Instantly, she broke into a cold sweat. Inhaling sharply, she turned her head to see Ruby sprawled on the sofa, with one hand pressing down on her injured leg."I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Ruby quickly got up from the sofa and knelt on the ground as she hurriedly removed the bandage from Larissa's leg.As she had pressed too hard earlier, Larissa gritted her teeth in pain even at Ruby's slightest touch.When Kevan returned from his bedroom, he noticed Ruby's anxious expression and Larissa's pale complexion. A sense of foreboding rose in his heart."What happened?" he asked.Ruby burst into tears first."I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she repeated incessantly, unable to say more.She covered her mouth, crying uncontrollably, tears streaking her face.Unable to stomach the sight, Larissa instructed Kevan, "Get her some tissues to wipe her tears."Kevan quickly grabbed several tissues and stuffed them all into Ruby's hands."What about you?" He lowered his head to look at Larissa's injured l
Kevan had successfully calmed Ruby down. Although her eyes were bloodshot, all traces of tears had been wiped from her face."All done?" Kevan asked Larissa.Larissa tried to nod, but her neck was too stiff to move."Yes," she said, white mist forming in the air when she spoke."What did the doctor say?""It reopened again, but the doctor fixed it for me again." Larissa stopped herself from saying the injury had worsened. Ruby's lips trembled, and tears shimmered in her eyes."It's all my fault—""You didn't do it on purpose," Kevan said, comforting her gently.When Ruby calmed down, Larissa asked, "Shall we go? I'm freezing to death."Only then did Kevan realize how thin the clothes she was wearing were.Pursing his lips, he took off his coat and draped it over her. The stiff fabric still carried his body warmth and minty scent. Feeling extremely cold, Larissa stopped caring about acting all proper and polite. She pulled the jacket tighter over herself.Meanwhile, Ruby wa
Thanks to Ruby, Larissa's vacation was extended indefinitely. Fortunately, Kevan never brought Ruby back again.Larissa did not like sitting idle. Being cooped up at home all day, she had nothing to do except watch TV and play with her phone, which made her extremely restless.Thankfully, Violet was kind enough to bring Larissa downstairs for a walk occasionally when the weather allowed it, instead of allowing her to suffocate at home.On a particular day, Violet took her to the park downstairs after lunch. The park was filled with elderly people who had taken their children out for some fresh air. There was hardly anyone Larissa's age.As they often ran into each other, Violet had become acquainted with them and would chat with them when they sat together."Is she your daughter?" asked a woman next to Violet, pointing at Larissa.Grinning, Violet answered, "She's my daughter-in-law, as dear to me as my daughter."Her words brought Larissa more warmth than the sunlight did."Oh
She hesitated for a moment before cautiously asking, "Larissa, when do you and Kevan plan to have a child?" Hurriedly, she added, "I'm not pressuring you to have a child, don't misunderstand! I'm just asking so I can be prepared in advance."It made Larissa a little embarrassed. "Well … Kevan and I have never discussed it."In addition to her own decision, Larissa and Kevan were merely in a contractual marriage for their individual gains with no plans of having children. However, she couldn't tell Violet about that, so she could only continue to stall.Violet rubbed her hands with disappointment. "Alright."…Violet stayed longer than usual that day. Usually, she would return home after visiting the park.Glancing at Violet, who was busy in the kitchen, Larissa felt slightly uneasy. She was afraid that Kevan would repeat the mistake of bringing Ruby back home.It wasn't a big deal when he brought Ruby home at other times. Larissa had successfully convinced herself that she har
Kevan carried Larissa to the dining room and placed her in her designated seat. Originally, there was no "designated" seat in the dining room of his house, and everyone could sit wherever they wanted, but Violet was a fussy person. In the past, she wasn't bothered because she rarely visited. Now that she visited every day, she gradually noticed many things she didn't like.The first thing that caught her eye was the minimalist furniture. To make the house more homey, she bought many tiny decorations and ornaments, filling the house with her signature touch.The dining chairs in Kevan's house were made of wood, which was comfortable to sit on in the summer but particularly cold in winter. Therefore, Violet covered each chair with a plush cartoon cushion. She even designated a seat for each person. Larissa was the rabbit, Kevan was the bear, and she was the little cat she had always wanted to rear but was not allowed to by Anthony.Kevan wasn't a fan of the changes in the house, but s
After dinner, Violet showed no intention of leaving. Larissa, who needed to rest and recover, went to bed promptly at 8.30 pm every night as Kevan wouldn't allow her to stay up even for a minute longer.Once Larissa was asleep, Violet turned off the TV, patted the empty space beside her, and beckoned Kevan to come over. "Come and sit here. I want to talk to you."Kevan sat down with a puzzled expression. His mother's serious expression made him feel a bit uneasy. "What is it?""When do you and Larissa plan to have children?" Violet asked without beating around the bush.Kevan wasn't mentally prepared at all hence he was stunned into silence. After a moment, he answered, "We don't want children."The topic was serious and carried too much weight. He had originally planned to wait until his family fully accepted Larissa before bringing it up. By that time, even if they weren't happy about it, they wouldn't have the idea of making him give up on Larissa. But he didn't expect hi
After Violet left, Kevan sat alone in the living room for a long time. He knew his mother was just speaking out of anger and wouldn't actually sever their relationship.Based on his understanding of her, she would most likely try to convince Larissa instead since she couldn't get through to him. Hence, he felt it was necessary to give Larissa a heads-up in advance.The next morning, during breakfast, Kevan probed, "Has my mother mentioned anything about having children to you these past few days?"Larissa was surprised. "She mentioned it to you too?""Yes." Kevan nodded."How did you respond to her?" Larissa asked anxiously.Luckily, she hadn't said anything the day before. If Kevan's made-up reasons didn't match, his mother would begin to suspect something was up."I told her that I don't like kids and don't plan on having children," Kevan said.That astonished Larissa as she never expected Kevan to shoulder the blame himself. She couldn't help but applaud his courage."So, h
"Ma'am, we've placed everything according to your instructions.""Good." Violet nodded. "You may go now."After they had left, Violet pushed Larissa into the kitchen."These are all my baking equipment," she explained. "And there's flour, cream, and all these other ingredients."She glanced at the built-in oven in the kitchen and huffed. "Fortunately, Kevan got an oven here when he was renovating. He must have lived here for three to four years, hmm? Look at how new it is!" She tutted.Larissa did not have the courage to say that it was not just the oven, but almost everything in the kitchen seemed new.…After lunch, both mother and daughter-in-law baked a cake instead of going downstairs for a walk.Larissa was fairly talented at cooking, so when Violet taught her something, she caught on pretty quickly. She only ruined one cake base, and made the second one perfectly, just like Violet's. Violet praised her for quite a while because of that.As she was just starting out, Vio