Startled for a moment, Arya looked down in deep thought. Arianna was already back to work by the time she lifted her head.
After a moment of hesitation, she went over and stopped right behind Arianna, watching her being busy with work for some time before saying,
"Nothing... I'm just taking a look."
Arianna stared at her as her eyes darkened slightly. She did not say anything and went back to tending the flowers.
"Come by earlier on the fifteenth. We'll head to the beauty salon first. I want to get my hair done." Arianna's voice reached her again after some time.
"Are you doing alright with Xavier? I can see that he's pretty caring towards you. Your grandpa is very satisfied with him as well."
Arianna's gaze landed on Arya's face; a loving tone hidden in her voice.
Arya glanced at her in the eyes as she gave it some thought before nodding.
"We're doing okay. He's really good and caring towards me."
"Arya, I really hope that you've met the right person this time. You don't have to act tough on your own anymore in the future. When you reach my age, you'll start to realize that things you once thought were important will become insignificant. The most important thing is that he's good to you."
Arianna suddenly felt sentimental. A sense of loss flashed through her eyes for a split second, and then they returned to clarity.
"Mother... How did Father treat you?" Arya clenched her fists slightly and looked at her mother as she asked carefully. Her voice was filled with obvious pain.
As if she had foreseen Arya's question, Arianna did not seem surprised at all. Her cold face looked calm as ever while she looked down at a freshly sprouted plant and let out a sigh before looking at Arya peacefully.
"I know you've been longing to know what happened between your father and me... Well, you have the right to ask anyway..."
Arianna suddenly put the watering can down and put the pot back to its original position. Then, she grabbed a clean towel and wiped her hands before standing back up, appearing a little sad when she saw the scattered flower petals on the staircase.
"You don't have to doubt his feelings for me. He's really good to me... Actually, he has never given me an explanation about Layla and her daughter. I'm the one who suggested a divorce back then because I couldn't stand it. Being betrayed by my own husband and good friend isn't a proud thing to announce, so I don't really want to talk about it."
Arianna let out another sigh. "I just feel sorry for you. If I had insisted just like the typical character in those television drama series, and treated Layla harshly and forbade them to enter the Johns family, maybe you might not have needed to suffer this much, but I can't forget about your father. To me, he should be a prideful existence. He'd never be stopped by such trivial matters of feelings.
"So, I'm willing to grant his wish. Arya, every man has his own pride. Had I insisted back then, your father's career might've been ruined. I can already foresee how life would be afterward. I chose to back off, but I've grabbed onto his heart forever. There might be a lot of ways to keep a man's feelings for you, but nothing works better than guilt... I'm not willing to tell you this because I don't want you to become like me. Arya, your mother has a dark side of hers. She's not as perfect as you see on the surface..."
A cold wind blew through, turning the air around chilly. As Arya was looking at her mother, she saw a tint of sadness and fragile on her usual cold expression. She felt irritated and distressed.
YOU ARE READING
Pampered Wife of Xavier
Romance"Wifey, time to fulfil your duties!" Xavier demanded as he pulled Arya closer with his arms intimately wrapped around her waist. It was a meticulously planned feast for the powerful. Her fiancé had knelt down on one knee and proposed to her sister i...
