"Kevan! Come and take a seat!" Cody smiled and beckoned to him.Kevan complied, calling out, "Cody." "Kevan …" Ruby also greeted him, her voice soft and gentle. With a smile, she continued, "You're back?" Her smile carried a hint of flattery. Kevan did not sit beside Cody. Instead, he led Larissa to take a seat on the other side of Roland. Finally, Cody turned his attention to Larissa and inquired, "And who might this be?"Kevan replied, "This is my wife, Larissa Seymour."Larissa smiled at Cody and nodded. At the same time, she caught a glimpse of Ruby's face, which had turned pale.Cody acted surprised and questioned, "When did you get married? Why didn't you tell us about it?"He wore an unhappy expression and continued, "Do you consider us as outsiders?" Kevan simply replied, "We had just gotten married. We have the marriage certificates but haven't had the wedding ceremony yet."Roland sneered and added, "I only found out not long ago too." After hearing that, Cody

Ruby gritted her teeth and squeezed the dough hard. Her fingers were pressed into it. She tried her best to adjust the emotions on her face so she would look natural."Actually …" She lowered her head and felt her cheeks burn with a blush. "We weren't just friends … He pursued me for a long time in the past, but … Maybe we weren't just meant to be. In the end, we didn't end up together, and I married Cody."Larissa surmised Ruby was referring to the guy sitting beside her just now, Kevan's cousin. Ruby looked at Larissa, a hint of provocation in her eyes. "You don't mind it do you?" Despite that, Larissa's tone remained gentle. "It's been a long time, and we're both married … It's just that I haven't seen him in a long time, so it brought back memories." Larissa let out a breath and acted generous. "I don't mind."But in reality, a sense of suffocation gripped her chest, and her mood sank. Upon witnessing their initial interaction, she thought Ruby had feelings for Kevan. Ye

The people working in Roland's villa knew who she was. When the cooks saw her alone by the door, they couldn't help but ask, "Young madam, are you okay?"Larissa smiled and reassured them, "I'm fine. I just feel tired from standing all day." There weren't any chairs in the kitchen, and everyone was busy. No one had the time to bring over a chair. Even so, Larissa wouldn't let them do it. After half an hour, someone called out to her, "Young madam, the pie is ready!" Larissa quickly got up to check the oven and saw that it was perfectly baked. She removed it from the oven with utmost care and brought it to the main house. The dining table stood prominently in the center of the main house, and the cooks placed the dishes on the table. The people in the living room were already there. Roland occupied the central seat while the others found their places accordingly. As Larissa entered, she noticed the joyous atmosphere, with everyone happily indulging in drinks and food. They didn

Roland was old and had to go to bed early. Around nine o'clock, he said he was sleepy and retired to his room. Kevan helped him in returning to his quarters. Just as she reached the doorway, he turned back and instructed Larissa, "Clean the table." Larissa paused for a moment, then nodded in acknowledgment. "Okay," Edmund and the others had left together, so only Larissa was in the main house. This New Year's Eve dinner was sumptuous, and the table was adorned with a wide array of dishes. As the six of them had not consumed much, there was a considerable amount of leftovers. Larissa felt uncertain about how to handle them, as Kevan had not provided clear instructions.Just as she was in a dilemma, Ben came over with some maids, and they discarded the leftovers into the trash. When they were about to throw the pie, Larissa stopped them. "Ben, can I take this away?"She had spent the whole afternoon making it. Even if no one ate it, she couldn't let it be thrown away like that. For

Larissa stared at the money in his hand, and her eyes grew as round as saucers. This was the first time in her life to receive cash as a gift. As a kid, she envied Lana every New Year because she received stacks of money. Just the money she got from Xavier and Yvette was already worth thousands, whereas Larissa had nothing.Larissa felt like taking the money but suppressed her urge in the end. "I'm already an adult. Why are you still giving me money?" She smiled slightly and pushed Kevan's hand away. "Give it back to your grandpa.""Give it to him yourself if you want to." Kevan stuffed the money into her hand and said, "I don't run errands for other people." With that, he went back into his room. Old Mr. Rogers had given her a very thick roll of money. Just by feeling it, Larissa guessed that there was at least a few thousand dollars. However, she couldn't accept it, so she did not unbind it to check. She just left it on the coffee table.Time gradually ticked away until it was alm

