It took her a while, but Xavia eventually noticed the shift in mood. Realizing that everyone was feeling guilty for her sake, she was quick to say, “…U-um… Well, the vegetables weren’t all that bad… At the very least, they were extremely healthy! In fact, I think Young Master Burton’s doctor mentioned something about my health being better than ever during the check-up. I have zero doubt that it’s because of those veggies! With my body so healthy now, I’m sure my new child will turn out extra adorable!” …Wait. What? A child?! “…Y-you’re pregnant, Xavia?” asked the wide-eyed Homer. Patting her belly, Xavia replied, “I am! The baby is almost three months old now, and as I said before, it’s apparently in healthy condition!” “…But… you’ve been missing for that long… Is… Zivon not…?” asked Yasmin, instantly causing the atmosphere to turn deadly awkward again… After all, if the child wasn’t Zivon’s, then she must have been raped! Not only did they feel terrible about that, but th
Sensing Xavia’s shock, Yasmin was quick to hold her daughter’s hands as she explained, “Look, it’s just… Zivon has made far too many sacrifices for you to deserve this… You may think that he only lowered himself to wed you, but you have to understand that we’ve made him prove his love by giving him all sorts of challenges before we allowed him to even marry you… For one, we made him go to a very cold place just to mine diamonds for you…” “He almost died back then, yet he still continued tackling test after test… To our surprise, he had even been planning your wedding throughout that period. Moving on to after your wedding, he soon learned that you had been poisoned, and he spent days on end just trying to find a cure for you… Even when he finally got you the antidote, however, disaster continued to strike in the form of your kidnapping.” “Throughout your four-month disappearance, he kept thinking of potential ways to look for you… From hosting population consensuses, to developing
Fast forward to that night, the twins ran up to Xavia while exclaiming, “Mommy, Mommy! Now that you’re back, please tell us a story!” Looking at the two adorable children, Xavia was just about to agree when Zivon suddenly walked over and said, “She just returned to us, so give her at least two days to rest first, alright…? I’ll accompany you two instead for now.” Though she was sure that the kids would throw a tantrum because of that, she was surprised to see them roll their eyes before replying, “Fine… We can go to bed ourselves. You can accompany Mommy instead, Daddy! Good night!” Watching as that waved before running off, Xavia couldn’t help but mutter, “…Are they always this sensible…?” Raising a slight brow, Zivon replied, “Naturally. Did you assume that they were spoiled brats?” Though Xavia had forgotten, it was honestly her efforts that had made the two children so sensible at their age. Sure, she hadn’t been with Maison for the first three years of his life, but afte
Looking at his raised brow, Xavia was quick to add, “…Look, I’ve been told that you haven’t been getting a single night of proper rest in the past few months… Care more about your health, alright…?” Though she had meant well, Zivon couldn’t help but feel like she was only saying all this because the others had told her to. It took him a while, but he eventually said, “…I know my body’s limits. Don’t worry about it.” …Even if that was the case, he shouldn’t push himself to his limits! Alas, she felt that she had no right to continue asking him to do so. After all, it felt awkward nagging a stranger… With that, she simply muttered, “…Then you shouldn’t be burdened about my kidnapping case anymore either. After all, I’m here now, and I didn’t suffer that terribly in the first place…” …Being beaten up daily and getting locked in a dog cage wasn’t terrible? What utter bullshit… Zivon wanted nothing more than to hug her tight, and to apologize for making her go through all that suffe
“And lastly… Before we got together, there was already a misunderstanding that you had slept with another man. Yet I never considered giving up on you. With all that said, do you seriously want me to divorce you now? When you’re at your lowest point? Is losing my beloved wife not enough for you? Do you also want others to villainize me for giving up on you when you need me the most…?!” …She seriously hadn’t expected him to say all that, and it didn’t help that she couldn’t refute his words at all… Alas, that didn’t change the fact that they were still extremely uncomfortable with each other. In the end, she was prompted to reply, “…For now, at least… Could you just… give me some space…? Live someplace else…? Do your own things and just stop putting your heart and soul into me… I really don’t think I deserve all that until I recall my memories… We’re still getting along but just… differently?” …So she was uncomfortable with him treating her well and sleeping with her in the same r
As Zayne and Chace went speechless once more, Cade himself found himself experiencing an even rougher time. After all, although he was able to reunite with his family, it barely took an hour for him to realize that his family refused to acknowledge him! For context, his mother had apparently died from heartbreak after years of depression after losing him, and not wanting the same fate to befall him, his father had gotten married to another woman. Thankfully, things started looking up again once Cade’s father had more children, and they were currently living together as a happy family of four… Regardless, though his father was overjoyed to see him at the start, his stepmother and siblings didn’t even pretend to like him… and by the end of the hour, he knew that he didn’t belong there. Eventually, he left and headed to his mother’s grave… And when he saw her monochrome photo on her tombstone, he instantly fell to his knees while saying, “…I’m sorry for coming back so late, Mother…
Naturally, Cade instantly went pale when he heard that. He had no doubts that this sinister woman wasn’t playing around… So by following her orders, that meant that he was doing the right thing, right…? That aside, it was now evident that her drugs were the reason Xavia had lost her memory in the first place! He had previously been ordered to feed her such drugs once per week… Which probably meant that if he didn’t give another one of these drugs to her by the seven-day mark, she would surely remember her past again! Clenching his fists, he eventually replied, “…Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she falls for me in the end…!” Fast forward to the next morning, Xavia was once again taken good care of by her family and kids… and in the end, she couldn’t help but mutter, “…Um… Please don’t try going out of your way to help me… I think it would be better if you all just did your normal things since that would probably give me more space to recall my memories…” Upon hearing that, everyone
Eyes widening when she saw him start to cough violently, Xavia bent down to touch his forehead… and sure enough, it was burning! “Y-you’re terribly sick, Brother Cade…! Why didn’t you go to the doctor first?! H-hold on, I’m sure there are doctors somewhere in the palace-” “S-stop… I… Someone like me doesn’t deserve access into such a grand place… I know you mean well, Xavia, but… We now know that you’re the princess of Aplos… I… I really don’t think that it’s wise for us to continue meeting each other… Just… remember to take your meds… I’ll be off now…” Watching as he slowly got up again before turning to leave, Xavia couldn’t help but clench her fists. Was she seriously expected to be this uncaring simply because of their status difference…?! He was her savior, for God’s sake! With that, she was just about to retort… when once again, he flopped to the ground! Only this time, he had really fainted! Now pale with fright, she quickly began shaking him while anxiously yelling, “B-
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