30 Days of Passion and Revenge-Chapter 99: The Path to Freedom

Butler Angus’s words seemed to echo Lily’s own thoughts.

Lily looked at Nanny, confused. Nanny smiled and said, "What’s so surprising about that? Mr. Blackwood even made your home-cooked meals. He also hates cookies, but didn’t he finish all the ones you baked?"

"What?"

Lily was stunned as she lowered her head and continued flipping through the Rules for Mistresses. Sure enough, one of the entries read: Mr. Blackwood dislikes cookies.

"That’s because Mr. Blackwood thinks cookies are a low-class food. He’ll only eat them if they’re costly," Nanny added.

"..." So whether something is expensive determines what he consumes, wears, and uses, thought Lily as she looked up.

Yes, Nanny confirmed with a firm nod, "Since Mr. Blackwood returned to the Blackwood family, his preferences have always depended on whether something was expensive or inexpensive. She explained that since the Blackwood family took Ethan in during his senior year of high school, he had grown to hate anything inexpensive and believe that only the poor would use it.

And poor people... were meant to be trampled underfoot.

Lily was speechless as she continued reading the Rules for Mistresses.

Ethan... what kind of twisted value system did he have? He didn’t care about quality, only whether something was expensive or cheap?

8. Mr. Blackwood dislikes two-wheeled vehicles.

9. Mr. Blackwood dislikes people talking back.

10. Mr. Blackwood dislikes others touching his belongings.

11. Mr. Blackwood dislikes people who talk too much.

Nanny had jotted down these 100 likes and dislikes scattered, writing them down as they came to her mind.

As Lily flipped through the pages, she realized Mr. Blackwood’s dislikes outnumbered his likes by nearly twofold.

A grown man... how could he have so many things he disliked?

And yet, despite his hatred for noodles and cookies, he had eaten everything she made.

Almost as if Nanny could read Lily’s thoughts, she chuckled and said, "The more I think about it, the more it seems Mr. Blackwood really likes you, Miss Anderson. You should celebrate the 30-day anniversary properly."

Celebrate?

Celebrate such a strange anniversary with Ethan?

Did Ethan really like her that much? Enough to eat foods he supposedly hated?

Lily stared out the plane window at the clouds, her delicate brows furrowed slightly.

The more Ethan acted like this, the more she dared not stay by his side for long...

She had never loved him and was too afraid to accept his love.

If things continued like this, their relationship would only become stranger, spiraling out of control...

She couldn’t let that happen.

Nanny, Angus, and Dr. Joel drifted off to sleep on the plane, but Lily remained wide awake, clutching the Rules for Mistresses and staring out the window.

Her heart was suddenly in turmoil.

It may be time to end this relationship.

But how? How could she end it without hurting anyone? Was there even such a way?

After landing, the bodyguards, including Cipher Stone, came to pick them up. Nanny opened the car door for her.

Lily was about to get in when Nanny suddenly asked, "Miss. Anderson, are you going straight back to the villa?"

"Do I have another choice?" Lily replied.

"Didn’t Mr. Blackwood tell you? As long as you’re back at the villa by 9 PM, you can go wherever you like," Nanny explained.

Lily’s eyes widened in surprise. Hearing this news, she was suddenly overwhelmed with an unfamiliar feeling.

What did she mean by "go wherever you like"?

Did that mean... freedom?

"I can go anywhere? You won’t be following me?" Lily asked in disbelief. Could Ethan really be this kind? Was he really giving her back her freedom?

"Yes, as long as you’re back by 9 PM," Nanny smiled. "So, what would you prefer, Miss Anderson?"

"I’ll walk around by myself. You all can go back first."

Of course, she wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip away. It would have been a blessing if she hadn’t had to return to that suffocating place, the Blackwood estate.

The Blackwood villa held no good memories for her.

Ethan’s beatings... Ethan’s assaults... Ethan’s coercion into making her his mistress...

And finally, all of the chains that had imprisoned her belonged to the Blackwood estate.

It had bound her freedom, tethered her life...

"Well then, take this bag with you, Miss Anderson. you’llYou’ll find cash, a credit card, and your old phone inside. Buy whatever you like. There’s no limit on the card." Nanny handed her a purse. "Would you like me to arrange a driver for you?"

"No need. You all go ahead. Goodbye."

"Goodbye."

Waving goodbye to Nanny and the others, Lily walked alone down the bustling street. Suddenly, she felt as though she had lost her sense of direction.

She had longed for freedom from Ethan, but now that she had it, she didn’t know where to go.

Go home? That would just mean listening to her aunt’s sharp, cutting remarks.

Go back to the magazine office? She wasn’t sure if she could immediately get back into the swing of things...

Shopping? There wasn’t anything she mainly needed to buy.

Ethan had already provided her with everything she could possibly need.

A phone charm shaped like a fluffy white Samoyed caught her eye in the window of a roadside accessory shop. It resembled a little white fox, playful and cute.

She suddenly knew where she wanted to go.

