication, like how Austin was toward Ms. Isabella.Dominic was experienced. He could sense that Ms. Isabella treated Austin differently. She was also a special existence to Austin. It was normal for young people to be attracted to each other. Initially, Dominic wanted to advise Austin not to even think about dating Ms. Isabella. However, upon discovering that Austin was a young master of a wealthy family, he decided not to interfere. Dominic was glad that he did nothing.Austin returned to the house. Instead of heading straight to the kitchen, he went upstairs. He stopped outside of Isabellaโs room and knocked on the door lightly. No response came from within the room. Perhaps Austin was too soft when he knocked. He knocked on the door again with more force and asked, โAre you up yet, Ms. Isabella? Itโs time to have breakfast.โIsabella w
Austin was extremely patient with the boys. Although they occasionally caused trouble, most of them were minor issues. They would never do something they were not allowed to do.After breakfast, Austin brought them their bags. With a boy in each hand, he left the house. It was to prevent the boys from saying he was playing favorites. Dominic was used to that scene. Initially, Austin was simply Ms. Isabellaโs private chef. However, he gradually took on more responsibilities.He would take the two young masters to school. If he had time in the evening, he would also fetch them from school. Austin also made sure Louis and Phillip did their homework, supervised their hobby classes, and played with them. Sometimes, he would even teach them martial arts and train with them. Dominic felt Austin was an all-rounder. It seemed like there was nothing Austin could not do. No wonder Ms. Isabella thought highly of Austin. However, Austin was a young master of a wealthy family. He w
Louis and Phillip were downstairs having the breakfast Austin had prepared for them. The food was different every morning, and everything was delicious.Having gotten used to Austinโs cooking, Louis and Phillip could no longer stand the food provided in the school. They thought the food there was terrible. Louis was enrolled in an elementary school not far from home. As he was a first grader, he did not need to stay in the dormitories and could have his lunch and dinner at home. Phillip, who was a year younger than him, was still in preschool. He would have breakfast and dinner at home. Actually, the preschool did provide breakfast, but Phillip refused to eat in school and insisted on having breakfast at home. In order to eat the breakfast Austin made, he would get up early in the morning without the adults waking him. After putting on his clothes and washing up, he would head to Louisโs place with his bag. โAustin.โLouis suddenly asked, โDid my sister come back last n
Isabella had always thought Tati was teasing her. Therefore, she did not take her words seriously. She thought it was completely normal for Austin to treat her well as she was his boss. From Austinโs perspective, she was his source of income. Now that Isabella pondered about it deeper, she realized perhaps Austin did come to Satbury for her. It was not just to be her chef. He always said Grandma May only gave the York lads a year to pursue their fiancรฉes. However, Austin had never left since he started working for Isabella. Even if he did, it was to accompany her on business trips. He was busy feeding and taking care of her every day and had never gone to pursue his so-called fiancรฉe. He did not even try to gather information on her. Was he not anxious?A year would go by pretty quickly. Although it felt like it had not been long since Austin started working for Isabella, three months had passed. Time really flew. Three months had gone by in the blink of an eye. Neve
When Austin reached the door, he stopped and turned to say, โMs. Isabella, I only care about my future wife. Other young women are simply strangers to me.โIโm polite to other women when I need to be. If theyโre unimportant, Iโll ignore them. Even if that woman is my boss, I wonโt cross any lines. If I do, there must be a reason behind it.โGet some rest, Ms. Isabella. You might have a headache when you wake up tomorrow. Iโll prepare a warm honey drink for you in the morning.โAfter speaking, Austin left. Isabella turned to look at where he last stood. What did his words mean?He said he only cared about his future wife.Aside from this lady, he would not step out of line with any other young woman, even if she were his boss. What did he mean by crossing lines?Was it showing concern? Did he mean that if his boss was a young woman but not his fiancรฉe, he would simply do what was required of him without any personal feelings involved? Was that what he meant?If so, was
Isabella was cold sometimes, but that was not her true personality. She was a reasonable person. Austin was not worried that he would be mistreated as a live-in son-in-law. โMs. Isabella.โIsabella looked toward him and waited for him to speak. He asked, โThis may be abrupt, but may I ask what your ideal type is?โIsabella was stunned. Why did the question come to her? What was the type of man she liked?โSomeone like Austin,โ she thought. After a moment of silence, she said, โI like men who are capable, responsible, and have correct values. Even if his family isnโt as financially well-off as mine, I donโt mind so long as heโs honest, competent, and sincere about his feelings for me.โOf course, itโll be great if we have the same social status. That way, weโll have similar perspectives and more common topics. If we get married, weโll be joining forces instead of it being a one-way financial aid.โโAlthough you can accept someone who isnโt from a similar family backgrou
After a moment of silence, Isabella said, โItโs okay. I know I was forcing it.โThere was no point in asking Austin if he did not want to reveal anything. If he wanted to tell her, he would do so without her asking. However, her curiosity spiked with his silence. She was eager to know who his fiancรฉe was. He was already so protective of his fiancรฉe even though he had not met her before. It made Isabella jealous. It was her first time feeling that kind of emotion throughout her life. Although it was not a strong feeling, she still felt it. โYou werenโt forcing me to tell you. You were simply curious. Most people have a curious side. Itโs only natural for you to be inquisitive as well.โAustin said gently, โItโs not just you. Those who knew that my nana had chosen fiancรฉes for my brothers and me were also curious about who the ladies were.โTo be honest, we didnโt even know Nana had been choosing fiancรฉes for us since a few years ago until she handed their pictures to us