Prosperous Marriage: Married to My Brother-in-law-Chapter 608: Love as Deep as the Sea, Naming the Baby (2)_1
Adele was beside herself with annoyance. Even though she immediately turned off the air conditioning, the cool air still lingered in the room, revealing to anyone who entered that she had just had it on.
"Sister-in-law, I was just so unbearably hot. Look, I’m covered in sweat, and I stink all over. My mom won’t even let me wash my hair, saying I have to wait seven days before I can. She insists on adding alcohol and ginger to the water, and then I have to blow dry my hair immediately after washing. Grandmother is even more extreme, saying that in the past, women during their postpartum confinement couldn’t wash their hair for a whole month. Good heavens, I’d rather not have a head at all then! Sister-in-law, please don’t tell Mom and the others, or they’ll scold me again. Hehe, Sister-in-law, you just came from my older sister-in-law’s room, right? Did she secretly turn on the air conditioning like I did? As long as she did it too, I’m not afraid. My older brother will protect me."
Adele’s face was full of mischief.
"You... you’re a mother now, yet you still act so carelessly. Even when it’s hot, you should think about your future health and stop secretly turning on the air conditioning. Julia didn’t secretly turn it on; she just prayed to the heavens for rain," Ruby chuckled.
Adele pouted.
She was just telling the truth.
"The baby’s asleep."
"He just finished making a fuss, had a full meal, and the nanny managed to lull him to sleep. When he’s hungry, he’s fierce as anything, crying non-stop." Adele’s complaints were much like Julia’s.
The new mothers, lacking experience, were quite overwhelmed by their babies.
Ruby chuckled. Who could keep their temper when hungry?
The sisters-in-law chatted for a while before Ruby left.
Although her relationship with Adele had improved a bit, they had yet to have any deep heart-to-hearts.
Having left Adele’s room, Ruby stood at the top of the stairs, lost in a brief moment of absentmindedness. Once she snapped out of it, she descended the stairs and went back to her own room, thinking of checking whether Marcel had woken up from his nap.
The moment she entered, she was embraced from behind.
"Marcel!"
She jumped with a start, then softly cried his name as she turned in Marcel Horne’s arms, chiding, "You nearly scared me to death."
Marcel Horne’s usually stern face was now extremely gentle. He spun her around, pressing her against the door, and leaned in closely, forehead against hers, gazing into her eyes before he asked her in a low, tender voice, "Did you go to see Julia and Adele’s babies again?"
"Mm-hmm, both babies are so adorable, absolutely irresistible, I could watch them all day. They’re so pink and pretty, and when they’re awake, those dark, clear, bright eyes just move around—it’s so charming. Julia’s baby is always so serious, like a little old man, constantly shoving his little hands into his mouth." Ruby’s face was filled with maternal tenderness as she spoke of the little ones as if they were her own.
Out of the blue, a shadow loomed over her, followed by a quick peck on her lips from Marcel Horne, who then breathed hot air on her face, causing her to shiver as he asked in a husky voice, "Ruby, do you want to have a little baby, as adorable and delightful as our nephew?"
"I do, but..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Marcel Horne lifted her into his arms, and in the blink of an eye, she lay on the bed.
"Ruby, I’m sorry."
Marcel Horne spread her arms and pinned them at her sides as he pressed his body against hers, the two of them now closely entwined. He gazed at her, noticing how her once round face had lost the roundness from before their marriage—it had slimmed down by a fraction, causing him heartache. She had suffered much for him; she had not yet become a mother for him. Both of them were not young anymore; Ruby was already twenty-nine, and he was thirty-one. Many women of twenty-nine already had children who could walk.
It was all his fault.
"Why apologize? You’ve done nothing to apologize for. We are husband and wife; there’s no need for such formalities," Ruby whispered softly. She loved him, had loved him for so many years, missing out on six of them. For him, she had braved the risk of offending Glades, escaping her own wedding, and leaving Glades Horne behind at the Civil Affairs Office while she went alone into Tibet to find him. For him, she endured the initial rejection from his parents, the difficulty and blame from her own parents, and the strange looks from others who thought she abandoned the older brother only to fall into the arms of his younger brother. She could endure it all because her love for him was as deep as the ocean.
He had been in a car accident while saving someone, leaving his legs disabled; she felt an immense pain, as if the sky had fallen. Yet she bore it silently, caring for him, concerned for his well-being, because she knew he loved her too. In spirit and in daily life, she hoped to be his pillar of support, helping him regain his confidence.
For more than half a year after their marriage, she rarely went out, hardly even socializing with her sister-in-law under the same roof, dedicating herself entirely to his care. She had no regrets, hoping only that he could stand tall once more, a true, indomitable man.
Everything she had done was willingly given, so she didn’t want him to say he was sorry.
Marcel Horne was silent, his gaze deepening, fixed intently on her.
But underneath, his heart surged with indescribable emotion.
"My dear," he called out hoarsely—after getting married, he was still accustomed to using her name; the endearing term ’wife’ was rarely spoken. Now, emotionally stirred, he said, "Let’s have a child. You don’t have to worry about anything, no need for ’buts’." He knew how much she longed to have a child of her own whenever she visited Julia’s room to see the baby.
Not to mention he was almost healed; even if he weren’t, he couldn’t bear to deny her the right to be a mother.
But...
Marcel Horne’s heart ached even more. Once his leg was better, he would return to the military; he hadn’t resigned from the army, just been temporarily suspended from duty to recuperate. Once healed, he’d report back. As a soldier, he couldn’t stay home every day. If she became pregnant and gave birth, she would have to face it all alone, which pained him.
Gently freeing her hands from his grasp, Ruby caressed Marcel’s face. He wasn’t as handsome as Glades, and even though the brothers shared some resemblance, his face exuded righteousness, giving off a sense of strength. She understood what he was thinking; she wasn’t afraid. She knew the life of a soldier’s wife was tough, and she had long prepared herself for him. She could face the hardship of pregnancy and the pain of childbirth alone.
