Ruby closed her eyes before Ed even covered them with his hand, and she immediately accepted as Ed's lips devoured hers greedily. There was no gentle seduction; he knew Ruby wanted it too.Ed saw nothing wrong this time. Ruby wasn’t forcing herself; she was normal. Ruby genuinely wanted it, so the desire was there. She wasn’t desperate or reckless. She was simply enjoying what she could have in the moment.Ruby didn’t know how long she’d be able to keep feeling the warmth of Ed's hands, which gently squeezed, softly caressed, and intentionally made her moan.Ruby was unsure of the duration, but she would accept it and allow those lips to kiss her. Let them make her squirm, because it was delightful and intoxicating.“Are you always going to be this impatient?” Ed laughed softly as he embraced and lifted Ruby’s body, which seemed to be asking for more. Her movements were subtle, not excessive, but clearly showed what she wanted.Ruby hid her face in Ed’s neck, holding on for balance bu
“Just go on ahead.” Ruby urged Ed to hurry down and not wait for her.Ruby would walk very slowly, feeling as if she were experiencing an earthquake.Earlier, Ruby had asked Ed to drive without worrying about speed or conditions to get to Puerto Vallarta as quickly as possible. Ruby managed to hold back from vomiting but couldn't stop the dizziness.And Ed was very grateful for that understanding, including how Ruby didn’t complain or get scared when they had almost crashed several times.Ed ran into the ER and found Mia in the waiting room with Pedro.“Auntie! You didn’t answer any of my calls!” Ed shouted angrily at Mia.During the journey, he had tried to call Mia again, but there was no answer.“Oh…” Mia patted her dress, but she did not find her phone.“I forgot… I might have left it at home. I don’t know.” Mia shook her head. She had just followed the ambulance and hadn't had a chance to think about the phone.“It’s okay, Mi Amor." Pedro stroked Mia's shoulder, which looked like
"Stay here, you!" Ed pushed Javier to lie back down, but Javier resisted his hand."No. I want to go home. You see, I’m fine." Javier tried to stand again, and this time he succeeded."Pushing yourself doesn’t mean you’re healthy! The doctor hasn’t allowed you to go home, so I won’t either." Ed insisted.Javier clicked his tongue and broke free from Ed again."Listen to me. If I stay here, the doctor will make me take the medicine until I get better. At home, I’ll also take the medicine until I get better, but in a more pleasant environment. Obviously, I’ll choose to stay at home. The result will be the same."Javier then turned again to the doctor."Doctor, I can go home as long as I take the medicine, right? I already promised earlier." Javier smiled sweetly, but the doctor still had a stern face. He didn’t return the smile, only giving a slight nod."See? I’ll be fine at home. Let’s go!" Javier pulled Ed’s hand to help himself stand up, using Ed as support while walking."I don’t…"
"Is it morning already?" Ed asked with a sleepy voice. He woke up because Ruby moved beside him."Yes. I'm going to help Tita and comfort her. She feels very guilty about Javier being sick." Ruby found Tita crying last night. Javier's illness hit Tita hard; she felt it was her food that caused it."Huh?" Ruby was already sitting up, but suddenly Ed's hand grabbed her, pushing her back onto the pillow.Ruby squirmed, giggling, as Ed pressed his face against her neck. Immediately, Ruby began to express dissatisfaction due to the fleeting tickling, which was swiftly followed by a delightful sensation."Later," Ed mumbled. It wasn't as if Ruby could run away. Ed's hand was really holding her down, keeping her lying down.Ruby cursed again, her heart aching with disappointment at Ed's lack of action beyond a simple hug. Ruby felt a strong urge to cleanse her mind. It seemed too chaotic with lust. Ed simply desired to embrace her, and there was nothing improper with that; it was merely the
“We're fine.” Ed continued to respond, and his words should have been accurate. They didn’t do much—mostly Liz just slept—but all the casual chatting wasn’t bad.“She’s not afraid of me anymore.” Out of everything, Ed was most grateful for that. So did Javier.“Ah… What a relief!” Javier exhaled as he lay down on the sand.“I was worried she’d stay away from you, but it worked out.” Javier patted his brother’s arm, laughing again.“I’m starting to see that your idea wasn’t bad.” Ed stood up, brushing off the sand, then extended his hand to Javier. He was going to help him up, but Javier refused.“I still want to stay here. You go back first.” Javier waved his hand dismissively.“Tita will cry if you don’t eat.” Ed was going to ask him to eat at home.“Then just call me when it’s ready.” Javier gave a thumbs up, complying with the second request.“Okay, but come inside if the sun gets too bright. Your skin isn’t pale enough to sunbathe.” Ed glanced at the bright sun in the sky.“Yeah,
