After all, she is everyone’s precious princess.
She pursed her lips as her features contorted with rancor. The tone in which she spoke to me was especially uncongenial. “I thought you hated Ash? Why are you back here?”
Amusement filled me as I countered, “No matter how much I hate him, we’re still a legally married couple. Besides, I own half the rights to this house. If I don’t come back, wouldn’t that be an act of surrender?”
She curled her lips in disdain. “Oh, quit the snarky act. I’m not interested in fighting with you over money.”
I raised my brows. “I find that hard to believe. After all, you’ve even set your sights on my husband.”
Faced with her venomous glare, I turned and headed toward the yard before she could say something nasty to me and further dampen my mood. Realizing that it was already autumn in K City, I sighed at how time flew.
Perhaps Ashton had heard our voices outside. After a while, he came out. When he saw Rebecca, he frowned as his lips flattened into a line. “What are you doing here?”
Seeing her lover, a soft smile replaced the angry scowl on Rebecca’s face. “Ash, I heard my father say that you’ll be going to a border town next month to discuss the development project, so he told me to pass the collaboration contract to you.”
Then, she signaled her nanny with her eyes, to which the latter took out a file and respectfully handed it to Ashton.
“Pfft!” I failed to stifle my laughter and ended up attracting their gazes to me.
Ashton pursed his lips as he ordered, “It’s cold. Go in and put on a coat.”
Rebecca shot daggers at me and gnashed her teeth in anger.
I ignored her death stare and walked up to Ashton, holding his arm to complain, “You were too rough earlier, so I don’t really feel like walking so much. Can you go get it for me?”
To emphasize, I deliberately tilted my head slightly, revealing the bite mark on my neck.
My skin was delicate, so he would always leave a mark no matter where he bit me.
Perceiving Rebecca’s increasingly vexed expression, I broke into an incredibly sweet smile at Ashton. “Please?”
Ashton was no fool, so he easily saw through my little trick.
An indiscernible frown appeared between his brows before he glanced at Rebecca. “Just get your father to look for me at the company for matters like this in the future. You don’t need to come here.”
“The weather’s cold. Go home earlier,” he added after a brief pause.
“Ash, I…” Rebecca wanted to say something but was cut off by Ashton.
“Send my regards to your mother,” he said in a voice that had dropped a few octaves lower.
The hidden warning in his words was clear. Rebecca instantly tensed up, an aggrieved look taking residence on her face.
Ashton wanted to tug me back into the living room, but I released his arm at that time and said to him, “Go get me a coat. I’ll send Ms. Larson off.”
His brows drew together.
Seeing his hesitation, I reminded him, “You promised that you wouldn’t question me no matter what I did.”
After a short pause, he relented, “It’s cold outside, so don’t take too long.”
I nodded and watched as he went back into the living room. Then, I turned back to Rebecca with a faint smile. “Let me send you off, Ms. Larson.”
“That’s not necessary!” Rebecca was upset after being given the cold shoulder, and seeing me only made her more displeased. “You couldn’t even protect your own child, so stop gloating, Scarlett.”
There was a cobblestone path that extended from the front door to where we were standing, and beside it lay a small pond.
Because of the cold weather, the fish inside were relatively inactive and the lotuses that bloomed on the water’s surface had withered by now. To ensure that the pond stayed visually pleasant, snapped branches and leaves were frequently cleared away. Hence, the water was considered quite clean.
Having already shooed off the nanny, Rebecca supported her waist with the contempt on her face clear as day.
I couldn’t help but sneer at her. “What is there for me to gloat about, Ms. Larson? Indeed, I failed to protect my child, but why don’t we see if you can?”
Her eyes widened, seemingly just realized that she was standing close to the pond. I took a few steps toward her and grabbed her arm before yanking her to the edge of the pond.
Forcing her to look at the still surface of the pond, I said, “You won’t drown even if you fall in. You’ll only suffer a little bit. Why don’t you jump in and see if you can protect your baby?”
“You…” she shrieked. “If you harm a hair on me, my father will give you hell!”
“Let’s give it a try, shall we?” I smirked slightly and felt the urge to roll my eyes when she shivered.
“Don’t you dare!” She raised her voice. “My father will never let you get away with it if you push me in!”
I felt bored listening to her yapping away about her father in an attempt to intimidate me, so I casually shoved her slightly in the direction of the pond.
She screamed in fright and instinctively pushed me away.
Splash!
Holy sh*t. The water during the cold seasons was really freezing. After thrashing in the water for a while, I was abruptly hauled out of the pond.
As the chilly air kissed my skin, I shivered violently.
Ashton wrapped the coat he had brought out around me before turning to Mrs. Eriksen who had anxiously followed him out and ordered, “Call Dr. Crest over now.”
Mrs. Eriksen nodded profusely and proceeded to make the call.
