Chapter 13
“No. Tur visiting Orandma Plona.
Anathea adjusted the camera. Fiona seemed to have woken up. She was leaning against the bed as she waved at Kander “HI, Xander”
“Grandma Fional” Xander greeted in a sweet voice. Flona would den sneak him some of his favorite snacks, so he was quite close to her…
However, Flona was always ill, so Bisa forlade Xander from visit her in case he got sick too. It had been a long time since they’d last met.
A radiant smile bloomed on Xander’s face as he showed Gregory the screen. “Dad, It’s Grandma Flona!”
“Yeah.”
Gregory nodded lightly at Fiona through the screen. Then, he continued striding upstairs. He never said a word to Anathea the entire time. It was as if she’d never existed on the other end of the ne
Anathea was used to his coldness by now. She asked Xander, “What’s the matter? Did something happen?”
Xander immediately apologized to Anathea. “I’m sorry, Mom, I was naughty yesterday.”
His teacher had encouraged them to be brave children who owned up to their mistakes. His private tutor only ever taught him that nothing was objectively right or wrong and that he should judge things based on how beneficial they were to him.
Still, he felt that he’d indeed done something wrong. After all, Anathea didn’t talk to him much these days. She’d stopped making his favorite dishes, and she no longer read him bedtime stories.
So, if an apology could make Anathea return to normal again, Xander was willing to do it.
When Anathea heard Xander’s apology, she was stunned for a moment. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she held it in as she said in a gentle voice, “It’s getting late. You should get some rest, Xander. You still have school tomorrow.”
“Aren’t you coming home tonight, Mom?” Xander asked. He wanted Anathea to read bedtime stories for him that night.
Anathea had recalled their unhappy moments from the day before when she’d seen Gregory head up the stairs just now.
So, she refused. “No. I’ll be staying with Grandma Fiona in the hospital tonight.”
“Okay.” Xander was a little disappointed. Then, he asked, “Mom, will you make shrimp and zucchini oatmeal pancakes for me tomorrow?”
Thomas made great pancakes, but compared to Anathea’s, they were still lacking a little.
“Sure.”
“Anathea was a little glad about Xander’s change in attitude Curving her lips into a smile, she agreed. “Now go to sleep.”
“Yay!” Xander leaped into the air. He noticed that Natalie had just arrived home, so he happily told her, “Ms. Whitman, Mom is making shrimp and zucchini oatmeal pancakes for me tomorrow! They’re super delicious! You should try them too!”
When Anathea heard his words, the smile froze on her face for a moment. The joy in her heart faded. But Xander had already hung up on her.
“Ms. Whitman?” Fiona noticed Xander’s tone. “Is she a new caregiver? Xander sounded quite close
to her.”
Anathea lowered her gaze.
If she told Fiona that the “Ms. W
- s. Whitman”
Xander was so c
close to was none other than Natalie, she might just faint from fury.
Fiona would be scheduled for surgery soon, so Anathea decided not to take the risk.
She simply nodded and said, “Yes.
1/3
“What’s the matter Nat? You don’t look too good.”
As Anathen’s mother, Flonia tunediately noticed the sorrow deep Anathea’s gaze Frowning, she asked, “Did something happen between you and Gregory?”
Anathea was shunned for a moment. Smiling, she shook her head. No. You’re overthinking it, Moin ”
“Did you get Into a fight?” Plona asked.
She was ill, but that didn’t mean she was any less wise, Gregory ha greeted her just now, but he’d never said a word to Anathea, They were so distant that it looked like they were strangers.
“No. I just miss Dad a little.” Anathea changed the subject. “I wonder how he’s doing.”
Even though Adam had received a lighter sentence gli erod trial, he’d been sentericed to 20 years in prison. He was still in prison right now.
It was all because of Gregory, who’d wanted to exact revenge i
It only because Adam had forced Gregory to marry her?
Anathea couldn’t understand why Gregory b
hated them so much. Was it only
Yet, the last time Anathea had seen Adam before he’d been sent to prison, he’d told her not to worry about anything. He’d also warned her not to dig deeper. He’d only told her to play her part as Gregory’s wife. Anathea was still puzzled over why he’d said such a thing.
When Fiona heard Anathea’s reply, a complicated look flashed across her eyes. Taking Anathea’s hand, she said, “Don’t worry, Nat. If your dad behaves in prison, his sentence might be reduced. We will be reunited then ”
Anathea’s mind drifted back to reality. Fiona was right. 20 years might be a long time, but they would have hope as long as they were alive.
