Chapter 216 New Year's Eve
"Arabella." Anthony's voice dripped with emotion. "I know you're just using him as a cover. You don't want me touching you—fine, I won't touch you. But I believe that sooner or later, you'll realize I'm the one who truly loves you."
A harsh screech of brakes cut through the air.
A black Rolls-Royce pulled up to the curb, and Alexander stepped out, his long legs eating up the distance in a few strides. He reached Arabella and took her hand, his expression glacial as he turned to Anthony.
"Mr. Watson. Seems you still have too much free time on your hands."
Anthony's heart lurched. The threat was crystal clear. But with Arabella watching, he refused to show any sign of backing down, standing ramrod straight and silent.
"Let me make this clear." Alexander's voice was ice. "Stay away from my wife. If I catch you harassing her again, I won't hesitate to absorb the Watson Group into my portfolio."
Anthony's face went pale. Alexander didn't spare him another glance, pulling Arabella toward the car. Anthony stared after them, his eyes dark and unreadable.
Once in the car, Arabella looked at Alexander with surprise. "How did you know to come?"
Alexander kept his eyes on the road. "The bodyguard told me Anthony put his hands on you. I was worried."
So he'd sped through traffic and abandoned a roomful of shareholders all to make sure she was okay. It was year-end reconciliation season; the company was drowning in work. Yet he'd dropped everything the second he heard she might be in trouble. Something warm unfurled in Arabella's chest.
After a moment of silence, she said, "My dad wants me to come over for New Year's. Marilyn seems interested in reconciling."
Alexander was quiet for a beat. "New Year's Eve? Let me check my schedule—I'll aim to be there by five."
Arabella blinked. "Wait, what?" Did that mean he was planning to come too? "Don't you need to be with your own family?"She frowned. "Don't big families like yours have all these traditions for the holidays?"
Alexander shook his head. "Not really necessary."
He explained, "Back when Grandfather was alive, he was big on tradition—every holiday required the whole family to show up. After he passed, everyone just goes through the motions now. As long as Grandmother's there, that's enough." Once Grandmother was gone, even the pretense would end.
For him, pretense couldn't compare to spending New Year's Eve with his wife. Arabella nodded slowly.
Alexander glanced at her. "Don't tell me you weren't planning to include me?"
Arabella managed a stiff smile. "I just didn't expect you to want to come on such an important day..."
"I'm your husband," Alexander said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Why wouldn't I come with you?"
Arabella nodded again, quieter this time.
By her count, they were nearing the end of their agreed-upon month. Right around when New Year's ended would mark exactly one month since their arrangement began.
During this time, Alexander had continued caring for her with the same steady attention. Whenever she tried to refuse, he'd claim it was for the baby's sake.
But she knew better. He wasn't doing it for the baby. He was doing it for her. Even knowing this, she couldn't withstand such relentless kindness.
Alexander must have sensed her hesitation, because he added, "I've heard that when a woman visits her parents without her husband, people talk. Your father lives in that old staff housing compound—everyone knows everyone there. If you show up alone, there'll be gossip. So I'm definitely coming with you."
The reasoning was sound. Arabella didn't know what else to say, so she just smiled.
The truth was, Alexander knew exactly what she was thinking. He just pretended not to.
Either way, even after New Year's when their month was officially up, he had zero intention of going through with the divorce. He'd cross that bridge when he came to it. If nothing else, Anthony's existence alone was reason enough to refuse. God knows what that guy would try if they actually split up.
Arabella's company was pretty chill about time off. Becky had gotten over ten days for the holidays and had blazed through all her homework early. She'd also wrapped up most of her extracurricular classes, which meant she'd been stuck at home bored out of her mind. When Arabella finally got her own time off, Becky was over the moon. Arabella rarely had the chance to properly spend time with her, so the two of them used these New Year's days to thoroughly explore Majestic City.
Amusement parks, zoos, botanical gardens, museums—they hit them all. And through it all, Arabella felt something shift inside her. It was something material she hadn't expected.
She'd adopted Becky, sure. And Becky had always called her Ms. Bourbon. But honestly, she'd always felt more like Becky's older sister than anything else. Now, walking hand in hand through the city, watching Becky's eyes light up at every new thing, genuine protectiveness bloomed in her chest. The instinct to shelter and nurture. It caught her completely off guard.
New Year's Eve arrived fast. That morning, Arabella changed Becky into a new outfit at home, then opened her own closet and pulled out a sky-blue suit. She was just about to take Becky out when Alexander returned from wherever he'd gone early that morning, carrying two enormous shopping bags.
He set them down and opened them up like he was revealing buried treasure. "I passed this family clothing store and thought their stuff looked cute, so I grabbed three sets. Want to try them on?"
The matching outfits featured an adorable deer pattern. Becky's was a pair of overalls with little deer antlers on the back. Arabella's was a dress. Alexander's was a jacket that honestly looked a little ridiculous for a grown man, but whatever.
