Sacha and Kai were playing hide-and-seek when they accidentally bumped into Elijah. She was met with his cold, stern face. Her heart skipped a beat and it reached her throat.
“No, I’m sorry, it was unintentional.”
Freya quickly touched Elijah’s arm and smiled, “I invited her to our house as a guest.”
Elijah turned to look at her, seemingly not understanding why she did that. Freya let Sacha continue playing with Kai and pulled Elijah into the house.
“Why are you so cold?” she asked.
Elijah sat down on the bed, looking away from her, “What, do I have to greet her with a smile too?”
Freya sat down next to him, holding his arm, trying to please him, “Don’t be upset. I know you don’t like strangers in our house. I invited her with careful consideration. Just think about it, she’s with Evan now and they might get married in the future. Who is Evan? Your right-hand man. Plus, she was raised by your mother. So, there’s some connection there.”
She rested her head on his shoulder, “I don’t want you to have no family.”
Elijah turned his head slightly, his gaze lowered, “Aren’t you my family?”
Maybe in the past, he would still yearn for more. But now, he had Freya and two children. This was his home, his family. As for anything else, it didn’t matter to him.
Freya said, “It’s different. Kai has a good aunt. Look, there’s someone to play with your son. Isn’t it nice to have one more person to love and care for your child?”
Elijah looked at her for a moment, “Silver-tongued.”
Freya laughed, “Alright. Always neglecting our guests inside the house.”
She pulled Elijah out.
Sacha also didn’t dare to play freely with Kai anymore. She sat somewhat meekly on the couch. Kai was bothering her, “Let’s keep playing.”
Freya walked over and picked up her son, “Can I join too?”
“Sure!” Kai clapped his hands, grinning happily, even dribbling a bit of saliva.
“Oh dear,” Freya wiped his mouth.
Sacha suddenly stood up, “I should go.”
Freya said, “Sit down, stay here for dinner.”
“But I…”
“Evan will be coming over soon.”
As soon as Freya finished speaking, the doorbell rang. Elijah, who was close by, went to answer the door. At the entrance, Evan was holding a large cardboard box, stacked high with items that could easily topple over.
Elijah opened the door to his study, “Put it in here.”
Evan carried it inside and when he set it down, the box tilted, causing things on top to slide off. Elijah noticed a white diary with a red umbrella pattern on the cover, seemingly meant for a girl. He bent down and picked it up. As he flipped through its pages, Elijah found the handwriting inside was indeed Freya’s. He thought it might be a diary she kept while studying. Just as he was about to put it down, an unintended glance made his gaze linger on a page where she poured out her feelings. The content inside made his brow furrow tighter and tighter. His expression grew increasingly tense.
“Dinner’s ready.”
Freya appeared at the doorway calling him. Elijah closed the diary and tossed it into the pile of things. Turning around, his gaze passed over her face without lingering, and he walked out. Freya felt a sudden chill from him but she didn’t think much of it. During dinner, Elijah still wore a cold expression and didn’t utter a word. It made Sacha tremble, thinking that it was because of her presence that Elijah was upset. After finishing the meal, she and Evan left. Freya saw them off at the door.
At the doorstep, she smiled at Sacha and said, “That’s just his temperament, not very talkative.”
“Is that so?” Sacha asked, skeptical.
Freya said, “You can ask Evan if you don’t believe me. He’s been with Elijah for a long time and understands his temperament the best.”
Sacha asked Evan, “Is that true?”
Evan nodded, “Yeah, he’s better now, but he used to be even more distant.”
Since Elijah had Freya, he had changed.
After seeing them off, Freya walked into the study, intending to tidy up the things she brought. As soon as she crouched down, she didn’t notice when Elijah had come over, standing at the doorway, watching her, and asking, “Are these things important to you?”