Nodding in response, Zivon replied, “I’ll be in your care then, Chef Ramsay.” Honestly, Ramsay still found it hard to believe that Zivon wanted to learn how to cook. After all, this was the Young Master Burton! The same person whom his previous boss would always personally greet whenever he dined there! In the end, the chef couldn’t help but mutter, “…Are you truly sure about this, Young Master Burton?” Even Wendy couldn’t help but say, “He’s right… Since I’m now here, I can always cook for you and Xavia…” Shaking his head, Zivon replied, “Don’t worry about it, Mom. You’ll know what I have planned in due time. Now then, Chef Ramsay… Please arrange a tighter schedule for me in the coming days. I wish to master the skill as soon as possible, and since I’m a quick learner, I believe that won’t be too difficult.” Nodding in response, Ramsay then said, “I have no doubts about that, Young Master Burton! Well, since that’s the case, I’ll be heading home to prepare the necessary materi
Feeling that she needed to at least give him the bare minimum, she pursed her lips before typing, ‘…I’ll show it to you on our wedding night.’ However, she quickly deleted the message in the end before turning her phone off. What the hell had she almost just sent him?! As she desperately attempted to keep her cool, she heard the kids say, “Mommy? Why are you blushing so much? Are you talking to Daddy?” Quickly snapping out of it, Xavia replied, “N-no, I’m not…” “…But you’re blushing so much… If you’re not chatting with Daddy, then could it be that you’re flirting with another man…? But that’s wrong, Mommy! Daddy’s doing his best to marry you, so you can’t mess around behind his back!” “That’s right! Give us your phone, Mommy! If it’s true that you’re cheating, then I’m going to make sure to beat up the bad man who’s trying to seduce you!” declared Maison. Watching as the kids hopped out of their bathtubs and stared at her, Xavia couldn’t help but smile awkwardly. While it was
Glaring at both of them, Zivon replied, “I’m busy, and if you two really want to continue pursuing me, feel free to try to persuade me to let you in!” Following that, he slammed the door behind him, leaving both of them feeling utterly aggrieved. Stella, in particular, felt extremely demotivated. After all, nothing that she did seemed to get through him! Forget a week, at this rate, she probably wouldn’t be able to even catch his attention past the seventy-day mark! It was frustrating just to think about it…! Her train of thought was cut short when the displeased Fiona grumbled, “Just give up already… Zivon doesn’t like your type!” Glowering at Fiona, Stella growled, “You should be the one giving up…! He’s only treating a brainless woman like you as his sister because you saved him before! Had you not done that, he’d surely think that you’re as annoying as a fly!” “You…! Well at least I’m not as flat and bony as you! Hugging you would be akin to hugging a cactus, so just head b
Before Stella could retort, Mark quickly walked up to them and said, “I apologize for what happened. I was shocked by what I saw, and I ended up hitting the brakes a bit too hard. This had nothing to do with Xavia, and if you require any form of compensation, feel free to state what you want.” Looking at the tall man, Stella saw that he had a black suit on, as well as what appeared to be a white, alpaca fur coat. Though he seemed upright, he simultaneously felt easy to get along with… What’s more, even though she was practically naked by this point, he didn’t seem lustful at all. All in all, he seemed like a decent man… It took her a while, but Stella eventually scoffed, “…It’s fine. Xavia’s my cousin, so since you were simply transporting her, I won’t hold this against you.” Following that, she grabbed her clothes from Nathan before slipping them on again. This gave Nathan the chance to quickly begin wheeling Fiona away! He could deal with two women, but three? No way in hell!
She was saying that since she knew that those hands were supposed to run experiments, not cook! Knowing that she meant well, Zivon replied, “Don’t worry, I’m progressing just fine. However, the stove isn’t turning on, so I was just about to have someone at the management office check on it.” Before Xavia could even reply, Stella had already stepped forward and declared, “Just leave that trivial problem to me!” Thinking that Stella was simply trying to show off, Zivon then pulled Xavia to the side… However, in no time at all, Stella had already opened the bottom of the stove and was already doing a few things to attempt to reignite it. It didn’t take long for her to succeed, and once she was done, she smugly looked at Zivon before saying, “Well? From changing light bulbs to fixing pipes, I can do it all! Wouldn’t you say that that’s exceptional? “…Even if you can do a multitude of things, I’m not exactly trying to marry a household expert. You should know that I can easily get s
“How absolutely ballsy of you to be ordering me around, Young Master Burton…!” Barely even flinching, Zivon proudly replied, “Well, how else would I have gotten my beloved twin children?” Clenching her fists, Stella could hardly believe that there was someone even more merciless than she was…! Sadly for her, she was absolutely bonkers for men who treated her this way! She wanted to be the one to see that other side of him…! With that, she glared at Zivon before heading into the kitchen. If it was heavy-duty work that he wanted, then she was going to give it to him…! Watching as Stella strode off, Xavia couldn’t help but admire Zivon’s dedication to rejecting her. At the same time, she also felt slightly sorry for Stella. With that, she couldn’t help but mutter, “…Von, aren’t you pushing it by getting someone so capable to fix your household things…?” “Please, she asked for it. That aside… You two really didn’t do anything before arriving?” asked Zivon as he turned to look at Ma
As Mark turned to leave, Xavia remained momentarily too petrified to even react. While it was true that she already knew that there wasn’t going to be a chance for them to be together, the fact that he was giving up so abruptly caught her off guard. It made her feel she had wronged him… Not liking this feeling, she turned to look at Zivon before weakly asking, “…Could I see him off…?” Naturally, Zivon didn’t want to allow it! After all, if Mark had truly wanted to admit defeat, then he should’ve just walked away quietly! Now that he had said all this, there was no way he could decline Xavia’s wishes! That would just make him look like a jerk! With that in mind, he begrudgingly replied, “…Sure.” Nodding in response, Xavia then bolted after Mark, leaving Zivon glaring icily at her… Stella herself, who had overheard everything, couldn’t help but smirk. That man was too righteous for his own good… Moving back to Xavia, she quickly caught up to Mark again, and after yelling his na
Unbeknownst to Mark, she was currently reminiscing all the times he had sent her off and home… and after a while, she was prompted to say, “…Let me see you off, Mark… I’ll head back in after you’ve driven off…” Upon hearing that, Mark instantly felt touched. He was reminded of all the times he had watched her skip into class and into her house… and he also recalled how he used to think that scenes like those would be perpetual to him. Sadly, he now knew that that wasn’t going to be the case anymore. Knowing better than to be indecisive at this point in time, Mark replied, “…You’re all grown up, huh…? Very well, then… Send me off one final time…” With that, he got into his car, waved goodbye, and finally drove off… Though Xavia’s heart was heavy when the car was finally out of sight, she simultaneously felt… happy. It was a farewell to her childhood love… Farewell, to Brother Mark. As the snow began falling, she could only pray that his future would be much better from now on… H
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