Becky let out an excited squeal and snatched up her outfit, bolting off to change.
Arabella felt something tighten in her throat. It had been forever since she'd deliberately bought new clothes for some special occasion. That felt like something only kids got to do, and she'd stopped being a kid a long time ago. Plus, she bought clothes regularly anyway. There was no real need to make a big deal out of it for the holidays.
Yet Alexander had gone out of his way to hunt down matching family outfits. Her face stayed neutral, but warmth spread through her chest. She took the dress and went to change.
The dress was beige with burgundy accents—pretty, actually. She paired it with flesh-toned leggings and black ankle boots, then threw on a burgundy coat over everything. When she came back out, Becky and Alexander were already dressed and waiting. Becky looked absolutely precious in her every time she moved.
Alexander, on the other hand, looked completely absurd. His usual sharp, intimidating presence clashed hilariously with the cutesy jacket. But somehow, when the three of them stood together, it just... worked. In a weird, slightly ridiculous, but genuinely sweet way.
"You're really not busy today?" Arabella asked.
Alexander smiled and shook his head. "Not today. I'm all yours."
They drove to the mall, which was absolutely buzzing with holiday energy. People were dressed to the nines, kids were screaming with excitement, and storefronts were decked out in red and gold. It was wonderfully chaotic.
Becky had never gotten to experience the mall's play areas before. Today, with Alexander bankrolling the whole adventure, she went absolutely wild. Kiddie jungle gyms, trampolines, 3D experience zones, carnival games—she tried everything, her little face flushed pink with pure joy.
Compared to a year ago, she was like a completely different kid. She'd gone from this wary, prematurely serious little girl to a confident, bubbly child who actually got to be a child.
They played until noon, grabbed some food court noodles, and then Alexander drove them over to Percy's place. The gifts had been prepared days in advance—not just what Alexander had bought, but also what Chloe and Vera had sent over. The trunk was absolutely stuffed.
When they pulled up outside the old residential compound, heads immediately turned. All the families' grown kids had come home for the holidays, everyone showing off their best. But even the nicest car in the lot was just a BMW 6 Series. Now there was a Rolls-Royce parked on the street, and the car guys were practically drooling.
Arabella climbed out with Becky while Alexander started unloading the mountain of packages. The old neighbors—the same ones who used to whisper about Arabella behind her back—swarmed over, eyes wide with envy.
"Arabella! Is this your new boyfriend? He's gorgeous!"
"Oh, is that his daughter? Honey, don't worry about being a stepmother—you're divorced anyway, so landing a catch like this is honestly a blessing!"
"Would you look at all that expensive stuff he bought!"
They had no idea what real luxury looked like. To them, the designer shopping bags were impressive. They didn't realize the unmarked boxes were worth ten times as much.
After setting down the last bag, Alexander turned to the neighbors with an easy smile. "Just to clarify—I'm not Arabella's boyfriend. I'm her husband. And this is our adopted daughter. We cherish her like our own. So Arabella's not a stepmother."
Stunned silence.
A divorcée like Arabella had landed someone this loaded who wasn't even previously married?
The mental gears started turning immediately. People are funny that way.You can do a little better than them, and they're happy for you. But do too much better? That's when the nasty assumptions start.
But Arabella had stopped giving a damn about neighborhood gossip ages ago. And Alexander clearly couldn't care less. They said their polite goodbyes and headed upstairs, arms loaded with gifts.
---
The second they walked through the door, Marilyn was all over them with hospitality.
"Arabella! You're here! Mr. FitzRoy, so good to see you!" She turned to Becky with a warm smile. "And this must be Becky—what a clever-looking sweetheart! Come here, honey, I have a little something for you."
Becky glanced at Arabella uncertainly. Arabella looked at the gift—nothing too extravagant—and gave a small nod. Her father had been right. Marilyn really had changed.
As Becky accepted the gift, Marilyn beamed. "Come in, come in! And you didn't need to buy all this stuff—you're spoiling us! You must be starving. Sit down and relax. I just finished wrapping the dumplings, so I'll get them cooking right away."
Even Alexander looked caught off guard. He genuinely hadn't expected this level of warmth from her. Daniel whisked Becky off to play while Arabella settled on the floor by her father's chair, gently massaging his legs.
"Dad," she said quietly, "what happened with Marilyn? Did something change?" She was acting like a completely different person.
Percy smiled and shook his head. "Honestly? I have no idea. She just suddenly became this pleasant. My guess is now that Daniel's grades have improved, that weight's finally off her chest. She's stopped being so wound up about everything." He sighed, but it was a contented sound. "Either way, change is good. Maybe we can all finally have some peace around here."
Arabella nodded slowly. That was true. If Marilyn had genuinely turned over a new leaf, then Arabella was more than willing to accept her as family.