Valeria immediately let go of William’s ear when she saw Hayden. She then hid behind William and secretly stuck her tongue out.
Oh no! Hayden had seen her grabbing William’s ear. Would Hayden tell her off?
Hayden had a serious expression on his face as he clasped his hands behind his back. However, he was grinning secretly as he never thought that William could be under control by his wife.
It would be interesting if he was able to take a picture of William begging for mercy towards Valeria as she pinched his ear.
William greeted Hayden as if nothing had happened. Valeria hesitantly addressed Hayden too and continued to hide behind William.
Hayden said gently, “Have you finished the fruits? I’ve bought more for you, as well as your favorite nuts.”
Valeria then breathed a sigh of relief as Hayden was being kind to her. She then poked her head out from William’s back and thanked him sweetly, “Thank you, dad!”
“Avoid eating desserts and spicy food. However, you need to have more nuts and fruits,” Hayden reminded her again.
“Alright!” Valeria replied obediently but William suddenly chipped in and said, “Dad, she had two servings of butter cake just now. She had also asked the servant to buy her spicy hotpot.”
Valeria glared at him and explained to Hayden with a smile, “Dad, I was starving. I did not have a meal ever since this afternoon.”
“What?” Hayden asked, “Is this how you take care of your wife?”
“Dad, he only allows me to eat greasy food. I remember that the braised pork was greasy and fatty, as well as the braised meat with pickled vegetables which was as dark as coal. What if it’s bad for the baby?”
“I saw you eating a few black plums in one sitting. Why weren’t you worried then?” William retorted.
“That is because the black plum is a fruit and dad had reminded me to consume more of them. I listened to dad’s advice accordingly,” Valeria answered confidently.
Hayden rubbed his chin and chuckled. “Val is right. She needs to consume more fruit!”
Valeria was less afraid of Hayden with William’s presence. She then offered, “Dad, do you want some water? I’ll pour you a glass.”
“You don’t have to. I’ll have William do it instead,” Hayden sat down with a smile and asked, “Have you done any check-ups lately?”
“Yes. I had an ultrasound this morning and everything was fine.”
“That’s good! That’s good to hear! The old mansion is ready and you both shall move back soon.”
Valeria was nervous as she was still traumatized by Hayden’s past behavior despite him treating her kindly now. She was worried to live with him but didn’t dare to refuse the offer, “Alright!”
William turned around after getting Hayden a glass of water and replied, “Dad, we won’t be going back there.”
“Why?” Hayden asked.
“I want to enjoy the time with my wife privately. It’s not convenient for us to live with you,” William replied.
Hayden frowned and his face turned sullen as soon as he heard William’s reply. Valeria’s heart was pounding and tried to ease the situation, “Hubby, dad is doing us a favor. Besides, he is feeling lonely at home. Let’s move back then.”
“Don’t you know that distance is the soul of beauty? You’ll soon be annoyed with us if we move back to live with you. Why don’t we continue to live by ourselves and visit you two to three times a week? This will keep our relationship healthy and avoid conflicts,” William still did not give in.
Hayden was increasingly annoyed and retorted, “What conflict? Your mother is gone, and hence there will be no potential conflicts in the house. I’m your father! How can I give a hard time towards Valeria?”
“It’s not about that. My wife is currently pregnant and she needs to live comfortably instead of adjusting to a new environment. She will have to follow your lifestyle and your mealtimes. It will affect her pregnancy, right?”
“No, you’re just coming up with an excuse. You just don’t want to live with me, right?”
Hayden was enraged and said, “You ungrateful piece of trash. I’m your biological father and not your enemy. What’s the big deal with my living habits? I’m open for discussion as long as I can see my family every day.”
“That’s easy. How about this? I’ll ask Andrew to move back home and keep you company.”
Valeria tried her best to send William a signal but he decided to ignore her. She was getting anxious and wondered why William was so stubborn. She had never seen William behave like this before.
She could not bear to see William arguing further to avoid Hayden from blaming her. She finally chipped in, “Dad, don’t be angry. I have the final say on where we’ll live. We’ll move back home to accompany you when I discharge from the hospital.”
Hayden’s anger subsided and said, “Valeria is so much better than my son! He’s an ungrateful piece of trash!”
Valeria forced a smile seeing Hayden was cheerful again, “Dad, we have also gotten ahold of the antidote for William.”
“Really?” Hayden’s face lit up.
“Yes. Silas will be back by tomorrow.”
“That’s great! I just heard from someone that Anthony was causing a scene at the hospital. I’m also worried about William’s birthday party if someone will be cooking up a plan during the event. However, everything will be as smooth as silk if we got our hands on the antidote,” Hayden breathed out a sigh of relief.
“Yes, I was initially worried as well, but all is fine now. Dad, how’s the preparation for the birthday party?” Valeria asked.
“It’s ready. Don’t worry about it.”
“Dad, thank you for your effort!” Valeria continued to butter up Hayden before he left happily.
Valeria and William stood up to send Hayden away as they watched Hayden and Lucas enter the elevator. As soon as the elevator doors closed, Valeria pinched William’s arm, “What were you doing just now? Are you trying to give me a hard time?”
“How can I?” William denied and continued, “I did it on purpose. You will be outshined by being a kind and loving daughter-in-law when I’m being viewed as the stubborn son in the eyes of my father. Hence, he will treat you better than before.”
Upon hearing William’s argument, Valeria gave him a pinch again and said, “Discuss things with me before you put on an act next time. You almost gave me a heart attack!”
“Honey, you’re really afraid of my dad, aren’t you? Did he give you a hard time in the past?”
“No, not at all. I’m scared of your father as he is very stern and rigid.”
“Pfft, you’re lying. You hid behind me the moment you saw him.”
“What? Do not mess with me!” Valeria reached out to pinch William once again. He stepped back and said, “You keep pinching me when things don’t go your way. Are you actually a violent woman?”
The pair were laughing and joking around. Bobby suddenly stormed in and reported, “Sir, we have just received news from the hospital. Natasya is ill!”