Knowing that she wouldn’t be able to out-talk him, she sighed before muttering, “Fine, thanks for calling me yellow I guess…” Chuckling in response, Zivon replied, “The pleasure is mine.” …This man was going to make her vomit blood one day… Not wanting to continue talking about this, Xavia grumbled, “…Anyway, was your goal of bringing me along just to make Fiona hate me more? She seemed ready to kill me just moments ago!” Raising a slight brow, Zivon replied, “Isn’t this the best way to stop her from coveting me?” “As if! There are plenty of other ways! Look, the last thing I want is for Fiona to turn into a monster on Jenna’s level…” muttered Xavia with a sigh. She hated quarreling, and she really wasn’t in the mood to start another war… Upon hearing that, Zivon held her hands while saying, “Don’t worry, she’s turned into a new leaf, and I’m sure she won’t do anything extreme ever again… That aside… I brought you along so that she wouldn’t get lured into a false sense of hop
Realizing that he was giving her a longing gaze, Xavia gulped before muttering, “W-we’re in public, though…” Zivon honestly didn’t like displaying public affection any more than she did, but even so, he really wanted a kiss right now. With that in mind, he ultimately replied, “…It’s not illegal to kiss in public, you know…?” …How had that gentle man turned so horny all of a sudden?! Before she could reply, however, her phone began ringing… Not wanting to give her a chance to escape, Zivon hugged her even tighter while saying, “Kiss me or I won’t let you go…” With how insistent the possessive man was being, Xavia knew that the only way out was to do as he had said. After looking around to ensure that nobody was around, she quickly tip-toed and pecked him on the lips… “…Is that enough?” grumbled the sweet woman, causing Zivon’s heart to melt. “…Actually, I wanted one on the cheek,” replied the man with a grin. Now blushing even harder, Xavia retorted, “Y-you should’ve said
“But of course. Since you took care of my admirer, it only makes sense for me to do the same for you. Unless… You don’t want me here?” Honestly, Xavia didn’t want to continue giving Mark hope as well. However, if things went on like this, there was a chance that they wouldn’t even be able to stay friends… Understanding that, she took a long pause before ultimately replying, “…No, um… Let’s… Just head in…” Shortly after she rang the doorbell, Mark opened the door… and there he was, wearing his usual beige round neck sweater and loose pants. He even had an apron around his waist, and he looked like the perfect househusband… When he saw that Zivon was there, Mark raised a slight brow as he said, “…Ah, you’re here too, Young Master Burton…” Feeling awkward, Xavia was quick to explain, “W-well… I already had plans with Von earlier, but since you said you had something important to give me, I figured that it would be rude to decline… So… Yeah, that’s why he’s here.” Pleased to hear
Was she seriously so preoccupied with the food and reminiscing that she completely forgot about him…?! Not wanting to be outdone, Zivon sat next to her and said, “…Is it really that good?” Nodding in response, Xavia replied, “It is! Have some!” “…Feed me,” said Zivon, leaving Xavia slightly speechless. Was he a kid? Still, she really wanted him to have a taste, so she simply did as he told… Upon taking a bite, Zivon held back the urge to flinch. He wasn’t exactly a fan of spicy food… Alas, the expectant Xavia was quick to ask, “Well? It’s great, right?” Not wanting to reveal that they had different tastes, he forced a smile and replied, “…It is.” “Glad to hear! Here, have some more!” exclaimed the glad Xavia as she cut out a large slice for him. Naturally, Zivon found himself rather perturbed. A few bites were fine, but was he seriously expected to eat such a large slice on his own…?! To his surprise, Xavia didn’t add any garnish as she handed it to him. Before he could eve
As the bittersweet memories continued filling her mind, she snapped out of it when she heard Mark calling her name. Wiping the tears off the corners of her eyes, Xavia replied, “Ah… I’m fine, I just… Remember how I couldn’t even enjoy meat back then… If only I could return to the past with my current memories… I’d run straight to the capital to tell Ian that I was his sister. That way, I’d get to eat whatever I wanted!” Chuckling in response, Mark replied, “Perhaps you’d be much chubbier now if that happened…” “Hey, food gets priority here! So what if I get a little chubby?” scoffed Xavia before blissfully biting on another rib. Truth be told, Mark wouldn’t have minded if she put on weight, though… If she truly changed her past, then there was a chance that he wouldn’t even be here with her right now… Shaking his head, he then placed a wrapped present on the table while saying, “Hope you like it…” Raising a slight brow, Xavia unwrapped the gift… and inside were several trinke
He couldn’t help but feel irked by the fact that Xavia and Mark had the same tastes and past. It made him feel like the third wheel. After thinking about it for a bit, he finally realized the issue. He wasn’t mad at her at all. Rather, he was mad at himself for not being part of her youth… His possessiveness was now through the roof, and he truly wished that he had been with her all his life so that she could have childhood memories of him too… Since Zivon wasn’t replying, Xavia held his hand while saying, “…Are you really that mad…? Look, you were right next to me, and you could clearly see that nothing fishy happened between us… In fact, I even fed you! What’s there to be mad about…?” Snapping out of it, Zivon then pulled her into his lap before saying, “…I was just thinking about something else. I’m not mad.” There was no way that he could let her know that he was this petty! Regardless, Xavia then stared at him in disbelief as she replied, “…Are you for real…?” “Of cour
In the end, she was prompted to reply, “…I guess you’re right…” Finally softening his gaze, Zivon then said, “Of course, I am… We’ll keep them for each other, and whether we read them or not is up to us, alright…?” Nodding in response, Xavia reminded herself never to read Fiona’s diary. After all, she already knew that he didn’t like her, so there was no point in torturing herself… Shortly after, the car stopped before the palace, and one of the guards quickly ran over and opened the door for Xavia. He even held a black umbrella over her head to prevent any snow from landing on her, and it honestly felt like this was a movie scene… “Welcome back, Young Lady.” After nodding in response, she then turned to look at Zivon before asking, “Would you like to see the kids?” Checking his watch and realizing how late it was, Zivon replied, “…They’re probably asleep by now, so I don’t think I should. I will come over tomorrow morning though.” “Alright, then. Rest early, alright, Von
Raising a slight brow, Xavia replied, “…Hasn’t he passed the tests? Besides, Mom and Dad have already approved of him! You already promised to stop pressuring him, remember?” Her tone was slowly rising, so Ian handed her a glass of water before replying, “Calm down, we’re fine with him. It’s just…” “…Go on…” muttered Xavia as she took a seat on the couch and stared at him. “Well… it’s about his mother… She isn’t exactly happy with us…” …What? What did he mean by- Oh. Recalling how displeased Wendy had earlier been, Xavia asked, “…Did she come over earlier?” “She did… She said that we shouldn’t have given him such arduous tests, and in the end, she was so upset that she didn’t even allow us to send her off…” So Wendy had met up with them at the palace instead of actually going shopping earlier… Xavia could only imagine how mad she was while she was on her way back to Zivon’s villa… It took her a while, but she eventually said, “…Don’t worry, she’s different from the other
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