Chapter 195
The weekend arrived with perfect weather–warm sunshine, clear skies, and a gentle breeze.
I had been looking forward to this day for an entire week. Both Billy and I were off, and we planned to take William to a countryside villa for a pienic and some fresh air.
I held Billy’s small hand as we walked down the hospital corridor toward William’s room. His little fingers gripped mine tightly, excitement evident in his
every step.
‘Mom, will Grandpa let me push his wheelchair today?” Billy asked, his eyes full of anticipation.
“We’ll have to ask him, sweetheart,” I replied with a smile.
As we approached William’s room, loud arguing reached our ears. I slowed my pace, instinctively pulling Billy closer to me.
‘I gave you such a good opportunity, and all you did was act jealous?” William’s stern voice came through the half–open door. “What’s wrong with you?”
I immediately recognized the second voice as Henry’s. His tone was tense as he tried to defend himself.
“Grandfather. Anyone who goes to sleep in their own bed and wakes up in a completely unfamiliar city the next day would think it’s kidnapping! And then you tried to set her up with Alexander? Encouraging your grandson’s wife to have an affair during marriage?*
William scoffed loudly. “The Aspen trip was specifically arranged for you two to reconnect. Instead, you managed to drive her back to the city. Completely useless!”
I held Billy back, hesitating at the door. Clearly, they were discussing me, and everything William had orchestrated in Aspen was deliberately planned.
Through the gap in the door, I could see William’s expression darken as he noticed Henry’s defiant glare. Without warning, he raised his cane and brought it down hard on Henry’s leg.
‘I’ve given you so many chances to win your wife back, and you’ve failed every time. What good are you?” William roared.
To my surprise, Henry didn’t dodge or protest. He silently endured the blow, wincing as the cane struck his shin. As his face contorted in pain, he inadvertently pulled at the wound on his lip, causing him to inhale sharply.
“What happened to your face?” William asked, noticing the injury for the first time.
Henry straightened up, clenching his jaw against the pain. “Thomas/did it. Yesterday at the hospital, he tried to take advantage of Sophia. I intervened, and
things got physical.”
Henry recounted the entire incident in detail, hiding nothing, including how he discovered Thomas attempting to record Sophia in a compromising position. As he spoke, William’s expression shifted from anger to pride.
“Good! That’s what a man should do!” William excitedly tapped his cane on the floor. “Next time, beat him half to death. If you end up in jail, I’ll pay whatever it takes to get you out.”
I cleared my throat loudly and stepped inside.
William immediately brightened when he saw Billy, who rushed forward to embrace his great–grandfather.
“Grandpa! We’re going on a picnic today! Billy announced, climbing skillfully onto William’s bed.
As I entered the room, Henry smoothly moved to stand beside me, his arm lightly brushing against mine.
This brief contact made me uncomfortable. I instinctively moved aside, creating a safe distance between us.
Henry had been learning “how to win back your wife lessons from his friend Benjamin. The main strategy? Shameless persistence. No matter what I said or did–whether I ignored him, insulted him, or tried to escape–Henry was determined to stick to me like glue.
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Suddenly, Henry winced dramatically, drawing attention to his injured Tip. Billy immediately noticed and turned to his father with concern.
“Dad, what happened to your mouth? Does it hurt?” he asked, his small face creased with worry.
Henry puffed his chest out slightly, looking like a peacock displaying its feathers. Yesterday at Mom’s workplace, a bad man was bothering her, I rushed over and fought him to protect her. Got this injury in the process.” He pointed to his split lip with a hint of pride.
William watched his grandson approvingly. Finally, his expression seemed to say, this boy has figured it out.
Billy’s eyes widened with admiration. He gave Henry a thumbs up, clearly impressed by his father’s heroles. Henry knelt down, his voice gentle but serious.
As the little man of the house, you need to learn to protect Mom too. Never let anyone hurt her, okay?”
Billy nodded solemnly, accepting this important mission.
I watched their interaction with a strange feeling building in my chest. Today’s Henry felt different.
He seemed softer, more attentive, almost… genuine? No, that couldn’t be right.
While I was lost in thought, Billy tugged at my sleeve, his face etched with concern. “Mom, Dad’s lip is bleeding again. Aren’t you going to help him make it better?”
He reached out and gently touched near Henry’s wound, his eyes full of sympathy. “Dad, does it hurt a lot?”
Thinking about Henry’s intervention yesterday, I felt a wave of gratitude. If he hadn’t shown up when he did, Thomas would have put me in a dangerous situation.
I had never disliked Thomas before–I had always considered him a friend, though not a potential romantic partner. I had even contemplated asking Henry to ease the financial pressure he was putting on Thomas’s family. But now? After what Thomas had tried to do? We couldn’t even be friends anymore.
I looked more carefully at Henry’s wound. “How did you get hurt?” I asked curiously.
Henry’s eyes lit up at my question. “Got caught by Thomas when I was punching him,” he replied casually.
In reality, during yesterday’s fight, Henry hadn’t been hurt at all. He had completely overpowered Thomas. But Alexander had advised him to occasionally play the wounded hero to evoke sympathy.
So Henry had deliberately allowed Thomas to land one punch.
Knowing the injury was because of me triggered my compassion. “You’re still bleeding. Let me help clean it up, I offered.
Henry eagerly accepted, barely concealing his delight. William, keenly observing our interaction, took Billy’s hand and nodded toward the balcony.
“Come on, Billy. Let’s see if we can spot any birds,” he said, exchanging a meaningful glance with his butler.
The three of them slipped away, leaving Henry and me alone.
I dabbed antiseptic on Henry’s cut as gently as possible. Despite my care, he winced dramatically. I found myself being even more gentle, even softly blowing on the wound to ease the sting.
“Almost done, I murmured.
After finishing, I stepped back and headed toward the balcony where Billy and William were waiting.
“Billy, Grandpa, let’s get going!” I called out, eager to start our day in the countryside.
We all made our way to the parking lot where a seven–seater SUV was waiting.
William and Billy took the front passenger seats, while the butler settled in the back row. I slid into the middle row, ready to enjoy our family outing.
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Just as I was about to tell the driver we were ready to leave, the door on the other side opened. Henry ducked his head and climbed in beside me, settling with a satisfied smile.
I stared at him in confusion. This wasn’t part of the plan.
Our countryside picnic was supposed to be just Billy, William, and me–not Henry. I had never considered including him in our outing.
“This activity isn’t really suitable for you,” I whispered, trying to give him a dignified way out.
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