Chapter 84
Hearing this, Grandma chuckled. “Silly boy, Lucille’s just worried you’re busy with work. She doesn’t want you wasting time entertaining an old woman like me.”
“Grandma, I’m not busy. I’m on vacation.‘
He somehow produced a deck of playing cards out of nowhere.
Lucille couldn’t believe he actually sat down to play cards with Grandma–and dragged her
into it too.
They killed an hour like this until both Lucille and Grandma grew drowsy, finally ending the game for an afternoon nap.
Lucille didn’t know if he usually napped; he rarely came home at noon, always bursting with
energy.
She slept until four in the afternoon.
Waking up groggy, she faintly heard voices talking.
Listening carefully, it was Cedrick and Grandma.
He was still here?
She got up, frowned, and stepped outside to find him helping Grandma set up a trellis in the yard.
Grandma’s rose bushes had gone wild with the warmer weather. A trellis would let them climb and form a rose–covered wall.
His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, pants and shoes caked in mud. The trellis frame stood finished as he carefully tied rose canes to it.
The four o’clock sun still beat down fiercely. Sweat plastered his hair to his forehead.
“Grandma, it’s too sunny. Go inside. I can handle this alone.‘
Several scratches already marked his arms.
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Chapter 84
288 Vouchers
Lucille worried the sun would make Grandma unwell too. She hurried down the steps and called out, “Grandma, come up here!”
Hearing her voice, he glanced back and pointed at her feet. “Watch your step. Don’t come over either. Just rest there. I’ll be done soon.”
“Soon” turned into another half hour before all the roses were secured. When he finally came inside, not a trace of the CEO remained.
His shirt was smudged with black and yellow stains, even his face streaked with dirt. Scratches from bamboo strips and rose thorns covered his hands and arms. His mud–caked pants and shoes looked even dirtier now, washed but still dripping wet.
This man reminded her of the boy covered in soot, struggling to light a campfire during a picnic.
If not for the upheaval these past weeks, how content she would’ve been with this version of him–this version of life…
What a shame…
No. Not a shame.
This was better.
The sooner she saw their marriage for what it truly was, the better.
“Why are you staring?”
He still had unwashed mud on his fingers and dabbed her nose with it.
She dodged, frowning. “Disgusting!”
“I wouldn’t.”
She said.
Because they wouldn’t grow old together.
Unaware of her meaning, he dabbed her nose again. “At least you’ve got some conscience.”
“Cedrick, go shower now. There are clean clothes here–brand new.
”
Grandma called out to her too, “Lucille, help Cedrick get his clothes.”
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Chapter 84
288 iVouchers
She went anyway. Mainly because his unwashed state would seem disrespectful to Grandma, and she didn’t want to argue with him at Grandma’s house, making their limited time together unpleasant.
Grandma’s place had men’s clothes, though all were five–year–old styles, still brand new.
She’d bought every piece.
Country nights were beautiful, filled with cricket songs and floral scents. On clear evenings, you could see the Milky Way.
Early in their marriage, she’d imagined countless times coming to Grandma’s with him. The whole family enjoying nights she loved. She wanted to tell Grandma she’d found her soulmate, that they’d grow old together. So she’d bought several outfits for him, washed and stored here for their visits.
But five years passed without him staying overnight once.
He was particular about clothes. When she handed them over, he instantly recognized they were bought specifically for him. Seeing the outdated styles, he hesitated, words trapped in his throat.