Mr. Warner, Your Wife is Running Away Again!-Chapter 109: Stop Ignoring What I Say

Audrey Sutton stammered, "...It feels really special, you see, this box is unlike any others."

Saying this, Audrey carefully moved the box away, discovering another small lacquered wooden box inside, its surface unadorned, with a single character "Sean" carved in the lower right corner.

As Audrey noticed this character, Shane Warner saw it too. Previously uninterested in these gifts, he immediately took the box from Audrey’s hands and asked, "Who gave this to you?"

Seeing his strong reaction, Audrey wasn’t sure if it was because he recognized the box or noticed something peculiar. Nervously swallowing, she said, "I... I don’t know, what’s inside?"

"Still lying to me?"

"Lying? What am I lying about? Didn’t you see I haven’t even opened it yet?"

As Shane unlocked the wooden box, he said, "You really don’t know who gave it to you?"

Although he didn’t say explicitly, his questioning implied he knew something.

Unable to continue the lie, Audrey had to honestly confess, "Actually, I said I went downstairs to eat, but Mr. Warner found me and asked me to give you this birthday gift. I was afraid you’d be upset if you knew, so I didn’t tell you earlier."

Shane already knew this; he just wanted to hear her admit the truth.

His expression revealed no emotion, so Audrey kept silent, watching him open the box, taking out a rolled-up drawing—it’s a sketch of some building, emphasizing a large tree that seemed to be a peach tree in full bloom.

The bottom right corner of the drawing was signed: Sean Warner

"There’s also a note." Audrey handed a folded note from the box to Shane.

As Shane opened the note, she leaned over to peek. On the paper was strong, confident handwriting: Shane, I never expect your forgiveness, but I don’t wish for hatred to keep affecting you. Sean has been gone for ten years. Every ten years after, I hope you find happiness and joy. I believe this is also what your brother would want to see.

After reading, Audrey thought it was a warm message.

Originally anticipating it would ease the tension between the brothers, she was surprised when Shane crumpled the note intensely in his hand, tossing it into the trash can beside the coffee table.

Audrey was taken aback, watching him stand up and say sternly, "Okay, stop going through it. You should go to bed."

"...What’s wrong with you?" Audrey followed, rarely seeing his emotional fluctuation, and asked with concern.

Shane didn’t answer her question, seriously advising her, "Don’t treat my words as empty breath."

"...I’m sorry." Audrey couldn’t understand why he reacted so strongly whenever it came to Vincent Warner.

"Go to sleep." His tone was gentle, but it felt like a command that couldn’t be disobeyed.

Audrey dared not question further, obediently returning to her room.

Yet lying in bed, she tossed and turned, unable to sleep, pondering Vincent’s warm words.

She always thought Vincent cared for him, but couldn’t fathom why Shane harbored such hostility toward Vincent.

If it was about his brother, after so many years, she hoped he could let go of the hatred and live for himself.

After all, isn’t life more important? Wouldn’t his loving brother also want to see him not engulfed in hatred?

The next morning, Audrey opened her eyes to see a dark figure standing at the foot of her bed.

Frightened, she immediately sat up startled, instantly awake. Recognizing the figure, she let out a sigh of relief, "You scared me!"

"I’ve been calling you," Shane said softly.

Audrey hugged her blanket, looking at him, her mind still a bit fuzzy, "Why are you in my room?"

After asking, she reached for her phone on the bedside table to check the time—it was just past six.

"What are you waking me up so early for?"

"Want to go for a run together?" he asked.

Audrey yawned, clearly not fully awake, but unwilling to refuse.

Sitting on the bed, rubbing her eyes, she said, "You go wait downstairs for a bit, I’ll change."

He murmured an "okay," then opened the balcony door, exiting her room that way.

Audrey stared at the balcony, realizing he had entered from there.

He was so casual! Just entering and exiting her room like that.

But they had lived together long enough and even shared a bed without him doing anything inappropriate, so Audrey felt quite at ease with him.

Sometimes she even wished he would do something, but whenever this thought popped up, Audrey quickly suppressed it, reminding herself to remain modest.

Handing herself over so easily would only make him think she was too casual, and he wouldn’t value or cherish her.

But if he insisted, would she accommodate him? Or refuse?

"Knock knock—" After the knock, his voice followed, "Hurry up."

Shaken back to reality, Audrey quickly collected her thoughts, getting out of bed to freshen up.

She always said she’d work out with him, but altogether, they only managed five or six times at most.

Usually, when he headed out for a run in the morning, she would still wake up, and in the evenings, she mostly concentrated on finishing her artwork. Even when visiting his gym, she would laze around before heading for a shower.

Audrey wasn’t overweight but rather proportional, yet compared to Crystal Wilson and Clarissa Morgan, she felt she lacked a bit of aesthetic fitness.

Mainly because Shane liked fitness and was strict with his physique, he would likely have equally high standards for his partner. Besides, working out together might help strengthen their relationship.

Joining him in the morning run for the first time.

The weather in September was neither hot nor cold, the morning air crisp, and few people traversed the tree-lined path.

He wore a white tracksuit, slightly ahead in the run.

Audrey followed with General on a leash.

Probably due to not exercising for a while, a few minutes into it, she already felt out of breath, involuntarily slowing down.

General slowed down too, glancing back and forth between Audrey and Shane, barking at Shane as if asking him to wait.

Shane stopped and turned back to Audrey, "Already worn out after just a few steps?"

Audrey sidled onto the bench by the roadside, breathlessly saying, "I need a break."

Shane turned back and sat beside her, "Seems like you need more training."

"I just haven’t run for a while. I won a long-distance championship in middle school!"

Shane chuckled softly, silent but teasingly mocking.

Stopping and starting intermittently for half an hour, they hardly covered half the usual route.

As Audrey prepared for an eighth break, she saw Clarissa Morgan running toward them...