I nodded and asked, “Who is it?” It was three o’clock early morning, so I couldn’t figure out which maniac would interrupt others at such odd hours.
He looked elsewhere and denoted in a serious tone, “Rebecca is going to give birth soon.”
All of a sudden, my mind was all over the place because she was nowhere close to her estimated date of delivery yet. Hence, I was confused that she was going to give birth so soon.
I wondered what the person on the other end of the call told him. Meanwhile, he held on to his phone with a frown as though he had received some upsetting news.
Ashton lowered his volume and replied, “I’m so sorry, Ms. Anderson. I’m currently not in K City.”
He was aware I had my eyes on him. Hence, he decided to carry on with the conversation with the speaker.
At that moment, Cameron’s voice could be heard as she pleaded anxiously, “Ashton, Rebecca needs you by her side more than ever! Can you please make a trip back to K City immediately? As long as she’s able to give birth to her child safely, I’ll give in to whatever request you have! Please, Ashton!”
Ashton furrowed his brows because he was slightly irked by Cameron’s fretful voice.
I took over his phone and replied on his behalf, “Ms. Anderson, I’m afraid I have to turn you down because my husband is in the middle of something. I don’t think he’s able to make the trip back.”
“Scarlett!” Cameron exclaimed in shock and yelled, “You’re the one who has sent Rebecca the photos of the deceased children! She almost fell down the stairs in the middle of the night because of you – you vicious woman!”
I found her words hilarious and replied sarcastically, “Ms. Anderson, how am I, a trivial character, supposed to expose your beloved daughter to such horrible photos that can drive her mad? You should stop blaming me for everything that has gone wrong on her end. Perhaps God was behind this. After all, look at what you have done over the years. Instead of asking Ashton to fly back, why don’t you atone for your sins instead?”
Cameron gasped when she heard my sarcastic remark. She warned me in return, “Y-You! Come at me with everything you have if you’re holding a grudge against us! Aren’t you afraid of karma if you make a move against a defenseless pregnant woman?”
“Oh, I’m terrified, Ms. Anderson! However, you’re the one who should be afraid because it’s your karma that we’re talking about! I haven’t done anything to get my revenge, and I don’t think I need to do it myself anymore.”
Immediately after I made myself clear, I hung up the call and looked at Ashton. “Are you going to make a trip back to K City?”
He smirked and directed a rhetorical question at me in return. “Do you think I’ll make the trip back?”
I shook my head and asserted, “Nope! If you dare to make your way back to K City, I’ll kill you for real!”
“Shall we give it a try?” Ashton sneered and provoked me.
I stared at him and caressed my chin in silence while he narrowed his eyes and asked, “Are you a part of this?”
“Excuse me?” For a short while, his words confused me. However, after a few seconds, I noticed he was talking about the incident that had occurred right before Rebecca’s labor.
“Does that mean you’re not involved in this?”
I nodded and queried in return, “Since I’m in J City, how am I supposed to get the better of her? If I wish to get my revenge, I’ll definitely stay back to witness the outcome of my plan.”
The bedside lamp was the only faint illumination that was available in the room. Ashton stared at me and leaned over to cradle me in between his arms. He gasped and apologized out of the blue, “I’m sorry, Scarlett!”
I pushed him away and said, “Stay away from me! It’s pretty war, tonight!”
Although I couldn’t figure out the reason he had apologized, I had no intention to get to the bottom behind his odd behavior either.
I stared at the ceiling with my eyes shut tight because I felt empty deep down as I recalled the traumatic experience with our child back then.
Previously, I held a grudge against Ashton and blamed him for not protecting us. I resented him for not being around when I needed him by my side the most.
Eventually, I noticed I was the selfish one because I had never put myself in his shoes and looked at things from his perspective.
Right then, Ashton broke the silence, asserting in a serious manner, “I won’t repeat the same silly mistake anymore.”
I peered into his eyes and queried, “Ashton, do you love me?”
It was a foolish question, but I decided to bring it up since I didn’t have anything else on my mind.
He turned over and glanced at me. “I’ll never file for divorce with you.”
“Oh…” I replied quietly because I didn’t expect such an odd reply from him.
To be honest, his reply was as good as none because it didn’t mean anything to me.
He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and asked since I went into dead silence once more. “Are you angry?”
I shook my head and denied it because I couldn’t resist the urge to fall asleep anymore.
Perhaps it was due to the wonderful news right before my sleep; a few seconds after I closed my eyes, I fell into a deep slumber.
Since we had sealed the deal with OrbitTech, it wouldn’t be necessary to adhere to the initial schedule that had been devised for the upcoming three days anymore.
Ashton got up early in the morning because he had something to tend to and would have to depart earlier than usual. As he was getting ready, I stared at him while lying on the bed because I had just woke up. “Have you ever put on clothes of other colors throughout your entire life?”
He got himself a necktie from the walk-in closet and ignored me. Instead, he instructed me, “Hurry up and put this on for me.”
I shook my head and told him, “No! I can’t tie a tie!” It was the truth because I didn’t need to pick up such a skill since I had never gotten romantically involved with another man prior to my relationship with him.
As always, he replied with a frowned look, “I’ll teach you!”
He refused to give up just yet and instructed me to sit upright.
Instantly, I sat upright on the bed and peered at him in the eyes. “Come over!” Since it was way ahead of my schedule, I refused to bring myself out of bed because there wasn’t anything else I could do that early.
He shook his head helplessly and walked over as demanded, taking a seat by my side on the bed because I showed no signs of getting out of bed just yet. “Scarlett, why are you such a lazy bum?”
“Me? Are you sure I’m a lazy bum?”
Ashton couldn’t think of better words to rebuke my statement.
Then, I started tying the tie based on the methods he taught me. After a while, I managed to tie the knot after my first attempt.
He asked with his eyes widened in disbelief, “You were saying?”
I grinned awkwardly because I didn’t expect it would be such a piece of cake. “Are you going to believe me if I say I’m a prodigy when it comes to tying a tie?”
Actually, I was surprised because it was easier than I thought it would be.
