Sighing, I rose to my feet to close the windows.
I had barely taken a few steps when a rustling sound was heard outside the window.
Is it the wind? Or is someone out there?
Curious, I carefully made my way toward the window. When I was half a step away from the window, I came to a stop and stood on tiptoes to peek outside.
Right then, a hand appeared out of nowhere and grabbed the eaves. The person stretched out another hand and proceeded to climb in.
As the person had his back to me, I could only figure out he was a man based on his muscular built. My sixth sense told me he meant no harm as he had risked his life to scale the walls. Hence, I watched as he made his way in, prepared to cover up for him if needed.
Soon, the man jumped in and turned to face me. The moment I saw his face, my eyes lit up as I dashed forward to give him a tight hug.
“Ashton, I’m glad to know you’re alright.”
I was afraid to hear of his news through Marcus.
The man relaxed and exhaled sharply. He wrapped his arms around me. “You’ll be the death of me.”
I teared up at his words and looked up. I parted my lips to say something when something occurred to me. Struggling out of his arms, I told him, “Wait for me,” before I ran to the living room.
Ashton tiptoed to the door and made sure no one realized his arrival before returning to me.
“Come here, Ashton.” I held the laptop and sat by the bed. He sat beside me obediently.
I clicked on the video and placed the laptop in his lap. “This is our son. Look, he has your nose.”
I’ve been wanting this to happen for a while. Even though I originally wanted Ashton to see his son face to face, this would suffice.
Ashton glanced at the screen, his gaze darkening. A few seconds later, he flung his arm around me and assured me, “Don’t worry. Baby is a gift from God. I won’t let him be out there, away from us for long.”
I was relieved upon hearing his assurance. Yet, at the thought of Marcus’ attitude, my heart clenched up again. “Did anything happen to you recently? Is our family alright?”
Ashton’s expression fell without warning. He shoved me away and spoke icily. “You’re worried now? When you allowed yourself to be held hostage, didn’t you know they will use you and ruin us?”
He had never spoken this harshly to be before, even when he was jealous of Marcus. I immediately panicked and racked my brains to formulate a response. In the end, I put my pride aside and backed down. “I was too emotional back then. I wanted to help, but as a woman, the only way I could think of was—”
“Oh?” Ashton interjected. “I thought you think of yourself as a man.”
I was reckless, impulsive, and couldn’t be bothered about the consequences of my action. Ashton was right. I was displaying all the common mistakes a man would make.
Completely speechless, I lowered my gaze and fiddled with my fingers.
Seeing my reaction, Ashton pressed on, “Do you know what a good woman should learn?”
I shook my head.
It was difficult enough to be a good person, so I didn’t have time to learn more beyond that.
Feeling exasperated, Ashton let out a sigh and placed the laptop aside. He held my shoulders as we sat across from each other. “A good woman and a good wife should learn how to rely on her husband.”
