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
Zachary was speechless.He refused to budge from a stare-down before saying faintly, “It’s late. Get some early rest. Don’t fall asleep here again. It’s chilly at night. You’ll feel the pain when you catch a cold.” Zachary then turned on his heel and left. Soon, Serenity picked up on his door closing and locking. Serenity muttered amusedly, “He even locked the door. That’s hilarious. Who is he trying to keep out?”If Zachary could hear Serenity’s mutter, he would snap back that Serenity was the one he was trying to keep out.Back in his room, Zachary went straight to the bathroom, but not for a bath. He stood in front of the mirror and stared at his reflection. Judging by the faint blush, he did turn red on the face. Lifting his hand, he traced his facial lines and rubbed the spot Serenity touched while searching for the tickling sensation he got when her fingers ran along his face.He turned on the tap and washed his face. Thinking back on his reaction, Zachary smiled an
Feasting his eyes on the balcony garden, Zachary uttered faintly, “You can grow the whole yard with roses when we move into a bungalow. When they grow and climb the walls, the full bloom is a sight to behold.” Serenity replied with a smile, “The price of properties has skyrocketed to an all-time high. I can’t even scrape together the deposit for a studio apartment, let alone a bungalow.”Of course, Serenity had considered getting a bungalow… in her dreams. Anyone would’ve wanted to live in a bungalow if they had the means to do so. Privacy was guaranteed in the standalone building. An apartment was not exactly the perfect sanctuary as the walls were not thick enough to soundproof from upstairs and downstairs. Zachary held his tongue. The place they were staying now was a last-minute purchase before their marriage. He had been staying in a huge mansion prior to this. “Mr. York, get some breakfast. I’ll join you after I’m done watering the flowers.” “Sure.” Zachary turne
Josh was holding a small stack of paper which could easily be mistaken for office documents. “Here you go.” After slipping the papers to Zachary across his desk, Josh took a seat and put his breakfast on the table. He asked his boss, “Do you want some? I got my food delivered from the Wiltspoon Hotel. It’s delicious.” Since Wiltspoon Hotel operated under York Corporation, Zachary usually grabbed his breakfast, lunch, and dinner there. Now that Zachary had a wife, it had been a while since Josh dined with his boss. Hmm… Josh kinda missed those moments. “I’m good.” Picking up the file, Zachary flipped through and asked, “Is everything here?” “Yeah. It’s all there. No stone is left unturned.” “It’s not a lot.” “The younger members of the family have it pretty good while the seniors spent their lives on the farm. What more can there be?” Zachary was without a word. As mentioned by Josh, there was nothing much to write about the seniors, albeit the info on the younge
Ring, ring, ring… The office phone was ringing. Zachary accepted the call and put it on loudspeaker. “Mr. York, Ms. Stone is here again.” With his face falling, Zachary uttered in a flat tone, “Ignore her.” The secretary replied, “Ms. Stone ordered a truck of flowers to be arranged into a heart shape and delivered to the entrance of our building. Apparently, the heart represents her love for you.” Josh’s eyes on his boss were sparkling with gossip. Zachary looked askance at Josh before retorting, “What’s the security here for? Why are they allowing trash at our doorstep?” He then terminated the call. The secretary got the message loud and clear. Josh chuckled. “Elisa is a great girl. She’s forthcoming with her feelings. I mean, the number of women who have a thing for you has got to be as many as the hair on my head, but only Elisa has the guts to profess her love and prove it with her actions.” “Go for her then if you think she’s great. Get her to give you all th