Chapter 6

Every night, Imogen would come up with some excuse to call him away—she was sick, had a minor accident, or claimed it was work. Tonight, she had even managed to invent a car accident. "What exactly do you want to talk about? Is it about the living expenses? I already gave you 500 thousand dollars. Is that not enough? How much more do you want? I can transfer it to you right now." Rowan's anger grew as he spoke. "Another 100 thousand dollars? Or 200 thousand dollars? Would that be enough?" "Rowan, the living expenses I asked for aren't for me alone. That money is what you are supposed to give for this family," Natalie retorted, angered by his coldness. "I've already given it to you, and yet you keep nagging and won't let it go," Rowan snapped coldly. "What else do you want to discuss? "Do you want to talk about how hard it is being Mrs. Payne, or how exhausting it is to take care of the kids? Or do you want to make a list and show me every little thing you think you've suffered?" "Get out!" Natalie shouted, stepping aside and pointing at the bedroom door. Rowan's phone rang again, and he didn't bother arguing further. He turned and rushed out without hesitation. Natalie collapsed onto the bed, completely drained. Thinking back on all the years she had loved him, she wanted nothing more than to slap herself. Seven years had passed. She had silently devoted seven full years to this family. She had lived like a maid, summoned and ordered at will by Rowan and his parents, sacrificing the life that should have been hers, all because she had been blinded by love and obsessed with his looks. She felt foolish beyond words. In the end, she looked as if she owed him everything, even having to beg him for money to cover his own living expenses. Rowan didn't come back that entire night, so Natalie had no chance to bring up divorce. The next morning, she made breakfast and called Roger several times, but he refused to get out of bed to eat. She could only help Sarah wash up and get dressed, and the two of them ate breakfast together. After breakfast, Roger still hadn't gotten out of bed. Since it was the weekend and the kids didn't have school, Natalie let Pamela take care of him while she took Sarah to the sanatorium to pay 100 thousand dollars toward Sabrina's medical bills. On Wednesday, Matilda mentioned that she hadn't seen the kids in a while and wanted to spend some time with them, so she asked Rowan and Natalie to bring the children back to the Payne residence. Natalie and Sarah arrived at the Payne residence first. When Sarah saw Lucian at home, she clung to him playfully, and the two of them went out into the yard to fly paper airplanes together. "Wow, you're amazing, Great-Uncle Lucian," Sarah shouted happily, jumping up and down in the yard. "Your paper airplane flew so far, but mine never does." Lucian picked up the paper airplane from the ground, one hand tucked into his dress pants pocket. His blue wool coat made his tall frame look even more striking. "Do you want mine?" Lucian asked as he waved the paper airplane in his hand. "Of course I do! Can I have it?" Sarah asked eagerly, her hair tied into two small buns and her cute face full of innocence. "You can have it, but you have to promise me one thing," he said as he crouched in front of her. "What is it?" "I'm the same age as your dad, so don't call me something that makes me sound old. After all, I'm not even married yet. If you stop calling me Great-Uncle Lucian, I'll give you this paper airplane." Natalie stood on the other side of the garden, a little too far away to hear what Lucian and Sarah were talking about. But she had never seen anyone spend time with Sarah so patiently and affectionately. Rowan was a neglectful father. From Sarah's childhood until now, he had hardly ever held her, let alone spent any real time with her. "Then… Can I call you Luc?" Sarah tilted her head and giggled. "Great-Grandpa calls you that, too." "That works," Lucian said gently, rubbing her head. "You can call me Luc, and I'll call you Sally." "Deal!" Sarah laughed. "You're Luc, and I'm Sally. That means you can't use your great-uncle status to boss me around." Lucian high-fived her and handed her the paper airplane. Sarah took it with delight. "Sarah, what are you two talking about?" Natalie asked as she walked over. "Mommy, this paper airplane was a gift from Luc," Sarah said proudly, holding it up for Natalie to see. "How can you call your great-uncle 'Luc'?" Natalie exclaimed in surprise. Even Rowan didn't dare use that nickname. "That way he won't seem old," Sarah said with a happy laugh. At the front gate, Roger was the first to jump out of the car. He saw a few people laughing and chatting nearby. Every day at home, Natalie wore a serious face, but out here, she smiled so brightly. Sarah tossed the paper airplane into the air, and Roger ran after it. As it landed, he deliberately stomped on it. "Ah! My paper airplane!" Sarah screamed, instantly bursting into tears. "You meanie! How could you step on my paper airplane!" "It's just a stupid paper airplane. What's the big deal?" Roger said, stomping on the crumpled paper airplane even harder. "Even a toy Ms. Chapman randomly gave me is better than this." Lucian strode over quickly, grabbed Roger by the collar at the back of his neck, and said coldly, "Apologize to your sister." "I'm not apologizing! Let go, Lucian! Let go of me!" Roger pouted, fuming. "What did you just call me?" Lucian asked sharply. Before Roger could answer, Lucian grabbed him by the legs and held him upside down. "Isn't your name Lucian? Ah!" Roger yelped as Lucian gave him a couple of firm swats on his backside. At that moment, Rowan and Imogen, carrying the gifts they had just bought, heard the children shouting and hurried over. "Uncle Lucian, what are you doing?" Rowan demanded. "This little brat needs to be taught a lesson. If you won't teach him, I'll show him how to respect others," Lucian said, tall and strong, effortlessly lifting Roger by the legs. "I'm going to tell Great-Granpa, and he'll deal with you," Roger shouted. "Daddy, Roger ruined my paper airplane," Sarah cried, explaining. "It's just a paper airplane. I'll have someone get you a real one right now," Imogen said, defending Roger. Natalie hadn't expected Imogen to come along with Rowan to the Payne residence, especially since it was the Payne family dinner that evening. She couldn't believe how brazen homewreckers had become these days. "Oh?" Lucian chuckled lightly. "Ms. Chapman, you're really that impressive? I'll be waiting for the real airplane you promised." "I…" Imogen had only said it casually and never expected Lucian to use it against her. She turned and glanced at Rowan, silently asking for help. "Uncle Lucian, Roger and Sarah were just playing around. It's a matter between siblings. They can sort it out themselves," Rowan said, trying to smooth things over. "But that paper airplane belongs to me," Lucian replied coldly. Rowan wasn't foolish. Lucian rarely involved himself in household matters, yet here he was, getting serious over a stupid paper airplane. To Rowan, it seemed Lucian wasn't really targeting Roger. He was sending a subtle warning. After all, the two of them had always been rivals at the company. "Roger, apologize to your great-uncle," Rowan said, left with no choice. "Great-Uncle Lucian… I'm… sorry," Roger mumbled reluctantly. "Who are you calling 'great-uncle'? I don't have a brat like you for a great-nephew. If you really were, I'd have tossed you straight into the fish pond by now," Lucian said. Still gripping Roger by the leg, he gave him a few firm shakes to drive the point home.