Larissa's movements of getting up halted abruptly. Bracing herself against the edge of the bed, she sat down again. "Do you … need me to help you massage the spot?" Kevan pressed a hand on his pounding heart and said with restraint, "No need."Larissa suddenly remembered his weird quirk of not letting others touch him. "Forgive me, I was too forward." She apologized to him before adding, "Wait a moment—"She retrieved the aromatherapy machine she had bought but never used—it was still in its original packaging—from the closet she used to put her sundries in. After filling it with water, she added a few drops of lavender oil into the machine."This will help you relax and sleep." She introduced the product to Kevan. "Just close your eyes, and you'll be able to sleep soon."The faint smell of lavender filled the air via the mist from the machine.Kevan obediently closed his eyes, though his headache did not lessen likely due to his tense nerves. After some time, he opened his eyes a
Aster fidgeted and asked, "Mommy, is Uncle Kevan feeling better?""I guess." Larissa was not too sure, but Kevan was sleeping well, and he did not say anything crazy … He had to feel much better now."You guess?" Aster was not satisfied with her answer and he scolded her with a serious demeanor which was not quite fitting for his age. "Mommy, how could you be so irresponsible?"Larissa raised an eyebrow. "What?"Aster pushed her. "Hurry and go take care of Uncle Kevan! What if he relapses or something? I can sleep on my own, I don't need you to sleep with me!""What are you talking about?" Larissa closed her eyes and yawned widely. "I'm tired. If you're so worried about your Uncle Kevan, feel free to go over and take care of him yourself."Aster froze for one second before he escaped from her arms. Larissa squinted at him and saw him get out of bed from the other side."I'm going to stay with Uncle Kevan!" He ran out of the bedroom in his slippers, pitter-pattering across the sp
Aster frequently followed Larissa when she went to work, so he knew most of the people she interacted with at work. Due to Larissa's identity, the attitudes of those people were very friendly. He could not tell who were the ones trying to woo Larissa or who were the ones who were only just flattering her.So, he gave Kevan a vague answer. "I guess so?"There was a little bit of his cunningness involved in this. If Uncle Kevan really liked his mommy, he might feel a sense of danger knowing that his mommy had other potential partners, so he would speed up the process of trying to bag his mommy. The moment Aster thought of how Uncle Kevan would soon be his daddy, he could not stop himself from smiling, and the happy glint in his eyes was unmistakable.Kevan could not understand Aster's expression. He could sense Aster's joy, but he could not get where it was coming from.Could it be … he really hoped that other men would pursue Larissa?But—"Aster, when you said that you liked me,
Finally, Aster was completely awake. Pouting, he stared at Kevan who was still lying on the bed, and asked Larissa, "Can't I skip kindergarten today? Uncle Kevan's still sick. I have to stay at home and take care of him!" Aster loved going to kindergarten, so Larissa knew that this wasn't just an excuse to skip school. He was either genuinely worried about Kevan and wanted to take care of him, or his attachment to Kevan was stronger than his desire to play with his friends. In the first place, Larissa's mind was already confused by distressing thoughts. Now, it seemed that more troublesome issues had cropped up again. The closer Aster was to Kevan, the more afraid Larissa became. Involuntarily, she wondered if one day Aster couldn't do without Kevan and insisted on having him as his stepfather, how was she to reject his request? Larissa wasn't sure if she could bring herself to be so heartless. Naturally, Kevan wanted to stay and be around Aster. The joy and fulfillme
Kevan left the house with Larissa and Aster. It was the day of Roland's funeral procession to the cemetery. Although he had missed the burial ceremony, he still wanted to pay his last respects. Larissa was worried about his health and initially wanted him to rest a little longer before leaving. However, after he explained his reasons to her, Larissa didn't insist further. The three of them parted ways downstairs. Larissa and Aster got into the car. Meanwhile, Kevan walked home alone. He had only walked a few steps when Larissa, who was still concerned, called after him and reminded him, "If you're still feeling unwell, call me right away."Turning around, Kevan gave her a nod and a reassuring smile. "Alright." As the car drove by, Aster lowered the car window and shouted in Kevan's direction, "Uncle Kevan! Don't forget to come and play with me tonight!" Kneeling in the backseat of the car, he waved excitedly at Kevan. Stopping in his tracks, Kevan raised his hand and
Kevan went home and took a shower. After changing his clothes, he drove to the cemetery. Roland had made it clear a long time ago that when he passed away, he wanted to be buried alongside his wife, Jennifer Rogers. He didn't want her to be buried all alone, it was just too lonely.His wife's grave was located on Paradise Hill, on the outskirts of Bartham. Paradise Hill Cemetery was the largest public cemetery in Bartham, with a beautiful view of Denver Lake to the north. At the foot of Paradise Hill, there was a plot of land with the best view of the lake. The area was fully enclosed and designated as an upscale burial ground, costing well over ten thousand dollars per square foot. There were security guards manning the entrance, and some of them patrolled around the grounds regularly. Apart from relatives of the deceased, no one else could enter those grounds. Every year, on the anniversary of Jennifer's death, Kevan would accompany Roland to the cemetery to visit her
After Bernard set the stage, accusations from the other members of the Rogers family came pouring in. While Roland was alive, his obvious favoritism to Kevan offended many people. At this moment, they wouldn't let go of the chance to humiliate Kevan. Anthony had apologized on Kevan's behalf and tried to smooth things over, but his efforts were completely ignored. Bernard pointed his finger at Kevan and demanded, "You didn't keep vigil for Old Mr. Rogers and even came late to the burial ceremony! A disobedient and disrespectful grandson like you has no share in your grandfather's inheritance!" Kevan had been suppressing his anger for some time as he didn't want to cause a scene during the funeral, lest they disturbed his grandparents' rest. When he heard his uncle's demands, Kevan snorted coldly. "If my tardiness meant that I'm disrespectful, the incident that your family caused at the funeral service would be a bigger sin than mine. Now that you seem to be stirring up ano
While handing out gifts for the guests, Violet intentionally gave Kevan two more gifts to be given to Larissa and Dylan. "These are for Larissa and Dylan. Since they didn't come to the banquet, take these back for them," she said. The gifts were just tokens of appreciation for guests, and thus were not of much monetary value. If it were just for Dylan, Kevan would definitely have returned the gifts to Violet. However, this was another opportunity to meet Larissa. Kevan accepted the gifts and replied, "Alright." After her morning meeting, Larissa went to the hospital. Gary was reclining on the bed with his laptop on a foldable table. Frowning, he seemed immersed in his work, not even noticing Larissa's entrance. "Mr. Logan," Larissa called out, Gary looked up, startled. The next moment, his face broke out into a wide smile. "Oh, you're here. Have a seat!" Closing his laptop, he pointed to a chair at his bedside. His enthusiasm exceeded Larissa's expectations.