Chapter 128

Shortly after, dozens of male servants began filing in, carrying large, beautifully wrapped gift boxes.

I turned to Emily, who stood at the head of the procession directing the servants.

“Good heavens. Emily, what is all this?”

“These are the birthday gifts for the young ladies — brought by the Count and Countess.”

“All of this is from my parents?”

“Yes, my lady. The gifts sent by the other noble families are currently being sorted in the main hall. They’re still arriving as we speak, and there are simply too many to fit here in the drawing room.”

And that was just what my father had brought — dozens of boxes on its own.

I spun around.

“Father! What on earth is all of this!”

“The black boxes are Kai’s new schoolbag and supplies for when he starts at the Gifted Academy. The red boxes are Bella’s birthday gifts. And the green ones are Chloe’s.”

“That’s not what I mean! Why on earth did you have to bring so many? One gift each would have been perfectly fine!”

“This is my prerogative. Ha-ha.”

I pressed my hand to my forehead.

“Chloe wants to open the presents! Can we open them now!”

“Me too.”

The twins’ eyes were sparkling with barely contained anticipation.

And so the grand unwrapping commenced without delay.

Chloe crouched down before her mountain of green boxes, my father crouched right beside her, and she gazed up at him with wide eyes.

“Grandpa! Are all of these really Chloe’s presents?”

“Every last one! All these green boxes belong to our cutie-pie!”

“Wow!”

Chloe set about tearing into the wrapping paper with great enthusiasm. The very first box yielded a princess dress that was perfectly suited to her taste — a soft pink gown adorned with a lavish cascade of silver ruffles, made for a very small young lady.

“A princess dress! Chloe loves it so much!”

“Heh-heh. Your grandfather chose this one himself. And look — this box contains the matching princess crown!”

“Wow!”

In front of the mountain of red boxes sat Bella and my mother.

Bella’s cheeks quivered faintly and her crimson eyes gleamed. She appeared to be staring down the boxes with great intensity — but that expression meant she was, in fact, in a state of acute happiness.

“Bella, which dress takes your fancy?”

“Bella wants this one. I’ll wear it for the talent show later.”

Bella selected a deep red dress trimmed with gold ruffles.

“Is red still Bella’s favorite color?”

“Mm. It’s strong and vivid and beautiful. And… this gold color looks like Mama’s hair. That’s why I like it even more.”

“Ho-ho. I thought you might say that, so Grandma came prepared with accessories to match. Bella, at the bottom of the box there’s a hair ribbon that goes with the dress.”

“Oh. A ribbon with gold thread woven through it. It’s very beautiful.”

“Good. Let Grandma tie it in for you.”

“Thank you. I like Grandma.”

The snow-white skin of Bella’s cheeks flushed a vivid, brilliant red. She pressed her lips together, her little nostrils flaring, as she sat perfectly still and allowed her grandmother to tend to her hair.

That was the expression Bella wore when she was so happy she didn’t know what to do with herself — too bashful to say so, but unable to hide it entirely.

Our firstborn was similarly enraptured.

“Wow. Father, the schoolbags come in different colors. There are five quill pens in each color as well.”

“Hm. Is this Jacqueline’s gift, then?”

“Ha-ha, yes indeed. Our eldest nephew earned his place at the Gifted Academy fair and square — I felt the occasion warranted opening my wallet.”

“He must have spent quite a sum.”

Kael reached into his jacket, withdrew his wallet, and offered Jacqueline a blank check.

“Brother-in-law…!”

I stepped in immediately.

I had held my tongue until now, but this I could not let pass.

“Wait, wait! Kael! I understand he’s your brother-in-law, but handing out blank checks like that will spoil him terribly!”

“He’s hardly a child.”

“That makes it worse! Handing blank checks to a grown adult is just as likely to ruin his spending habits! You’ll completely destroy any sense of financial responsibility he might have — hey!”

