“I did a few searches here and there. I know the two of you loved each other dearly. If not for your mother, wouldn’t you have gotten married to her? Don’t lie to me, Francis.”


    Scarlett knew this information because of the warning she had received from Leah. After that, Scarlett had begun to pay close attention to stories in the media about Francis’s past lovers. As she dug deeper, Scarlett was surprised to find that Francis and Mary had been in a serious rtionship for a while.


    After all, Mary Patel was a well-known film star at home and abroad. While Scarlett had been struggling to make a living and support herself as well as her brother, Mary had been winning film awards all over the world. If not for Chuck, Scarlett would never have had the chance to meet Francis. They belonged topletely different worlds.


    Because of Francis’s background and immense power, the news reports about the rtionship had all been suppressed, so Scarlett had to piece a lot of it together. By asking around, she was able toplete most of the puzzle, although some details remained ambiguous and confusing to her.


    What made Scarlett saddest was not only that Francis had been in countless rtionships with women he had met before her, but that he had sincerely been in love. Given his age, Scarlett had assumed that he would’ve had his fair share of affairs through the years, but somewhere, deep down, she had hoped that she was his one true love– the kind of love that only struck you once in a lifetime.


    “Scarlett…” Francis’s voice trailed off. “I don’t really want to talk about that right now… not while we’re here, on vacation! I brought you here so that we could enjoy each other’spany… as husband and wife. I didn’t want to quarrel about things from the past that can’t be changed. Just leave the past in the past. Why can’t you do that?” He was exasperated.


    “Yeah, as if it’s so easy, Francis! I don’t want to talk about it any more than you do.” She pouted. She had lost interest in the conversation, and she knew they weren’t going to get anywhere. Scarlett withdrew her hands and pushed Francis away; she was trying to walk back into the hotel room.


    Scarlett waspletely exhausted, so she just let Francis take her to the bathroom for a shower. As they bathed in the bathtub, memories of their earlier argument far away, Francis suddenly said, “Scarlett, please, can we have a baby girl together? I want a daughter.”


    “Can we talk about thister?” She shook her head and dismissed him.


    “Why can’t we talk about it right now? What better time is there than now, while we’re here on vacation and Carlos is fast asleep?”


    Scarlett looked at him with nk eyes.


    “I have other questions for you, too, my dear Scarlett. When shall we have our wedding? And can we start trying for another child?”


    Scarlett punched Francis in jest. “You want to start making another baby already? I haven’t even lost all the weight I gained because of Carlos, and you’re talking about getting me pregnant all over again? You’re ridiculous!”


    “Scarlett, I just really want a little baby girl. I want to take care of her and protect her. I want to raise her to be a strong and independent woman like you.” Francis said calmly.


    “What about our son? It’s like you don’t care about him at all. Aren’t you worried about hurting Carlos’s feelings? Isn’t he enough for you?” Scarlett said.


    “All I have will be his, is that not enough?” He said while helping her dry her feet.


    “Are you trying to shut him up with money too?” She went on, “As you did to me?”


    Upon hearing that, Francis smiled and gave a kiss on the tip of her nose and said, “Oh, I’m very surprised to hear you bringing that up. Maybe you’re not as strong as you think you are.”


    “Why do you say that?” She stared at him angrily.


    Francis took Scarlett out of the water and grabbed a big towel to cover her. “Babe…are you mad at me now? Don’t be mad, babe.”


    “Leave me alone now!” She pouted and pretended to punch him.


    But what she said just made Francisugh loudly. He kissed her gently and smiled, utterly satisfied with his world for once.


    ***


    Because Carlos had slept for several hours during the afternoon, he was too full of energy to go to sleep at night. Scarlett did her best to put him to sleep, but she failed. ying around with him, she put on a scary face and tried to frighten the child.


    “Come on, babe, be good, or I will throw you outside! There are wizards and wolves outside who love a nice, sulent meal of human flesh!”


    Carlos did not seem afraid at all. Instead, he just stared nkly ahead, wondering what his mother was on about.


    Right then, Francis, who was buried in a mountain of files, looked up helplessly. “Why are you raising our child to be afraid of made-up entities? You want him to be superstitious when he grows up?”


    “I can’t think out a better way to keep him quiet. It’s the most effective way.” Scarlett said, shrugging her shoulders.Còntens bel0ngs to N?(v)elDr/a/ma.Org


    Carlos was about to cry, and then Scarlett immediately held him up andforted him, “Oh, my dear boy, don’t cry. Don’t listen to your silly daddy!”


    Scarlett gave Francis the nastiest re she could manage and yelled, “It’s all your fault. He was doing just fine, and then you had to go and make him cry! Look at him now, poor thing….”


    “What? How’s it my fault that Carlos is crying? What did I do?” He frowned and said.


    “Don’t try to stray from the point! What I’m trying to say is that you should not doubt me every step of the way while I’m trying to teach him! You’re letting him think that he shouldn’t listen to his mommy. You’ll affect his attitude towards me, and then he’ll never listen to me or take me seriously! Even when he’s grown…” Scarlett was angry and felt embarrassed that Francis had tried to delegitimize her in front of their son.