Free Web NovelChapter 55: Chapter 55: My Wife Is So Cute
"I-I didn’t help her find an obstetrician. Cecilia, you misunderstood." The lie slipped from Ethan Lockwood’s lips effortlessly, requiring no thought whatsoever.
"How did I misunderstand?" Cecilia Quincy’s lips were pressed into a tight line, her delicate chin trembling as she sobbed. "Sonia said so herself! She said you helped her find an obstetrician and even offered to cover her medical bills."
"Cecilia." Cecilia’s tear-streaked face looked so pitiful it made Ethan Lockwood’s heart ache. He cupped her face in his hands, gently wiping away her warm tears.
"I did say those things to her, but I was just lying. I never actually intended to help her."
"What do you mean?" Cecilia raised her eyes, which were large and round like lychees, brimming with indignant tears.
Ethan’s fingers slid upward, intimately brushing the reddened corners of her eyes as he explained softly, "That time at the hospital, I ran into Sonia, and Felix Preston just happened to be there. He’d just suffered a major defeat at our hands and was at a low point. I was still furious, so I deliberately said those things in front of Sonia to humiliate him."
Cecilia pouted, a haughty look on her face. "How did you humiliate him?"
Ethan smiled and said, "I just picked up a random business card off the floor to fool Sonia. I told her the doctor on it was a famous ’miracle doctor’ in Aethelburg, and that he was incredibly snobbish—ordinary people could never get an appointment. I said if I hadn’t pulled some strings to get that card, Felix Preston would probably go his whole life without ever meeting the man."
"Felix Preston is a loser who I’ve already defeated. Now that I’ve taken a veiled jab at him like that, don’t you think he’s absolutely furious?"
"Y-You really said all that?" Cecilia feigned disbelief.
Ethan leaned down and kissed her pouting lips. "Of course. It’s Felix Preston’s own fault for not knowing his place, trying to harass you right after you came back to Aethelburg. I had to mess with him like that to feel satisfied."
"Hmph..." The kiss placated Cecilia, and much of her anger subsided. "Alright, then. I suppose I’ll believe you."
Ethan lightly tapped the tip of her nose. "Thank you, Cecilia."
He took Cecilia’s hand, leading her into the building next door. "Have you thought of a name for your studio yet, Cecilia?"
Cecilia said, "Not yet. I thought of a few the other day but wasn’t satisfied with any of them."
Ethan said, "You’re doing jewelry design, so the studio’s name has to relate to that. It can’t be something random. But there’s no hurry. There’s still plenty of time. You can take your time thinking about it, Cecilia..."
Cecilia nodded. "Mhm!"
She wiped the tears from her face and finally smiled again.
Seeing the dimples at the corners of her mouth, Ethan Lockwood sighed inwardly with relief.
With Cecilia placated, his mind was quickly consumed by the image of Sonia Quincy.
For some reason, watching Sonia argue and clash with Cecilia over him filled him with a long-forgotten sense of pleasure.
’This is how Sonia should be,’ he thought. ’Her world should revolve around me. Her mind should be completely occupied by me. She should be fighting for my affection, getting jealous, and losing control of her emotions.’
’Sonia had always been this way. He was used to it, and he didn’t like her changing on him.’
’Even now that she was another man’s wife, he still wanted her to be thinking of him constantly...’
"Mom? Where’s Sonia?"
The first thing Felix Preston did when he got home from work was look for Sonia Quincy.
"Shh!" Mrs. Preston came out of the kitchen, pressing a finger to her lips to signal for Felix Preston to lower his voice.
Felix obediently lowered his voice and asked again, "Where’s Sonia?"
Mrs. Preston pointed with her spatula toward the room behind her. "Sonia’s tired. She’s sleeping in her room."
Felix Preston put down his laptop and instinctively started toward the room to see her.
"Hey—" Mrs. Preston blocked his way. "Sonia just fell asleep. Don’t go and disturb her."
"..." Felix Preston looked a little reluctant.
Mrs. Preston shot him a glare before turning back to the kitchen, spatula in hand. "Sonia is getting further along in her pregnancy, and she’s been drowsy lately. She’s juggling work and taking care of things at home; it’s very tiring for her. Let her rest for a while."
"I know, Mom."
Felix Preston agreed readily enough, but the moment Mrs. Preston turned her back, he quietly snuck into the room where Sonia Quincy was sleeping.
He didn’t want to disturb Sonia, but he couldn’t help it; he was just too anxious to see her.
’I don’t know what’s gotten into me lately,’ he thought. ’I find myself thinking about Sonia all the time, and once I start, I can’t control the urge to see her. It’s like I’ve been bewitched.’
The curtains were drawn, leaving the room dim. Sonia Quincy was lying quietly in bed, her breathing even and her face peaceful in sleep.
Felix Preston tiptoed to the side of the bed and sat down gently.
Sonia Quincy, unaware of his arrival, slept soundly with her eyes closed.
He watched Sonia quietly, the corners of his mouth lifting into a smile.
Ever since Sonia had a change of heart, he’d found her so much more endearing.
Just as endearing as the first time he’d ever seen her.
The first time he saw Sonia Quincy was at a private university in Aethelburg.
A friend of his attended the school, so he and Sonia Quincy were fellow students.
That day was the only sunny one during a month-long stretch of gloomy, rainy weather in Aethelburg.
The brilliant sun hung high in the firmament; a glance upward revealed a sky clear for miles. It was like a transparent blue sapphire, pure and without a single flaw.
"What a beautiful day—"
"Get lost!"
He had just finished praising the weather when an angry shout suddenly rang out.
He followed the sound of the voice and saw a young woman arguing with a man in front of her.
The young woman wore an exquisite dress with a complex design and meticulous dye job. From a distance, she looked like a precious blue sapphire, even more beautiful than the sky above.
"I told you I’m not interested in you! Can you get lost and stop harassing me?!"
The young woman was clearly furious. Her high ponytail, tied with a ribbon, swung from side to side as she stomped her foot, making Felix Preston feel a little dizzy.
The man held a bouquet of flowers, shamelessly thrusting it toward her. "I really like you. Just give me a chance. I’ll be really good to you, I promise."
"Get lost!" The young woman was about to explode. She raised her hand and swatted the flowers away. "I don’t like you, and I don’t like your flowers! Can you not understand what I’m saying?!"
"You’re making me sick!"
The man said, "Don’t be sick. I know you’re just testing me. Don’t worry, I won’t give up so easily."
The young woman: "...ARGH! What do you want from me?"
The man blushed shyly. "I... I want to be your boyfriend. You’ve been sitting at the desk behind me for a whole week. I know you like me; you’re just too shy to say it."
"But that’s okay. I’m the man, so I can be the one to say it first."
"...AARGH!" The young woman exploded. "Are you out of your mind? Me, like you? If you don’t have a mirror at home, you at least have some piss, don’t you? Why don’t you go take a leak and see what kind of ugly mug is staring back at you?"
"I wouldn’t like you even if I were damn blind! Get lost! Don’t make me say it a third time, or I’ll call a van full of goons to come beat you up!"
After saying her piece, the young woman turned and stalked off in her high heels.
As she walked past Felix Preston, she noticed his friend snickering and boldly challenged him, "Is something funny? You want to get beaten up by those goons, too?"
His friend quickly waved his hands. "No, no! Sorry."
"So annoying!" The young woman’s face was flushed with anger.
"Who is she?" Felix Preston asked curiously after she was a safe distance away.
His friend said, "Sonia Quincy, the youngest daughter of the South Aethelburg Quincy Family."
