Chapter 4: Not That Stupid
The intimate display between Mason Grant and Shelly Lowell made Julian Faulkner’s eyes turn a fraction colder. It was as if he recognized the pair and had just realized something.
Vivian Lowell, however, failed to notice his gaze. Turning around, she poked Julian in the chest with the carrot in her hand, gesturing for him to leave. She had no desire to be spotted by Mason and Shelly.
She couldn’t let the Lowells know about her flash marriage just yet; she was determined to catch the Lowell family completely off guard!
Over in the vegetable aisle, Vivian placed the carrot into the basket and looked at Julian, who was waiting for a reasonable explanation. "As you can see," she said, "that girl is the true daughter of the Lowell family."
Vivian had no intention of hiding anything. She briefly explained the situation between the Lowell family and the Grant family, then pointed at herself with a self-deprecating smile. "As for me, I was kicked out. I even had to ride a bicycle to the marriage registry this morning."
Julian’s deeply furrowed brows relaxed a fraction upon hearing this. The woman before him was surprisingly honest, laying out the truth without hesitation.
He had originally assumed she would be manipulative, hiding everything to deceive his grandmother under the guise of the Lowell family heiress to ultimately scheme for the Faulkner family’s fortune. It turned out she wasn’t.
However...
Julian kept a stony expression as he plucked the carrot out of the basket and tossed it back onto the vegetable display. His tone dropped a few degrees as he asked, "So, am I just a replacement for that Mason Grant?"
Vivian nearly froze at his icy tone. She quickly realized that Julian probably thought she had married him solely to spite Mason!
"No, no!" Vivian hurriedly snatched the carrot from the display and placed it back into the basket, flashing Julian an adorable smile. "Mr. Faulkner is handsome and has such an elegant presence. How could a greedy scumbag like Mason compare to you? I don’t like him at all!"
Terrified that the marriage might fall through, Vivian quickly laid on the charm. Right now, her only goals were revenge and protecting Grandma Faulkner. "You have no idea how thrilled I am to marry you, Mr. Faulkner."
Instantly, the icy atmosphere thawed.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile graced Julian’s lips before he masked it with a stern expression. "We only got married for my grandmother’s condition."
"Yes, exactly!" Vivian nodded with a beaming smile. She looked as obedient as a kitten being petted, just short of rubbing against Julian and purring.
Julian studied her, sensing that the woman before him was playing the good girl. Yet, despite his usual aversion to women getting close to him, he surprisingly didn’t feel repulsed this time. He simply gave a soft hum of agreement.
However, he picked up the carrot from the basket once again and tossed it back.
She wondered why he threw her carrot away again. Only then did it dawn on Vivian. "Mr. Faulkner, do you not like carrots?" she asked tentatively.
"No, I don’t," Julian replied with a nod. Looking dead serious, he asked, "What did you think it was?"
He wondered if she thought he was unhappy about being treated as a prop, which was why he kept throwing out her chosen carrot. How could that be! He wasn’t the petty type!
"Nothing, nothing." Vivian breathed a sigh of relief. As long as Julian wasn’t upset, that was all that mattered. "Then what would you like to eat, Mr. Faulkner?
"To be honest, I’m a pretty good cook. If I handle dinner tonight, Grandma might really enjoy it!"
"No need," Julian refused flatly. He picked up an onion, placed it in the basket, and said, "I’ll do it. If you really want to help, you can just be my prep cook. Alright, we’ve bought most of the ingredients. Let’s head home."
Vivian nodded in agreement and trailed behind Julian as they checked out and left the supermarket.
Back at the Faulkner family villa in the Aethelburg Suburbs, Grandma Faulkner was in the garden playing frisbee with the family dog when Julian drove Vivian through the gates.
The large Shiba Inu was incredibly smart. Grandma Faulkner tossed the frisbee far into the distance, and the dog dashed after it, its eyes squinted happily, tail wagging, and ears flattened back like airplane wings.
"Grandma!" Vivian called out sweetly as she walked up beside Julian. She hurried over to present a box of pastries to Grandma Faulkner. "These are snowflake crisps. They were fresh out of the oven at the supermarket, so they’re still a bit warm. Julian said you like sweets, so I bought some for you to try!"
"Oh my, snowflake crisps!" Grandma Faulkner was absolutely delighted. Setting the frisbee aside, she pulled Vivian down to sit next to her. Sneaking a quick glance at Julian, she asked, "How did things go at the supermarket just now?
"Our Julian might look cold on the outside, but he actually has a very warm heart. When he was little, he saw an injured stray dog on the roadside and carried it all the way home to treat it..."
Grandma Faulkner happily chattered away while munching on the snowflake crisps. Mumbling with a full mouth, she patted Vivian’s hand. "These snowflake crisps are delicious. I’ve really hit the jackpot with you as my granddaughter-in-law!"
Julian, who was on his way inside, glanced back at Vivian and his grandmother.
This woman really knew how to coax a smile out of the old lady. And more importantly, he heard all of that! Why did his grandmother have absolutely zero guard around her? She was telling this woman everything!
Slightly annoyed but completely helpless when it came to his grandmother, Julian simply carried the grocery bags into the kitchen.