After purchasing the Samoyed phone charm, Lily took a taxi to the seaside. The white villa stood bathed in the golden light of the setting sun as it slowly dipped toward the horizon...

Standing in front of the ’dream house,’ Lily hesitated.

After the fight between Ethan and Alex, she said such hurtful things before they left for Europe. Alex must be heartbroken.

And now she was, standing in front of the dreamhouse he had built for her...

How ironic.

She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t treat this place as her safe haven.

This wasn’t her safe haven, it never was...

Lowering her gaze, Lily turned to leave, but the door to the villa suddenly opened behind her. She turned, startled.

Butler Aston, the butler, stood in the doorway, smiling politely as he bowed to her. "Miss, I saw you from the upstairs balcony. Please, come in."

With that, Aston stepped aside to let her in.

"I..."

"Awooo—" A large white dog suddenly darted out from behind Aston, charging straight at Lily and nuzzling its head against her.

Lily couldn’t help but laugh, stroking its fluffy head. "Bobi, you still remember me?"

Butler Aston stood by, still smiling. "Bobi is very good at recognizing people, Miss. It remembers you well."

"Aston," Lily said hesitantly, still petting Bobi. Could you not tell Alex that I came today?"

"Mr. Alex Carter has told me that this house belongs to you, Miss. Your requests are my orders," Aston said, smiling. "Allow me to prepare some fruits for you."

This house belongs to me...

Everything Alex had done for her made her feel like she was back in the past, surrounded by love and care.

"Thank you, Aston."

Lily smiled and patted Bobi’s head as she walked inside. "Come on, Bobi, let me show you the gift I got for you."

"Awooo, awooo..."

Bobi barked happily, following behind her.

Once inside, Lily took out the Samoyed phone charm from her bag and dangled it in front of Bobi’s face. "Look, Bobi, doesn’t it look like you?"

"Awoo!"

Bob jumped up and snatched the charm, chewing on it furiously.

"Hey, Bobi..." Lily panicked, lightly patting the dog’s head. "Don’t eat it, Bobi! You can’t eat this... Spit it out, spit it out."

Oh no, why had she bought such a small phone charm...

Dogs loved to chew on things, and this charm was made from white stone. It wasn’t meant to be eaten...

"Bobi, stop biting it. Spit it out." Lily was getting anxious, walking in circles as Bobi playfully twisted its chubby body to avoid her.

"Bobi."

A gentle, familiar voice called out.

Lily froze and slowly looked up.

Alex stood at the door, dressed in a shirt and light-colored tie, with a white blazer draped over his arm. His tall, handsome figure stood still, his quiet eyes fixed on her. His face was calm, showing no particular emotion, just quietly watching her.

There was neither surprise nor dislike.

But from one glance, she could tell that he hadn’t forgotten their fight during the traffic jam—he still vividly remembered it.

Otherwise, the first thing he would have called out wasn’t Bobi but Lily.

Time seemed to stand still.

The two of them stood in silence, their eyes locked.

Neither spoke, and neither looked away. Lily’s face began to pale, her gaze wavering. She didn’t know how to face him.

After a moment, Alex broke eye contact, placing his blazer on the sofa. He knelt on one knee, stroking Bobi’s head as his gentle voice coaxed, "Bobi, behave. Don’t eat that. I’ll get you some milk."

As if understanding, Bobbi obediently spat the phone charm onto the floor.

Alex stroked Bobi’s fur, slowly lifting his head to look at her. His voice was low and filled with pain. "I thought... you wouldn’t come here anymore."

Her chest tightened, and her eyes stung with sudden emotion.

Every time she saw Alex, her heart ached. It ached terribly.

Lily clenched her bag tightly, struggling to control her emotions. Her voice was calm, almost distant, as she said, "I have something to do. I’ll be leaving now."

With that, she turned and headed for the door.

She really shouldn’t have come. Why had she impulsively decided to go here?

How could she treat this place as her safe haven?

This wasn’t her dreamhouse—it never was.

"Am I really that insignificant to you?" His voice was low and a bit desperate, stopping her in her tracks.

Lily froze.

Insignificant?

If Alex was insignificant to her, then who in her life still mattered?

Tears welled up in her eyes, but she blinked them back, forcing herself to apologize. "I’m sorry."

She knew her words had hurt him deeply.

She knew that ever since they had reunited, everything she said had cut him deeply.

She had used the most hurtful words... to wound the one man she never wanted to hurt.

"Lily..."

His soft voice came from behind her, and then, she felt his arms around her.

He didn’t hold her tightly—his arms were loosely wrapped around her shoulders as if it took everything in him just to make this small gesture. His voice was gentle but filled with pain. "I don’t blame you. Lily... I’m just glad you’re here."

Tears spilled from her eyes.

He was as gentle as ever, so gentle that he didn’t seem capable of hurting anyone.

But she could still remember the look on his face, bruised from the beating Ethan had given him, standing by the car, looking at her in disbelief.

"Alex, let go." Her voice trembled as she pulled his warm hands from her shoulders.

He hadn’t held her tightly, so with just one pull, that warmth and the faint scent of mint left her.