Carrie smiled and nodded. “Yes, we’re quite close and my in-laws are busy with work, and so is my husband. I’m the only one who has free time on my hands, so naturally, the responsibility for her care has fallen to me. She’s really clingy and is closer to me than to my mother-in-law.”“That’s why I have to drop her off and pick her up every day. She refuses to let the driver or the nanny do it.”Carrie realized she was getting better at making things up.Besides, all she needed to do was turn up here and occasionally bump into Serenity. It was not like she needed to actually pick up a kid and leave with one.Serenity said, “Kids are like that. She’ll feel closer to whoever’s there for her all the time. My nephew’s really close to me too. He doesn’t even make a fuss crying for his mother whenever she goes on business trips.”“Right? My sister-in-law’s the same.”Carrie very patiently discussed the difficulties of raising a kid with Serenity. Serenity had been helping Liberty to
“Why don’t I take you to Dunc’s office and you can accompany him there while I go to your grandaunt’s place to visit the baby?”Serenity teased Sonny.Sonny immediately rejected this idea. “I want to go with you to Grandaunt Audrey’s house to see the baby.”Following that, he asked, “Aunt Ser, when can the baby play with me? Every time we go to see him, he’s sleeping or crying. When he cries, I can’t get him to stop. Why is he always crying?”Serenity led Sonny by the hand to the car. The bodyguard pulled the car door open and she carried Sonny into the car.Once she was in the car too, she answered, “Babies are all like that. He still doesn’t know how to speak, so he doesn’t know how to tell us when he’s hungry, or thirsty, or when he has pooped. All he can do is cry, and the adults will pay attention to him then and try to find out why he’s crying.“You were like that too when you were little. When you were his age, you were even harder to take care of than he was.”Serenity l
Serenity took the little boy in her arms and sat him on her lap.Then she grabbed a piece of tissue to wipe his tears away.Normally, Sonny seemed so happy-go-lucky. Nevertheless, he was only a three-year-old and still could not do without his mother. Now that Liberty was in Jensburg, even with Serenity and Zachary taking care of him and with Duncan’s constant presence, he would still miss his mother.He missed her even more now that she had called.“Really? Then I won’t cry anymore. Mom, won’t Dunc and I disturb your work?”Sonny really did miss his mother, but he also knew she was very busy and was worried his visit would disturb her work.Liberty said gently, “It’s fine. You’re coming for the weekend and Mom rests on weekends too. And I want to spend time with you even if I don’t get to rest.”She missed her son very much too.It was just that she was not done with the things she had to do in Jensburg and still could not return to Wiltspoon for the time being.It was also p
“Aunt Audrey.”Serenity greeted Audrey with a smile.Audrey nodded and asked, “Did you pick Sonny up today?”“Duncan’s busy this afternoon, and since I’m not working full time right now anyway, I’m free to pick Sonny up.”As she said this, Serenity reached out to carry the little guy, “Sonny, you should come down and walk by yourself. Don’t make Grandaunt Audrey carry you.”Audrey hurriedly said, “It’s fine, I can carry him in. Sonny is a little bigger now, but he’s still a little kid and isn’t that heavy. Just carrying him for a bit won’t tire me out.”However, Sonny still obediently slid out of Audrey’s arms and onto the floor before looking up to say, “I don’t want to make Grandaunt Audrey tired.”Mom and Aunt Ser had told him before that Grandaunt Audrey was getting on in years and was considered an elderly person, so he should be more considerate of her and not make her carry him all the time.Audrey ruffled Sonny’s hair and laughed. “Sonny has such a sweet little mouth.”
