Chelsea’s youngest son was right behind Sonny, wailing and demanding, “I want the plane Sonny got.” Gripping the toy plane against his chest, Sonny nervously looked back at his cousin and murmured, “Huggies, Mama. Huggies, Mama.” Liberty picked her son up. “Liberty, tell Sonny to give the plane to my son. We’re your guests. Sonny should be nice to my son.” Chelsea came over and wiped away her son’s tears before standing up to grab the toy plane from Sonny. Seeing that Sonny refused to let go, Chelsea was about to snatch the toy right out of Sonny’s hand when she caught a glimpse of Serenity and her husband. Zachary had his hands full with bags. She immediately withdrew her arms and greeted Serenity with a smile. “Long time no see, Serenity. Is this your husband? Why, he’s a handsome and striking man, isn’t he?” Not only was the man attractive, but he also carried himself with a presence and grace that even Hank, despite being in a managerial position, could not beat. Chel
Since Zachary was a bit of a germaphobe, the kid’s dirty hands on the new toy did not sit well with him. That was why he was generous to give away the new toy. Now that the two young ones quit fighting over the toy, the negative vibe among the adults subsided.Although Zachary said nothing, the Browns got the hint from his eyes and expression to never rub him the wrong way. Mrs. Brown already had the impression that Serenity was not one to be messed with, and now her man was difficult to deal with too. She was aware that Liberty was close with Serenity and that her son was having an affair, so she needed to warn her son against taking things too far. Liberty might have taken an unpaid role as a stay-at-home mother, but she gave the Brown family their first grandson, so Hank should be considerate and not go overboard. Hank soon returned home. After everybody had a brief rest on the couch, Liberty called them to the dining table as dinner was ready. Serenity followed her siste
“Liberty, Hank has to go to work every day to earn for you and Sonny. His job can be busy and tiring. As his wife, you should be taking care of him. How can you leave the house chores to him?“Hank only mentioned going halves so you don’t overspend the money. Why should you fuss about every little thing with your husband? Hurry up and clear the table. Don’t make Hank angry. It’s hard enough he has to bust his *ss out there, so show some understanding.” Chelsea echoed her mom’s thoughts. “Yeah. As if you know what that feels like. All you do is take care of Sonny at home while spending Hank’s money. You have the cheek to order Hank around.” Liberty left the kitchen and approached the children’s toy motorbike to pick Sonny up. With a blank face, she replied, “I don’t have a job or a source of income. I can only rely on Hank because I’m a full-time mom. Yet, he expects me to pay for my half?! So, what is this?“Fine. I’ll pay my half, but he must do his share of house chores too. We
Chelsea added, “Your place is not too far from the school. I believe it’s in the catchment area.“Liberty can take care of the two kids, cook, and clean for them. The boarding expenses…” Hank interrupted her. “Chelsea, they are my niece and nephew. Forget the boarding expenses. I’ll get the kids transferred to the school here. Liberty will do the pickups and drop-offs. It’s not like she has anything else to do anyway.” Seeing that Hank did not hesitate to say yes, Chelsea and her husband were over the moon. Mrs. Brown pointed something out to her son. “Hank, you should discuss this with Liberty. She’s part of the family too.” She then turned her attention to her daughter. “I heard the kids don’t get an automatic placement for the junior highs here. The parents must live or own a property in the catchment area to get into local schools. Chelsea, it’s not like you’re living in the countryside. It’s suburban. The schools there aren’t too bad. You and your brothers studied there a
The family gathered together and enjoyed the watermelon in front of the TV. Soon, the Browns retired to their rooms for the night. The Browns were sticking around for a few days. Now that Serenity had moved out, there was an extra room for the whole Brown family to stay. However, without Serenity helping around the house while Liberty took care of the child, groceries, and cooking, the house did not seem as clean as before. Before retreating to bed, Chelsea discreetly pulled Hank to a corner and said, “Serenity and her husband brought a lot of stuff tonight. Liberty was so angry she carried the bags into her room just now. I took a look inside the bags. There was some good stuff.“I saw cigarettes and alcohol. Give some to your brother-in-law. Liberty doesn’t smoke or drink. You can afford the stuff anyway. Your brother-in-law can’t bring himself to get the good cigarette brands. Ah, Dad hasn’t tried that alcohol. Give the spirit to Dad.” Hank burst into laughter. “Just take
Liberty snapped back, “Hank, I take care of our child all day, but you only see me as some useless person who only eats and spends money unnecessarily. I can take it because I want to give my son the best I can. “But your sister’s kids have nothing to do with me. They’re not my responsibility. There’s no way I’m going to care for her kids! I can’t believe you want guardianship of her children. The burden of providing for them and their education would fall on us.“The title deed doesn’t have my name, so it’s your business if you want to transfer the ownership to your sister. It’s also your problem if you can’t get the house back. One thing though, you should return the renovation cost to me before you put her name on the deed.“I’m afraid I won’t get the money I spent on the renovation back when the house becomes hers.” A shadow of gloom loomed over Hank. “I said I’ll be giving you extra allowance. Isn’t that enough? You’re at home with a child anyway, so I don’t see the big de
Hank was livid and tempted to use force. To his surprise, Liberty suddenly turned around and looked at his raised fist. Liberty stared right into Hank’s eyes with a deadpan look and said, “You better kill me if you want to hit me. Otherwise, you can sleep with one eye open.” In the past, Liberty would endure Hank’s verbal and physical abuse. It was all for the sake of the family, her son, and the love she had for her husband but Hank’s insistence on going halves was the last straw. Since Liberty used to work in the same company as Hank, she had a clear idea of Hank’s salary as manager. It was tens of thousands a month. Yet, Hank only gave her three thousand bucks and not a penny more for the household expenses. To top it off, he was making her pay for her own share, so of course she was disappointed. Now that she had been let down, Liberty did not want to be a pushover who revolved around Hank anymore. Hank better not sleep if he ever laid his hands on her again because
Tilting her head, Serenity stared at Zachary as he met her gaze. The couple looked into each other’s eyes. A long while later, Zachary flicked her forehead. “Don’t look at me like that. Are you doubting the authenticity of my words? Serenity, we’ll go to bat for your sister so long as she’s in the right.” The Yorks held their family values in high regard. The husbands and wives had nothing but love for each other. Growing up, Zachary had never witnessed a case of domestic violence. Dad said that men who abused their wives were losers! “Mr. York.” “Yes?” Serenity cautiously asked, “I want to lean on your shoulder.” Zachary hesitated. “Just for a while. I won’t cross the line,” Serenity said while tilting her head to rest against his shoulder. Serenity could feel his body stiffening. Although it was also a strange feeling to her, Serenity needed companionship right now. It felt great to have a shoulder to lean on! It took a while for Zachary’s tensed muscles to