Isabella pinched her younger brother’s face. She said, “Did you miss me or Austin?“Why are you asking after Austin as soon as I got out of the car?”At that moment, Austin stepped out of the last car. He happened to overhear Louis’s question and smiled. “I’m here, Mr. Louis.”Louis and Philip heard him and looked in his direction. Upon confirming that it was really Austin, they immediately ditched Isabella and dashed toward him. As the boys were not too close to Austin, they were embarrassed to ask him to lift them even though they wished to. However, it felt as if Austin could read their minds. He carried Louis with a grin and spun him around, making Louis giggle. He put Louis down and repeated the action with Philip. The little boy enjoyed the upsy daisy too. Isabella watched Austin interact with her brothers from afar. She had to admit that he was good at making children happy. Louis and Philip were unfamiliar with Austin. After all, he had followed Isabella on a
Isabella was surprised. “You look after your sister-in-law’s nephew too?”Although Austin was her private chef, he had an established career in Wiltspoon. She thought he would be busy, so it was a surprise to hear that he also babysat.It would be understandable if it were his nephew, but it was his sister-in-law’s nephew. “Not often. We’re a big family. The elders love fighting over who gets to play with Sonny whenever he comes over. I just tease him sometimes.”Austin added, “I mentioned this earlier. I have many cousins. Although my dad and his brothers don’t live together, their houses are close. Our families often come together to spend time over meals. It is always very lively, just like how it is in your family.”The O’Connor family’s atmosphere was decent. The family in power was respected, while the branch families were dedicated to assisting the main family. Whenever a problem arose, the main family’s decision was prioritized. The O’Connor brothers had minimal confl
If the O’Connor family relied on Isabella’s father and not her to manage their business, they would have gone bankrupt long ago. Old Mr. Connor had known that his children were not very capable. Therefore, he started training his granddaughters young. That way, they could take over the company, and his sons could step down as soon as possible. Even if things would be difficult for Isabella and Tati, he believed they could overcome it. He also had no choice because the O’Connor family had more daughters than sons. Delphine only felt less guilty after giving birth to Louis. Isabella said, “Don’t you like painting? You can paint something. I can even hold an exhibition for your artwork when the weather gets warmer next year.”Delphine’s eyes gleamed. She was good at oil painting, but it was mainly a hobby. She had never considered earning money with it, let alone holding an exhibition. However, she found herself considering it after Isabella brought it up. Delphine wanted t
“I know, Mom,” replied Louis. The mischievous boys could not sit still. After standing, Louis told Isabella, “I’m going to build snowmen with Phillip outside. Phillip’s snowmen always look amazing. I want to build better ones than his.”Isabella said gently, “Okay. Come back if it gets too cold.”“Got it.”The cold usually would not bother the kids when they were having fun.The two boys ran out of the house giggling. Midway, Louis turned back and went to the kitchen to get Austin to make a few dishes he wanted for lunch.He ran out happily upon receiving an affirmative response. On the other hand, Phillip did not have any special orders. He knew Austin was Isabella’s private chef. Since he was having free meals at Uncle Hadrian’s place, he had to eat what was available and not be picky. Besides, even the vegetables Austin prepared tasted delicious, let alone other dishes. Louis and Phillip started building snowmen outside. Delphine was asking Isabella about her busi
Delphine smiled. She said, “You didn’t gain weight. You just look more filled out and not as skinny as before. It’s a good thing.”Isabella replied, “I didn’t eat a lot. I was busy and even worked out every day. How did that happen?”“It means that you’re satisfied with Austin’s cooking. Your complexion will improve if you eat your meals timely and get sufficient nutrients.”Delphine was most satisfied with Austin among all the private chefs Isabella had hired. Not only could he cook delicious food, but he was also handsome and had good manners. In fact, he did not look like a chef at all. He gave off the feeling of an elite or a young master of a wealthy family. Austin was gentle and polite whenever he spoke as well. If he changed out of his chef’s outfit into a suit, then he would look like a fine gentleman. “Yes. I’m pretty satisfied with him for now. Is Tati still at the office, Mom?”Delphine replied, “Tati has to run the company and attend meetings since you were on a b
“I’ll take a nap after lunch and head to the office before three o’clock. I’ll then have a meeting at half past three so Tati can be home early. Aunt Margaret won’t have any more complaints.”Delphine pouted and said, “Margaret complains too much. Does she think I have a lot of free time? I have more responsibilities as her sister-in-law. I don’t see you often either, despite us living in the same house. Does she see me complaining?”When she woke up, her daughter would already be at the office. When Isabella got home, she was usually fast asleep. Therefore, Isabella and Delphine could hardly meet each other. Who could she complain about it to?After marrying into the family, she and Margaret had no choice but to tolerate such occurrences. It was because they had incompetent husbands but capable daughters. “By the way, the Longbottom family from Havenmill has sent us invitations several times to their banquet that’ll be held a few days later.“Mr. Longbottom came to visit a
Delphine had heard rumors about the Longbottoms. She said, “There are too many conflicts within wealthy families. The family members end up turning against each other.”“Most of the wealthy families experience internal power struggles. Even the closest of families can become enemies for power.”Isabella said, “When I was on my business trip, I heard things have been turbulent for the Fisher family in Jensburg lately. The previous matriarch’s descendants and the current matriarch are fighting for the position of matriarch. There were even rumors that the previous matriarch was killed by the current one.“No one knows the truth, but the situation has escalated. I heard many things about it.”“Regardless of what’s happening to other families, we should remain a peaceful and harmonious family instead of breaking apart like the others.“We must try to be light-hearted and not be too calculative, Isa. The more calculative you are, the easier conflicts will arise. We’re family. Won’t it
There were a few candidates, but Isabella was not interested in any of them. She had high standards too. “Let’s not talk about this, Mom. I’m hungry. I’m going to get some snacks.”Isabella got up. She did not want to discuss that topic with her mother any longer.Delphine said, “The snacks we have now were prepared by the pastry chef because Austin was away with you. You usually dislike his snacks because they’re too sweet.”However, the rest of the O’Connors liked the baked goods made by the pastry chef.Isabella was the only outlier because she was picky.She could eat some of the desserts Austin made. However, he said he was not that good at baking. Delphine had tasted the desserts Austin made. They were not as sweet as those made by the pastry chef and had better texture. Maybe that was why Isabella could stomach Austin’s desserts. Isabella went to the kitchen. Austin glanced at her when she entered but quickly refocused on his work. He said with a smile, “You mus