Chapter 23: House Viewing
Hearing this, Tyler's expression changed, instantly turning cold. "Is that really necessary? Ava is a public figure. You're going too far."
"I'm going too far? She's constantly trying to get close to someone else's child, and I'm the one going too far? Or are you saying you want her to be Jasper's future mother?"
Tyler's whole demeanor turned icy cold, his chiseled face showing no expression whatsoever.
"I think staying at home has given you psychological problems - you're imagining things. If you need it, I'll have a psychologist come to the house to check on you."
Hearing his words, my shoulders trembled with anger. I couldn't help but recall a real case I'd read about before - a husband who, in order to get rid of his wife, falsely claimed she was mentally ill and had her locked up in a psychiatric hospital so he could be with his mistress.
Thinking of this, I felt scared and looked at Tyler with more wariness in my eyes.
"Tyler, you're the one who's sick. You know why I won't let you touch me? Because the thought of you touching me with the same body that's touched Ava disgusts me. I'm afraid you have an STD!"
"Sophia!" Tyler's eyes turned fierce, a hint of anger surging in their depths.
"I'm telling you one last time - if I see Ava having any contact with Jasper again, I won't hesitate to call the police next time. Try me and see if I'll do it."
The atmosphere in the bedroom instantly froze. For a moment, the two of us just stood there in a standoff, neither speaking. The air was so quiet you could hear each other breathing.
After a while, Tyler was the first to break the silence. He let out a breath, his tone calming down. "I'll agree to what you said. After all, you are Jasper's mother."
A barely noticeable self-mocking smile appeared at the corner of my mouth.
Then I heard Tyler say, "My parents are flying back from abroad in three days. They'll visit Grandma first, then stay at our place for a few days."
Hearing this, my heart tightened, my slightly furrowed brow showing hints of worry.
You see, Tyler's parents had always looked down on me. Back then, Tyler stubbornly insisted on marrying me. They didn't even want to come to the wedding, and although they eventually showed up, everyone at the ceremony could see how much they disliked me.
Over the years, I hadn't had much contact with them - we only saw each other once a year during the holidays. This was the first time they were coming at this time of year.
"Got it. I'll get the room ready."
Tyler frowned. "You don't need to prepare the room. That's the housekeeper's job. What you need to do is be a good wife to me."
A self-mocking smile tugged at my lips. "If your parents would give me that respect, I'd definitely do my best."
The meaning in my words was crystal clear. Tyler couldn't possibly miss it. He knew better than anyone how his parents had treated me all these years.
"Sophia, you've really been put through a lot these years. I'll have a good talk with my parents. As long as I'm here, they won't go too far."
"Whatever. Are we going to Grandma's house that day too?"
"Yes, we'll go together."
"Okay, that day is Saturday, so should we move Jasper's piano lesson to Sunday?"
Tyler nodded. "You're his mother, you arrange it."
I nodded and was about to leave when Tyler suddenly spoke up. "Tonight, stay and sleep here."
My body stiffened. I turned around, my tone flat. "I'd rather not."
"My parents are coming to stay. We definitely need to sleep in the same room again, otherwise what will they think when they see?" Tyler's expression shifted slightly, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.
My brow furrowed slightly, then relaxed. "Before they come, I'll bring my bedding over. I'll sleep on the couch and you sleep on the bed."
"Sophia, there's no need for this. We're husband and wife. Is it so strange to sleep in the same bed? You've been sleeping separately from me for almost a year now." There was some displeasure and restraint in Tyler's tone.
I pulled at the corner of my mouth, my eyes completely indifferent. "This works fine. Let's just leave it at that."
With that, I quickly left the room, not giving Tyler a chance to argue further.
Because Tyler's parents were coming, many of my plans were disrupted, so I moved my house viewing to the next afternoon.
I arranged to meet the landlord I'd contacted before to see the place in person.
I arrived at the building entrance ten minutes early to wait, thinking I'd take a look at the exterior first. I'd passed by several times before but never really paid attention to this small building.
Looking at it carefully now, the exterior design was quite nice, though some windows hadn't been installed yet.
As I was looking, a friendly voice came from behind me. "Are you Ms. Brown?"
Hearing this, I turned around. Behind me stood a man of average height.
"Yes, I am. Are you the landlord, Mr. Diaz?"
"That's me. I didn't expect you to be so beautiful, Ms. Brown. Before I called out to you, I was hesitating, thinking you might be some celebrity." Chris scratched his head sheepishly.
I nodded slightly. "You're too kind. You're also younger than I imagined."
"I'm already thirty-three. Everyone says I look young."
"Show me inside the building. The exterior looks good to me."
"Sure, I'll open the door."
Following Chris inside the building, the first floor was really as big as a small mall, with no partitions at all. In the middle was a staircase leading to the second floor.
"The first through third floors are all the same. If you're using them as offices, you'll need to design the partitions yourself. But I have a friend who does this kind of work. If you need it, I can connect you with him."
I nodded, took out my phone to take pictures everywhere, then sent them to Zachary.
I needed to hear his opinion too.
Zachary replied almost instantly.
[The building looks good to me, the space works too. You decide, but we need one floor dedicated to conference rooms. The conference rooms should be divided into different design zones. With three floors total, we could put the conference rooms on the second floor. The first floor would mainly handle reception and some office work, and the third floor would be the main office area.]
Seeing Zachary's reply, I had an idea. I'd looked at many properties online these past few days, and only this one met our expectations and plans.
So I told Chris quite readily that we could commit to this property.
Chris was pleasantly surprised. "You're so quick to decide! To be honest, many people have come to ask about this place, but they all think the rent is too expensive, or they think the space is too big for their needs."
I smiled slightly. "Those aren't problems for us. What matters for a law firm is the place itself - location isn't that important. But could the rent be lowered a bit? If we rent, we'd definitely be long-term tenants. With this much space, we wouldn't just casually move locations. Labor and renovation costs all need to be considered."