Winnie's heart sank. She forwarded Ava's message to Daniel.
In just under two seconds, Ava called Winnie. She was furious. "You whore! I warned you not to seduce my fiancé! I'm pregnant with the grandson of the Davis family. You don't stand a chance!"
"You did it even when you knew he was your sister's husband? Shut your trap! If you annoy me, you'll have to go through the miscarriage alone!"
Winnie thought of Daniel introducing Ava and her pregnancy to his family. It was heart-wrenching for her to think he was doing that while plotting her kidnapping.
"You!"
Winnie hung up.
They had arrived at the villa, and she didn't know how long the car had been parked there.
Winnie struggled to unbuckle the seatbelt and realized that the man beside her was staring at her. When he saw her struggle, he leaned over to help her.
"You better not mention other men in front of me," he said icily.
'Why is he being so possessive?' She thought.
This was just a marriage for mutual benefit. And yet, he was being so possessive. Winnie pouted and lowered her head. "I understand."
He lifted her chin. She was startled and looked up. He lowered his head and kissed her.
His cool lips tasted faintly of tobacco and was gentle on her lips. Her mind went blank. It took a moment for her to collect herself, and she tried to push him away. She didn't expect him to bite her and deepen the kiss.
She pushed him away. "Mr. L? What are you doing?!"
She was furious as she covered her sore lips. She flushed bright red as she tried to calm herself.
His eyes narrowed as he looked at her. He licked his lips. "Was that your first kiss?
Winnie wanted to disappear right then.
Even though she had admired Daniel for eight years, she was a bit old-school when it came to things like that. She had wanted to save her first kiss for her wedding night.
Perhaps that was also the reason why Daniel couldn't wait to climb into Ava's bed!
"Hmm?" His voice was low, and he was very close to her.
Winnie wanted to crawl out from under his strong arms. However, he held her tight and wrapped his arms snugly around her. "I'm sorry. Did I make you want to kiss me back?"
Winnie looked into his dark eyes. She found it difficult to understand whether his smile was flirtatious or not. But he seemed a bit less icy and indifferent than before. Was he happy?
"Mr. L, behave yourself!" She got out of the car angrily and entered the villa in frustration.
-
During dinner, Winnie did not see Mr. L. Madam Rodriguez pouted and complained throughout.
"He came back and went straight to work! He didn't even accompany his newlywed wife to dinner! He is such a boring man. Winnie, let's forget about it and eat, shall we? You and the baby need nourishment!"
Winnie was speechless. The mother and the son seemed to have a difficult relationship.
"You're not familiar with this place, right? After eating, I'll ask a servant to show you around."
Winnie smiled. "Of course, Mother."
After dinner, Winnie walked into the backyard and noticed how huge it was. There were several detached houses, a swimming pool, and a tennis court. This felt like a mansion!
She stole a glance at Grace and wondered if she should ask about the place.
"Grace… I, uh… Mr. L and I are married but I still don't know his full name. Could you tell me what it is?"
"Some of us have worked here for almost a year, Mrs. L. We only know that Mr. L's surname is L. Other than that, we have no idea. We don't dare to ask, " said Grace truthfully.
It seemed that even the maids didn't know much about him. Winnie frowned and walked back to the villa.
If he was deliberately trying to hide something, she wouldn't be able to find out much anyway. It seemed like she had to investigate the matter herself!
At that moment, Madam Rodriguez approached her with a cup of coffee. "Winnie, you're back from your walk so soon? Your husband works so hard. Would you be so kind to take this cup of coffee to him?"
The elderly woman looked at her pleadingly.
She didn't know that this was a fake marriage. Appeasing his mother was an important part of the agreement.
Winnie nodded and took the cup of coffee. She then followed Madam Rodriguez upstairs as she knocked on the study door.
After a pause, a low voice said, "What is it?"
Madam Rodriguez opened the door and pushed Winnie in. "Your wife has come to give you a… massage!"
With that, she closed the door and locked it from outside.
Winnie looked at the tall man behind the desk awkwardly. He didn't even glance up.
He was in a video conference. Winnie silently put down the coffee on the table.
At that moment, the meeting was done, but someone was still speaking. "Mr. L, let's talk about something unrelated to work, shall we?"
"How did she get pregnant just like that?"
"Well, look at how long Mr. L has been single all this time! It's just natural. Hahaha!"
Winnie had been zoning out, but the voices caught her attention. They were talking about her so brazenly!
She blushed. She glanced at the man behind the desk. She looked indifferent, seemingly oblivious to what was being said.
But the discussion became more and more inappropriate. "Well, I showered together with Mr. L last time and saw that his…"
At that moment, he raised his eyebrow and glanced at the desktop. He still looked unbothered, but he was clearly listening!
Suddenly, he looked at Winnie who had blushed bright red. "Why are you eavesdropping?" he said solemnly. "Please, behave yourself."
"..."
He used her words against her! Winnie didn't miss the mockery in his eyes.
She blushed even more and said, "It's not like I want to listen to that!"
He smirked and stared at her. "So, you heard that?"
"..."
Winnie was embarrassed and wanted to run away. His gaze lingered on her lips. His friends' teasing made him recall that night.
His eyes darkened. After some thought, he said in a low voice, "Mrs. L, I need to discuss something with you. I want to add a clause to our agreement. After three months, you have to fulfill your obligations. Do you understand?"
Winnie turned and met his eyes. She suddenly understood what he meant.
Her face turned even redder. How could this man make such a request?
"Mr. L, we are in a fake marriage," she said. "And I was just about to negotiate with you. Just now, I heard the servant saying that my mother is staying in the separate villa on the estate. Apart from when she visits me, can I choose not to go home?"
"What do you think?"
Winnie couldn't take his smugness.
"Some things can be arranges." He stated his requirements with an indifferent face,.. "But you don't really have a right to refuse."
Winnie bit her pink lips in frustration. She knew she was trapped. She still had three months. Maybe she could get her revenge by then and do away with the whole thing.
-
Feeling annoyed, Winnie returned to her bedroom and found that Olivia had called her many times.
She called her back. On the other end, Olivia sounded worried. "Finally, you answered!"
"Yeah. I'm back now… having barely escaped from the Anderson family."
Olivia laughed. "What did they try to do to you this time?"
"Childish tricks." Winnie explained the whole situation. She had known that the soup was the problem, so she had taken an antidote beforehand.
Olivia clapped in glee. "Luckily, Auntie left you various medicines!"
Winnie had learned about medicines from her mother. In the past she did not understand why her mother had secretly taught her these things, but she realized now that her mother had known she would be in such a predicament.
"It's not that great."
"Really? Your needles treated my gastrointestinal problems, and I remember you mentioned saving a man that year..."
Winnie smiled.
It was true that she had saved a man before.
That year, she was competing with a rival company for clients and was traveling. She encountered a man with a sleepwalking disorder and had helped him with acupuncture. That was the first time she had treated a stranger...