"Hello?"Ruby answered cautiously. The old man seemed friendly and weak at first, but it was a deception. Ruby won't forget the slap the man gave her yesterday."You haven't messed up, have you?" Ruby could hear Esli's question, tinged with annoyance.Ruby's fear diminished considerably in an instant. She came to the realisation that the annoyance amounted to nothing but empty threats. She didn't need to be afraid; Esli couldn't touch her right now. If it was just scolding, Ruby could handle it."Messed up in what way?" Ruby asked a bit more boldly.Ruby had lost the respect she had shown yesterday, viewing Esli as a man grieving over his child's accident-induced coma. Esli was nothing more than a scammer taking advantage of her."Just don't screw things up!" Esli sounded increasingly angry."I'm not messing up," Ruby said, trying to keep him from getting angrier.Ruby recalled that her mother remained with Esli. If she knew Esli's true face as a scammer, Ruby wouldn't let Esli take
"It won't happen! You won't marry her," Esli sighed heavily as he slumped into the chair, suddenly exhausted.Liz exhaled a breath of relief, relieved that her father hadn't betrayed his promise."But you go! To Paris or wherever you like. Leave this country. Don't come back until I ask," Esli said firmly."REALLY?!" Liz exclaimed joyfully and immediately rushed to hug her father. A sudden vacation always sounded enjoyable."Just make sure you don't run into anyone who knows you," Esli added."Huh? Why?" Liz pouted, stomping her foot. What's the point of going on vacation if she can't be with her friends?"Just go, and don't contact anyone from here! I'll be watching you!" Esli didn't listen to any protests and instructed more firmly."But...""LEAVE NOW!"Liz flinched and looked at her father with reddened eyes. It was the first time she heard her father raise his voice. Liz grabbed the vase on the table and slammed it
"You know I'm busy," Ed said, massaging his forehead. The pain was still there. The medicine seemed useless."And why do you ask?" Ed inquired, but he already knew the answer."You already have a wife. Your responsibility is to come home."Ed's guess wasn't wrong. Javier was bringing up something he didn't want to hear."You care too much about her!" Ed muttered."She is now your wife. Of course, I care. You should come and try to get close to her. At least apologize. You hurt her," Javier scolded."Should I? I'm not forcing---""Whether you're forcing it or not, you made her cry! Do you remember crying? It happens when someone feels hurt, upset, sad, or even angry." Javier was clearly sarcastic, jabbing Ed and calling him heartless for not understanding emotions."I'm not that dumb!" Ed grumbled."But now you look like it! Come home and take care of her!" Javier was no longer suggesting, but commanding."Later!"
Ruby held onto the plate storage rack while regulating her breath. Suddenly, her vision darkened, just for a moment."Senora, are you sure you can handle it?" Tita handed the food tray to Ruby with a doubtful expression."Oh, I can." Ruby straightened her body. Having consumed sweet tea earlier, she felt quite refreshed. Ruby, along with two other servants, had been helping Tita since earlier, without any issues.The meal on the tray in Tita's hand was for Pastor Javier. Apparently, Javier was the only resident of the house who could skip the dining table. Usually, Tita would deliver it.Ruby volunteered to take the food to the cottage next to the chapel, which was Javier's living quarters. This was not due to her meticulousness; rather, the alternative was to prepare the food at the table. Ruby didn't want to be in the dining room. Pedro might come to her again. Mia might be blind to the point where she couldn't see that the man was a womanizer."
"Fainted? Why though?" Ed asked.Javier sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. His brother didn't sound concerned at all. He was just asking out of curiosity."She just suddenly collapsed," Javier replied. He wouldn't reveal what Pedro had done. His brother didn't need that extra burden. Pedro was just a cowardly jerk, really."Maybe she's just pretending because she wants to run away." Ed accusing."No. Do you think I can't tell the difference between fake fainting and real? She was genuinely weak," Javier said, glancing at the doctor currently examining Liz and not noticing anything unusual. The doctor was treating her and even putting up an IV drip. It couldn't be fake fainting.Javier had called the doctor after Tita arrived, worried. He asked Tita to stay quiet for now."Well, you just take care of her," Ed said, not sounding concerned."You're not going to come home? You should see her!" Javier's intention in contacting him
Ruby heard Javier mention Mia before she completely lost consciousness. Not in a bad context. Quite carefully, in fact. Mia influenced the decision to allow Pedro to stay."Maybe it's just a lack of sleep. I haven't been sleeping well for two days now. New place." Ruby decided to stay silent. She exercised the same caution to avoid causing any trouble.This would be the case for at least the next two weeks. Ruby wouldn't fight or do anything to shake up the Rosas household for these two weeks."Well, I'm the same. It's hard to adjust to a new place." Javier believed, and Ruby felt relieved. Her reason made sense."But you don't really need to worry. Well, Pedro may be a jerk. However, no one else will do anything weird to you except him. You can be at ease here."If possible, Ruby wanted to laugh out loud. Javier seemed not to know what Mía's attitude towards her was like. Either he was too blind and fond of his aunt, or he simply didn't und
"It's better for you to rest here for a while," Javier could see that Ruby was still not fully recovered.Ruby's face warmed. There was neither disgust, like when Pedro approached her, nor fear, like with Ed."No. I will go back." Ruby wouldn't go crazy and let herself lose her way even more. Being with Javier any longer would only make her mind go crazy with fascination. Being fascinated by her brother-in-law alone was already problematic, especially considering that he is a pastor."I'll walk you back there."Ruby wanted to shake her head again, but Javier had already taken her arm and helped her walk. Ruby complained inwardly, but she did need the help. Ruby knew her body wouldn't make it out of the room if she walked on her own."I beg you to eat more regularly. Your body seems fragile," Javier commented again as he helped Ruby up the stone steps."Okay." Ruby didn't object, even though she felt a bit uncomfortable. It was the first time
"Sorry, but there's nothing. All parts of your head are fine," the doctor in front of Ed conveyed cautiously, as Ed's eyes seemed to narrow further."But the pain is there!" Ed muttered."I understand, but we can't find anything. The CT scan results, as well as others, are very clean. There are no fractures or abnormalities that we can find."The doctor was also very uncomfortable delivering the news because he had repeated this procedure at least three times. And the result was always the same—no abnormalities in Ed's head."So you mean I'm just hallucinating and crazy?" Ed finally restrained himself from shouting. He hoped the doctor could help him right away. However, the doctor he approached appeared to give up and lack knowledge."Not crazy. You misunderstand. It's just a psychological issue," the doctor said, becoming increasingly uneasy. Although Ed tried to speak as calmly as possible, he knew his patient harbored anger."You j
“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