After a long, awkward silence, Dolly forced a chuckle before nudging Bianca’s arm while saying, “…H-hey…! Things can occasionally go wrong… T-that aside, since you two didn’t date last night, I’m sure he won’t see Sophia again tonight…” “D-Dolly’s right! Remember, Sophia’s the one who made the matchmaking app, so it makes sense that Lady Burton would pay more attention to the issue! With that said, relax and um… L-let’s get back to work! We still have a video to make!” added Bianca. Smiling wryly, Xavia then muttered, “…Yeah…! There’s nothing to worry about… Regardless, I’m fine now… Thanks…” Following that, Xavia headed off to get a change of clothes… however, it didn’t take long before Xavia heard a familiar meow. Realizing that Loveu had followed her in, Xavia picked the kitten up while saying, “Hmm? What’re you meowing about? Are you worried that your master’s deserted you after not seeing him for a few days?” Upon hearing that, Loveu meowed again, prompting Xavia to add, “
...And sure enough, the voice belonged to Sophia. Zivon had always had a good impression of that woman. After all, she was never sloppy, and she always got the job done as well. What’s more, he never felt unpleasant whenever he talked with her. Because of all that, she was one of the few females he considered to be a friend, despite how many other female presidents he had worked with before. Shaking the thought off, Zivon then lowered his documents as he replied, “It’s nothing. That aside, what brings you over this late?” “Well, you had left in a hurry last night, so I wasn’t able to pass a message to you… Thankfully, I bumped into Nathan while I was leaving work just minutes ago, and after he told me that you were still here, I decided to come to your office to speak with you.” The old lady had fallen ill again last night. Even so, she was still much more focused on the blind date’s progress… Knowing he couldn’t stall forever, Zivon had told Sophia to tell her how things were
What’s more, every time she looked at the two together, they seemed like a match made in heaven. She was the disposable person here… Xavia was only able to snap out of it when she accidentally bumped into someone. Quickly lowering her head, she then said, “I-I’m sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was-” “Xavia…?” asked a familiar voice, prompting Xavia to look up... “…Young Master Keith… Um… Did you just get off work…?” muttered Xavia as she stared at the elegant man. Nodding in response, Keith then said, “Indeed. I’ve been working overtime on the green space project recently to help refine things. With that said, I’m only done with work now. That aside, are you here for Uncle Zivon?” “…Not at all… I’m just here for a stroll…” muttered Xavia who felt that it’d be too humiliating if she told the entire story to Keith. “…Then… What’s that in your hands?” asked Keith, prompting the surprised Xavia to look down… Only to realize that she still had Zivon’s lunchbox—that she had initi
Sensing the guilt in her eyes, Zivon wasn’t about to buy anything that she or Keith were about to explain. Instead, he simply grabbed her by the wrist before yanking her toward his car! After being tossed into the car, Xavia—who was in pain by this point—could help but glare at Zivon as she exclaimed, “Y-you’re misunderstanding the-” “Misunderstanding the situation, am I? How exactly did I misunderstand a situation where you prepared a lunchbox for Keith this late at night? What’s more, you even bothered to wait for him to finish his meal…! Listen here, Xavia. If you want to be with him so much, then say it to my face! I’m not going to stop you once you make your decision…!” interrupted the infuriated Zivon. He didn’t need such a half-hearted woman by his side…! Naturally, this startled Xavia. After all, not only had he misunderstood her, but the way he had said it also seemed to be a threat to end their relationship…?! Unable to contain her emotions, Xavia retorted, “…From the w
Zivon, for one, had considered this to be a tacit admission, and he couldn’t help but slam his fists against the car door once more…! This time, it was so hard that his knuckles ended up bleeding in the end… Moving back to Xavia, she didn’t dare return to the hospital. After all, her clothes were in tatters, and if Yulia saw her in that condition, she’d definitely believe that Xavia had come across a bad person. With that in mind, Xavia ended up returning to the old house on her own. When she arrived in the countryside, only the sounds of croaking frogs filled the night… Upon seeing her, Dolly—who was awoken by Xavia’s return—yawned before asking, “Xavia…? What are you doing here…? Weren’t you supposed to visit Yulia at the hospital after giving Young Master Burton that lunchbox…?” Patting Dolly on the head, Xavia—who didn’t want Dolly to see how wretched she looked—then turned her friend around before saying, “Yulia’s already fallen asleep. That aside since she’s returning tom
Xavia herself was in bed, trying to grab a glass of water on the table that was a bit too out of reach for her. Looking at the drip attached to her left hand, Zivon sighed before getting the glass for her. Turning to look at the Adonis, Xavia found herself momentarily speechless as her heart stung… Despite how pitiful she looked, Zivon was prompted to say in a slightly sarcastic tone, “What? Even though you delivered a meal for him, Keith didn’t bother coming over?” Naturally, his statement made her clench her fists in rage…! That food had been for him! That aside, hadn’t he been out with Sophia as well?! She shouldn’t have bothered being nice to him! With that in mind, Xavia retorted, “Whether he’s here or not, you don’t need to be here to look after me.” Fighting the urge to resort to force, Zivon then growled, “Had it not been for Yulia’s call, I wouldn’t be here.” …Yulia… had called him? That aside, the way he had said it… Now smiling wryly, Xavia replied, “…I know ho
