Chapter 328
After Ophelia and Kenneth left, Theo looked at the symbolic items he had thrown away and turned his gaze away.
“Hurry up and pick the pocket watch back up for me,” said Theo
Before Gerald could even move, Finlay hurried down the steps and picked up the pocket watch.
Others might not know the significance of this watch, but Finlay and Clara were well familiar with it.
It was their mother’s keepsake.
Theo held the pocket watch in his hands, his aged fingers tracing its engraved patterns, a touch of sadness shown in his eyes.
By the time they got back to the Rosewood Manor, it was already close to ten o’clock.
Ophelia carried her heavy dowry into the room, gently pursing her lips.
With so many gifts received, she didn’t know if she’d ever have the chance to return the favor.
She didn’t like owing others.
Kenneth sat on the couch, wrapped an arm around Ophelia’s waist, and pulled her onto his lap. “They gave you these because you deserve them. Just accept them happily without feeling pressured.”
He patted her head gently.
Ophelia turned her head. Kenneth always knew what she was thinking.
“My dear wife, isn’t it time to fulfill your wifely duties on our wedding night?” Kenneth raised his eyebrows, feeling that doing such things seemed even more natural after getting their marriage certificates.
Ophelia was on guard. Kenneth had had enough last night.
Her waist was still sore.
She had been performing her wifely duties for over a year; one more day wouldn’t make a difference.
Just as she was about to stand up, a strong arm wrapped around her waist, and kisses slowly spread from her ear.
Her breathing became erratic, and her whole body felt weak, as if she had been electrified.
Kenneth lightly bit the most sensitive skin on the back of her neck and slowly grazed it.
He guided Ophelia in his arms onto the couch.
At that moment, the phone on the table vibrated twice, the sound particularly jarring in the intimate silence of the room.
Ophelia found her voice. “I’ll go take a shower first.”
She reached for the phone and handed it to Kenneth.
The warmth in his arms slipped away as Kenneth picked up his phone, his face darkening. “Why are you calling a married man at this hour?”
Ronin on the other end was taken aback. There was no need to emphasize the ‘married‘ part to him.
Chapter 328
+5
He might think he hadn’t fed enough love drama.
“I just had a meeting with some experts. The surgery is scheduled for next Monday. You need to check into the hospital two days before for pre–op tests,” said Ronin.
Ophelia paused on her way to the bathroom, feeling her heart suddenly grow heavy.
“Got it. Anything else?” Kenneth loosened his tie and took a deep breath.
“During this pre–op period, you should try to…” Before Ronin could finish speaking, Kenneth had already hung up.
“Talkative.” He murmured and stood up, watched Ophelia’s back and hugged her from behind. “Next Monday.”
“Yeah, I heard. I also heard Dr. Ronin say you need to get plenty of rest before the surgery.” Ophelia’s voice was light, with no hint of worry as she cheerily turned to look at Kenneth behind her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck.
Her smile was wide, yet it tugged at people’s hearts.
Her clear, deer–like eyes had lost their shine, but she forced them to sparkle with cheerful playfulness.
Seeing Ophelia like this, Kenneth‘ gaze deepened, feeling as if his heart was being torn open. He couldn’t help but press his lips to hers, stealing her breath away.
“Be good, don’t overthink it.”
Ophelia said, “Nope.”
She didn’t overthink it; there was no need to. Once she made up her mind, she felt even more at ease.
“Never admit,” Kenneth said as he pressed his forehead against hers, his slender fingers pulling down the zipper on the back of Ophelia’s dress. He knew his girl all too well.
This was the only way to stop her from overthinking.
Ophelia wrapped her legs around Kenneth‘ waist, and Kenneth carried her to the bathroom as the sound of water rushed down over them.
Her vision was blurred by the water, her long blond hair clinging to her delicate cheeks. Her beautiful eyelids turned slightly red, yet she couldn’t bear to look away from Kenneth‘ face in front of her.
She tilted her head back, letting his kisses gently land on her neck.
Kenneth cupped Ophelia’s wet face in his hands, gently caressing her skin with his fingers as his eyes also became moist and intense.
They kissed passionately, their reflections overlapping on the misty shower glass.
The result of overindulging was that the next morning she couldn’t get out of bed.
She felt like her whole body had fallen apart, as if it wasn’t even hers anymore.
But she had important things to deal with today.
She needed to take Noah to quickly understand the situation in the slums. They had to obtain the development rights within the next couple of days, submit the feasibility report, and start the work gradually.
5
10:25 Fri, Dec
Chapter 328
She didn’t have much time–left.
The warmth behind her was gone, and when she checked the time, it was already ten o’clock.
She couldn’t believe she had slept for so long.
She hurriedly got out of bed, and as she pulled back the covers, her gaze accidentally landed on a gift box at the foot of the bed.
There was a handwritten note on it, and Kenneth‘ arrogant handwriting read: [Wedding gift.]
Curious, she leaned over and opened the gift box.
Inside the red box were two neatly arranged documents.
Sea Area Development Rights of Gloomhaven Slum
Land Development Rights of Gloomhaven Slum
Approved by: Xander.
Ophelia looked at the two documents in her hand with disbelief. They were signed by Xander and affixed with the seal of the President
“The wedding gift for you. Do you like it? It should be more pleasing than anything from the Carnegie family, right?” said Kenneth.
A pleasant male voice sounded from the door as he pushed a dining cart into the room.
Ophelia looked up. “So…so fast?”
It was so quick that it was almost unbelievable.
“How did it get done so fast?” She couldn’t believe that just a few words from her could persuade Xander. At that time, Xander’s attitude was disapproving. Permitting them to assess the slum’s situation was already a favor to Kenneth.
It was hard to believe that he agreed in just two days.
Kenneth pulled her from the bed into his arms, and her fair legs wrapped around his waist.
He carried her over to sit at the coffee table.
“Isn’t it good to be quick?” There weren’t many things he could do for her, but he wanted to plan her future path carefully.
“Sure. Of course.” Ophelia gazed into Kenneth‘ eyes, which were as deep and captivating as a whirlpool, hoping to catch a glimpse of something, but found nothing.
“We’ll need to talk to the city planning department later; the wastewater treatment and ocean garbage dissolution require some small–scale testing,” said Kenneth.
“Okay. I’ll head over in a while.” Ophelia nodded vigorously, completely forgetting who was responsible for her aching body. She could also apply in advance to relocate the people from the slums.
If she could see the slum residents resettled before going with Kenneth for surgery in Milagia, she’d have one less thing to worry about.
