Love's Cunning Ruse novel Chapter 342

Julie barely restrained herself from kicking Kieran clear under the bed. Yanking his hands away, she wrapped all the sheets around herself and stormed toward the bathroom, completely ignoring the stark-naked man behind her.

Poor Mr. Hernandez, exposed to the chill of the room, looked quite innocent, though his sense of grievance did not move him to dress. Instead, he maintained his 'attire', following his wife into the bathroom.

Dropping the thin blanket on a chair by the door, she reached for the shower faucet.

From behind, he pressed against her back, his hands enveloping hers, "Are you angry?"

"No."

"Then you must be jealous." He declared with breathy confidence right by her ear.

She tried to pull away from his grasp, "Jealous? You only spoke the truth. What's there to be jealous of?"

That's right, Camilla's chest was indeed... substantial, leaving her feeling quite inadequate.

And Mr. Hernandez seemed to enjoy the comparison all too much!

Catching sight of her perturbed yet prideful demeanor, Kieran smiled and turned her to face him, his gaze dropping to her chest.

Julie withdrew her hands quickly, covering herself. Despite the countless intimate moments they've shared, she was not used to his unabashed scrutiny, always instinctively wanting to hide.

Gently taking her wrist, he pried her hands apart, gazing sincerely at his bashful wife. "A wine bottle must have just the right cork, or it affects the quality of the wine. Too big or too small, neither is right. Understand?"

Julie got his drift now; he meant that only the right fit is the best, bigger isn't always better.

"How do I know you don't believe 'the bigger, the better'?"

"Should I cut out my heart to prove it?" He grabbed her delicate hand, placing it over his chest.

Julie pulled her hand back, "That's exactly why my mother told me to never believe a man’s sweet talk. If people only tell truth, there'd be no deception, no unrequited love. 'Til death do us part' would be easy, and there wouldn't be so many heartbroken divorcees."

"Oh, here's a question for you." He said solemnly, "How should I prove to my wife that I am perfectly content with her... attributes?"

What was a serious atmosphere vanished with Mr. Hernandez's words. Julie burst into laughter, playfully punching his chest, "No need to prove anything, I've got confidence!"

Kieran grinned, "I do love my wife's shameless level of confidence."

"Cut the cutesy act. I'm laying down the law here. I know the Hernandez family owns Camilla, and I'm aware I should treat her well. But if you get too cozy with her, let me tell you... I will get jealous!" Julie said, pinching his cheek, smoother than a woman's face, as soft as touching Ivan's skin. What was a grown man doing with such baby-soft cheeks!

Kieran smiled, letting his wife tweak his face, "Talking about jealousy, you just stood there, almost letting Amanda send me to Camilla's room without a peep. Someone might think my wife doesn't love me!"

"I’ve loved you from the day we met, haven't I?" Although there was a time when hate felt stronger than love.

She lowered her head, "I was just afraid you wouldn't love a woman who gets irrationally jealous. Who knows if you prefer a gentle, well-read, pretty young thing!"

"I love the kind who's got a few years on her, looks are passable – though to me, she's divine – not exactly book-smart, sometimes even a bit unreasonable, lacking in gentleness but can melt my bones with a single pout, and occasionally gets jealous. Thinking about it, yeah, I guess it's just my wife I love." He professed.

Julie looked at Kieran, his words left her so touched, she could barely stand...

The next morning, Julie and Kieran, while still in bed, made a decision. Following a suggestion from Harding Ladd, they decided to have Ivan accompany Phoebe to after-school activities.

The main goal was to get their children to socialize more. To ensure their safety, Kieran and Julie even arranged for a child psychologist to be nearby.

Amanda had no objections, while Camilla worried a bit. But Julie had thought it all through, even arranging for a psychologist. Besides, Camilla had been injured recently and couldn't look after Phoebe herself, so she didn't press the issue.

Early in the morning, Kieran and Julie sent the two kids off in the car. Julie, sitting between them, helped Ivan change his band-aid while carefully explaining, "Ivan, can you take good care of Phoebe?"

"Why won't he talk?" Ivan whispered back, mimicking Julie's concerned tone.

Julie pondered how to explain Phoebe's silence without mentioning autism directly, so she chose her words carefully, "Because he didn't grow up with his parents, very few people have loved him, Camilla being the exception. No one really talked to him, so Ivan, you'll have to find a way to get him to talk to you. Can you be kind to Phoebe?"

Ivan turned back to MoMo, "But it's okay. Your full name is Amora, and my mom said if you give Phoebe lots of love, he'll start talking. I immediately thought of you, since your name already means love. Maybe your love will help him speak."

The psychologist looked at him, feeling speechless at his logic.

"Really?" MoMo's innocence shone as she poked Phoebe's cheek. "You really can't talk? Why do you look even cuter than the cartoon characters on TV?"

Phoebe thought to himself: You're the cartoon character!

"I'm Amora. It means I'm the apple of my parents' eye. Do you know what that means?"

The stoic Phoebe didn’t reply, of course.

MoMo waved it off with a generous smile, "No worries, I don't really know either. I'll share my love with you, and then you'll be able to talk."

Ivan was pleased, thinking what a teachable moment this was.

He took Phoebe's hand in one of his and MoMo's hand in the other, then brought them together. "From now on, you two should be kind and loving to each other, okay?"

MoMo nodded happily, "Oh! Let's go, I'll show you how to play the piano! See these two black keys? The white key next to the first black one is the note C..."

Before Phoebe's fingers could even touch the keys, they retracted. MoMo jumped, then patiently took Phoebe's hand again, "Don't be scared, the piano won't bite. Sillyvan is the one who bites!"

Sillyvan pouted, the one who bites is definitely Phoebe!

Seeing that Phoebe was still lost in his own world, uninterested in engaging with anyone, but at least not panicking or causing a scene, the psychologist felt hopeful. Adapting to a new environment with such composure was a good sign.

He immediately pulled out his phone and called Julie.

Julie missed the call because she had just walked into her house and was stunned by the scene that greeted her...