Filed to story: Mia Bowen and Timothy Barrett Novel
Janice didn’t mind it. “I don’t eat much, stay and join me. It’s fine. Besides, Felix didn’t finish the meat. There are still a lot of them.
“It’s the swee sweet and sour pork you like and there’s some soup left too. You should have some.
Finish the leftovers so that we can make him fresh meals. Patients shouldn’t eat leftovers. How about that?”
Mia was smart enough to not buy that at face value. She almost fainted from hunger there!
Now, Janice was trying to convince Mia to finish Felix’s leftover food. Never in her life would Mia allow herself to be mistreated.
Not wanting to say more, Mia simply turned and left.
She rued her decision to come, deciding no more playing the good person next time.
If Claude hadn’t beaten Felix up, she wouldn’t have nursed him the whole afternoon only to be taken for granted in the end.
Once the mother and son were alone, Felix frowned. “You crossed the line, Mom.”
“Oh, so you actually know how talk? Why didn’t you speak earlier?”
“I’m putting on a show for the police. To be more precise, it was a show for Mia. If he managed to earn pity from her, it might be easy for him to ask favors of her.
Janice praised, “Smart idea! That was unbecoming of her to have the chicken soup and sweet and sour pork. What if the portion is not enough for you?
“I know you like her, but we should set the rule starting now. Once she becomes one of us, she should put you before anything too. So what if it’s leftover food? Isn’t it a given for women?”
Like mother, like son, Felix didn’t see any fault with that. Still, he insisted while frowning. “Don’t do
TIU DUNUS
“To make sure everything goes according to plan, we can set the rules after Mia and I are finally official.”
rs weren’t auto.
Mia’s with. Felix deemed it safer to act like a lovesick fool until she fell for him.
“Felix, it’s a long journey coming to the hospital from home. It won’t be easy for me to make more food. It takes up a lot of time to make a meal for three. Why don’t you ask Mia to settle the meals? She can bring it over for us.”
He hesitated. “I don’t think she’ll say yes.”
“I’ll talk to her tomorrow. She’ll say yes. Things would be much easier for me then. If she looks.
after you, I’ll have more time for myself. Don’t worry, I know how to deal with women.”
Felix was at peace of mind. The fact that he was hurt because of Claude gave him more confidence to believe that she would nurse him from now on.
This time, he promised himself to win her heart so that her brothers could invest in his company. Otherwise, he could resort to law by suing Claude.
Now, he held leverage over Mia and her brothers!
Closing his eyes, he began making calculations for his plan¨Cmoving into Mia’s house alongside
Janice.
On the other hand, Mia felt better after having a bowl of noodles at a restaurant.
She figured that she better concoct a plan with Jason if Felix really sued Claude.
If they opted to resolve the issue personally, it was inevitable to pay Felix a huge amount of compensation.
After all, Janice was not an easy woman to deal with.
When Mia arrived home, her eyes were threatening to close due to exhaustion. She looked at Patricia. “I’d like to have stir¨Cfried chicken and sweet and sour pork tomorrow.”
“Alright. I’ll buy fresh meat tomorrow for that. You should Invite Claude over for a meal too.”
It was only then did Mia realized why there was no news from Claude that day. Maybe guilt was eating him up after he had beaten Felix up.
She took a shower in her room and flopped on the bed. With how tired Mia was, nothing could stop her from falling asleep. She desperately needed a break.
The next morning, the sound of her phone ringing woke her up.
She answered the call groggily. “Hello?”
“Rise and shine, Mia! We have grocery shopping to do so we can cook up a hearty meal for Felix. I’m old for this. I’m thinking of leaving it to you. Take this chance to learn his likes and dislikes-“
Mia hung up the call right away and checked the time¨Cit was only 5:00 am!
Did Janice hit her up this morning for grocery shopping just so she could cook for Felix? How ridiculous!
She put her phone on silent mode, signing off from being their maid. Felix’s matter didn’t bother her anymore.
With Jason there to help, Claude wouldn’t be in trouble anyway.
Mia laid back on her bed and slept in until she woke up naturally. Yawning, she finally felt alive after a good sleep.
She checked her phone only to realize that there were a few missed calls from Janice. Obviously,
Janice was persistent.
However, all Mia wished for was to take a break. After all, she was a pregnant woman. She didn’t have the energy to be at someone’s beck and call.
The moment she waltzed out of her room, the nice smell from the kitchen wafted her nose. It was mouth¨Cwatering.
“Aunt Patricia, you are the best cook ever!”
“Where’s Claude? Invite him over,” suggested Patricia.
Mia reached out to Claude. The line got through very quickly this time, but it was a woman speaking. “Hello?”
Dumbfounded, Mia realized that the voice sounded different from before. Did Claude get into a new relationship?
Recalling her past mistake, Mia said, “Sorry, I got the wrong number.” The call was disconnected just like that.
Considering that Claude had a female companion at the moment, they must’ve been to the hotel. last night. Therefore, Mia reckoned that it was better she let him be.
Mia made up an excuse, informing Patricia that he was busy with work. Patricia believed it and Mia had the delicious stir¨Cfried chicken and sweet and sour pork all for herself.
As much as her heart was full of contentment, her belly was round. As she thought, nothing beat food when it came to enjoying life!
“Mia, your appetite is growing these days. You look rounder than before. Women should always keep fit or it’ll be difficult for them to get a partner.
“Look at your belly. People who don’t know you might take you as a pregnant woman!”
Mia’s expression went stiff for a moment before she broke into a smile. “Well, I’m pregnant with stir¨Cfried chicken, sweet and sour pork and fish soup.”
Patricia guffawed at that.
Mia took a break after the meal. Suddenly, her phone rang, and this time, it was Felix.
Taking a glimpse at her phone, she went to the balcony to answer the call. “Hello, Felix.”
“Mia, don’t mind my mother. She’s always like this. She’s always thinking about what’s best for me.”
“I understand, but could you ask her to stop calling me in the future? I won’t ever be her daughter-
in¨Claw in, so she doesn’t have to teach me how to be a good wife.” Her tone was monotonous.
“What do you mean by that? Are you not going to take care of me at the hospital anymore, Mia?”
Felix’s blatant tone struck as absurd to Mia.
Like mother, like son; both Janice and Felix were shameless.
Since they confronted her with that kind of attitude, Mia figured that there was nothing else to talk about between them anymore.
Mia replied bluntly, “Felix, I’m not obliged to take care of you. What I did yesterday was my final act of kindness toward you.”
“Mia, if it weren’t for your brother, I wouldn’t have been hospitalized. I kept quiet about who the offender was to the police because of you. I sacrificed so much for you. Can’t you be a little understanding?”
Right then, Janice’s squeaky voice piped up. “What? Felix, are you saying that Mia’s brother was the cause of your injury? Why didn’t you tell me?”
Then, the phone was thrust into Mia’s hands. “Come to the hospital now, Mia Bowen. I have to get to the bottom of this. Otherwise, I’ll call the police to have your brother arrested.”
“Be my guest.” Mia hung up the call.
She was still worried, but Jason had given her his word that everything would be fine.
So, everything should be fine, right?
Although Claude was the offender, not her, Jason wouldn’t sit still and do nothing about it. They were brothers after all.
The thought eased her mind. In the afternoon, she headed to college for lectures.
She needed to catch up with her studies so that she could pass the examinations in one attempt.