Chapter 3 I Was Always Alone These Past Few Years

This was the first time she’d met eyes with him in three years, but she quickly shifted her gaze from him.

Her eyes still looked as dark and clear as ever. However, he could no longer see the love in her eyes. What was left was just indifference and calmness.

His heart suddenly felt very empty, and his gaze also darkened.

“Arabella, Mom and Dad went to Auckland to fetch Grandpa, so there isn’t anyone at home right now. How about you stay here for the time being?” Arabella had the presence of a big sister and was always thinking about her well-being. “At least I can take care of you here. Besides, you have been through too much overseas.”

She clearly knew that Arabella and John had a past together, and yet, she still wanted to take her in. If it weren’t because Arabella had always loved and protected her, Arabella would have suspected that she was trying to humiliate her.

Although Serenity had a good reputation among the rich as she had outstanding looks and a generous and gentle personality, wouldn’t it be too magnanimous of her to let her husband’s ex-girlfriend live at her house?

Even if she was her younger sister, shouldn’t a woman be more careful and petty when it came to protecting her marriage?

Her lips curled upwards to form a cold smile. “I also lived alone these past few years when I was in California.”

If she could survive in a country filled with Westerners and learn how to live independently, the Rivera family would not be a problem. Besides, the Rivera residence was her home, and there were also maids in there.

Arabella looked pityingly at her slim face. “Arabella, we have not seen each other for three years. Don’t you want to catch up with me?”

“I always have time to catch up with you.” Given the awkward relationship between John and her, there was really no need for them to stay under the same roof. “Sis, arrange a driver to send me back to the Rivera residence.”

John put down the bowl of hangover soup and took his coat, preparing to go upstairs. However, he stopped after walking two steps. “It’s getting late. Even if you want to leave, you should wait until tomorrow.”

Arabella looked at the clock in the living room and saw that it was not even 10:30 yet. But upon looking at Serenity’s expectant eyes, she thought for a while and said, “In that case, I will be troubling you guys.”

John, who was going up the stairs, froze. Her polite and indifferent tone of voice was just like a sharp weapon suddenly stabbed into his heart, causing him to feel suffocation and pain.

Arabella had just come back and was dealing with jet lag. She tossed and turned for the whole night and was unable to fall asleep. It was not until it was almost daybreak that she managed to take a light nap.

She decided that she would return to the Rivera residence today. After she woke up, she placed the washed clothes from yesterday into her luggage. After she’d packed everything, she went downstairs.

In the living area, John was wearing his casual clothes while sitting at the dining table, reading his newspaper. There was a cup of milk and a sandwich that had not been eaten yet placed in front of him.

He slightly lowered his head and read the newspaper in his hands with a focused look. Hearing her footsteps, he turned around to look at her before shouting, “Lily!” Lily saw Arabella walking down the stairs and, thus, placed her breakfast on the dining table.

Arabella walked towards the dining table and sat opposite him. She faintly greeted, “Good morning.”

John slightly froze and replied, “Good morning.”

Strange. It was already almost 8:00 am, yet why was he still sitting here, reading his newspaper? Didn’t he have to go to work?

Her breakfast was the same as John’s breakfast. There was a sandwich, a cup of milk, as well as one serving of toasted bread. She ate only two bites of her sandwich and drank a cup of milk before taking the napkin to wipe her mouth.

“Breakfast is very important. You eat too little.” John closed the newspaper in his hands. Her appetite was really alarmingly small.

XXX

Then What Should I Call You?

“Mr. Grant.” She did not accept his kindness at all and, instead, curled her lips into a sarcastic smile. “Put more effort into your work and waste less time on me, an irrelevant person.”

She called him “Mr. Grant” like a heavy hammer harshly smashed on his heart. His face turned pale. “You are calling me Mr. Grant?”

She gave a sarcastic smile, and her tone turned sour and harsh. “Then what should I call you? Brother-in-law? Or Master John?”

John’s face turned pale, and he pursed his lips, which turned white. He remained silent for a while before slowly opening his mouth. “Suit yourself.”

The atmosphere in the living area became oppressive, and the maid felt that both of them seemed to have gotten into a quarrel. Thus, she dared not come near them.

“John, seems to be—” Serenity’s frantic voice broke the silence between the two people.

Serenity entered the living room and saw the strange atmosphere between the two people. She was a little curious. “Arabella, you woke up?”

Serenity looked towards the entrance. She had to say that Arabella suited that dress very well. She was beautiful with a slim figure, really just like a goddess. As she stood there, she had the indescribable aura of a young girl from a wealthy family.

She suddenly fixed her gaze on her sister’s arms, and her face turned pale.

In Arabella’s embrace lay a baby who was wearing a pink outfit, and the child’s chubby little arm grabbed her shirt collar.

Arabella realized that her sister’s gaze was fixed on her arms and said, “Arabella, this is Eva Grant. She has just turned one year and two months old.”

If her whole world had crashed when John and Serenity got married, at this moment, she was in a black hole.

She gripped the dining table and tried her best to hide her discomfort as she forced herself to calm down.

She should have known. After being married for three years, how could they not have a child?

In the past, she and John used to imagine their future together. At the grass patch in the Grant family’s flower garden, she loved to lay in his embrace and play with his fair, long, and slender fingers.

“John, what do you want to do after graduating from university?”

He thought about it seriously. “I want to work hard and earn money. Then, I will marry you.”

As she heard his words, her clever and sparkling eyes looked as though it shone with stars. “After that?”

“Then, you have to fulfill your duties as a wife and bear me a child. Better be a daughter who is as lovely as you so that I can pamper both of you.”

Although his tone had not seemed serious, his gaze was especially so.

She was very happy, but on the surface, she pretended to be calm. Her face blushing red, she coquettishly nudged his arm before scolding him. “You are so naughty.”

At that moment, all she thought about was marrying John after she graduated.

“Then, you have to think of a name for our daughter beforehand.”

“Call her Eve Grant.”

She furrowed her brows in disdain. “That’s too simple. What’s more, you are even an excellent student from Caster Academy. If you are so pandering while thinking of a name for your daughter, take care that your daughter won’t treat you as her dad when she grows up.”

“Because you and she will ever be my only one.” He was not proficient in saying pick-up lines, so his ears turned red after saying those words.

She excitedly hugged his neck and kissed his cheek. “Then let’s say this beforehand. Eve can only be her nickname. When that time comes, you have to think of a real name again as I’m scared that she would hate us when she grows up.”

Arabella suddenly smiled, and a thin layer of mist covered her eyes before she tried to suppress it. She seemed to be mocking herself and muttered, “Being an aunt doesn’t seem that bad.”

XXX