Prosperous Marriage: Married to My Brother-in-law-Chapter 685: Realized, Heart Palpitated (2)_1

He no longer looked at her with those unfathomable eyes as he used to.

And Rebecca Hughes, whose smile was always tinged with a shy embarrassment, now faintly radiated happiness.

Julia Bluen guessed that James Horne had probably resolved his inner conflicts and truly understood his own feelings.

"This weekend, I'll bring her over," Rebecca responded, then glanced at James Horne. She suddenly stood up and said, "Julia, James, I'll go make you two a cup of coffee." With that, she left the office, leaving the space to Julia and James.

Watching the office door close, Julia chuckled softly and turned her head to look at James, her eyes filled with relief. "James, you understand now, don't you?"

James Horne didn't answer, his lips still pursed.

After a moment, he finally asked in a low voice, "Your shop had such a major incident, why didn't you tell us?" If he hadn't read the newspaper, he wouldn't have even known her shop was in trouble.

His family didn't know either. They all had an unspoken agreement not to bring work-related problems home for open discussion.

"It was something Glades and I could handle ourselves. There was no need to worry all of you," Julia said with a gentle smile.

James fell silent again.

Indeed, with his elder brother Glades there, even if the sky were falling, Glades would shield Julia. They didn't need to worry. Whether others would worry, he didn't know, but he was still very worried about her.

"Has it been sorted out now?"

"Yes, it's been sorted out and dealt with. The newspapers will clear my name tomorrow," Julia said, her hands resting on her knees, sometimes interlacing her fingers, sometimes just fiddling with them. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Julia... I..."

James Horne watched her, clearly wanting to say something but hesitating. Julia looked up at him, a warm smile on her face. "James, I hope that one day, you can call me 'sister-in-law' from the bottom of your heart." She might be younger than all of them, but seniority in the family isn't determined by age.

It was fine for others to continue calling her Julia, but not James.

James still calling her by her first name implied he hadn't completely let go of his feelings for her. Only when James could sincerely call her 'sister-in-law' would it mean he had truly moved on.

James Horne pursed his lips again, simply gazing at Julia with a very, very deep look.

The two of them locked eyes, holding each other's gaze.

One unfathomable, the other clear as a polished mirror.

Outside the door, Rebecca Hughes stood holding two cups of freshly brewed coffee, not immediately entering, so as not to disturb their silent exchange.

Uriel Hughes had pressured James Horne for an answer: if James wasn't willing, he had to break up with Rebecca immediately. James found it difficult to respond, which infuriated Uriel. Uriel, who cherished his sister like a precious jewel, couldn't stand James's indecisiveness. So, he arranged a 'good man' for Rebecca, forced her to meet this man at a hotel, and then deliberately called James to say Rebecca was no longer willing to wait for him and was looking to marry someone else.

This was a test Uriel had devised for his sister's happiness; the method, of course, was supplied by his wife. The typically aloof Uriel wouldn't have come up with such a delicate scheme on his own.

Ultimately, Uriel was satisfied.

The moment Rebecca arrived at the hotel and met the man, James immediately stormed in. Without a second thought, he punched the man in the face, giving him a bloody nose. James paid no heed, simply grabbed Rebecca, and pulled her away. Before leaving, he warned the man that Rebecca was his, James Horne's, and that he shouldn't even think about snatching her from him.

The man was truly wronged. He had only just met Rebecca, and no feelings had even developed yet. How had he suddenly become the man stealing someone else's woman?

James Horne bundled Rebecca Hughes into his car and sped away from the hotel, taking her back to his townhouse. And then... James, consumed by a potent mix of anger and jealousy, naturally and quite dominantly, devoured Rebecca completely.

Their physical union broke through the gloom that had shrouded their relationship.

It was also amidst Rebecca's cries of pain that James had his epiphany. His love for Rebecca could now match his love for Julia. No—as he gently soothed Rebecca, urging her to relax, his mind was filled only with her; Julia's image had already faded.

It was also due to this emotional entanglement that James had only just learned about the trouble at Julia's shop.

"When will you get married?" Julia was the first to break their gaze.

She, whose astuteness was no less than Glades Horne's, had already seen the relief in James's eyes.

"I don't know yet. I'll tell Grandma first, but we'll definitely get married this year," James retracted his intense, unfathomable gaze, his tone shifting to that of family and friends.

Julia nodded, smiling. "I'm very happy. Your brother will be happy for you both too. James, Rebecca is a good girl. After you're married, you must treat her as well as your brother treats me, understand? If I find out you've bullied her, I won't let you off easily."

James Horne chuckled and replied, "Hey, I'm your little brother-in-law, after all."

Little brother-in-law?

Both Julia and James paused at the term for a moment, then both smiled openly.

Yes, he was the little brother-in-law.

From the moment Glades Horne married Julia Bluen, James Horne was destined to be Julia's little brother-in-law.

The obsession and infatuation he once had for her would slowly transfer to Rebecca.

Once, his heart had been a place of darkness because he wasn't 'normal'—he was attracted to both men and women.

After several years of trials and tribulations, witnessing the blissful life of his brother and sister-in-law, and enduring years of heartache, he had thought he would never find happiness. Unexpectedly, the happiness he had always longed for was right beside him.

Looking back, feeling it deeply, he realized he was truly a fortunate man.

He was glad, grateful for what Julia had said to him.

He was even more thankful to Providence for bringing Rebecca to him.

Having lived for thirty-two years under the shadow of being an illegitimate son, he'd always felt as if Providence were singling him out for misfortune. Only now did he feel that Providence had actually been very kind to him.

Rebecca knocked lightly on the door before entering Julia's General Manager's Office with a smile, carrying two cups of freshly brewed coffee.

「Valence Group.」

Glades Horne glared irritably at Hansen Ruiz, who was sitting opposite him. Hansen was unapologetically raiding the snacks from Glades's personal stash, tearing open bags and stuffing himself as if he were famished. "What's the meaning of this?" Glades demanded. "You drag me back to the company just to watch you pig out in front of me? What, didn't Rachel feed you enough at home?"

"Haven't you heard the gossip?" Hansen Ruiz popped another pistachio into his mouth, glancing disdainfully at Glades Horne.

Noah Reyes was too insidious. He'd invited Hansen to Nameless Manor for a meeting, ostensibly to win him over. Yet, behind the scenes, Noah had people spreading rumors everywhere that Hansen Ruiz was actually very close to the Black Emperor Group's top executives.