Faux Vows, True Desires

Lucinda found herself wide awake, lost in her thoughts.

Since sleep eluded her, she decided to just get up.

On her bedside table lay a set of clean new clothes, prepared for her by Stefan before he went out.

All she had to do was reach out to get them; there was no need to even walk.

During the summer, Lucinda liked to wear short-sleeved t-shirts paired with black capris.

The clothes Stefan had prepared for her were chosen based on her preferences.

Lucinda got out of bed and took the clothes to his walk-in closet. Upon opening the doors, she found that half of the clothes inside were new women's clothing, all t-shirts and capris. Clearly, they matched her taste.

When did he prepare so much clothing for her to change into?

How much preparation had he done while she was unaware?

Seeing the new clothes in the closet, Lucinda couldn't calm down for a long time.

Anyone who found out they had been deeply loved by a great man for ten years couldn't stay calm.

She spent a few minutes changing and freshening up, then went downstairs without any makeup on.

"Good morning, Miss Lucinda."

Emma was busy setting up breakfast downstairs. Seeing Lucinda come down, she greeted her with a smile, then went over to ask with concern, "How did you sleep last night, Miss Lucinda?" Stefan was deeply affectionate towards Lucinda, but she didn't feel the same.

Emma could tell that Lucinda was passive and at a loss.

"Good morning, Emma."

Lucinda replied with a smile.

"Stefan is out for a morning run; he should be back soon. If you're hungry, you can eat something first."

As Emma said this, she led Lucinda into the dining room.

The breakfast prepared by the kitchen was very hearty.

"I'll wait for Stefan to come back before eating."

Lucinda said.

Eating alone always felt a bit off to her.

Emma laughed, saying, "Alright, would you like to look around? Stefan's study is quite nice; you can go have a look."

She didn't know that Stefan had already left a photo album in the study, silently confessing his feelings to Lucinda.

She wanted to lead Lucinda to the study to discover the photo album.

Lucinda wasn't stupid. Hearing Emma mention the study, she knew that Emma already knew about Stefan's feelings for her.

At this moment, Stefan returned from his run.

He was holding a bouquet of vibrant flowers.

"Mr. Stefan."

Emma called out respectfully.

Stefan handed the bouquet to Lucinda after he walked over. His eyes were gentle, and his lips curled into a smile. He looked affectionately at Lucinda, saying, "Our backyard has many flowers. I saw that they were blooming beautifully, so I picked some to make a bouquet for you. Lucinda, flowers suit beauty."

Emma quickly left.

She didn't want to be the third wheel here.

So Stefan could also say things like "flowers suit beauty".

Indeed, romantic words came naturally when there were feelings involved.

Stefan used to be very cold and taciturn, but that was because he wasn't facing the one he loved.

Lucinda accepted the bouquet, mostly roses of different colors.

"These flowers are beautiful."

Seeing her accept the bouquet and express her liking, Stefan felt happy.

"If you like these flowers, I can pick some for you every day."

"If you do that, we won't have any left to admire."

"Then I can buy you a bouquet every day, and we can leave the ones at home for you to admire when you're free."

Lucinda could only nod in agreement.

When she saw sweat beads on Stefan's forehead, she put down the bouquet, took a packet of tissues from the dining table, took out a few, and went over to wipe the sweat off his forehead.

Her actions made Stefan even happier, his eyes crinkling into smiles, but he didn't dare to move, afraid to disturb her.

He was taller than her, so he slightly squatted down to make it easier for her to wipe his sweat, so she didn't need to look up.

Emma watched this scene and murmured, "They're so sweet!"

She saw their Stefan smiling so happily.

She had never seen Stefan smile so brightly before.

Stefan was already over the moon just because Lucinda wiped his sweat.

If Lucinda did something even more thoughtful for him, would he be so happy that he forgot his own name?

"Stefan, sit for a while before you go to take a shower. Don't go right after exercising; the sudden change in temperature might make you catch a cold."

"I'll go shower after breakfast."

Stefan didn't want to leave.

He sat at the dining table in his sportswear.

"Lucy, these are all your favorites. Give them a try; how do they taste?"

Under his care, Lucinda could only keep eating.

Stefan watched her eat, but he himself didn't eat much.

Seeing her enjoy the food made him feel full already.

"Stefan, I made soup; it's still hot. Who is she?"

A strange female voice came from the entrance, and then the person walked in.

Then Lucinda saw a strange girl around twenty years old holding a tray with a bowl on it, probably the soup she mentioned.

When she saw Lucinda, she walked over like an arrow.

She put the tray on the table, then questioned Lucinda, "Who are you? What's your relationship with Stefan? How come I've never seen you before?"

Emma had been stealthily observing Stefan and Lucinda. When she saw this girl, she murmured, "Who let her in?"

How could they let Adrienne Dewey in when Stefan already had Lucinda?

Before Lucinda could answer, Adrienne hurriedly sat next to Stefan, trying to affectionately hold his arm, but was avoided by Stefan.

"Stefan, who is she? She dresses so tackily, like a country bumpkin. Does she even deserve to sit here and eat with you?"

Stefan's expression turned sour.

"Emma, please escort Adrienne out."

Adrienne immediately complained, "Stefan, what did I do wrong? I just wanted to make you some nutritious soup. Emma said you've been very busy lately. I haven't seen you come home in several days; you must be too busy to come home. I felt bad for you, so I started making soup for you early."

"Stefan, who's this chick? Spill the beans."

Lucinda, being Stefan's lawfully wedded wife, was watching all this, not getting ticked off at all but rather finding it quite entertaining.

Stefan's admirer was even younger than her, making her wonder if the girl was even legal yet.

Stefan was a real chick magnet.

One Ruby was already a big pain in the neck for Lucinda; now here came an Adrienne.

However, considering Stefan's awesomeness, if he didn't have a bunch of girls chasing after him, Lucinda would find it fishy.

"Adrienne, let's step outside for a chat."

Emma quickly strode over, grabbed Adrienne's wrist, and whisked her away.