Moving back to Zivon and Yulia, as they walked around downstairs, the child couldn’t help but gaze at one of the gift boxes on display before muttering, “That costume box set looks so pretty, Future Daddy…” “I could get it for you if you want,” replied Zivon, who never had issues with money. Though Yulia was overjoyed to hear that, she ultimately shook her head before saying, “…You just bought me something the day before yesterday, so Mommy will surely spank me if you get something else for me so soon…” …He hadn’t gotten anything for her, though. With that in mind, Zivon was prompted to ask, “Hmm… What did I buy for you again…?” “The Snow-White Fantasy Set! I really liked it… Mommy said you were late, which was why you bought it to make amends with me… That aside, I haven’t even finished playing with that set yet, so I’ll let this set slide for now! Let’s just have some ice-cream for now, Future Daddy!” replied Yulia in an innocent tone. Upon hearing that, Zivon’s mind could
In return, Xavia simply smiled bitterly. Rather than make things difficult for her, he was intent on completely ignoring her… He hadn’t even allowed her to explain herself back then, and he had even threatened to end their relationship… As it turned out, he placed higher value on his work and Sophia… Though she was deeply upset by the thought, she didn’t want Yulia overhearing any of this, so she quickly replied, “…Things are fine. Now let’s get in the car and have a look at the design…” “…Very well,” said Keith, prompting the trio to enter the car before driving off shortly after… Unbeknownst to them, Zivon had been watching this entire time from his Maybach that had been parked at the corner of the car park. As the car disappeared from sight, Zivon’s eyes couldn’t help but go dark. How had that sweet girl suddenly switched sides this quickly…? Were there truly no sincere women on the planet…? Either way, it wasn’t long before an image of Xavia and Keith made it into the headl
Staring in shock at the kneeling man, Yulia mustered her remaining sanity as she replied, “B-but you’re younger-” “Even if that’s the case, doesn’t that mean that I’m much more ‘capable’ than your older pursuers…?” …Why were his words so suggestive all of a sudden?! Forcing herself to calm down, she took a deep breath before saying, “…Elliot, I’m not sure what spurred this decision, but… I’m not the one for you. Please find someone your age. I’m sorry.” After saying that, she strode straight for the car… but before she could start the engine, she couldn’t help but notice how desolate he looked standing under the pouring rain… Clenching her fists, it took her a while to finally sigh and walk back to him… “…Are you really sure about this?” asked Yulia, much to Elliot’s delight. “I am! Please! Give me a chance! You won’t regret it!” …When he put it that way, all Yulia could do was help him up before finally deciding to return his kiss… Sure, things had taken a sudden, unex
She stared in horror as he removed his shirt right there and then! “W-what are you doing?!” yelped the startled woman as she quickly looked the other way. “…Huh? I mean, I’m drenched, so…” “E-even so, you shouldn’t change right in front of me!” “…Yulia, we bathed together as children… It’s not like you haven’t seen everything already…” “Y-you can’t compare that to this situation…!” “Fine, fine, I… Um… Go cook, I guess… I’ll go get a change upstairs first…” muttered Elliot as he headed upstairs. Yulia herself had to try her best to calm down! After all, Elliot had been plaguing her mind in the past few days, and… she even had dreams where he had… …No! She couldn’t be thinking about such things! She needed to cook! Maybe that would help get her mind out of the gutter! Once that was done, she’d leave and finally start devising a plan to get rid of him…! As Yulia scurried off, Elliot himself was currently staring at an old photo that showed him eating some candy in Yulia’
Just as she had arrived at her car, the president of the Halls Group suddenly walked up to her, a bouquet in hand! The Halls Group had collaborated several times with the Burtons before, and because of that, she was well acquainted with the man. Sadly, he had also proposed to her on multiple occasions… and though she kept rejecting him, he never seemed to get the hint! “There you are, Miss Burton… Since you’re off work, I was wondering if you’d join me for dinner tonight…” asked the charming man. Feeling awkward, she was just about to come up with an excuse when Elliot suddenly grabbed her by the waist and said, “Oh? Another one of your admirers, Yulia…? Sorry, but she already has a boyfriend, my man. If that doesn’t deter you enough, then you should know that she prefers her partners younger. Now please leave.” Startled to hear that, the man glanced at Yulia, his eyes begging for an explanation… Yulia herself was eager to just escape this embarrassing situation, but before s