While I was still speaking, Jacqueline deftly plucked the blank check straight from my husband’s fingers.

“Brother-in-law! Thank you so much! I’ll spend it wisely!”

Lunchtime.

Bella, wearing a small black bib, sat perched on my husband’s knee and applied herself diligently to her meal. Kael fed her with practiced ease, bringing spoonfuls to her mouth with the manner of someone who had done this thousands of times.

My parents watched him with unblinking fascination.

“It’s remarkable. I have never in my life seen a father feed a child with such fluency.”

“Quite. Is there anything our son-in-law cannot do?”

Bella, gripping her fork and knife in each hand, accepted each spoonful of cream soup that Kael offered her with cheerful cooperation.

Kael fed her another bite and said, in his usual unhurried tone:

“I have three daughters, so.”

“Ha — that’s right. Our son-in-law does indeed have three daughters.”

“Indeed. Our son-in-law has his hands quite full.”

I, not yet realizing the remark was directed at me, was busily dabbing at the corners of Chloe’s mouth with her white bib.

Then Chloe kicked her legs happily and announced in her sunniest voice:

“That’s right! Papa has three daughters! Chloe, and Bella Unnie, and Mama!”

I frowned at once. Then I looked across the table and said, in my most measured, coolly authoritative tone:

“Kael. What exactly did that mean? Why do you have three daughters?”

“First daughter: Ivelina. Second daughter: Bella. Third daughter: Chloe.”

Kael answered in the tone of someone being asked something perfectly self-evident.

“Ha-ha-ha! Our boy has become a proper mother hen! Well, our daughter-in-law does have a rather powerful tendency to inspire protective instincts!”

“Oho-ho! How endearing! They do say the most profound love in the world is the love of a parent for a child!”

I stared at my husband with considerable displeasure, head tilted to one side, wearing the expression of someone who would very much like to deliver a threat.

My husband, however, did not so much as glance in my direction. He continued feeding Bella her soup and remarked with perfect composure:

“I find it quite enjoyable, personally. My tastes are a little unusual.”

There was simply no reasoning with the man.

I turned the full force of my most dangerous, narrowed-eyed, thoroughly disgruntled expression on my parents instead, baring my teeth in a low growl.

“And why were you two laughing just now? Surely you aren’t agreeing with him?”

“Ahem.”

My father produced only a dignified clearing of the throat.

“By the way — I understand that young Kayrin is to give the student representative speech at the Elementary Academy graduation ceremony? As the valedictorian?”

“Yes. I owe it all to my sister-in-law. She has given me such wonderful, adorable nieces and nephews that I simply couldn’t bear to be an embarrassing uncle. An ignorant and useless uncle would never do. So I threw myself into my studies.”

“My goodness. What a commendable young man. I was already thinking of something suitable as a graduation gift for him…”

My mother smoothly ignored my grievance and steered the conversation in an entirely different direction.

Blast.

After the spirited meal wound down at last:

The twins had gone down for their afternoon nap, Kai had gone in for his afternoon lessons, and my husband had retired to his study.

He had said he would slip away while the children were quiet, deal with only the most urgent matters, and be back in no time.

“Stay right here and wait for me. I’ll be quick — thirty minutes, that’s all.”

“All right.”

But the moment my husband left, I made my escape to the central garden.

There was a gazebo there that was mine alone — and I longed for a quiet hour beneath it, with nothing but the peaceful view for company.

And so I was happily giggling to myself over a cup of tea, thoroughly enjoying my stolen freedom, when:

“My lady!”

“Pfft—!”

The desperate voice calling my name startled me so badly that I spat a mouthful of tea in a perfect fountain. I had been swallowing just as the shock hit me.

I choked and spluttered, hastily wiping my mouth. The owner of that desperate voice was Hugo, whose face was comprehensively obscured by dark circles of truly alarming depth.

“Something dreadful has happened! While decorating the garden stage, a very serious problem has come to my attention! I believe you need to come and see it at once!”