Trapped with a Lawyer

"Well, I'd like to let you in on a little secret about the key; I think you deserve it for making me so happy."

Ella narrowed her eyes but said nothing. Samuel clearly deserved the moniker 'lusty lawyer'.

Shame on you, Mr. Samuel. You've got really thick skin."

"Right here. Reach out, you'll feel it."

Samuel took her hand, and placed it coolly against his delicate cheek. Ella pinched it mischievously. "Your skin is so thick," she tittered. "Even bullets wouldn't pierce it."

"Of course not. I can withstand anything, I'm thick-skinned." The lateness of the night poured in the window, bathing them head-to-toe in a wash of blackness. Ella and Samuel lay together like star-crossed birds of paradise, stroking each other's skin.

Ella rolled the diamond ring on her figure snugly. It was the second diamond ring Samuel had lavished on her, the first having disappeared.

But this time, Samuel did something he had never done before. He proposed. Ella could not help smiling because of Samuel's self-deprecating humor. "Oh stop it, so you know you have a thick skin, eh?" Samuel planted a kiss lightly on her lips. "And for that, I can do whatever I want with you."

'Do whatever he wants with me?' Ella puzzled over the phrase, but soon understood. All he desired was to be with her, embrace her, kiss her, to enjoy the pleasure of her body.

"Samuel, you must have been a dedicated monk in your past life, who adhered to all the celibacy rules, because you are so horny now."

"Yeah, so you better take good care of me. Lemme get the opportunity to do what was forbidden in my past life."

What he meant couldn't be clearer. "Let's not talk about it anymore." She demurred, and rolled her eyes. "What's the secret of the key?"

Despite all their talking, she hadn't learned anything. Was the key just an adornment?

While Ella mulled it over, Samuel began with a faint tremor in his voice. "In the SL bank, there is a safe. My real estate, deeds, and important documents, are all in there. That key, the very key I gave to you, is the only one that exists for that safe. Now you know my secret, so I'm depending on you to guard it with your life."

Why was Samuel doing all this? He had already transferred all his cards to Ella, now this? Once he knew Ella understood, his taut face relaxed.

"W-what?" This could not be. Did he say all his property?

Samuel held Ella tightly in his arms and smiled. "I mean, you are my boss from now on. All my property belongs to you. Now you can buy whatever you so desire. You can even squander all of it." Then, it occurred to Samuel that they should have a child as soon as possible. His imagination ran wild with ideas of a luxury life for their cute daughter.

It was beyond the scope of his concern to worry about whether their daughter would grow up spoilt. If no one wanted to marry her because of her moneyed pride and superciliousness then so be it, she could continue to live with Samuel and Ella. It didn't bother him one bit.

"Samuel, did anything happen to your company? Or...to you?" Ever since Ella had gotten back from her business trip, Samuel had been over the moon, giddy, and placatory. Proposal, then properties. Nevertheless, Ella's imagination ran apace also of a truly luxurious life. After all, Samuel was in third place on the Chinese rich list. But that should have put more pressure on her to keep all his property, no? For that, she would have to leave the entertainment industry immediately. And of course, she would carry with her the key to the treasure wherever she went.

"Stop thinking about nonsense. Everything's fine, my career, my company. When Jerry grows up, I'll teach him everything I know, and then I can resign and live with you in some idyllic land. Doesn't that sound charming?" If they lived in a land of fabled beauty, where there were no other people, they could live far away from all social conflicts and pressures of their lives, in peace. It was such a wonderful plan! "You're thinking too far in the future. Maybe Jerry doesn't want to be a lawyer." Ella's attention was attracted to Jerry immediately. She forgot about the whole key thing altogether.

Jerry and Samuel didn't get along with each other. If Samuel asked Jerry to be a lawyer, Jerry's instinctual response would be to rebel and plug his ears and sing the la-la-la l-can't-hear-you song. But maybe if Samuel didn't tell Jerry of his intention, he might just choose to be a lawyer anyway. Ella nursed a belief that Jerry would not shirk his family background and the interpersonal network Samuel had established.

"It depends on him. If he really doesn't want to be a lawyer, we can have another son, and leave Jerry to his own devices." Samuel said this indifferently, as if he was going to abandon another's pet snail.

Ella fidgeted and felt fired up from the exchange. She vehemently disagreed, believing that no child should face exclusion. Why did Samuel speak so callously about his own son? Ella was determined to figure out Samuel's attitude towards Jerry tonight.

"Samuel," said Ella seriously. Samuel knew he had irritated her again.

"Yes. Madam, '

He replied assertively, as if he were a soldier.

Samuel's mischievous nature made Ella speechless again. "Let me ask you a question. You don't believe Jerry is your son, do you?" What other explanation could there be? She had never seen this kind of relationship between a father and a son Ah! That's wrong. She did see it before. Harry and Daniel didn't get along with each other either. They wouldn't even talk to each other, to say nothing of quarrels.

Lola was quite worried about them. Harry was devoted to the care of his two daughters, but often showed Daniel the scurf of his devotion. However, Daniel never showed that he cared about his unfair treatment. He hardly said a word, in fact.

Now she was really bothered by that problem too. Father and son were born enemies, weren't they?

No! She corrected herself once more. Chuck and Sven got on like a house on fire. Now that he was older, Sven spent all his spare time with Chuck in his hospital studying medicine.

Was that because their different personalities?

No. Out of the three fathers she enumerated, Samuel was by far the best one. His personality was so warm and fantastic.

If different personalities dictated conflict, there would have been conflict between Chuck and his son as well as Harry and his son, but the disdain that emanated between Samuel and Jerry was of a different nature entirely.

It was weird.

Therefore, she reasoned, it had to be because...Samuel didn't believe Jerry was his son.

What Samuel said next turned her stomach with dread.

"What are you talking about? Jerry is absolutely my son. How can you not see? We just don't get on. He doesn't like me and I don't like him. I always want to teach him a lesson when l meet him. That doesn't mean he's not my son, so don't say such stupid things!"

But Samuel was hiding something.

All fathers love their sons. When they weren't fighting, Samuel found that he could be proud of Jerry.

He didn't want to tell Ella of this. If Ella said anything of the sort to Jerry, He couldn't imagine how complacent Jerry would become, which was just one step towards insolence.

Ella was speechless, and glared at Samuel. She had to reformulate her image of him in that instant. Was there any father worse than Samuel?

"Besides, I'm going to teach Jerry a lesson. How could he dare to call me a jerk? After all I do for him!"

"What does he know at his age?"

Samuel continued. "He doesn't know

what he's saying. He told me once

that I forged you out of the house for four years. I did no such thing. It was you who abandoned us! He knows nothing of how people act. He's always talking nonsense, so don't take it so personally."

"You weren't here when Jerry was growing up. No one was here to educate him. Now, you see what's become of him?"

When Samuel said this, Ella countered impishly, "So, you're saying that our grandma didn't educate him well enough? We're going back to the old house soon."

December 23, a lunar festival in China was coming up. Viola had called them to have dinner and a family reunion with grandma in the old house.

Samuel was dumbfounded. He only found his voice after some time had passed. "Honey, whose wife are you?"

"Oh, you're that clueless? Well, not yours. That's for sure."

Just after Ella finished, Samuel turned over and pressed her against the bed hard.

"Ella, I'll do something to remind you whose wife you are."☐☐☐☐☐☐