He knew it. That woman was so focused on buttering up his grandmother that she had definitely forgotten about coming to the kitchen to prep the food.
A fleeting trace of irritation crossed Julian’s mind. Unwilling to go out and call for her, he started prepping the ingredients on his own.
Vivian only sat with Grandma Faulkner in the garden for a short while. The old lady’s Shiba Inu was incredibly cute. It wagged its tail in front of Vivian, its eyes squinted in pure bliss. When she pet it, its ears folded back into airplane wings again! A Shiba Inu only did that for people it liked!
"So cute!" Vivian smoothed the dog’s fur and said, "I have to head inside and help Julian prep dinner. Rest up, Grandma, and call me if you need anything!"
"Go on, off you go." Grandma Faulkner waved her away, more than eager for Vivian and Julian to get some alone time.
In the kitchen, Vivian pushed the door open just in time to see Julian pulling beef out of a grocery bag, preparing to trim the fat and silverskin before marinating it.
"Mr. Faulkner, your prep cook has arrived." Vivian walked dutifully over to the sink. After washing her hands and making sure she was completely free of dog fur, she stood beside Julian and asked, "What can I do?"
Julian looked up, his gaze sweeping lightly across her face. Seeing her sincere expression—as if she really was there to work hard and help him out—the irritation that had plagued him earlier faded slightly.
"Can you trim fat and remove silverskin?" he asked.
"I can!" Vivian nodded eagerly.
Julian meticulously washed the knife in his hand. Gripping the blunt spine of the blade, he offered the handle to Vivian.
If it weren’t for the fact that Julian still radiated a faint, icy aura, Vivian would have thought he was acting out of care, terrified she might accidentally cut herself while taking the knife!
Half an hour later, Vivian finished prepping three steaks. She took the initiative to tenderize the meat with a wooden mallet before bringing them over to Julian.
Julian had already diced the onions and was currently working on a lamb stew, all while the sweet aroma of baking pudding wafted from the oven.
"Just set them down." Julian glanced over his shoulder at the steaks. Upon noticing that she had taken the initiative to tenderize the meat, he finally offered a rare word of praise. "You’re not totally inept."
She frowned, wondering what he meant by "not totally inept."
Sensing her displeasure, Julian slowly added, "The pudding is done. You can have one before dinner."
"Oh." Vivian nodded in agreement and scampered off to eat her pudding.
The egg pudding was sweet and creamy with a hint of vanilla. As she savored it, the rush of dopamine made Vivian feel an unexpected surge of happiness, almost as if she were falling in love.
Still riding that high, she glanced up at Julian, who was currently searing the steaks.
He was wearing a black apron. The stark color perfectly complemented his aloof, untouchable aura. He truly lived up to his reputation as a man utterly out of reach; he looked remarkably elegant even while cooking.
She had heard that men who knew how to cook were usually gentle and family-oriented. She couldn’t help but wonder if Julian fit that description.
Completely lost in thought, Vivian was jolted back to reality when she realized Julian had turned around and was now staring at her with a stern expression.
Unaware that her intense staring had totally given her away, she instantly felt incredibly awkward. The small spoon in her hand slipped and fell into her pudding bowl with a tiny clink.
"Your pudding is absolutely delicious, Mr. Faulkner! You’re amazing!" Vivian offered a wildly exaggerated compliment to save face.
Julian’s eyebrows twitched. Whether or not he found her outburst awkward, he simply gave a flat hum of acknowledgment before turning back to the stove.
Vivian thoroughly enjoyed dinner with Grandma Faulkner. Before long, the moon was hanging high in the night sky. Since she had absolutely no desire to return to the Lowell family, Vivian politely asked the Faulkner family maid to prepare a guest room for her.
Grandma Faulkner, who had been watching TV, immediately chimed in. "Prepare what guest room? Vivian, go sleep in Julian’s room!"
Vivian desperately tried to think of an excuse.
But Grandma Faulkner had already seen right through her. Clutching her chest, the old woman forced out a couple of fake coughs. "COUGH COUGH! Oh dear, my chest feels a bit tight! Vivian, just promise me this one thing! Oh, the pain!"
Vivian was utterly defeated. She glanced at Julian, who was frowning deeply but clearly unable to refuse his grandmother’s demands either. Resigning herself to the reality of sleeping on his floor tonight, she nodded. "Alright, Grandma.
"Tonight, I’ll sleep in Julian’s room."
Vivian’s compromise delighted Grandma Faulkner.
The old lady eagerly instructed her personal maid to escort Vivian up to Julian’s room. She knew that Julian wouldn’t dare kick Vivian out right in front of her most trusted servant!
However, when Vivian followed the maid into the second-floor bedroom, Julian was nowhere to be seen. The only sound was the steady SPLASH of running water coming from the bathroom.
The maid kept her head lowered. Gesturing for Vivian to enter, she called out toward the bathroom, "Young Master, the Old Madam instructed me to bring the Young Madam upstairs."
The sound of the running water abruptly stopped.
As the maid turned and slipped out of the room, Vivian stood rooted to the spot, instinctively casting a nervous glance toward the bathroom door.