"Cough..."
"Pfft..."
Upon hearing Ronan's word, both Howard and Elaine, who were sitting across him, spat their food.
Elaine tried her best to not make a fool out of herself.
Shocked, Howard asked, "Grandpa, what did you say just now?"
"What's wrong? Didn't you hear what I say?" Ronan stared at him with a scornful look. "I'm an old guy, and I can hear better than you young people. I'm pretty sure I made myself clear enough. I said..."
"Alright, I heard it. You don't have to say it!"
Pouring Ronan a cup of tea, Howard said, "You must be thirsty from all the talking. Drink some tea."
Ronan cast Howard a glance.
Then, he looked at Elaine. As expected, she had an awkward expression on her face.
Raising his eyebrows, Howard kicked Elaine under the dining table, signaling her to say something.
Glancing at Howard, Elaine immediately look away and said awkwardly, "Grandpa, Dr. Perkins and I are just friends. We're not what you think."
Let alone getting married!
That was the most important thing.
Hearing that, Ronan frowned. "Young girl, don't try to fool me. If my grandson doesn't like you, he wouldn't have gone to the extent to get on his knees and beg me to look for you."
Get on his knees...
Surprised, Elaine looked at Howard.
Feeling embarrassed, Howard cleared his throat.
Elaine was speechless. She had never expected Dr. Perkins would go that far to save her.
Howard saw Elaine keeping her head down without eating or drinking. She looked like she was in deep thoughts.
"Grandpa, let's finish our food. I'll play Go with you after breakfast." Howard wanted to divert Ronan's attention.
However, Ronan was not stupid. He could sense that something was going on between the couple, but he did not say anything further. Picking up his fork, he continued to eat.
After the meal, Ronan asked Howard to play Go with him in the living room and ordered the maids to show Elaine around the villa.
After he and Howard were left alone, he glared at Howard. "What exactly is your relationship with Elaine? Don't try to fool me!"
Howard took out a chair and sat down. "I'm not lying to you. Take a seat first."
Ronan sat down. "Tell me now."
"I like her, and I want to be in a serious relationship with her." Howard said solemnly, "If I were to marry someone in the future, it must be her."
Frowning, Ronan asked, "You like her? Does she like you then?"
"Well..."
Howard was not sure. This was the first time he was unsure whether a woman had feelings for him. He felt very helpless.
Knocking the coffee table, Ronan mocked him, "You're such a disgrace to our family!"
Confused, Howard retorted, "How am I a disgrace?"
"You can't even handle a woman. Don't you think it's a shame?"
Ronan thought that the two of them had feelings for each other, but it turned out that his grandson's feelings were one-sided.
He was disappointed at Howard.
Howard was left speechless.
Frowning, Ronan thought of something and hurriedly said, "Don't tell me you force that girl here?"
"How is that possible?!" Howard immediately denied, "Of course not!"
Snorting, Ronan answered. "You'd better not."
Elaine and the maid took a walk around the garden. Soon after, Howard came looking for them.
"Are you done talking to your grandpa?"
"Grandpa is worried that you might feel bored, so he asked me to come over and keep you company."
Upon hearing that, Elaine smiled.
Howard sat beside her. "You can stay here and make yourself at home for the next few days. Don't worry too much. Anyway, grandpa is always alone at home. He is very happy that you're here to accompany him."
"Are you... sure?"
How did things turn out this way? Wasn't Howard supposed to lash out at her after getting rejected?
Just like that, Elaine stayed with the Perkins Family. Every day, she would talk to Ronan and play Go with him.
Not knowing much about Go, Elaine ended up playing Five In A Row with Ronan.
Happily, he went along with her as well.
Gradually, Elaine learned more about Howard's parents from Ronan.
His parents passed away when he was still very young, so he had never experienced parental love before.
There was pity in Ronan's voice whenever he talked about the past...
Learning that Howard lost his parents since he was a kid, Elaine was surprised. For a moment, she did not know how to comfort Ronan.
On the contrary, Ronan patted her hand and looked at her with a significant expression. "Elaine, it is my fault for spoiling Howard since he was young. Please bear with him in the future. He's not a bad guy. He's just a little playful."
Elaine kept silent.
At night, Howard came back from the hospital. He looked much more depressed as compared to the morning before he went out for work.
Elaine and Ronan were playing Go while talking and laughing together. They did not notice Howard's unusual behavior at all.
Seeing Howard standing at the door silently, Ronan said, "Howard, you're back? Come join us.
Elaine is not good at playing Go, but she's really good at playing Five In A Row!"
Elaine lifted her head and saw Howard staring at her.
She smiled.
Instantly, Howard's face lit up. The corners of his mouth curled into a smile as he walked into the house. "That's because you suck, Grandpa. You can't even win against her in Five In A Row."
"Screw you!"
Ronan got up and pressed Howard down onto the chair. "You guys have fun. I'll go check if dinner is ready."
With that, he winked at Howard and walked away happily.
Howard was speechless.
Indeed, Ronan was good at reading the room. He left to give Howard and Elaine the opportunity to be alone.
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