The Secret Obsession of the CEO-Chapter 208: Still Life

Ian dropped Rory at his parent’s place. It was an old stone mansion that has been in the family for generations. Count Charles and Countess Isabelle welcomed Rory. Ian and Davina had lunch with them, and they left. Ian had an apartment in the city, and he returned there with his girlfriend.

Rory was given the best room in the mansion with a distant view of her parents’ house. The couple couldn’t stop gushing over her presence. They had already warmed the room with red oak firewood and the room smelled so good.

Rory was a little overwhelmed by the hospitality she received from them. Back when she received the news that her parents were in an accident, it was Count Charles who immediately got to her and brought her to his mansion. She stayed there in their warmth until the funeral.

Rory could see that they’d never changed. They still cared for her as if she was a little girl. And oddly, that made her more relaxed. She felt like returning to her maternal home after a long time.

The Campbell mansion was on a small hill and included hectares of land and they could see the entire village from the mansion. The Church was on the hill next to the Campbell mansion and was the tallest building in the village.

Rory’s parents’ home was right next to the Church lands and was a bit farther from the village center. She could see her parent’s house clearly from here. Liam was right. She could see the workers working on the roof and it appeared that the painting works are getting done too. She knew her house had a picket fence, but she didn’t remember it having any color. Now it was painted white.

Their house was ordinary compared to the Campbell mansion.

It was a cottage, an old one that her parents bought from a local. It was a two-storied stone house that had two bedrooms, one study, and a single bathroom. Vines covered the walls of their house, and the interiors were wood that gave a cozy and warm atmosphere.

They lived a simple life. That’s why it surprised Rory when she was told that she is inheriting millions from her parents.

Rory took in a deep breath and her lips curved as she remembered her life back then.

A creak would flow past their backyard in spring when the snow melts. Her mother was very busy and yet she would plant flowers that would die within a month or so. But her mother was the persistent type and never stopped buying flowering plants. She so wanted a garden in her backyard.

She never succeeded in that.

Rory took a picture of her parent’s house from the window and sent it to Liam.

During evening tea, the elder couple looked at Rory. Rory’s heart skipped a beat as she could see that they want to talk to her about something serious. She was scared that they will talk about what happened back there.

"What did you think of Delvina?" Isabelle asked and Rory’s heart skipped a beat.

Okay... this is worse...

She didn’t like to get involved in other people’s relationships. She got herself involved in Derick’s relationship and that only brought her a series of troubles.

"She is nice, and Ian likes her. So... Why auntie? Is something troubling you?" Rory asked. Liam told her that it was an arranged marriage. So, she didn’t understand why she was asked this question.

"No, it’s... I thought if I forced Ian to be with her. Delvina sometimes looks sad in my eyes. Will you talk to him- them, and..." Isabelle was worried. Count Charles was silently sipping tea. He didn’t stop his wife and that showed that he is of the same thought as her too.

Rory understood them. Ian is their only son, and she didn’t know about it now, but in the past, divorce was frowned upon in the village. Aunt Isabelle would want her son to be happy for a long time. For that, they should enter the marriage with a happy heart.

"I’ll..." Rory scratched her head. "I... I’m not very good at talking about this and I get into trouble..."

"Who would ever find trouble with you?" Isabelle asked and her eyes misted. "Oh, dear..."

"I’ll talk to them," Rory said not to get the elder sad. They’ve helped her a lot. And they might think that as an old friend to Ian, he’d be honest with her. So, she’d help them. Maybe, she’ll ask Liam to talk to Ian since they’ve gotten chummy with each other, and she can talk to Davina--girl-to-girl.

That night, she talked with Liam and Ellie for a long time before she fell asleep. She did ask Liam to talk to Ian. He looked at her weirdly as if she was asking him some absurd thing, but then he agreed as if he realized something.

Whatever! Rory didn’t care. She decided to limit her conversations with men altogether. At least, until she heals. She didn’t know if it was real.

But she started getting to be aware of herself as if men are looking at her as a beauty and women are looking at her as if she’d steal their men. She didn’t like people looking at her like she was a siren or a seductress. She was none of those things. If she were, her husband wouldn’t have liked another woman.

So, yeah. Lennon had screwed her over in many ways. But she didn’t want to be stuck in the past. She wanted to move forward. And she had realized that although she said she’d forgiven Liam for liking Allison, she couldn’t forget it. It had hurt her. She needs to deal with it.

She had a lot to deal with.

Liam told her that he had meetings with his old employees. He was going to talk to them about rejoining his company so to bring it to its former glory. He said that the meeting might take long and that he might not be able to answer her texts and calls.

Rory told him that she’d limit her texts and calls for very important things.

’You can call me anytime, Cherry. I’ll stop the meeting to talk to you,’ he then said with a silly grin. Rory could only shake her head. She won’t disturb him unnecessarily when he was working.

When she asked how he will take care of the meeting with Ellie, he blinked. He then said that he will take Ellie with him to the meeting. Rory believed that Ellie would behave in public places, but still, she was a little worried.

’Maybe I should start a daycare in my restored company. What do you think, Cherry?’ he asked. Rory found that a good idea. It would help parents who have little kids.

Rory found herself sleeping in peace there. For the first time in a long time, she didn’t have any nightmares and she had a deep rest. She did hear Ellie’s cry once or twice which woke her up, but other than that, she had plenty of peaceful rest.

The next day, Rory woke up to a series of messages from Liam. Her lips curved up reading what he had fed Ellie and at what time. He also mentioned the stats of the baby’s poop (which is important). He also had sent her the picture of Ellie neatly tucked in the carrycot sitting in one of the chairs in the meeting room. And there were many selfies of Liam with him wearing sunglasses and different types of pouts in front of different windows in the room.

Rory figured that he was the first in the meeting hall. She sent him a good luck message and a kiss emoji.

She did want to kiss him. At least on the cheeks. She could see the cut on his chin although he tried to cover it up. She could smell his aftershave through the picture. She wanted to hug him and get his warmth.

She sighed and stood up as he was not seeing her message. She figured that the meeting had started and didn’t want to disturb him.

After freshening up, she went to the breakfast room. Only aunt Isabelle was there. She told her that Count Charles went for his morning walk.

Rory inquired further as she was intrigued by the complaining tone. Only then Isabelle told her that Charles is not going for regular walks. He just went for a walk today because he was scared of Rory.

"I’ll take him for a walk every day, auntie," she said. "It’s a promise."

Uncle Charles already has heart issues, and he should take care of his health more. Also, she figured morning walks would do her good too.

Aunt Isabelle was happy. Rory read the papers as they waited for Charles’ return. He returned within ten minutes, and they all had breakfast together.

Rory liked the calmness in this life. There was no hurry, and she didn’t have to care for anyone else. It was indeed a vacation.

"There is something important we need to discuss, Rori," Charles said.

Rory nodded. But her heart started pounding. She wondered if he would bring up the adoption thing. She still does not have an answer to that.