Instead, he let out an awkward laugh and quickly changed the subject. “Mommy, where are you now?”
Neil could hear a crunching sound from the other end. Bethan seemed to be munching on some fruits. Bethan answered, her voice somewhat muffled, “I’m at your godmom’s place. We’re eating a fruit platter right now.”
Anne’s voice immediately rang out, “Hi, Neil! Aunt Anne misses you! “
Neil let out a sigh of relief as soon as he heard that. He lifted his gaze and shot Brettley a look that seemed to say, ‘I told you so.’
The corner of Brettley’s mouth turned up in a smile. Somehow, he, too, felt relieved to know Bethan was with Anne instead of spending the night with Theo.
Neil pursed his lips. “Mommy, have you met anyone interesting lately?”
“Yes, I did! “
Bethan got up and went into her room. She laid on her bed and started chatting with her son, “Didn’t I tell you this yesterday? I got to meet the artist I love, Theo Allen, in person! I’ve been staying with Anne for a while now, but I’m thinking of finding a place of my own so as not to inconvenience her. It just so happens that Theo rented a house in Banyan City, and he offered to let me have a look around his place. I went over just now, and I think it looks quite nice, so I’m planning to rent it! I’ll send you my new address as soon as I settle in.”
The truth uncovered itself. Neil did not feel the need to prove anything to Brettley anymore, so he quickly hung up the phone after a few more minutes of conversation. As soon as he hung up, he gave Brettley a smug look.
“Did you hear that, Mr. Morrison? Mommy went to Theo’s house to look around. It’s not what you thought it was at all! “
With that, Neil turned around and sauntered out of the room triumphantly.
Brettley remained motionless in his chair as he watched the child leave, unable to fight off the smile on his face. It turned out everything was just a simple misunderstanding.
“Brettley.”
As soon as Neil left, the door was pushed open again. Alice came in with a faint smile on her face as she held a cup of coffee.
Alice placed the cup on the table and wrapped her arms around Brettley’s shoulders. She gently let out a soft exhale next to his ear. “I thought you said you don’t have work to do tonight?”
Brettley’s brows furrowed. This interaction was normal for every couple, but somehow, her behavior annoyed and even repulsed him. Perhaps it was because they had been apart for too long, or perhaps something had changed.
Brettley contemplated for a moment before finally removing her arms from his shoulder. Alice gaped at him in shock. Brettley did not seem to notice this and instead picked up the cup and took a sip.
After a few more drinks, he regained his composure. “Alice, you should go to bed now. I wanted to finish up some work…”
Alice frowned and shot him an exasperated look. “
Brettley, do you think your work is more important than me? Ever since I returned, you’ve never even spent any quality time with me! I thought we used to be very close. Why did you change?”
Brettley immediately frowned. He squinted and looked up at her. “Do you really think we used to be… close?”
Alice was aware that she had said something wrong. She immediately shifted her gaze elsewhere and bit her lip. “I meant…I felt close to you.”
Brettley narrowed his eyes. “I didn’t treat you well at all.”
Brettley was aware that to the public, he and Bethan appeared to be a very happy couple. At that time, Bethan had insisted on marrying him, much to everyone’s disapproval. He had also defied his parent’s arranged marriage with Hailey Walter and insisted on marrying Bethan instead. However, Brettley knew that he did not fulfill his responsibility as a husband at all.
He thought he would never fall in love with Bethan, so he spent countless nights away from home and focused most of his energy on work instead of her. It was not until she left that he realized his mistake and discovered his true feelings for her. He had spent the last six years shadowed in his guilt of mistreating Bethan, but it was at this moment he found out that Alice did not seem to remember all of that at all. Instead, she thought their marriage was a happy one.
Brettley did not know how to go about this. He was not sure if she was lying to herself or that he put too much blame on himself. He rubbed his brows. The guilt and regret he felt in his heart reached a crescendo, and he turned around and lifted Alice into his arms.
Alice paused, but she immediately coiled her arms around his neck seductively. “Brettley… “
Brettley carried her all the way back to their bedroom and laid her down on the bed.
Alice gazed up at the ceiling, her chest rising and falling as she panted rapidly. This was the night that she would become Brettley Morrison’s woman. This was the night she had waited for!
The dim lights created a romantic atmosphere. Brettley gently tilted Alice’s chin upward and forced himself to kiss her.
It felt no different than before. Just as they were about to take things to the next level, he stopped abruptly.
“What’s wrong?”
