With a nonchalant 'hmm,' Raymond, keen on seeing what Paige might pull next, gestured to Charles for the keys, "Keys."
Charles hurriedly took them out and handed them over to Raymond.
Key in hand, Raymond passed them to Paige, "Our home awaits us."
Paige decoded his words as a silent cry for pity: the poor man had a wedding house all set up and still couldn't land himself a Mrs. Carnegie. It seemed they were both equally matched, a fair deal. He was wheelchair-bound, and she had a jailbird past. Quite the perfect pair, indeed.
A twinge of sympathy crept into Paige's thoughts, and she resolved then and there to take good care of him from then on.
Raymond caught Paige zoning out for a moment and suspected she was mulling over the house. Furrowing his brow, he casually added, "There's a mortgage of ten grand a month."
He didn't want to lowball this cunning woman, so he tossed out a hefty figure.
Paige's jaw twitched at that declaration.
With a slight twitch at the corner of her mouth, she asked, "Just out of curiosity, do you have a job?"
"Yes, I make eleven thousand a month. I’m just an ordinary staff at Hawke Corporation. This is my cousin, Charles, who is also my colleague."
Charles suddenly found himself promoted to both cousin and colleague, yet his demeanor remained timid and hesitant to utter another word.
Paige quickly grasped the predicament. Raymond only had a thousand left each month! No wonder he looked so pale and unwell; was that even enough for groceries?
Raymond expected Paige to show signs of backing out by the look on her face.
But Paige surprised him by saying, "I've got my eye on a job already, and I'll apply tomorrow once I settle in. Pays six grand a month. Don't worry, with me here, you won't go hungry."
Raymond was flabbergasted. What kind of baffling declaration was that? Six thousand dollars a month, and she thinks they won't starve?
Raymond didn’t fully grasp the significance of the $6,000 salary, but he knew that trading his mansion, worth $60,000,000, for a modest two-bedroom house in a swap with Charles was nothing astonishing.
Paige gazed at the chiseled features of Raymond’s handsome face, noticing a hint of inexplicable worry. “Once you pay off the monthly mortgage, we might be strapped for cash, but don't sweat it, we're married now; I'll take care of you from here on out.”
Approaching thirty, it was the first time in Raymond Carnegie’s life that a woman had offered to support him. The statement had a startling effect on Charles as well, who stood nearby, utterly dumbfounded.
Raymond was on the verge of a sarcastic retort, but something deep within held him back.
His usual comeback left unspoken, Raymond glanced at his Rolls-Royce parked not too far away but ultimately let Charles hail a ride to Billow Estate. After all, it was also Raymond's first visit, and he needed to familiarize himself with the route; otherwise, he’d have no clue how to find this ‘new home’ of his next time.
Once they arrived at the residence, Paige could tell that Raymond was not acquainted with the place.
“Haven’t been here much?” she asked.
“Only came once when we closed the deal. Charles oversaw the renovation. It’s my first time here since it's been finished. Now that we're married, I can't keep living with my dad. We'll make this our home,” Raymond replied.
Paige, remembering that Bradley had a heart condition, asked with genuine concern, “Should we bring Dad here to take care of him?”
“There’s no need. He’s got my eldest nephew looking after him. Let's just focus on us,” Raymond assured her.
Charles, sensing the moment was right and with a discreet nod from Raymond, tactfully made his exit.
Paige’s initial hope was simply for a place to call home; she never imagined it would also be beautifully decorated. The house, though small, was complete in every way. With some groceries, they could start cooking right away. She was thoroughly pleased with her husband's choice of a marital home.
After ordering some staples online, Paige ushered Raymond in front of the TV and turned it on for him, a thoughtful touch.
“Watch some TV to relax. It's still early. I’ll clean up a bit, and once the groceries are here, I’ll get started on dinner,” she said, and began to clean around the house, which was a bit dusty from disuse.
Raymond wanted to object, but watching Paige tackle the cleaning with such openness and generosity, he found himself speechless, the words caught in his throat.
He thought it would be awkward when two strangers suddenly came together.
But before awkwardness could even set in, Paige had warmed up as if they were old friends.
Raymond wanted to probe into yesterday's matter, but instead, he could only watch as Paige effortlessly tied up her hair and began tidying the room with brisk efficiency.
His gaze followed her every move as she buzzed around the space, and unexpectedly, a new and peculiar emotion began to take root within him.
They had just gotten married, yet there was an oddly familiar comfort between them, as if they were a couple that had been together for years.
Paige, despite her plain attire that hinted at a lack of fashion sense, exuded an undeniable natural beauty.
Yesterday at Windrain Tower, it had indeed been the spiked air that influenced Raymond Carnegie; but later in bed, he had somewhat freed himself from its effects, surrendering to his masculine instincts and the allure of her body.
Paige was busy planning their married life, with no space left in her mind for anything else, blissfully unaware that Raymond was the very man from the room.
But Raymond's thoughts wandered, especially when he noticed Paige sweating slightly, casually wiping her brow with her arm as her hair cascaded down in disarray.
In that moment, her hair partially veiled her slightly flushed cheeks. Raymond Carnegie felt a twinge in his throat and propelled his wheelchair towards the master bedroom.
Upon seeing this, Paige immediately put down what she was doing and walked over.
"Where do you want to go? Let me help you."
Raymond avoided her gesture, "No, thanks. Being self-sufficient is my goal, and I don't need you constantly looking after me. You're not my maid, and about the master bedroom..."
Before Raymond could finish, Paige quickly interjected, "Well... even though we're married, I think we should take some time to develop our feelings. You take the master bedroom, and I'll stay in the secondary one, is that okay?"
The memory of what happened just yesterday...
Although she had been bound out of control and lost herself to the moment, the fact that she had ended up in that bed and gotten married today with Raymond was too much for her; she just could not accept sleeping beside him immediately.
Maybe with time, if they fostered their feelings, things would change.
That's what Paige believed, but Raymond couldn't help but lift his gaze, peering deeply into Paige’s eyes.
This woman, intent on plotting with Louis yesterday, had managed to climb into his bed.
Ha, now that she had cunningly secured a marriage certificate and was rightfully his wife, she was playing hard to get?