Ashton scooped me into his arms and shot a cold look at Rebecca, who was still dumbstruck.
Then, he snapped, “Next time, please refrain from setting foot in our humble abode. My wife has a frail body and can’t handle your aggressive ways.”
He was indirectly implying that Rebecca wasn’t welcome here anymore.
As Rebecca slowly regained her senses, her eyes reddened while she anxiously tried to explain herself, “Ash, it wasn’t me. I didn’t touch her!”
Ashton scoffed, “So, are you saying that she fell in on her own?”
Rebecca once again defended herself, “She was going to push me in, but when I resisted, she fell in instead. It has nothing to do with me. She…”
“So, she couldn’t even defend herself against you, a pregnant woman?” Ashton questioned. With his lips pressed into a tight line, he exuded a chilly aura.
“Rebecca, you should be well aware of why I’ve always indulged you. It was a privilege bestowed on you in return for Parker’s kindness, but within these few years, you’ve completely exhausted that privilege.” These words were admittedly brutal.
Rebecca’s face had turned pale, and her eyes were red when she choked out, “My brother died because of you back then. How can you casually dismiss that just because of me? What’s the meaning of this, Ash?”
“Do you need me to spell it out for you?” Ashton’s breathing grew heavy as he suppressed his anger. “Go back and tell your mother that one of these days, we’ll settle the scores between us.”
With that, he carried me into the living room. After making the phone call, Mrs. Eriksen came out with an infuriated look on her face. Glancing at the pregnant woman standing outside, she said in a clipped tone, “I think it’s time for you to leave, Ms. Larson. The Fullers are a simple family and can’t keep up with your flair for drama.”
Without waiting to see Rebecca’s reaction, she shut the door in her face.
As my clothes were soaked through, water dripped onto the floor all the way to the bedroom.
Ashton directly carried me into the bathroom and placed me by the bathtub. Then, he turned on the hot water and reached out to remove my clothes, but I quickly dodged his hands.
“I’ll do it myself!” I snapped.
Thereafter, I peeled off the coat around me and started undoing my clothes when I noticed that he was still standing off to the side. With a frown, I asked, “Do you like watching me undress?”
His frosty face broke into a smile. “Can’t I?”
I stopped fiddling with my clothes to meet his eyes. “I’m sorry, Mr. Fuller, but I don’t share your sentiment, so I’ll have to ask you to leave.”
He pursed his lips, but fortunately, he did as I said without any protests.
When I came out of the shower, there was a glass of milk on the nightstand while Ashton was nowhere in sight.
Casting a fleeting glance at it, I settled in front of the vanity mirror to blow-dry my hair. I was already frail to begin with. After falling into the pond, I wouldn’t be surprised if I caught a cold.
Feeling lethargic but reluctant to sleep, I crawled under the sheets to warm myself.
Without Ashton here, I felt more relaxed. After reading a book, I fished out my phone to entertain myself.
Ashton came in with some documents in his hands, seemingly here to check up on me.
When he noticed me looking at my phone on the bed, his forehead creased. “Looking at your phone so often is bad for your eyes.”
I flicked my eyes toward him and nodded brusquely before placing my phone on the nightstand.
After that, I burrowed underneath the blanket.
The bed sank slightly as Ashton sat beside me. “Finish the milk, then sleep for a while if you’re tired.”
“I don’t want the milk!” I rejected as I had never been a fan of milk.
“Be a good girl, Scarlett. Get up and drink it,” Ashton ordered. This was the first time I felt so annoyed by someone.
I flipped the blanket off me and stared him dead in the eye for several seconds. Then, I rolled out of bed in anger and grabbed the glass of milk before walking into the bathroom.
After pouring the milk into the toilet bowl, I came out and put the glass back down with a dark look on my face. “Please take the glass with you when you leave. Thanks!”
“Scarlett!” he growled. “Do you think this is funny?”
Flummoxed, I cocked a brow at him. “What’s funny?”
Faced with my reaction, he seemed to be at his wits’ end. After staring at me for a while, he sighed and said in a deflated manner, “Get some rest.”
Watching him get up and leave, I pulled the blanket over myself and decided to do just that since I was indeed feeling a little tired.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t fall asleep even though I was very sleepy. This feeling was torturous, to say the least.
After a few hours of rolling around in bed, I finally began to doze off.
Right then, the bedroom door was opened from the outside. Ashton walked in and stood beside the bed, his gaze landing on me. “Don’t sleep too much during the day. Get up and eat something. You can continue sleeping after that.”
It had taken me a painstakingly long time to finally drift off into sleep. Now that he had awoken me, I felt rather speechless. Paying him no heed, I kept my eyes shut and tried to let sleep take over me once again.
He walked up to me and pulled me up from the bed, saying in a stern voice, “Get up and eat something.”
Anger tore through me, and I opened my eyes, shoving him away as I glared at him. “What’s wrong with you, Ashton? Do you know how hard it is for me to get a good night’s sleep? How many f**king times are you going to barge in on me? Have you ever considered my feelings?”
Perhaps I had reacted too violently. He frowned as a cold glint entered his eyes. “Fine, let’s sleep together.”
I was taken aback when he climbed into bed. Deep down, I was aware that there were certain things that could not be avoided forever.
