Chapter 600: Epilogue (27)

“But Dad texted me when he was boarding his flight. The message was sent at six. I asked him which hotel you stayed at with him last night, but Dad said… you came back home last night.”

Faced with her son’s stare, Mrs. Lynch was at a loss. “How is that possible? We were definitely together last night. Your father is lying to you.”

The corner of Leon Lynch’s mouth twitched, but he said nothing more.

Seeing his reaction, Mrs. Lynch returned to her room. Lying on the bed, she thought about last night’s passion, and her mood improved considerably.

She fell sound asleep on the bed and didn’t wake up until the afternoon.

As soon as she stepped out, she saw Holly Wood reclining on the sofa, her legs resting on Leon Lynch’s lap while he massaged them.

Mrs. Lynch took one look and thought her son was completely henpecked, without a shred of masculinity.

“Can’t your legs walk anymore? Making Leon massage them for you.”

Holly Wood explained, “My legs and feet are very swollen. Leon said he’d give them a rub.”

“I raised a son just to give him away to his wife. Leon has never even given me a leg massage in his entire life.”

Holly Wood smiled. “Mom, don’t you have another ‘son’ about Leon’s age? He should be giving you foot rubs and back massages all day. Otherwise, how else would he get all that money you’re throwing at him?”

Mrs. Lynch’s face fell instantly. “Are you talking back to me on purpose? Getting all arrogant now that you’ve married into our family, are we?”

“Your daughter-in-law wouldn’t dare be arrogant in front of her mother-in-law. It’s just… I have to remind you of the saying, ‘Those who often walk by the river are bound to get their shoes wet.’ You should probably stay away from the riverside, Mother-in-law. If you fell in, and you can’t swim… whatever would you do?”

Mrs. Lynch huffed, “Mind your own business and stay out of mine.”

Holly Wood said no more. Mrs. Lynch sat in the living room for a little while, feeling awkward, before heading out into the yard.

「Zoe Ellsworth had been home from the hospital for several days.」

She could get out of bed and walk around, but the wound on her stomach was a little itchy, and she couldn’t resist the urge to scratch it.

Whenever he saw her doing this, Herman Hawthorne would promptly stop her.

Mrs. Hawthorne looked after the baby at night, only bringing him to Zoe for feedings. Since the baby wasn’t keeping them up, Zoe Ellsworth was recovering well and had a healthy glow.

Being in postpartum confinement, Zoe Ellsworth’s moods weren’t always stable, and she showed some signs of postpartum depression. Because of this, Herman Hawthorne stayed home to be with her instead of going anywhere else.

After breakfast, Mrs. Hawthorne brought the little one over to nurse. As Zoe Ellsworth held the baby, she sat there and said to Herman Hawthorne, “I feel like I’m turning into a dairy cow.”

Herman Hawthorne glanced down. “Well, a dairy cow’s udders are supposed to be huge, right? Yours… aren’t quite at that level yet…”

Zoe Ellsworth flared up immediately. “Are you saying I’m small?”

“I just mean, aren’t a cow’s… you know… super big? If yours were that big, you probably wouldn’t be able to walk without stooping…”

“Herman Hawthorne…”

“Present.”

“What, exactly, do you mean by that?”

“My lady, calm your anger. I didn’t mean anything at all.”

“Hmph. Herman Hawthorne, from now on, you won’t need to wear that innermost layer.”

He froze. “Why?”

“…”

‘Savage!’

“Honey, I was wrong! I swear I didn’t mean it as an insult.”

“Fine. He’s full now. You can take him.”

“Herman Hawthorne!” Zoe Ellsworth said through gritted teeth.

‘Did I say something wrong again?’

“Honey…”

“Who were you calling a dairy cow…”

“But… isn’t that what you said…?”

“I said I was *turning into* a dairy cow…”

‘Is there a difference?’

“Okay, little guy, let’s go find Grandma,” he said, quickly scooping up his son and beating a hasty retreat.

Zoe Ellsworth pulled her top down, lay back, and felt more than a little irritable.

「After school that afternoon, the boys came home with an arts and crafts project for homework.」

The two brothers sat there obediently, working on their project.

After a little while, Elmer Grant lost his patience. He sighed. “When I grow up and have kids, there’s no way I’m going to make them study like this—making the teacher’s assignments your life’s mission, going all out, and then getting punished if you fail.”

Nora Ainsworth, lounging on the sofa, asked, “So how would you educate your child, then?”

“I’d tell him earnestly, ‘Son, go ahead and play all the video games you want. Go hang out outside. Read all the comic books, play all the soccer, read all the novels. Everything you want to do, even the things you’re not supposed to do—go do it all.'”

Nora Ainsworth asked again, “If you do that, he’ll just fool around all day and only know how to play. When he grows up, other people will have jobs and be successful, but he’ll just be a loser.”

Elmer Grant grinned. “Mommy, you don’t get it. It’s called reverse psychology! The more you tell him to play, to play as hard as he can, the more he won’t want to play. He’ll start to think that studying is his only real hobby. He’ll start studying in secret, and his grades will get better! Think about it: if all he does is play all day, with no opportunity to study, he might even kneel before me and beg, ‘Daddy, please let me do some more homework!'”

“…”

Dylan Grant burst out laughing. “Mommy, I think this is just his way of suggesting how you should treat *him*.”

“That suggestion comes with risks. Use with caution.”

Elmer Grant’s face fell. “Mommy, can’t you just take my suggestion? This is the best way to raise kids, I’m telling you.”

“I’m sorry, son. What were you saying just now? Mommy forgot. Could you say it again?”

“I said…” Elmer Grant repeated everything he had just said.

“Mommy forgot again…”

“…Mommy, you’re messing with me.”

“Messing with you? I’ll do more than that; I’ll spank you. Why can’t you be more like your brother? Study hard, or you’ll grow up to be a loser.”

“You can’t blame me for not liking school. You can only blame yourself and Dad. When you made me and my brother, you gave all the ‘good-at-studying’ genes to him.”

Nora Ainsworth said coolly, “Well, that’s not my fault. Your brother is brilliant because he has a brilliant mom—me. You, on the other hand, don’t like to study and can’t seem to learn anything, which you can only blame on your soft-hearted dad. So, when your father gets home, I’m going to suggest he designs a ‘hellish training regimen’ for you, starting today.”

“NOOOO!!!” Elmer howled, his face a mask of despair. “Mommy, I’ll do my arts and crafts homework now, I promise! Is that okay?”

“Since you hate arts and crafts so much, perhaps I should just let your daddy teach you instead?”

“NOOO…!!!” he protested vehemently. “Your Highness, Mommy, spare me!”

Nora Ainsworth watched him, a smug look on her face. “Be a good boy and finish your homework.”

“Okay.”

Sure enough, he was done in no time. He packed the project into his school bag. “Finished! Gotta go pee!”