“You’ve scared her enough, Tia.” Ed sat down and immediately rebuked Mia as she entered the dining room with Pedro.Ed didn’t need an explanation as to why Liz chose to call Javier, who was at the beach. She was clearly intimidated by Mia, and understandably so. Mia’s attitude hadn’t changed at all, as proven last night at the hospital.Ed had thought Mia might be a bit more lenient after returning from that vacation, but distancing Mia from Liz was useless.“Are you talking about that bitch?” Mia squinted her eyes.“Liz. Her name is Lizeth,” Ed corrected patiently. He knew what his strong-willed aunt was like.“She’s still a bitch to me. I will never forgive her father! Just remember that! Ramos doesn’t deserve to be part of the Rosas family! If you took Marco Reyes into consideration, the situation would be different." Mia insisted.“Liz didn't do this to m
"ED!"Ruby's voice finally echoed, and Ed released his grip. Angelo collapsed, coughing hard."I'm sorry..." Angelo gasped and tried to stand. Ruby was confused again. If anyone needed to apologize, it should have been Ed, not Angelo."You've got some nerve lying to me so blatantly." Ed's voice grew lower."Sorry, but Javier asked for this. I... didn't agree. But Javier insisted." Angelo swallowed several times to steady his voice."You still dare to defend yourself?!" Ed hissed."Let's hear his explanation first. Don't get angry yet." Ruby felt the need to intervene again. They wouldn't get any answers if Ed stayed angry."I'll explain. There's no use hiding it anymore." Angelo nodded with a resigned look on his face.Ed wiped his face, which suddenly throbbed with pain. It was a sensation he hadn't felt in a long time, now resurfacing with his chaotic thoughts."Everyone, out." Ed didn't specify who he was addressing,
“Are you satisfied?” Ed croaked as he saw Javier open his eyes and look around.Javier squinted, not in anger but with a smile. The oxygen tube was now just under his nose, making his smile very obvious.“You can still smile? You think everything is okay?!” Ed shouted.He really didn’t want to be angry at him, but Ed didn’t understand how Javier could still smile. There is nothing to laugh about right now.Javier slowly lifted his hand, wanting to reach Ed’s cheek, but he couldn’t stretch that far, and his hand couldn’t move any further.Ed finally bent down so that Javier’s fingertips could touch him.“You… shouldn’t be angry. You’re old. Anger makes you look even older.” Javier tried to laugh but ended up coughing.“Enough.” Ed hissed, half-standing to call the doctor if the coughing didn’t stop, but Javier grabbed Ed’s
“Such chaos,” Liz lamented as she watched the crowd of rowdy children, who had become the main guests at her wedding.“Yeah, I didn’t expect it to get this wild either.” Ruby sat beside her, watching AJ hand out chocolate-covered strawberries to the other kids.He wasn’t alone—Claud, Val's second child, was helping him. They eventually grew close, even though their conversations were sometimes limited because Claud was more fluent in Italian than English. Still, they got along well enough.“How did it all start?” Ed frowned.“I don’t know.” Ruby was also unsure.“Maybe I shouldn’t have agreed when AJ asked.” Liz deeply regretted it.Somehow, AJ had convinced Liz to provide a chocolate fountain for her wedding, and it had become the source of chaos. The younger children were enjoying it, but soon chocolate stains appeared on the white tablecloths, as wel
"Do I have to? I already checked that document yesterday. Can’t you do it instead?" When Ed saw another email from Otiz, he complained.It was a financial report. Since Matteo had spread his investments in every direction—across more or less thirty companies—the financial reports Otiz received came from all directions, across different types of businesses. Ed hadn't anticipated this.Being an investor wasn’t as straightforward as it seemed. He still had to work.“You’re the one who has to check it. I’m just the middleman,” Otiz firmly refused.He could refuse because the request was made over the phone. Perhaps if they were face-to-face, Otiz would be more compliant. He was no longer blindly following Ed's orders, carefully sorting out what should and should not be done. He was only responsible for delivering financial reports, not reviewing them.Ed grumbled. He was quite used to reviewing company pa
"‘What do you want to show me?’ As she approached Ed, Ruby inquired.She left AJ's side; he was busy reading a story to his two younger siblings. Elena and Elisa sat quietly, either really listening or getting sleepy. It was already time for their afternoon nap."Read this," Ed shifted, making room for Ruby to sit beside him, and handed her a phone displaying an article in Spanish. Less than two hours had passed since the publication of this hot news story.Ruby didn’t pay attention to that, though, because she was immediately stunned by the headline.‘DEA ARRESTS MAJOR MEXICAN CARTEL AND EXPOSES BILLION-DOLLAR BUSINESS NETWORK’"What... you...?" Ruby turned pale and panicked, of course."Read it to the end," Ed said, pointing to the rest of the text that she had not yet seen.Ruby read quickly and frowned. There was no mention of Ed or Rosas anywhere. Only Reyes. Marco Reyes. He was the story's
