Chapter 42

As soon as her hair was dry, Isabella announced she wanted to go to sleep. Freya noticed her eyes fixed on her phone, knowing she still wanted to play with it. She said, “You can look at it for a while, but then you need to sleep, okay?”

“I know.”

Since Mommy was free tomorrow, Freya needed to let Auntie Raven know. Isabella worried about telling Raven without hurting her feelings and pondered the best way to break the news. Already feeling troubled, she grew impatient with Freya’s nagging and pushed her toward the door. “Mom, please go. I’ll turn off my phone and go to sleep by nine-thirty.” Isabella was indeed self-disciplined about this.

Hearing this, Freya bid her goodnight and left the room. Isabella immediately closed and locked the door. Freya had barely taken a step when she heard the lock. She knew Isabella wasn’t trying to keep others out; she was only trying to keep her out, likely to discuss something with Raven. This was indeed the case. As soon as Isabella locked the door, she rushed back to her phone and found Raven’s text message: [Auntie Raven…] What they discussed, Freya had no way of knowing, nor did she care to. She returned to her room.

The elderly lady liked her and often invited her for meals, leaving quite a few daily necessities there over the years. Freya found pajamas and showered. After her shower, she sat on her usual side of the bed. Seeing it was still early, she took out the book she’d placed in her bag and began reading quietly. She lost track of time until her eyes started hurting. Closing the book, she checked the time and realized it was already eleven-thirty. But Matteo still hadn’t returned.

Actually, even though Matteo initially believed she’d schemed against him, by their third year of marriage, while he still wasn’t particularly close to her, their relationship had improved. But then, shortly after, Raven appeared. He fell in love with Raven and began distancing himself from Freya again. After that, he barely touched her. So, she wasn’t sure if Matteo’s late return meant he wasn’t planning to come back to the room at all, or if he was just busy.

Lost in thought, Freya unconsciously left the bedroom and went downstairs. Just then, a voice came from nearby.

“Everyone’s asleep. Is it because Freya’s there that you don’t want to go back to the room this late?”

It was Maria’s voice. Freya looked toward the source of the sound. It was Maria and Matteo. Her steps faltered. Matteo was smoking, not responding. From this distance, and with him backlit, Freya couldn’t make out his expression.

Maria said, “Actually, I understand you. I’ve met Raven a few times. I heard she’s only 25 and has already earned a doctorate from a top global university. She seems to handle family business matters well too. She’s beautiful, with a wild and untamable spirit—her excellence and radiance are qualities that most women don’t possess. She certainly has what it takes to attract you. But her background isn’t prestigious enough. Frank, have you thought this through? You—”

Matteo interrupted, “I know what kind of woman I want.”

“But—” Maria frowned. While she looked down on Freya, she didn’t approve of Raven either. She wanted to say more, but seeing the displeasure in Matteo’s eyes, she gave up. “You’re so protective of her, won’t even let me say a word. Fine, I’ll stop talking, okay?”

Freya listened, her hands clenched, her cheeks stinging from the night wind. She gave a bitter smile and lost interest in listening further, turning to leave. Just as she left, Maria remembered something.

“Oh right, I heard Freya submitted her resignation and is planning to leave the company?”

Matteo responded, “The day before yesterday, Chad said she made a mistake. He was quite angry, so I told him to follow company procedures and terminate her.”

Maria sneered, “So that’s what happened. When she mentioned this earlier, she made it sound like she resigned on her own. I thought… with her clingy nature, always sticking to you like glue, how could she willingly resign? So she was actually fired, haha.”

Matteo didn’t respond, as if the matter had nothing to do with him. As Freya reached the second floor and was about to return to her room, she almost collided with York, who was heading downstairs. They both startled. After recovering, York apologized first and asked with concern, “Sister-in-law, are you alright?”

Among the Wilson family, besides the elderly lady, York was the only one who treated her well. Freya shook her head and smiled slightly. “I’m fine.”

When Freya married Matteo, York was still young and didn’t understand many things clearly. Over the years, however, he’d become discerning and a far more mature man. He’d always been understanding of Freya’s situation. Because of this, and knowing something was amiss with her, he raised his head and said, “Sister-in-law, such a good person like you will surely see far someday. Don’t be sad.”

Freya paused, wanting to explain about their impending divorce, and smiled. “Thank you, York.”

“I’m going to grab a drink. Feel free to lean on my shoulder early tomorrow morning."

Freya smiled, "Okay, good night."

Back in the room, Freya turned off the main light, switched on the bedside lamp, and lay down. She had just settled in when she heard Matteo’s footsteps entering the room. Freya opened her eyes. Matteo looked at her too; their eyes met. In the past, she would have gone to help him find his pajamas and gone to the bathroom to shower. But now, she had no intention of getting up and slowly closed her eyes instead.

Although Matteo was indifferent toward Freya and dismissed her thoughtful care, he naturally noticed how different she was from before, sensing her coolness. He was somewhat surprised but assumed she was just being moody and didn’t take her unusual behavior seriously. He didn’t even want to know why she was upset and said coldly, “Bella’s school enrollment is done. You’ll take her to school tomorrow.”

Freya replied, “I understand.”

Matteo said nothing more, turning to the closet to find clothes for his shower.