“You can ask the cook to make them,” Ivor said.“No,” I said, focusing on the sweets. “I'll buy them when I want them.”When I put the last sweets down on the table, I saw Ivor frowning, looking at them.i raised an eyebrow.“Do you really want them?” Ivor asked.“Yeah,” I nodded, unable to guess what he would do next.“I'll call the cook right now,” Ivor said, dragging me out into the living room.“Wait,” I shook his hand. "I don't need it."Then I turned around and wanted to go back to the dining room.Ivor took my hand.I frowned, grumbling, "What?"“Let your personal chef make you sweets, you're still pregnant and your diet needs to be balanced,” Ivor said, his stern gaze not allowing me to refuse.I stroked my pregnancy curves unconsciously, after a few seconds of hesitation, I nodded, “Ok, I got it.”Even though I find it hard to resist the sweets that are on the table. From my position I could see them clearly.I looked at Ivor, realizing he was frowning, his eyes glued to my p
I hesitated for a few minutes and then slowly walked out of the mansion. The bright moon hanging from the top of my head became a lantern, light the way for me.. My heart was racing with excitement. I didn't even know why I had to walk alone out of the mansion.I felt nervous because I always felt I couldn't know what was going on around me, and my legs worked as soon as I understood what I was doing.A few breezes passed over me, and I shuddered even when they did not carry a significant chill.The mansion was built in a secluded place, around which people planted a lot of trees. Each of them was as big as an adult's arms.From my memory, I walked down the aisle. I didn't know how long it was until I saw the checkpoint. The light inside the guardhouse radiates around, becoming prominent in the night. From a distance I could see the shadow of the guard. I approached the barrier, hesitated for a few minutes, then crouched over it.The alarm sounded unexpectedly, which confused me. Im
I stood up and got a cold look from him.“I-,” I flustered, wanting to explain to him as if I was the one who had made the mistake on conditioned reflex.Ivor didn't care what I was trying to say. He walked quickly towards me, his face serious making me back away.“Why are you avoiding me?” He easily grabbed my hand. His strong hand was like iron handcuffs, I couldn't move my hand.I stared at him, not knowing what to say. Then, I heard his long chant.“Don't look at me with that wary look, I'll never hurt you,” he said, then helped me sit down on the sofa. I could smell the alcohol from his jacket. He's drunk.Then Ivor touched the glass of milk to check how hot it was.“It's okay if I drink cold milk,” I remind myself.Ivor looked at me, saying nothing but taking off his coat, which smelled like alcohol, and keeping it away from me.“I can't get sick if I drink cold milk,” I said.Ivor looked at me, “We should still be careful.” He sat down next to me, “Anna said you wanted to take
Anna flustered, pursed her lips, as if she had no intention of telling me the truth.“You're leaving on the weekend, aren't you?” I asked.She nodded, “I-I 'm not sure.”"Let me guess. You want to leave but you know there's a good chance Ivor won't agree to that?”“Lia, it's late, you should rest,” Anna said, then moved closer to me, wanting to help me into the mansion.She was very gentle and careful with me. Ivor's other lovers were spoiled and arrogant and bossy.“Are you Ivor's mistress?” I said my question.Anna said nothing and I began to doubt their relationship. The way Ivor treats Anna and the way she is terrified every time she sees him makes their relationship seem strange.“Come inside, Lia, you should rest,” she reminded me again.“Anna, tell me, I don't understand what's going on with me, it makes my mood really bad. Tell me what you know,” I tried to convince her.Anna frowned, seemingly impatient with me, “I won't and can't tell you anything. I just want the money to c
“I'm fine,” Ivor sighed, pinching his nose from fatigue. “Lia, you're the one with the problem, don't you remember that she almost miscarried you? Do you still want to go see her?”“But she is my mother,” I took a step forward, trying to convince him. “I can't leave my mother.”“But she doesn't even consider you her daughter,” Ivor shouted suddenly. “When she was hospitalized, she always tried to see you because she always wanted you to go back to town with her and marry a goddamn middle-aged man. From the time I met her until now, never, never had she really cared for her the way a mother should care for her daughter.”Ivor's words revealed it all. He was right, she never considered me her daughter, I never received her love. It's the truth.I burst into tears, feeling so painfully, not because I now realized the hard truth but because Ivor had made me face it again.“Lia, I- ” I heard Ivor's awkward tone.But my tears did not stop falling. My feelings were so bad right then, I felt
I went back to my room, Anna helped me turn off the light. The room was covered with darkness, I still clutched my sim card in my hand, sobering up more calmly than ever.I know what I want. I wanted to see my mother, I was really worried about her condition because she was behaving in a strange way compared to before.I need to find a way to get out of this mansion, but first I need to sleep.I tried closing my eyes and falling asleep, but it didn't work. I sighed, sat up, and put my SIM card deep in the closet.Fortunately, I was able to sleep afterwards.The next day Ivor went down to the dining room to have breakfast later than usual. When I got there, I almost ate my breakfast.I looked at him, seeing the awkwardness in his eyes when he saw me, but very quickly he readjusted his emotions.Ivor ate breakfast, then went to work, as usual. He didn't say anything about what happened last night.He didn't ask for anything after he woke up, did he?I did not think so...I smiled, deftl
I pursed my lips.I felt Ivor's hand moving slightly over my cheek.I tilted my body slightly to the side to avoid his touch.His hand stopped and he pulled his hand back.I said, “As always.”Then I added, “Not bad.”“You're six months pregnant-”Ivor hadn't finished interrupting, “I know.”He was silent for a moment and then said, “Don't be too active.”He reminded me of this afternoon, didn't he?I puckered my lips, reminding myself to be more careful.Ivor tried to talk to me afterwards, but I was so tired of walking all afternoon that I just wanted to rest. So the conversation between us became like an interrogation. Ivor always asked me some open-ended questions, but I always answered them through the speaker.He quickly realized the situation, helped me up to my room to rest, then went to his office.In the evening, although my legs were still tired, I tried to go down to the dining room to eat my meal.If Anna had to bring my meal to my room, there was a good chance that I would
Ivor's POVI came home before dawn. Upon entering the hallway, I heard Anna's voice, “She asked to play the piano this morning, but we needed time to prepare the piano room so she joined me in listening to music in the morning. In the afternoon, after taking a nap, she learned to play the piano. She's in the piano room now.”i raised an eyebrow. Is Lia playing the piano?Cool I opened wider because I was surprised and interested in Lia's request. Before that, she only made simple and basic requests, this is the first time she made a “complicated” request.Anna seemed to want to say something more, but I didn't care, and went quickly to the piano room.Outside, I could hear the piano. Unequivocal misaligned sounds denounced the skill of the pianist.I turned the doorknob gently and opened the door. The sound coming from the piano needs to become a lot clearer. Then I saw Lia, in her wide white set, frowning, her soft fingers resting on the keys, she was pressing down on the keys clumsi