Chapter 6

Howard's phone kept ringing on his way back to the villa. The caller ID—"Grandma"—flashing on the screen gave him a headache. Just before the last ring, Howard hit the brakes and picked up the call. "Grandma," he said gently. "So you do remember that I'm your grandma!" Bethany's stern voice came through. "What's going on with that woman named Alyssa?" Howard massaged the bridge of his nose and answered patiently, "Alyssa's sick. She means no harm." "Are you out of your mind, Howard Larson?" Bethany scolded. "No harm? She knew you were married, yet she still got close to you. She's literally being the other woman while acting all righteous! I've never seen such shamelessness. Cut her off immediately and go make peace with Meg!" Howard frowned, Megan's face appearing briefly in his mind. Annoyance rose in him. He asked coldly, "Did Megan tell on me?" "Does she even need to?" Bethany snapped. "It's all over the internet! Keep this in mind, Howard—your wife is Megan. How could you stand by another woman while Meg fell to the ground in front of the paparazzi? "How do you think that made her look in front of all those people?" Howard suddenly recalled the scene just now and the hurt look in her eyes in that instant. That situation indeed hadn't been right. But he quickly shook off the thought. "She's in the wrong, Grandma. She saw the posts online and went to the hospital just to corner Alyssa." "Let me talk to him." Ronald took the phone from Bethany. "Howard, you were the one who brought Megan to me, saying you wanted to marry her. Since you married her, you're responsible for her!" "Grandpa…" "Come home for dinner tonight. Bring Megan." Ronald hung up after, leaving no room for excuses. Alone in the car, Howard tapped the steering wheel unconsciously with his left hand, his brow deeply furrowed. He scrolled through his phone to find Megan's contact. She still hadn't replied to any of the messages he had sent before. Irritation welled up in him, but he suppressed his feelings and forced himself to call her. After a long wait, Megan finally answered. "What are you doing?" Howard's voice was cold. "Do you need something?" Megan asked instead of answering his question. Howard rubbed his temples. "Why did you go to the hospital today to corner Alyssa?" "I didn't," Megan answered rather calmly. "I only went to see Lena." "Don't lie to me, Megan!" Howard's irritation spiked again, his patience thinning, but the only response he received was her light laugh. Her nonchalance, as if she couldn't care less about him, infuriated him even more. Nonetheless, upon remembering Ronald's order, he had no choice but to say, "You're coming with me to the Larson residence tonight." "I'm busy." Megan's clear voice carried no hesitation. "This is Grandpa's order," Howard pressed with a frown. In the next instant, Megan hung up. All he could hear now was the steady beeping of a busy signal. Howard froze slightly, a deep frown creasing his brow. He tried calling again, but she no longer picked up. Traffic streamed past his car as he stared at his phone in silence. In the end, he put it away, started the car, and drove back to their villa. The sky had grown darker. After parking the car, Howard strode straight inside. The moment he opened the door, his face was set in a hard expression. "Megan," he called her name coldly. But no one answered. Only then did he notice the entryway light was off, and the whole house was in darkness. Howard faltered for a bit. Every time he had come home before, at least one light was left on for him. Often, Megan would even be asleep on the living room couch, a book fallen from her hand as she waited for him. He turned on a light and looked toward the couch. It was empty; she wasn't there. Before, it was just the thought of Alyssa's condition and Bethany urging him to come home that troubled him, but now, an inexplicable restlessness took hold. He went around turning on every light in the house, searching room by room. But there was no one in the living room, kitchen, or bathrooms. The bedrooms and the study were also empty. Was she not home? She wouldn't even answer her phone. Where had she gone? He assumed that the fake divorce had truly angered her, and she was just making a scene. Howard decided to drop the issue, believing she would come around soon. Alyssa only had six months left. Moreover, his wife could only be Megan. But since Megan was sulking and refusing to go to the Larson residence, he couldn't just not go himself. With that thought, Howard went to the storage room to grab some supplements. On his way out, he hesitated, then put them down and went into their bedroom. The faint scent of Chanel No. 5 still lingered in the room, which was the perfume he had given her. Howard's frown eased slightly. Grabbing a few changes of clothes, he hurried out. In his haste, he didn't notice that the once-shared wardrobe now held only his things, or that every matching pair of items in the house had been reduced to a single one. The warmth was gone, and only cold monotony remained. … Meanwhile, at a beauty salon, Megan and Selena were getting their nails done. Watching Megan deliberately choose materials safe for pregnancy, Selena shook her head helplessly. "Didn't you say you were going to abort it? Why are you still picking pregnancy-safe polish?" Megan smiled. "If there's pregnancy-safe polish, of course I'll choose it. It's still inside me, after all." Selena gave a nonchalant shrug. As her eyes fell on the shimmering polish on her nails, a broad smile spread across her face. Megan looked down, gazing at her own nails. Howard had a weak stomach. Since marrying him, she had been cooking for him daily, and it had been a long time since she had her nails done. "Whatever works then," Selena said. "As long as you're willing to change, I'm fine with anything. A manicure is just the start. Next is your hairstyle and your clothes. "I still remember when we were barely ten, playing around in our mom's high heels. There's no point in going back instead of moving forward now." Admiring her manicure, Selena added, "It's a pity I'm a doctor now. I can't be too flashy anymore." Megan smiled. Yeah, she had always been a showy person. It was only because she fell in love with Howard that she changed herself to his preferences. For so many nights and days, she had believed that life's greatest happiness was simply to be with the one she loved, bear and raise children, and grow old together. But now, it all seemed like a joke. Fortunately, it wasn't too late to change. She was going to put her life back on track.