With that tale done, it was now time to return to Yulia’s story… Ever since she was a child, she had undergone countless hardships with her mother… and even after she was able to reunite with her father, things didn’t go much easier from there. To make matters worse, Fabiola ended up getting kidnapped for the longest time, resulting in Frank ending up the way he was today… Because of all that, it only made sense that she’d mature much sooner than others her age, and unlike the naïve girl she used to be, she was an extremely competent woman today. Alas, because of how used she became with working, she soon lost the urge to find herself a romantic interest… Things continued that way until… Well, that time that Elliot… …Wait, what was she thinking?! He was younger than her, for heaven’s sake! Quickly shaking her head, she attempted to force herself to concentrate on work again… But before long, a knock was heard on the door. After being allowed in, the department manager entered t
Knowing that there was no point in keeping things a secret anymore, Rea took a deep breath before saying, “…Alright, so… The truth is, I’ve always been highly competent, but… I’ve been pretending to be useless just so that you’d eventually marry me… The trip my parents are taking… That was my suggestion too…” Feeling speechless, it took Frank a long while to reply, “…So you weren’t really drunk when you did all that last night?” Pursing her lips, Rea awkwardly muttered, “…I wasn’t… Luna suggested it, and since it sounded like a good idea to accelerate things…” …Fucking hell, to think that he had fallen straight into her trap without even putting up a fight! Watching as he glowered at her, Rea gulped before adding, “A-anyway, now that we’re married and there’s potentially a baby in my belly, you won’t divorce me, right…?” “…Oh, believe me when I say that divorce is the easy way out! From today onward, I’m making you pay for your actions for the rest of your life!” Fast forwa
Fast forward to the next morning, Rea awoke with a yawn… What a nice sleep… Wait. Why was she naked? And why was Frank…?! Her following scream immediately woke the icy man up… and upon looking at her, he was immediately reminded of what had transpired last night! Essentially, Rea ended up clinging to him, and though he initially wanted to just carry her to bed to let her rest… Damn it! Had she really been that sensual?! How had he lost control so easily?! His train of thought was cut short when he realized that Rea was bawling her eyes out… and after rubbing his temples, he was prompted to say, “…Why are you crying when you’re the one who initiated this? I’ll have you know that I never forced you-” “I-I know, but…! I’ve just…! This is my first time…!” whimpered the quivering woman, prompting Frank to purse his lips. As if he wasn’t in the same situation… “…You’re not alone there.” “It’s not the same! Men are free to sleep with whoever they want but when it comes to women, I’l
“Say, wouldn’t you agree that the food smells delicious…? Why don’t I teach you how to grill, Rea…? Oh, but make sure to take your clothes off first before we start! Wouldn’t want them to get dirty…” With how drunk Rea was, she wasn’t able to fully register his words… and just as he was about to touch her clothes, an icy voice roared, “Stop right there…!” Instantly feeling a shiver run down his spine, the man turned around… and to his horror, it was Frank! Young Master Burton’s perpetually icy son…! Why the hell was he here?! Before the frightened intern could think of how to even react, Frank walked up to him and growled, “Leave now before I chop your hands off…! Don’t make me repeat myself!” Nodding in terror, the man frantically bolted off… and once he was out of sight, Frank glared at the tipsy Rea before adding, “This is what you meant by learning how to be more responsible…?!” “Huh…? But the food really did smell super good… I want to learn…” mumbled the drunk woman.
After leaving his office, he headed off to look for Rea. She had said that she wanted to use the bathroom, but… It had already been half an hour since she disappeared. What trouble had that idiot gotten herself into this time? Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he found her laughing along with some of his interns… When the interns saw him, they were quick to bow and say, “Good morning, Mr. Burton.” Barely even glancing at them, Frank looked at Rea and said, “It’s time to head home.” “I… Won’t be following you back…” “…And why is that? Are your parents back?” “No, it’s just… These are my good friends back from school, and they’ve been staying together to learn to be more independent… With that said… I think that staying with them will be a good start for me to learn more about how the world works. Thank you for taking care of me up till this point, Frank… I won’t bother you anymore.” Raising a slight brow, Frank then looked at the interns for a while before saying, “…Are you
Regardless, after leaving her in the room, Frank returned to the shower to cool himself off… but no matter what he did, he simply remained irked. It got to the point where he couldn’t relax at all, and after wrapping a towel around his waist, he grabbed his phone to send his father a text. ‘Was there really nobody else who could’ve taken care of Rea?’ ‘What? Can’t even care for a woman properly.’ ‘I’m a busy man.’ ‘I trust in your time management skills.’ …Though he really wanted to tell Zivon that he had misplaced his trust in him, he didn’t want to disappoint his father either. With that, all he could do was clench his fists before giving Rea’s parents a call… “Hello? Frank? Why are you calling at this time of night?” “…When are you and Uncle Saltman returning, Aunt?” asked Frank who wanted them to take back their idiot already! “…Huh? What was that? Sorry, the line isn’t very good… I hope Rea isn’t giving you too hard a time! Don’t worry, we’ll be back after about a