After Jean returned, Sister Mei immediately said goodbye to go home. The middle-aged woman also brought the fruit basket Chris brought this afternoon. Of course, it was Jean who asked Sister Mei to do that.
Right now, only Lilia and Jean were left in that room. Lilia sat on the sofa unpacking the shopping bag while her husband ate dinner without saying anything.
There were many items in that shopping bag. Makeup cleansers, cleansing creams, toners, facial moisturizers, masks… and much more. It seemed like Jean bought every item he could find because he didn't know what Lilia used. A chuckle escaped her mouth, startling herself.
Lilia turned to Jean and their gazes met. The man looked as shocked as Lilia.
"Jean, did you go to buy all this?" Lilia asked to confirm her guess.
"… Yes, after I finish my business." Jean emphasized the word 'business'. His stubborn attitude made Lilia smile wide open.
Then Lilia opened the other bag, and found a set of navy blue pajamas and a new set of underwear. Lilia's face immediately turned red as she held the underwear. How did Jean know her size?!
Lilia took several deep breaths to calm herself down. She carefully placed the pajamas and underwear back into the bag before closing them.
Then Lilia asked Jean, "Um… about pajamas and c-clothes… why did you buy it? There are still lots of clothes that I haven't tried on."
Jean didn't answer immediately, but Lilia could see excitement coloring his eyes. Lilia felt embarrassed and hurriedly looked away. She couldn't stop imagining the fourth son of the Widjaya Family buying underwear for her. The woman was touched and also tickled.
*****
That night, Lilia shared the bed with Jean as usual. The hospital bed was wide enough for the two of them.
Lilia, who was lying with her back to Jean, slowly opened her eyes. Ever since she opened the shopping bag, Lilia had become too restless to sleep. She strained her ears and listened to Jean's steady breathing.
After Lilia was sure that Jean was fast asleep, she slowly took out her cell phone from under her pillow. Then Lilia opened a search engine and typed "How to get my husband's attention?"
There were various types of websites that appeared, but none of them gave the answer Lilia was looking for.
She thought about it for a moment before changing her question to 'How do I seduce my husband?'
This time, Lilia found the answer she was looking for. The woman read the contents excitedly. Lilia was so focused that she didn't notice as Jean was silently peeking out from behind her back.
*****
When Lilia was looking for ways to seduce Jean, Merry was also racking her brains and thinking of ways to make Chris want to help her.
Merry wanted Chris to replace her and deliver breakfast to Lilia tomorrow morning. She knew that she couldn't show up at the hospital— it was too dangerous for her. Even though Jean had not seen her earlier, it did not guarantee that Merry would escape him tomorrow. The young woman wanted to ask Clifford for help, but the man turned off his cell phone and could not be reached.
At that time, Merry was sitting beside the living room table staring blankly at the television. The 9 o'clock news was showing. Merry scratched behind the ear of her beloved cat, Tiger, while stealing glances at Chris. The man relaxed on Merry's sofa, placing his feet on the living room table. A pair of pink house slippers and a bunny shape adorned the man's feet.
"Brother Chris, are you willing to help me or not?" Merry urged once again.
Chris glanced at Merry while maintaining a flat expression. He tried to appear disinterested in her offer.
"What can you offer in compensation?" Chris replied.
The man took a sip of the instant tea that Merry brewed with great pleasure, as if it was the most delicious tea he had ever drank. Chris realized that over time he became more and more like Jean, but he refused to admit it.
On television, the news about the assault on a popular model this afternoon was being replayed. However, Merry did not pay attention to the television screen. The young woman looked at Chris with a pitiful face.
"Brother Chris…" Merry put her cat on the floor before shifting her chair to the side of the sofa, "Can you help me deliver breakfast for Sis Lilia? Brother Jean must be in the hospital tomorrow morning. I'll be caught if I go there!"
Chris glanced at the young woman. His expression looked like he was in deep thought, but the corners of his mouth lifted into a faint smile. The man enjoyed seeing Merry's pitiful gaze.
Chris took another sip of tea before settling into his seat. He lowered his feet from the table while supporting his chin with one hand. The man then smiled broadly and asked, "So you want me to deliver breakfast in exchange for you?"
Merry nodded vigorously, "Yes! Brother Chris is willing, right?" She had a big hope in him.
Chris sighed. He hadn't even given an answer yet! Merry seemed eager for Chris to do this. He looked at the young woman while frowning. Could it be that Jean really didn't know that Merry was working as Lilia's personal assistant? To be honest, Chris couldn't believe it. Jean was a very cautious and overprotective person. There was no way that man wouldn't know who his wife's assistant was!
However, Chris was unable to convey his suspicions to Merry. The woman's eyes shone with hope, which made Chris not have the heart to refuse her request. The man was irritated with himself. Since when had he become so weak to Merry's request?!
Chris decided to channel his frustration to Merry. He put down her teacup and said, "I don't mind doing that."
Merry's face suddenly turned bright like the sun that appeared after the rain.
"But…" Chris continued.
"But what?"
Merry's smile vanished and she inched away from Chris. Merry looked at the man anxiously. Chris's expression showed that he was planning something bad!
Chris felt hurt by Merry's overt suspicion. How bad was his image in that woman's mind?!
"Brother Chris, what do you want?" Merry insisted.
The man gave her a cold look before answering, "Cook something for me. I'm hungry!"
Merry was so startled that she almost fell off her chair. She hurriedly grabbed the arm of the sofa and fixed her sitting position.
"B-Brother Chris, are you serious?!" Merry asked in disbelief, "I can't cook!"
In all her life, Merry never touched cooking utensils. Never mind cooking, she didn't even know what to put in, oil first or egg first when frying eggs! There's no way Merry could cook something for Chris!
But Chris refused to listen to Merry's protests. The man relaxed his arms as he threatened, "If you don't want to do that, let's just pretend our agreement is canceled!"
Merry looked at Chris with teary eyes, but the man was deliberately stubborn. Finally, Merry gave up and rubbed her eyes. She then asked, "Then, what would you like to eat, Brother Chris?"
She secretly regretted asking Chris to help her drop off Lilia's breakfast. Merry had decided to try calling Clifford again later. At least, Clifford still made more sense than this man!
Chris grinned when he saw Merry stop protesting. He lifted his teacup back and took a sip before replying, "It's up to you. You know what my favorite food is, right?"
Merry was stunned to hear that. She was desperately racking her brains and trying to remember what the man's favorite food was. But not a single answer popped into her head. Merry then looked away and answered in a low voice, "Um… I don't know…"
Chris choked on his tea and coughed violently while glaring at Merry. Did this woman try to test his patience?!
******
Merry walked unsteadily into the kitchen. This was the first time Merry had entered the kitchen for cooking. Usually, she was only there to pick up or store things in the refrigerator.
Chris was standing in the kitchen's doorway as he watched Merry touch the cooking utensils. The woman hesitated to use them, as if those utensils might bite. All the equipment looked new and had never been used. But Chris didn't really think about it. He turned around, then returned to the living room.
Ten minutes later…
"Ah! Brother Chris, help! Fire… the kitchen is on fire!"
Chris dropped his teacup when he heard Merry's scream from the kitchen. The cup luckily didn't break, but the tea spilled his pants.. The man cursed himself for not listening to Merry earlier. He must be crazy for telling such an amateur to cook for him!
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