So, she had to take good care of Fiona until her illness was cured. Only then could they await Adam’s release from prison.
It wasn’t even 7:00 am by the time Anathea returned home. She was planning to wash up before making pancakes for Xander, After all, in her moment of weakness, she’d said yes to his request yesterday.
However, when Anathea arrived at the entrance of the master bedroom, she paused in her steps.
At this hour, Gregory probably hadn’t left for work yet.
Anathea decided not to think about it. They were already divorced, anyway, and there shouldn’t be anything she should be scared of.
Exhaling deeply, Anathea opened the door to the room.
To her surprise, Gregory wasn’t on the bed. In fact, the sheets were completely free of creases. It was obvious that he hadn’t spent the night here.
A look of realization flashed across Anathea’s eyes.
She’d forgotten that, now that Natalie had moved in, Gregory would sleep in Natalie’s room just like he’d done the night before.
Anathea was fine with that. It would be even easier for her to pack ter clothes now,
At 7:20 am, she went downstairs after washing up. Thomas was already in the kitchen, bustling about to prepare breakfast.
When he saw Anathea coming over, he smiled and greeted her, “Good morning, Mrs. Sinclair.”
“Good morning” Anathea smiled back. Noticing that Thomas had already prepared the ingredients for shrimp anucchini oatmeal pancakes, she casually took over. “Let me do it.”
Chapter 13
+25 BONUS
After handing the frying pan to Anathed, Thomas poured out some almond milk for her. “This was freshly blended. Please try it, Mrs. Sinclair.
***Thank you.” Anathea reached out to take the glass of almond m
if she fumbled.
Thomas was quick to react. Reaching out with his other hand, he managed to catch the glass while holding Anathea’s hand as
well.
Stunned by the unexpected skin contact, Anathea looked at Thoma
“Forgive me, Mrs. Sinclair.” Thomas hastily let go of her as he apologized
Anathea shook her head. “It’s okay. Just leave it there. I’ll try it late”
Thomas gave her a careful glance. He didn’t say anything else as he worked on his own tasks.
At 7:30 am, Anathea had just placed the pancakes on the table when Xander skipped downstairs.
“Mom!” Xander jogged up to her. He was quite happy to see her as soon as he woke up.
“Come have breakfast.” Anathea poured out a glass of milk for him
“Okay!” Xander eagerly took a bite of the pancakes. He smiled joyfully as he said, “Your pancakes are the best, Mom! Can you take ine to school later?”
Anathea’s lips curved into a smile. “Sure.”
She could actually sense that Xander had changed a little after he started going to school. He wasn’t as distant as he used to be, and they looked just like any normal parent and child.
She used to dream of such scenarios in the past, but now, it was happening in reality. A gentle look flashed in her eyes.
e you eating. Xandy?” But in the next moment, Natalie’s voice rang out. “Something smells nice! What are you
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Another looked in the direction of the voice, Ratalle was coming down the stairs, and Gregory was walking a short distince behind her. Their footsteps were almost in sync.
It looked like they’d woken tip together, washed up together, anden come downstairs trigether. Sure enough, as Anathea had muessed, Gregory had spent the night in Natalle’s room.
Anathea averted her gaze away from them.
Meanwhile, Xander immediately shifted his attention from Anath to Natalie. “Good morning, Ms. Whitman!”
Picking up the plate of pancakes Anathea had made for him, he ran up to Natalie. He was eager to share it with her. “Mom made this. Try it, Ms. Whitman!”
“Sure.” Natalie glanced at Anathea. Then, she smiled as she picked up a piece and took a bite. “This is nice.”
“Right?” Xander grimest. “It you like it, I’ll ask Mom to make some for us next time. You can eat all the pancakes you want Anathea didn’t say a word as she quietly ate her breakfast.
“I didn’t expect you to be so good at cooking, Ms. Jacobson.” Natalle took a seat opposite Anathea. “I can see that Xander really likes pancakes you make. Why don’t you teach me how to make them?–
Meeting Natalie’s gaze, Anathea leisurely stirred the oatmeal in her bowl. “I’ve already taught Tom how to make them. Yourtan just ask Tom if you want to learn the recipe.”
“Tom?” Natalie was a little confused.
Gregory glanced at Anathea as well.
“The new chef,” Anathea explained, “His full name is Thomas Morgenstein.”
“I see.” Natalie glanced at Thomas, who was busy cleaning up the kitchen. She seemed to be scrutinizing him.
Thomas looked quite young and looked decent as well. Still, he was a far cry from Gregory. Natalie had no idea why Anathea would get so friendly with a mere chef.