Two black vans speed down a deserted road. It was already nighttime, and they were the only ones there. The end of the road was in sight—a black iron gate.“Ram it!”A shout rang out, and the vans didn’t slow down. The passengers inside, all dressed in black, held on tight as a deafening crash echoed.The gate fell, bent, but opened. The two vans barged through and stopped right in front of the brightly lit house.“Get in and kill everyone!”Another shout, and the people inside the vans scrambled out, storming into the beachside house. Some were carrying firearms; others were wielding clubs.However, as they entered, everyone froze. No one came to greet them. The house was supposed to be full of guards, which was why they had come in numbers—ready for a confrontation.In reality, what greeted them was silence. Not a single person appeared, even though the house was brightly lit.“
"AJ, don't make Abuela tired!" Ruby reprimanded AJ for running away with something, while Mia pursued him.But it was impossible to make AJ stop, especially since his younger siblings were laughing joyfully at his antics. Elisa and Elena had just learned to walk, and they happily followed him around.AJ couldn't stop when he had such an audience. Mia seemed to be scolding him, but everyone knew Mia could never really be upset at AJ.Ruby had to step in, followed by Ed to watch over Elisa and Elena. Although falling on the sand wouldn't hurt, the beach had sharp rocks that could scrape them."Mommy! They should chase me! Don't pick them up!" AJ didn’t want his little sisters to be carried away and stop the fun."Alright," Ruby said, intending to supervise them closely."How about we take a vacation?" Ed abruptly proposed the idea, having just finished reading a message on his phone."Hm?" Ruby was surprised. There had been no suc
"Here."Ed gave Otiz a handkerchief to wipe away his tears. If it had been just a few, he would have let Otiz cry—and wiped the tears with the sleeve of his jacket.The problem was that Otiz couldn’t stop crying. He had already been emotional when Ed stood beside him at the altar, and it got worse when he saw Lori walking down the aisle, escorted by flowers. It was all too beautiful and dazzling for his eyes.“Sorry,” Otiz stammered, wiping the remaining tears from his face.“What are you apologizing for? At a wedding, shedding tears is not considered inappropriate. You're just too happy. No one will blame you.” Ed gently patted Otiz’s shoulder and then turned his gaze forward.Of course, Lori was the focus of the event. Her choice of dress was perfect, blending seamlessly with the entire garden decor. Flowers, ribbons, music, and all the other elements were carefully and precisely chosen—now showcasi
Ed tapped his finger on the glass in his hand. His eyes were fixed on a single point—Marco Reyes.The man was speaking with Otiz. Nothing important. Marco was just making small talk, and Otiz was doing the same—being polite, answering Marco's questions about his law firm's progress. Ed actually needed to speak to both of them, but he chose to start with Marco first.Ed just needed to gesture with his chin, and Otiz understood immediately. He excused himself, making up a reason, and left Marco alone."I need to talk to you," Ed said as he approached."Oh? What is it?" Marco immediately followed Ed, moving to the quiet side yard. The other guests filled the living room."I want you to handle the shipment to Ecuador and Brazil next week."Marco looked as if he had choked. This was incredibly surprising. Ed had never let him touch the South American market before. Ed had always handled it himself. Marco had only been managing North A
"Mommy, I want to try! You be Elena, and I'll be Elisa."AJ reached out his hand, asking for the milk bottle from Ruby. He wanted to try feeding the babies—and he chose Elisa.Usually, Tita was around to help Ruby, but today Tita was busy, so Ruby had been on her own since earlier."You can, but please be careful, okay? Don’t let her choke, and don’t squeeze." Ruby guided AJ's hand to hold the bottle filled with pre-warmed breast milk, helping him apply just the right pressure so it wouldn't press too hard against Elisa's lips."Wow! Look, Mommy! She's drinking!" AJ exclaimed happily, eyes sparkling with joy. This was the first time he was directly involved—doing something for his little sister. AJ usually watched, but at first he was afraid to hold the babies. He would look in awe but wouldn’t dare touch them.“See? It’s not a big deal, right? You don’t have to be scared anymore.”&l
From their disheveled appearance, it was clear that Liz and Asher had either just rushed out of a room or possibly run over here. One thing was certain: as soon as they heard the news about Ruby, they had hurried over."Where? Ruby... You're pale. Why... It shouldn't be happening now."Just like Lori, Liz was out of breath as she approached Ruby, panicking. The news had shocked everyone. Liz had already planned to stay in Puerto Vallarta next week to be there for Ruby when she gave birth.Of course, Liz no longer lived at Ed’s house. She had managed to buy her own apartment.“I’m fine, and they’re fine too. But the nurse hasn’t brought them here yet. Calm down… breathe.”Ruby was already able to speak clearly and now had to calm Liz down. She was the one lying down, barely conscious, yet had to reassure everyone else."Are you really okay? No problems? Any complications?" Liz touched Ruby’s bo