Chapter 149 Jasmine Is Mad with Jealousy
Nora's face turned bright red as she bit her lower lip. "I can't handle that either."
She just couldn't get used to it.
Steven leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Then let's start with once every two days. You're probably just too small. After you get used to it a few more times, you'll like it too."
Nora had no idea what to say.
Steven looked at her. "Move your stuff over tonight. From now on, you'll sleep in the master bedroom."
The implication was clear—she couldn't escape anymore. From now on, they'd be sharing a room.
Nora wanted to refuse, but his handsome face looked so stern that if she rejected him again, he'd definitely get angry.
Nora felt a bit annoyed.
Married life had its troubles, too.
This size mismatch was really a distressing problem.
"Miss, your seafood is ready," the seafood vendor called out.
"Okay." Nora snapped back to reality and went to pick up the bags of seafood.
The two drove back to Riverside Apartment.
The Adams family members had already arrived and were sitting in the living room talking.
Marcella was holding Olivia's hand. Olivia's eyes were red. Although she was disappointed in her family, she still got emotional when they showed concern for her.
The Adams family members already knew about Olivia's situation—the whole family had seen that livestream.
Tanner was comforting her. "If you're getting divorced, then get divorced. It's no big deal. Lots of people get divorced these days. Just live your life well from now on."
"I still think you should think it over." Marcella was conservative and didn't support divorce.
Olivia said nothing, her eyes red.
Tanner said, "Things have gotten this bad—how can you still live together? Willow's in jail now, and Willie's mom definitely won't let this go."
Marcella fell silent, not knowing what to say.
"Nora, Steven!" Lily ran out calling for them.
"Sweetie!" Nora responded, picking up Lily as she and Steven entered the house together.
"Nora and Steven are back," Marcella called out, temporarily dropping the topic of Olivia's divorce. She didn't want to discuss it in front of Steven.
Today, all the Adams family members had come.
Jasmine had just finished recovering, and her son had been discharged from the hospital too, lying in a baby stroller.
Jasmine sat on the sofa. Hearing that Olivia was getting divorced, she said nothing outwardly but felt a secret satisfaction.
She'd been jealous that Olivia's life was better than hers, but now, in the blink of an eye, Olivia had lost her baby, and the Reed family didn't want her anymore.
Jasmine felt inexplicably satisfied!
Meanwhile.
This was Nora's first time seeing her little nephew, and she was actually a bit happy.
She leaned over the stroller, looking at the tiny baby inside, a faint smile spreading across her lips.
"He's sleeping," Nora said to Steven.
Steven made a sound of acknowledgment. He wasn't particularly fond of children and felt little emotion.
"Nora, don't get so close. Adults can carry germs that might affect the baby," Jasmine reminded from the side.
Only then did Nora straighten up and take the things they'd bought into the kitchen.
Steven helped her.
Jasmine's eyes were glued to Steven.
He really doted on Nora.
If it weren't for seeing him, Jasmine wouldn't have wanted to come all this way. But after arriving, she realized just how good Nora's husband's situation was.
This Riverside Apartment—both the renovation and the style—was her dream home!
If she had a place like this, she could spend her days at home with the baby, invite friends over for coffee, and have such a handsome, successful husband—he'd be the ideal partner!
She couldn't help but ask, "Steven, did you buy this place with a mortgage or pay in full?"
Steven, in the kitchen, paused, as if thinking about how to answer, finally saying, "Paid in full."
The Adams family members were all shocked.
Wayne asked him, "How much did this place cost?"
"About five million dollars now, I think." Steven, in the kitchen, answered, still remembering the price from when he bought it four months ago.
The Adams family members were shocked for the second time.
Buying a five-million-dollar house outright?
How wealthy must he be?
"Did you buy it yourself or did your parents buy it?" Even Marcella couldn't help asking. She still didn't know what Steven's family was like.
Steven had to think carefully about this question.
He couldn't answer carelessly.
After considering, he said, "My family bought the house a few years ago when it first went on the market. It wasn't as expensive as it is now."
So it was his family who bought it—that made sense.
Those who bought property early in South City had all made a fortune now because housing prices had skyrocketed.
Tanner said with a smile, "Your family had great foresight. South City is the best place to invest in real estate—housing prices are now the highest in the country."
"Yes." Steven wasn't interested in this topic and didn't show off at all.
The Adams family members thought he was well-mannered and modest.
Who would have thought that Nora's impulsive marriage would land her such a good man?
Although Wayne wanted to get some benefits, he didn't want Nora to have a bad life either, so he was quite proud that Nora had married Steven.
"By the way, Steven, who's in your family?" Marcella asked him. She hadn't met his family yet.
Steven was getting a bit annoyed by the questions and frowned. "Just me and my grandmother."
Nora was startled. So Steven's family was just him and his grandmother.
He was a pitiful person, too.
The two put things away and went out to the living room to entertain the family. Marcella said with a smile, "Let's take a tour of your place."
"Sure."
Nora got up to show the family around.