Still, she didn’t care who Anathea was close to. She only cared about Gregory.
Natalie looked at Gregory. When she noticed that Gregory’s gaze always seemed to be drawn to Anathea somehow, she clenched her fingers.
Shep
placed some food on his plate and said in a gentle tone, “Try this, Greg. You tired yourself out before going to sleep last night, so you should eat more.”
When Anathea heard that, she froze mid–motion, the spoon still in her hand.
Just then, Gregory’s phone rang. It was a call from Martin, who wanted to confirm his work schedule for the day.
Gregory immediately picked up his handkerchief and wiped his mouth before getting up. He instructed Martin to schedule an extra meeting in the morning.
“Well, Greg has to manage such a huge company, so of course, he’ll be a little busier than most of us.” Natalie gazed at Gregory’s tall and upright silhouette, admiration almost spilling from her eyes. “Our studio is partnering with Sinclair Group for a project, so we have a meeting to attend together later.”
She seemed to be directing her words at Anathea, but the latter didn’t respond. In the end, she simply looked like she was talking to herself.
However, Xander was quite curious about Natalie’s work. “What do you do for a living, Ms. Whitman?”
“I’m a curator for exhibitions,” Natalie replied.
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“A catator de Xander blinked, looking a little lost:
“I’m in change of planning exhibitions,” Natalie explained pallen “I’m like a bridge connecting artists trezhibitions Investors, collectors, and crifles.”
She even took out her phone and showed Xander the art exhibitions she’d coordinated overseas.
Just like Gregory, Natalie had skipped a grade to enter college. The’d taken different majors, but since she’d been capable of getting into the same college as Gregory, het competence was undeniable. If not, there wouldn’t have been any rumors of het and Gregory being a matchs made in heaven
However, Natalie’s family had been significantly inferior to the jacobsons back then. Brisa had felt that the Whitmans were below them. That was why Adam had had a chance to get Anthea to marry into the Sinclair family.
Now that Anathea thought about it, she felt like she was the bad who’d forced a couple to break up.
However, she clearly remembered that she’d already thrown away Gregory’s drugged wine back then. After all, despite her love for Gregory, she had her own principles to stick by. She’d never do something so despicable.
However, för some reason, Gregory had still managed to drink that wine. On top of that, after Anathea had sipped a seemingly harmless drink, she’d gradually lost consciousness.
When she’d woken up later, she’d found herself and Gregory lying naked on a bed. His strong body had been weighing down on her, and she’d felt a painful sensation in the lower half of her body.
She’d instinctively wanted to push him away, but he’d just been too strong for her. She couldn’t move him at all. Moreover, she’d actually liked Gregory, so when the latter had lowered his head to kiss her, she’d gradually relaxed her jaw and stopped biting her lip.
Later on, she’d decided to sneak away after the accident. She had never expected Gregory would keep her by his side the whole night. In the end, she’d been out cold.
When she’d finally regained consciousness later, things had already been moving along a predetermined path.
Anathea didn’t want to recall those things anymore. Fortunately, the mistake back then was slowly being corrected right now. She’d be completely free after a month. She could finally leave this relationship that had given her nothing but scars.
“Why is there snow at the venue?” Xander blinked, his gleaming eyes when he saw pictures of the exhibition Natalie had coordinated. He looked a little bewildered. It was obvious that he was very interested in the exhibition.
“That’s because this is a winter art exhibition combined with snowboarding,” Natalie replied.
“Snowboarding?” Xander’s curiosity was instantly piqued. “Can you snowboard, Ms. Whitman?”
“Of
fcourse.” At the mention of her area of expertise, Natalie put on a confident smile. “I’m even a second–tier snowboarder!”
She showed Xander a video of her snowboarding-
Wow! You’re amazing, Ms. Whitman!” Xander’s gaze was filled with admiration. He looked at Natalie as if he were looking at
his idol
As the two chatted enthusiastically, Anathea sat nearby without saying a word.
In the past, Gregory had forbidden Anathea and Xander from talking at the dining table. Anathea tried her best to keep quiet during mealtimes so that Gregory wouldn’t be upset.
Now, by the looks of it, rules could be broken after all. It was just a matter of who was breaking them.
Obviously, Natalie was the exception.
“When I grow up, I want to be someone as amazing as you, Ms. Whitman!” Xander said excitedly.
“If you work hard enough, I’m sure you’ll be amazing too.” Natalie smiled as she put away her phone. Then, she looked at