Larissa opened her eyes with difficulty and saw double images of Kevan. She opened her mouth, but it was hard to make a sound because her throat hurt from vomiting the previous night. "I'm not feeling well …" she mumbled, making Kevan frown. He switched on the lights, then made his way to her and leaned over her.He got a fright from seeing how pale she was and put a hand against her forehead. The warmth radiating from her fever confirmed the severity of her condition. Kevan pursed his lips and carried her out from under the blanket. He grabbed a sweater she had tossed aside and wrapped it around her tightly. Carrying her horizontally, he strode out of the room all the way to the basement car park.Kevan sped to the hospital. During New Year's, the people in Bartham thinned out almost by half. Early in the morning, they saw little to no cars except for the public transport on the road. After the doctor found out that Larissa had stuffed her face with food and downed a whole bottle of

"Oh!" The nurse fumbled a note and two hundred-dollar bills from her pocket, handing them to Larissa. "Your husband seemed to have something urgent to do and left after a phone call. He gave me these before leaving and asked you to take a taxi to this address after you wake up." Larissa took the note and crumpled it up, then tossed it away after taking one look at it. As for the two hundred dollars, she stuffed them carefully into the pocket of her sweater. The address Kevan had written on the note was probably his parents' address. She wondered if he would believe her if she told him she had accidentally lost the note.Larissa didn't have a very high fever anymore, with her temperature slightly over 38 degrees. It subsided after she received the IV drip. After checking her temperature, the nurse cheerfully discharged her. Larissa took a taxi back to the hotel. The receptionist knew her, so she gave Larissa a spare key card without any hassle.The hotel room had been cleaned, and the

It wasn't important to Larissa whether she got to meet Kevan's parents. They weren't a real married couple anyway, and Larissa already knew that they would go their separate ways one day, even though Kevan had no intention of divorcing. Nevertheless, his resolution gave her an inexplicable sense of fear. She closed her eyes and made a decision. "I'll come."Kevan texted her the address, and when she read it out to the taxi driver, he turned around and looked her up and down with his eyes wide. There was curiosity in his gaze mixed with a little envy. Kevan's parents lived in the villa residential area in the city center. The price of land was costly at the city center, and although the villas were built more than a decade ago, only high-class wealthy people could afford to live there. The area's security was very strict, and no taxis were allowed entry. Larissa alighted outside the gate and searched for the correct house number one by one in the piercing wind. Thankfully, the Rogers

Larissa quickly forced a sweet smile and walked towards her, greeting, "Hi, Mom." Violet smiled from ear to ear as she held Larissa's hand and said loudly, "Hey …" Larissa squeezed onto the couch beside her as Violet stared at her intently. Then, she asked in a caring tone, "Kevan said you're sick and were at the hospital this morning. Are you feeling better?" Larissa nodded and said, "I'm feeling a lot better. Thanks for asking, Mom."Violet pretended to glare at her angrily and said, "What are you talking about? We're family. Isn't it normal for me to ask after you?" Larissa was stunned for a moment, at a loss for words. After all, her own mother had never done any of these "normal" things.Judging from where she was seated, another lady who should be Cody and Edmund's mother said, "Violet, your wish has finally come true! You wished for a daughter-in-law for so many years, and Kevan finally brought her home today!" "Isn't that right!" Violet said joyfully. Her gaze never left La

Yvette's name and reputation were well-known among the older generation. However, the elders of the Rogers family didn't seem happy when they heard this, unlike the common public, who would be pleasantly surprised by this revelation. On the contrary, the expression on Kevan's parents' faces darkened considerably. Kevan's uncles held their hands up to their faces, hiding their smirks and trying to stifle their laughter. His two aunts were less discreet. They simply looked down and chuckled in glee. Their unusual reactions caught Larissa off guard. She didn't know what went wrong. Panicking, Larissa clenched her fists tighter. "What a coincidence!" Cody broke the unbearable silence. Mockingly, he continued with a mischievous smile on his face, saying, "Back then, Kevan …"His words were interrupted by Anthony's low but imposing voice, "Cody, that's enough!"Sheepishly, Cody rubbed his nose and decided to shut his mouth.Violet immediately changed the subject, "Lari, you're so th