Seeing the second bedroom, she was too embarrassed to let her family know it was her room, so she lied, "The second bedroom is where Olivia stays."
Olivia glanced over with a smile in her eyes but didn't expose her, responding, "Yeah, I've been staying at Nora's place for quite a while now."
Marcella asked, "Willie hasn't come looking for you even once?"
Marcella still didn't want Olivia to divorce. Willie's situation was so good now—divorce wouldn't be worth it.
Then Willie would remarry, and the money would go to some other woman.
And Olivia would become one of those divorced women whom people looked down on. Although divorce is no big deal nowadays, many people still have prejudices against divorced women.
Marcella was also afraid of what people would say.
"Even if he came, I wouldn't go back with him." Olivia's attitude was firm. Willie had been looking for her, but Olivia didn't want to see him, to avoid being angered to death by him.
Marcella said nothing and followed Nora to the master bedroom, then went to see the study.
Steven had recently finished setting up the study. The space was quite large, with several rows of bookshelves, each one packed full of black file folders.
No one knew that York Development Group's important documents were now all here.
"Very nice." Marcella praised.
Everyone went to sit on the sofa.
Nora and Olivia went to cook, with Steven helping out.
Steven's household was different from the Adams family and also different from the Reed family. In the Reed and Adams families, the women cooked while the men chatted in the living room.
Steven, however, helped Nora from start to finish.
Nora also didn't like the traditional gender roles, as if women were born to do housework and serve men, so she always coaxed Steven to keep her company.
Now it was paying off.
Steven wasn't the type of man who just sat back and waited to be fed. He held the chef's knife, calmly processing vegetables.
Nora glanced over. "This knife seems different from before?"
Steven smiled. "I changed it a few days ago. This one works better."
He'd noticed when cutting vegetables before that the knives at home weren't very good, so later he got a French chef's knife. One cut and the meat and vegetables separated cleanly, without needing much effort.
"Really? Let me try." Nora took it and cut some vegetables. It really did slice through everything effortlessly.
Nora was amazed. "This is so easy to use! So sharp. We need to be careful with this knife."
That's how housework is—you learn so much once you start doing it yourself.
Steven said while cutting vegetables, "I bought a whole set of knives for different purposes. You can look into it later. Also, those pots and pans you bought before aren't very good. When we have time, let's go buy some new ones together."
The kitchen items were all things Nora had bought before. She'd chosen budget options, so naturally, they were pretty basic.
Nora said, "They're not that bad, are they? Let's just use them for now. We can buy new ones when these break."
She didn't have such high standards.
As long as they do the job.
Olivia listened to them talking from the side, thinking that if she got divorced and looked for another husband, she'd want to find someone like Steven—a gentle, considerate man.
Nora put the seafood in the steamer, one dish per layer, four plates total.
Then she heated oil in the wok to fry fish and stir-fry vegetables.
The Adams family members in the living room were watching TV and chatting.
Marcella said, "Nora married well. Steven's got good conditions, he's hardworking, and he dotes on her."
Tanner nodded. "Yeah, when I was detained last time, Steven was the one who found someone to bail me out."
Tanner was two years older than Steven.
The Adams family members all felt that Nora had found happiness. Steven was a typical quality man.
Jasmine, meanwhile, was consumed with jealousy.
She felt God was unfair!
She glared hatefully at Nora's back. Why was her luck so good that she could marry such a great husband like Steven?
While she, who had never done anything bad, had such a terrible fate—stuck with a poor man, struggling, and having to borrow money from people to have a baby...
Wayne, for his part, stood outside the wine cabinet looking at the bottles of red wine inside, his eyes showing greed.
As soon as Nora brought out the dishes, Wayne said, "Nora, can we open a bottle of red wine to drink?"
"Sure." Those bottles were bought to entertain guests anyway.
Nora went over and took out a bottle. "Come on, the seafood is steamed. We can eat now."
She called everyone to the dining table.
Olivia served rice to everyone.
Nora used the bottle opener to open the red wine and poured a glass for everyone.
The whole family gathered together warmly to eat.
Steven took a bowl and put some dishes in it. As soon as Nora sat down, he placed the bowl of meat and vegetables in front of her, worried that after she finished pouring the wine, the good dishes would be gone.
Nora's heart warmed, and she smiled. "Thank you, honey!"
The whole family watched them, thinking their relationship was so good, all smiling broadly.
"Steven really treats Nora well." Marcella beamed with joy.
Wayne, having drunk some wine and feeling happy, also praised along, "Steven is a man who knows how to cherish his wife. Nora married the right person."
Steven listened to the praise at the table, a faint smile playing at his lips as he served Nora food.
Nora was in a good mood. With her family's approval, she felt very happy inside.
This meal today, with wine and meat, was especially lavish, and everyone ate happily.
Only Jasmine was gloomy.
The happier Nora was, the more unfortunate Jasmine felt!
Why did Nora have better luck than Jasmine?
Jasmine angrily bit into her shrimp meat, then looked up and secretly glanced at Steven.
Steven ate elegantly, looking like nobility, his every movement full of composure and refinement.