Christopher frowned as well when he saw Monica there. He had a grouchy expression on, and it was obvious that he was upset. I secretly tugged his arm and got him to ease up. His expression turned warmer when he gestured me to Julia and Gordon before introducing me, “Mom, Dad, this is Ms. Yvonne Tanner. You guys already know each other, but I think it’s only right to make an official introduction. She is the woman I courted for two years before we got together, and we are dating with marriage in mind.”
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Lane. This may not be the first time we meet, but here are some gifts. I hope you’ll accept it,” I interrupted. I could tell that Christopher was about to tell everyone that we were already married, so I cut in. After that, I handed the gifts over.
“You’re too kind, Ms. Tanner,” said Julia before she gestured for the servant to put the things away. Her gaze seemed a little complicated when she waved and had Monica sit right next to her. After that, she turned to me and asked, “How are you feeling?”
“I feel much better now. As it turned out, it was just a misdiagnosis, and I will recover after getting some rest. Thank you for your concern, Mrs. Lane,” I replied with a smile. I noticed that Monica had been staring at me, and her gaze seemed off. However, I didn’t pay much attention to it. She seems especially quiet today and isn’t behaving as proud. Is this change because Christopher is around?
“Why are you calling her Mrs. Lane? You’re supposed to call her mom now. Don’t forget that we’ve already gotten our marriage certificate. You’re not thinking about messing with me, are you? Don’t even think about it, Yvonne Tanner,” said Christopher before he let go of my hand and retrieved the wedding ring, which I hid in my bag. He put it on me while everyone was staring and insisted, “Are you messing with me because you know that I will never marry anyone else? We’re already married, so how dare you refer to yourself as my girlfriend? Let me be clear. You are stuck with me, and I will never leave, so call her mom now!”
I was speechless. For a second there, I felt like massaging my head. I didn’t know that Christopher had already told his family about how we were already married. That got me lost, and the way he threw a tantrum made it so that I didn’t even know where to put my hand.
I peeked. Gordon didn’t react much to it. In fact, when we first met, he had told me that he was not against Christopher and me being together. Julia, however, stiffened. It took her a while before she pretended that she never heard anything. She told me, “Dinner is ready. This is the first time you drop by, Ms. Tanner, so let’s have dinner together before you leave.”
“Ah yeah, sure. Haha, I happen to be hungry, too,” I replied. I thought that the situation was turning a little awkward, so I laughed. My mind was wrecked as I tried to come up with a way to ease the tension. I secretly kicked Christopher the second we sat down. Didn’t we agree to go slow? Why trigger everyone like that when they already know about how much we care for each other?
“Chris, come sit here,” requested Julia when she saw how Christopher was instinctively sitting beside me. The seat she pointed at, however, was right next to Monica’s.
“Mom, my girlfriend is here, so why are you asking me to sit close to you? Just ask dad to get the dishes you want for you. If he won’t do it, you can get Shelley to do so. I need to stay by Eve’s side because this is the first time she’s here. I’m sure she’ll feel too embarrassed to dine with us, so I have to take care of her.”
After saying his piece, Christopher told me that we were having Chanaen food and got me to start eating. He even switched the dishes around, so that my favorite dishes were right in front of me. It was obvious that he was telling me to act like I’m home.
I secretly peeked at Julia once more and noted how her expression seemed to have darkened even more. The truth was, I would definitely be on the receiving end of some concealed, passive-aggressive insults if nothing had ever happened between Christopher and me. Fortunately, they already know all about us, so it wasn’t appropriate for them to say anything.
Julia cleared her throat a little. “Please feel free to act like you’re home, Ms. Tanner. You saved Chris’ life, and that makes you the family’s savior. We should’ve thrown you a welcoming party earlier.” She got me some food after she finished her piece.
I thanked her quickly. It didn’t take long before my favorite dishes piled up on my plate. Christopher was eating while piling my plate up, so I nudged him to get him to behave.
Just then, Julia ambushed me with a sentence. “Ms. Tanner, how about I take you in as my goddaughter? I don’t have a daughter, and you are our family’s savior, so you’re perfect as my goddaughter.”