Despite what she said, Audrey brought them upstairs. Alice and her son were asleep. Upon seeing that, Serenity pulled Sonny back and stopped Audrey from entering. She whispered, “Let Alice sleep, Aunt Audrey. Let’s not disturb her.”Audrey nodded and closed the door lightly. Sonny was slightly disappointed. He had wished to play with the little brother. Back on the first floor, he sat on the sofa and had some snacks. Then, he played in the living area by himself. There were some toys left in the Stone family’s house from Sonny’s previous visits. Elisa had bought them for him. The number of toys had increased since then, and most were new. They were probably for the baby. Sonny decided to try the new toys out first. “I want to ask you about somebody, Aunt Audrey.”Audrey looked at her niece with curiosity. “Who is it? Do you even need my help?”Serenity could have obtained any information she wanted just by asking Zachary. Serenity smiled. “It’s a woman. Zachary doe
After some thinking, Audrey replied, “I’ve lived in Wiltspoon for decades and joined the circle of elites when I married your uncle. Although I recognize most of the women, I’ve never heard of someone called Mrs. Longbottom.”Serenity said, “She said her husband isn’t a local but simply a permanent resident in Wiltspoon. Most of their family businesses are overseas. She also mentioned that her husband’s family keeps a low profile, so they probably rarely attend banquets.”Audrey replied, “No matter how low profile they are, businessmen are bound to interact with each other. Although they’re just permanent residents, they must’ve socialized with others at some point. I really don’t recall hearing the name Longbottom.“Maybe they aren’t qualified enough to be in our circle yet.“Why are you asking about this person? Is there something off with her?”Serenity explained how she got to know Mrs. Longbottom. She added, “I have a sense of familiarity whenever I see her. I think her figur
“Wait. There’s one, but he’s a child. It’s Jane’s adopted son, Laurence. He’s a Longbottom, but he’s still young… Which reminds me, when Ben and Jane brought Laurence over last time, Josh told Zachary that he noticed a tycoon had shown up in Wiltspoon. However, that person left quickly, so they could not find out his name or where he came from.”Just then, Serenity thought of Laurence’s background and unleashed her imagination. “Do you think that person came to Wiltspoon to look for someone to be his pawn, Aunt Audrey? Perhaps he was trying to set up a trap.“That doesn’t sound right either. If he wanted to do something, he should’ve gone to Annenburg instead of Wiltspoon.”If that man’s aim was Laurence, Wiltspoon was not the best location. Moreover, he would have done something long ago if his sole target was Laurence. Laurence’s enemies feared almost no one, not even the Johnsons. They were only slightly wary of the legendary doctor and company, who had ties with Dr. Carden.
Audrey smiled. “That she is.”While they were talking, they suddenly heard Elisa’s and Remy’s voices. “Elisa’s back,” said Serenity. When Sonny heard that, he immediately hugged his toy and dashed out. Worried that he would fall, Serenity quickly got up to follow him. Audrey remained in her seat. She turned and watched Serenity from the sofa with a grin. However, the corners of her mouth gradually went down as she thought of her deceased sister.It would have been great if Lisa was alive. Audrey wished her parents were still around as well. Their family would have been so lively. She and Lisa would never have separated, and Lisa would not have died. She wondered if her mother’s assistant, Patrick, was still alive. He was a key figure. They had utilized all resources to look for him, but there was no news. After all, most people had little memories of that elderly assistant. Audrey had a vague impression but did not know if the portrait she drew based on her memori
Austin replied, “Both Mr. Louis and Mr. Phillip woke up very early, especially Mr. Phillip. He gets up earlier than Mr. Louis every morning. It’s really hard on him, getting up so early in such cold weather.”Sometimes, 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, “Phillip is just afraid he’ll get here too late and that you’ll assume he’s not coming over for breakfast, then not prepare any for him. He's such a little foodie.”The 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 Isabella’s 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, “Are you up yet, Ms. Isabella? It’s time to have breakfast.”Isabella 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. Isabella’s 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 Austin’s 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 Louis’s place with his bag. “Austin.”Louis suddenly asked, “Did 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 Austin’s 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 fiancées. 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 fiancée. 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, “Ms. Isabella, I only care about my future wife. Other young women are simply strangers to me.“I’m polite to other women when I need to be. If they’re unimportant, I’ll ignore them. Even if that woman is my boss, I won’t cross any lines. If I do, there must be a reason behind it.“Get some rest, Ms. Isabella. You might have a headache when you wake up tomorrow. I’ll prepare a warm honey drink for you in the morning.”After 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 fiancée, 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. “Ms. Isabella.”Isabella looked toward him and waited for him to speak. He asked, “This may be abrupt, but may I ask what your ideal type is?”Isabella was stunned. Why did the question come to her? What was the type of man she liked?‘Someone like Austin,’ she thought. After a moment of silence, she said, “I like men who are capable, responsible, and have correct values. Even if his family isn’t as financially well-off as mine, I don’t mind so long as he’s honest, competent, and sincere about his feelings for me.“Of course, it’ll be great if we have the same social status. That way, we’ll have similar perspectives and more common topics. If we get married, we’ll be joining forces instead of it being a one-way financial aid.”“Although you can accept someone who isn’t from a similar family backgrou
After a moment of silence, Isabella said, “It’s okay. I know I was forcing it.”There 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 fiancée was. He was already so protective of his fiancée 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. “You weren’t forcing me to tell you. You were simply curious. Most people have a curious side. It’s only natural for you to be inquisitive as well.”Austin said gently, “It’s not just you. Those who knew that my nana had chosen fiancées for my brothers and me were also curious about who the ladies were.“To be honest, we didn’t even know Nana had been choosing fiancées for us since a few years ago until she handed their pictures to us