If He Wanted Her Instead

Wolfram would answer the phone then and there, but there were three more people at the table. Then again, seeing how they basically didn’t care about the maid, he just answered it. He pressed the button and listened through the silence that came after.

[“I heard you suddenly picked out a wife.”] His father’s voice was coarse from his illness. However, Wolfram could still recognize that voice… and how the father’s voice was coarser than the last time.

“I opened the building already. I only have to do two things that you asked me to do.” Wolfram only glanced at the others, but the kids were too busy eating. Their mother was also keeping to herself. They didn’t seem to care about his phone call. “I just decided to cross out another from the list.”

[“Don’t be too much of a devil. My son, your two elder brothers have gone through life normally. Are you hoping to set a bad example to our youngest?”] The father coughed in the middle. [“He proclaimed himself as the black sheep, didn’t he? Is there a need to take the title away from him?”]

Wolfram’s eye twitched. He would argue with the old man, but he was trying to eat peacefully. He then glanced at the mother, who was merely watching her kids eat. With a sigh, he answered, “I’ll take her to you. If you don’t approve of her, I will file for divorce immediately.”

His words made Delta raise her eyes to find his face, but the man was only gazing at his steak seriously. She then noticed how Foxley turn to him again—only for him to turn to his mother.

Foxley cried out, “Mommy, ‘divorce’ means you won’t be together anymore, right? Why is Mr. Colton asking for a divorce? Did we do something wrong?”

“…! Is it because I forgot to clean the floor…?” Eine shrunk her shoulders. She was going to do that, but Foxley was like a tornado going around. Moreover, they were enticed by the food served.

“I don’t think it’s our fault.” Delta smiled at her children. They looked so pitiful at the sound of leaving the beautiful house. They hadn’t even stayed here for more than a day.

[“Wolfram! Are those children?”] The father yelled from the other end, and he coughed uncontrollably after. His voice was also so loud that Delta caught it. Wolfram even moved his head away.

The son got up from his seat and walked away. “Dad, why are you getting agitated? They’re not even mine. How about this…?”

Delta couldn’t hear much of their conversation anymore, but she wondered if she was going to be presented as the real wife of the man now. It was bad for her as she would be found a lot easier, but her thoughts strayed to what happened earlier. She couldn’t keep Carolus and his boss away on her own for so long. Perhaps she could only rely on Carolus for doing half his best to stall.

When other agents got assigned to chase her down, how could she even think of evading them? Would she just give up halfway?

Delta took a bite of the meat that had gone unpalatable in her mouth. There were only a few things to do if she was just an orange vendor. However, if she stuck her landing as Mrs. Colton, she could perhaps get a high-paying job and not get fired. After amassing some more money, they could run away again. The children still wanted to find and meet their father.

‘I’m sorry, Mr. Colton…’ Delta had a wry smile. She continued eating until Eine finished her pasta. The girl then helped her little brother with slicing the steak. Since it was pre-sliced with a knife, they were only pulling it apart with the fork.

“Delta, can I talk to you?” Wolfram asked as soon as he walked in. He didn’t come alone as he was carrying two plates with him. When he set it down in front of Eine and Foxley, the kids stopped and salivated at the cheesecakes served to them. Then the man glanced at the mother.

The mother looked at him before moving to get up from her seat. Wolfram only invited her to the window at the side. “You heard a part of my conversation with my dad, didn’t you?”

“Are you going to continue with the lie, Mr. Colton?” Delta smiled. She needed to see how he felt about this lie he started, the lie she was betting on.

“Continue the lie? Look at your kids. Do you think they’d like it if you came forward with the truth?” Wolfram crossed his arms on his chest. “I’m not going to ask for too much. You can become one of the most powerful women in the country, and all you have to do… is live that lie with me. Do you want me to draft a contract for the two of us?”

Delta shook her head. “I’m not interested in entering a contract marriage with you, Mr. Colton. Let’s just have an agreement. I will stay as your wife as long as you let me do what I like. You don’t need to share your prestige or money with me. Though… I’d really like to live here with my kids.”

Wolfram glanced at the two children eating their cheesecake. “This sounds like a green-card marriage, but I’m okay with that. If I let you do what you like, you also have to give me permission to do what I like. We have to agree not to do anything damaging to the image of our marriage, too. You are not allowed to file for divorce if I don’t agree. I won’t kill you if you don’t attack me, either.”

Since the man was not being difficult to Delta, her lips then curled into a smile. She then tilted her head to the side and seemingly waited for Wolfram to look at her. When he did, she giggled. “How about not falling in love, Mr. Colton? Are we going to have an agreement about that?”

“…” Wolfram stared at her and her peach lips. He didn’t even think too much before leaning down to deliver a kiss to her mouth. 

Delta was surprised. She froze, and he wasn’t even holding her. When he pulled back slowly, he reveled in the look of surprise and hesitation in her eyes.

Wolfram pulled on a corner of his mouth for a smirk. “Don’t tempt me, Delta. I don’t mind kissing a pretty lady in public.”

Delta moved her head down, letting her fringe cover her eyes. There was a blush on her face, but she only feigned her shyness. “…I will keep that in mind, then.”

She then moved back to the table to finish her food. However, she saw how Eine and Foxley were giggling behind their hands. Delta couldn’t help but give them a knowing smile. How naughty. They were indeed their mother’s children.

“…” Wolfram watched her walk back to her seat and attend to her children. He also noticed how they pooled a third of their cheesecakes each for Delta to eat. They seemed to be too used to sharing everything—what little of something they had.

It also meant he couldn’t bring the rest of the cheesecake to the table to eat. He would just eat it in the kitchen later… or bring it out at dinner for everyone to share. 

If he wanted a whole cake for himself, he could just buy another. If he wanted Delta instead, that was a different story.