Chubby Mommy: Scheming Daddy, Surrender Now!-Chapter 226: Sleepless Because of You

When Ethan Sterling left the room, Ruby Sullivan’s dazed eyes finally came back to life, but the abnormal flutter in her heart remained. She covered her chest and took a few deep breaths, then patted her flushed face, finally feeling clear-headed again.

She was a bit afraid of Ethan, especially when he suddenly looked at her deeply, as if he could see through her soul, if there really is such a thing as a soul.

Perhaps influenced by his words, Ruby felt particularly uneasy as she got into bed, feeling awkward even when she turned her back to him. Hearing his deep breathing, she dared not move an inch, afraid of waking him, and without realizing it, her legs went numb, spreading a tingling sensation through her whole body, making her grimace in different ways.

Ruby tentatively pinched her legs, unsure of what to do next, until she suddenly heard a deep voice behind her ask, "What’s wrong?"

Ruby froze, "Nothing?"

"Hmm?" Ethan elongated the sound and raised his voice.

She was incredibly uncomfortable, so she sat up abruptly, pouting, "My legs are numb."

"Legs numb?" Ethan found it hard to believe and sat up, turning on the bedside lamp. Seeing her twisted expression, he realized she wasn’t joking, "You were sleeping fine, so how did your legs get numb?" He couldn’t hide the smile at the corner of his lips. He lifted the blanket, turned sideways, and placed her legs on his lap, gently massaging them.

Numb legs are due to poor circulation, how could there suddenly be poor circulation?

Ethan suddenly became tense, "Does this happen often?"

"No, no." Ruby saw that look in his eyes that scared her and quickly avoided eye contact, seeing him frown and hesitating for a moment before explaining the truth, "I was afraid of waking you, so I didn’t dare to move."

"You haven’t slept at all?" Ethan glanced at the night lamp on the bedside, his face becoming grim.

Ruby nodded, "It’s just... hard to fall asleep."

"Because of Dad?"

Ruby looked at him. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

She didn’t know when Ethan developed a passion for massage; it wasn’t just casual pressing, she knew he was referencing pressure points every time he squeezed, focused more than when reading quarterly reports.

This side of Ethan couldn’t make her feel touched; instead, it made her anxious.

He was too good, so good it scared her, scared that if she took a step forward, she might fall into a deep ravine and get hurt all over.

"Not feeling well?" Ethan matched her vacant gaze but couldn’t interpret the expression on her face, seemingly... in pain.

Ruby withdrew her leg from his lap, "You massaged... well, it’s not numb anymore.

Ethan grasped her icy foot, pulled the blanket to cover her, and lay down, "You still haven’t answered my question." He said as he turned off the light, plunging them into darkness, where they could only hear each other’s voices, turning their heads without seeing each other’s features or expressions, but somehow, this made them both breathe a sigh of relief, as if only this way could they shed the masks they subconsciously wore during the day and speak honestly.

"It’s not because of Dad, but... because of you." Ruby realized that saying it made her feel much lighter. She exhaled, "Ethan, when I first saw you at age six, I thought you were incredibly good-looking, and I wondered how there could be such a handsome big brother. I wanted him to praise my dress."

Ethan slightly frowned, somewhat awkwardly saying, "I think we first met... at your mother’s funeral." To want compliments about a dress at one’s mom’s funeral, that thinking is quite peculiar, right?

Ruby gave him a cold look, kicked his calf under the covers, and noticing how warm his leg felt, she wanted to press her cold foot against it.

Ethan seemed to sense her thought and voluntarily moved his leg closer to her, "Come, let me warm your feet."

Ruby’s face flushed, but she didn’t stand on ceremony and placed her cold foot on his calf, instantly feeling much more comfortable, grumbling, "I first met you at your twelfth birthday party. There were many rich kids there, and I specifically chose a pink princess dress, with shiny rhinestones on my shoes, because it was the first time Dad took me to such an event. Mom couldn’t come due to her health. Afraid of any oversight, we spent half a day just choosing the outfit."

Thinking of that day, she couldn’t help but feel sentimental.

Back then, Mom was aware her time was limited, and being in a wealthy family, she knew the troubles it could bring, worried that her young daughter would be bullied.

Ethan was momentarily speechless; he truly didn’t remember her.

Since his health recovered, his family held a grand birthday party every year, ostensibly to celebrate him, but he rarely knew any of the attendees, as it was more a social gathering under his name.

"I’m sorry." He didn’t know why he apologized, perhaps because he didn’t notice her back then? It seemed a bit far-fetched, but recently, he found himself frequently saying those three words to her, even though he used to despise them.

In his eyes, there was never anything in this world that required an apology from Ethan Sterling, then along came Ruby Sullivan.

But Ruby smiled, generously saying, "It’s okay," as if forgiving him for herself standing in a corner of envy back then. In fact, she never blamed him; she wanted to be more like the slightly older girls, rushing over to perform an old-fashioned yet aristocratic court curtsey like in a TV show, and dance a simple waltz with him. But she was too inconspicuous as a child, her features undeveloped, small in stature, with only a pair of innocent big eyes, watching him from afar as he danced one song after another.

Returning home that day, she vowed that at their second meeting, she’d make him notice her.

Unexpectedly, the second meeting was at Mom’s funeral.

She was so sorrowful that she didn’t expect him to attend the service. But that day, she kept smiling at Mom’s photo because her dying wish was for Ruby to grow up happily, reassuring Ruby.

So, several times, when she was about to cry, she laughed loudly to cover it up.

Looking back, her unpopularity in the rich circles might have something to do with her behavior at the funeral; who would want to be friends with a seemingly heartless fool?

Bringing herself back from wandering memories, she continued, "When I said I liked you, I was too young to understand what it meant to like someone. During these five years away, I kept thinking about whether my desire to marry you was out of affection or an obsession?"

Ethan’s body stiffened, suddenly fearing she might say more.