Alice asked, her gaze clouded with lust.
“Why don’t you take a shower first?”
Alice froze. Although she was reluctant to do so, she still got up from the bed and headed into the bathroom.
Brettley watched as the glass fogged over with water vapor, outlining the faint silhouette of a woman. He closed his eyes.
He still could not do it. Was there something wrong with him? Everything seemed fine when he was with Bethan…
Brettley sighed and forced himself to overcome the anxiety and worries swirling in his mind. He knew that life had not been easy on Alice–she had suffered and sacrificed so much for him all these years. He could not take all of this for granted. He had to treat her the way she deserved. At the thought of that, Brettley’s brow furrowed, and he tugged on the sheets.
As soon as he turned around, Brettley caught a glimpse of the bloodstain on the sheets where Alice laid down moments ago.
Brettley let out a sigh of relief and left a note on the bed. With that, he left the bedroom.
Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Alice discovered that she was on her period. She was so frustrated that she felt like hitting her head against the wall.
She could not believe the impeccable timing. She had planned to seduce Brettley so that she could officially become his wife, but her sudden menstruation ruined her plans.
Alice cleaned herself up and rummaged around the medicine cabinet until she found her birth control pill. She swallowed the pill in one gulp. She was willing to do whatever it took to get Brettley to sleep with her!
Alice came out of the bathroom with a smile, but Brettley was nowhere to be found. Instead, there was a bowl of steaming hot soup on the nightstand, along with a pack of tampons.
A maid was busy changing the bedsheets. When she saw Alice emerge from the bathroom, the maid went up to her and handed her Brettley’s note. “Mr. Morrison left this for you.”
Alice frowned and opened the note. Brettley’s handwriting read, (I’ll be sleeping in the guest bedroom tonight. Take care of yourself. There’s no rush. We still have the rest of our lives to spend together.]
Alice crumpled the paper in anger. The rest of their lives! Brettley always used that as an excuse to reject her.
She had returned to Blue Bay Villa for quite some time, yet she could not even get so much as a kiss from him!
Alice was already busy dealing with Bethan and the two children. She finally had the opportunity to seal the deal with Brettley, but he ended up finding out about her period.
After the maid left, Alice closed the bedroom door. She laid down on the bed and took out her phone. “Mr. Walter, I need your help.”
“I found a new place. I’m moving tonight.”
Bethan decided to notify Anne of her move during breakfast.
Clang! Anne’s fork immediately slid out of her hand and fell onto the table. She hastily picked it up and asked, “What? You’re moving so soon?”
“Yeah. The rental isn’t cheap. I want to move as soon as I can since I’ve paid this month’s rent.”
Anne sulked. “I didn’t think you’d be able to find a new place so quickly…”
“I had a lot of help from Theo. “
Bethan shrugged. “He has connections.”
Anne pursed her lips. “I think it’s a little strange that you guys barely know each other, yet he’s already helping you out so much. What’s he up to?”
Bethan chuckled. “He’s not a bad guy.”
“I didn’t say he was.”
Anne sighed. “By the way, Bethan, do you know the eldest daughter of the Walters from Sea City? I think her name is Hailey.”
Bethan froze. “Yes, I know her.”
Hailey Walter was the girl with whom Brettley was to marry many years ago. They used to think that it was just the parents’ meddling, but to their surprise, Hailey had taken this arranged marriage seriously and insisted on marrying Brettley as soon as she graduated.
At that time, Brettley had no intention of getting married to Hailey, much to his parent’s dismay. When they were dating, Bethan was head over heels in love with Brettley, and she suggested that Brettley marry her instead.
Bethan thought he would brush this off, but he took her to the Ministry of Registration and got their marriage certificate the next day. Bethan thought this was the beginning of her fairytale love story, but she was wrong.
She still remembered what Brettley had told her when they were getting married…
“I can’t promise that I ‘ll fall in love with you, but I can promise you one thing: I will never betray you. You’ll always be safe with me.”
Every time Bethan recalled his words, she could not help but feel repulsed. He promised to never betray her and that he would always keep her safe.
What lies!
“Nothing much.”
Anne pursed her lips. “As you know, our hospital has the best plastic surgery department in all of Banyan City. Recently, a lot of people have come by to ask if any of us had seen Hailey. They think she might’ve stopped by our hospital.”
She continued, “Anyway, I heard that this Hailey girl has been obsessed with plastic surgery ever since her fiancé dumped her. Their marriage was apparently arranged, but he didn’t want to marry her.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.