Chapter 88: Meeting his parents II
I didn’t even get my words out before the woman let go of her husband and grabbed both of my hands. The corners of her eyes crinkled with genuine warmth as she looked up at me.
“You are so beautiful,” she gushed out happily.
A blush coated my cheeks, and my brain completely short-circuited. I was attacked with affection before I could display my talent for a friendly smile.
“Thank you,” I managed not to stammer, keeping my smile intact as I looked at her. Her hands were incredibly soft against mine—so smooth that I instantly wondered if this woman had ever done a single day of hard labor in her entire life. They felt entirely different from my own. “You are beautiful as well," I complimented.
I turned to greet Jude’s father, but the man merely let out a dismissive scoff, wrinkling his nose as he brushed right past me into the penthouse.
Asshole.
My practiced smile threatened to slip completely off my face, but Jude’s mother firmly pulled my attention back, gently squeezing my fingers.
“Don’t mind his grumpy self,” she smiled reassuringly. “I’m Elena Winter, and that stubborn man is Marcus, my husband," she introduced.
“I’m Rosie.”
“Your name is beautiful. Just like the flower,” she said smoothly.
Wow. This mother-in-law is incredibly smooth with the pickup lines.
“Thank you,” I said again, charmed by her warmth.
I watched Elena pull Jude into a tight hug, lovingly patting his back before reaching up to stroke his cheek. Jude offered a single nod toward Marcus before taking the gift basket from his father’s hands and disappearing into the kitchen to put it away.
Elena turned back to me, her expression turning incredibly soft as she took my hands again. Her palms were so warm.
“Thank you for marrying my son, Rosie. Truly, thank you.”
Before I could answer, a sudden movement caught my eye. Mia, who had just finished organizing her new bedroom exactly how she wanted it, came running into the main hallway. She froze the second she spotted the visitors. I subtly gestured with my hand, encouraging her to come closer.
I didn’t miss the disapproving scoff Marcus let out the moment his eyes landed on Mia. I kept my mouth shut, but a defensive anger began to simmer in my chest.
Mia walked forward with hesitant, slow steps before immediately ducking behind my legs to hide shyly.
“Mia, say hello,” I coaxed gently, feeling her small fingers tightly clutching the fabric of my dress.
“Hello,” she whispered into my skirt.
Elena’s face instantly melted. “Oh, she is precious,” she gushed, crouching down to Mia’s level and gently rubbing her rounded cheek. She unzipped her designer purse and pulled out a piece of candy.
She held it out. Mia peeked up at me, waiting for permission, and I gave her a reassuring nod as she carefully took the candy from Elena’s palm.
“Thank you,” Mia mumbled shyly.
As Mia remained hidden behind my back, Marcus stepped forward. He stared at me from head to toe, his eyes lingering on my casual dress before his hands clenched into tight fists against his thighs.
“What are your qualifications?” he started, his first words to me, and it was demanding.
I let out a quiet sigh. I had fully expected to be interrogated about how on earth I had ended up at an altar with his celebrity son, but it seemed our meeting was the least of his concerns.
I forced a calm, level smile. “I’m a high school dropout,” I responded clearly. I didn’t miss the dissatisfaction in his gaze, which was immediate, but I didn’t care.
Marcus tsked loudly, shaking his head. “And your parents?”
“They passed away years ago,” I replied flatly.
He shook his head in disappointment, turning his shoulder to the room. “I’ve always said the boy has low insight.” The sheer disgust in his voice was unmistakable, and I understood the unspoken insult perfectly. He thought Jude had ruined his life by marrying trash.
He grumbled under his breath. Elena shot him a warning look, quickly rubbing his rigid shoulder before turning to me with a deeply apologetic expression. “Rosie, I’m so sorry.”
I looked at Elena, giving her a small, respectful smile. Then, I turned my gaze directly to Marcus with a blank expression.
“I don’t care,” I said, casually shrugging my shoulders. “I’m a high school dropout. It isn’t something to be ashamed of. And if you truly can’t accept it, Mr. Winter, then by all means—tell your precious son to give me a divorce.”
I threw out the word ’divorce’ purely for saying’s sake, desperately praying inside my head that Marcus wouldn’t actually push for it. Then it hit me that if Jude actually listened to his father and divorced me, Mia and I had absolutely nowhere left to go. We have been evicted from our apartment.
We were entirely at his mercy.
“See?!” Marcus shouted, pointing a furious, trembling finger at me as he stood up abruptly from the sofa.
Beside me, Jude just threw his head back and laughed with a relaxed expression.
Marcus whirled on him, his face turning an angry red. “You—!”
Jude’s laughter stopped instantly; his body straightened as he stepped between his father and me. “Father,” Jude said, his voice dropping, “you cannot come into my home and talk down to my wife. She is mine, and she is my family.”
Marcus gasped, completely insulted. He whirled around to look at his wife. “See your son?!”
Elena completely ignored her husband, giving me a supportive wink instead.
A tense moment later, Jude gently ushered his mother and reluctant, brooding Marcus to the dining room for lunch; Jude lagged a few steps behind as he leaned into my side, a smug grin playing on his lips while we walked.
“See? My parents like you,” he murmured in my ear.
I gave him a side-eye, keeping my voice down to a whisper. “Correction: your mother likes me. I definitely can’t say the same for your grumpy father.”
Jude let out a low, rumbling chuckle, unbothered by my comment. “Yeah,” he murmured, his eyes crinkling with amusement. “That’s pretty much what everyone says.”
***
If anything doesn’t make sense, know I’m half asleep
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