Mason Lawson’s dark eyes were fixed on her, seemingly waiting for her answer.

Eve Vaughn swallowed nervously. "It’s... not impossible, but not now. At the very least, we have to wait until you’ve recovered."

Mason’s lips curved. "Then you remember what you said," he enunciated. "Don’t try to back out of it later."

Eve Vaughn’s heart hammered in her chest, her face flushing crimson with embarrassment.

She never expected Mason to suddenly make such a request at a time like this.

But today at the Lawson residence, she had seen with her own eyes the price Mason had paid for her. Eve felt she would willingly give him not just her body, but her very life.

To make sure Mason recovered well and quickly, Eve’s tender face was etched with seriousness as she said to him, "When you’re all better, I... we’ll..."

Mason held back a laugh and asked, "We’ll what?"

Eve couldn’t bring herself to say the words. Instead, she leaned in and kissed his cheek. "When the time comes," she said, "it’ll be whatever you want!"

Just then, Mason suddenly pulled her into his arms. His deep eyes darkened with desire as he whispered in her ear in a husky, sexy voice, "Actually... we could do it now."

"No, we can’t!" Eve quickly scrambled out of his arms and said huffily, "You can’t do anything but rest and recover right now. Or else I’m going to ignore you!"

Feeling helpless, Mason had no choice but to let her off the hook for now.

At that moment, Eve suddenly let out a forlorn sigh, looking rather glum.

"What’s wrong?" Mason looked at her, teasing. "You just agreed. Are you already thinking of going back on your word?"

Eve explained, "Why is your mind always in the gutter? I said I would, and I will! I’m worried about what happened yesterday. You took me from the Lawson estate, and your father was furious. What are you going to do? Is he really going to kick you out of the family?"

Mason gently cupped her chin. "If I lost everything," he asked, "would you still stay with me?"

Without a moment’s hesitation, Eve said decisively, "You lost everything for my sake. I’m sticking with you for life. Wherever you go, I’ll go."

At this, she suddenly broke into a laugh. "Besides, with me here, we’ll never be left with nothing!"

Mason raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

Eve said, "Don’t forget, I still have a villa. We can sell it, and then we’ll have money again, won’t we? If we spend it carefully, it’ll last a long time. And once I graduate and find a job, I can earn money to support you!"

Looking at the girl’s earnest and serious expression, Mason smiled, a mixture of exasperation and affection. "Do you really think I’d be reduced to such a state?" he asked. "Needing you to support me?"

"You’re in this state because of me," Eve said, her voice full of guilt. "It’s only right that I’m the one to support you."

Mason finally couldn’t bear to tease her any longer. He figured if he kept it up, she was going to start crying again.

"Alright, I was just teasing you." Mason reached out and ruffled her hair. "Don’t overthink things. I’ll take care of what you’re worried about. You just need to do what you’ve always done—focus on school and live a carefree life. Got it?"

Eve assumed Mason was just saying that to comfort her.

’I need to find something to do, fast,’ she thought. ’Maybe I should ask Nina Steele what kind of part-time jobs she does?’

’Only by making more money can I give Mason a sense of security.’

’After all, this man was born with a silver spoon and used to spending money like water. I can’t let him feel like he got a raw deal by being with me.’

...

「The Lawson Residence.」

From yesterday through today, a tense atmosphere had descended upon the Lawson household. The servants all went about their duties with extreme caution.

Old Mr. Lawson was so angry he didn’t even come down for breakfast.

The Third Madam, of course, didn’t come down either. She preferred to serve Old Mr. Lawson breakfast in his room rather than sit at the dining table and endure the ridicule of the first branch of the family.

Thus, only the members of the first branch were present at the breakfast table.

Moreover, Autumn Woods had deliberately made Charlotte Vaughn stay, so she could acclimate to the Lawson family environment in advance.

Ethan Lawson knew in his heart that Mason was probably finished.

He said quietly, "This must be my mother’s spirit in heaven, blessing us and causing Mason to take such a great fall. The Lawson Group can’t be a ship without a rudder. Old Mr. Lawson is getting on in years, which only leaves me."

Autumn Woods squeezed Charlotte’s hand in satisfaction. "And shouldn’t we be thanking our dear Charlotte for that? This is all thanks to her. If Charlotte hadn’t gone and thrown a fit in front of Old Mr. Lawson, we’d all still be in the dark. Who knew Mason and Eve Vaughn already had something going on?"

Charlotte was bursting with pride. She felt she had done something incredibly heroic—before she had even married into the family, she had single-handedly shifted the balance of power within the Lawson family to favor the first branch.

Only Julian Lawson kept his head down, eating his food, and didn’t say a word the whole time.

Autumn Woods noticed her son’s demeanor and reminded him coldly, "Julian, you saw for yourself yesterday how your grandfather feels about that Eve Vaughn. As for postponing the wedding, if you mention it again, the next person to face the family discipline might just be you!"

The memory of Mason’s wretched state yesterday still made Julian shudder. "I understand," he said to his mother.

Autumn Woods said, "Oh, right. Starting today, let Charlotte stay in your room. Anyway, your wedding is in about ten days. There’s nothing wrong with living together now."

Charlotte was, of course, more than willing. Moving into the Lawson residence and sharing a bed with Julian—it was a long-held dream of hers.

She had thought it would only be realized after the wedding.

But she never expected it to come true so soon.

After breakfast, Charlotte couldn’t wait to call her parents and share the good news. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

When Lana Chambers and Jason Vaughn heard that Mason was finished and that the first branch was about to take over the Lawson family, they were beyond thrilled.

They even privately lamented that they should have been bolder sooner. Instead of being so hesitant, they should have just gone straight to the Lawson family and exposed Mason and Eve’s relationship.

Lana Chambers said to her daughter over the phone, "Charlotte, dear, since Mrs. Lawson holds you in such high regard, just settle in and make yourself at home in the Lawson residence. Now that Mason is finished, the family will belong to your future parents-in-law. They only have Julian as a son, so how is that any different from it all being yours?"

Charlotte was so excited she nearly cried out. Her voice trembled uncontrollably. "You’re right, Mom! You’re so right! The Lawson family... it’s mine! It’s all mine!"

"Just focus on securing your position as the young madam of the Lawson family," her mother advised. "There’s an ocean of wealth waiting for you in the future!"