Nathaniel Sloan gently wrapped his arms around her waist. After a long moment, his hoarse laughter finally sounded.

"It would be my honor."

...

Liam Sloan heard about what happened at the hospital and rushed over to Imperial Crest. When no one answered his knock, he let himself in, just in time to hear that sentence.

’Yep, his brother had used every trick in the book to keep his sister-in-law by his side. He seemed gentle and loyal, but the moment she let her guard down, his brother would devour her, leaving not even the bones.’

Then came the line: "Be my secret lover."

And his brother’s reply was, "It would be my honor."

Liam Sloan could only scoff.

’Estelle, how can you be rewarding him for this?!’

Liam was torn, wanting to speak yet holding his tongue, then wanting to speak again. In the end, he couldn’t help but knock on the doorframe. "Ahem!"

Estelle Lockwood and Nathaniel Sloan turned their heads in unison.

Their posture was incredibly intimate. Estelle was completely nestled in his arms, and when she turned her head and saw Liam Sloan, her expression immediately froze.

Nathaniel Sloan, on the other hand, was perfectly composed. His tone didn’t shift in the slightest. "Is there something you need?"

Liam said, "...Haha, no, nothing’s wrong. I just came to see how things are... Well... I’ll leave you two to your private time, then?"

He turned, ready to make a quick escape.

Estelle Lockwood’s eyes narrowed. As she mulled over Nathaniel Sloan’s words, her gaze fell on Liam Sloan, and a brilliant idea suddenly struck her.

"Attorney Sloan, you must have handled plenty of divorce cases. Are you free? We should talk."

She paused for a moment after speaking. "It just occurred to me—I never did get the divorce certificate from Mr. Sloan back then."

Liam Sloan looked like he’d seen a ghost. ’Help my sister-in-law get a divorce?’ He pointed at himself. ’Ah, me?’

Nathaniel Sloan’s eyes narrowed.

Liam Sloan felt a dangerous presence closing in. "Ah, well, I, uh..."

"Mr. Sloan won’t try to stop us, will he?" Estelle Lockwood said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Don’t forget," she added, her gaze fixed on Nathaniel, "you’re still on probation."

Nathaniel Sloan’s expression immediately softened, and the invisible pressure in the room instantly vanished. "Yes. I won’t stop you."

Estelle Lockwood’s smile widened. "Then I’ll be relying on you, Attorney Sloan. Mr. Sloan, go make dinner. Oh, by the way, do you still remember my tastes?"

Nathaniel Sloan replied without a second of hesitation, "You don’t eat scallions, ginger, or anything greasy and spicy. Not too salty, but not too bland either. I’ll remember to season it just right."

Estelle Lockwood was speechless. ’She had said those words on her first day back in the country just to make things difficult for Nathaniel Sloan. Impressive that he actually remembered.’

Nathaniel Sloan nodded and went into the kitchen.

Liam Sloan’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. He stammered, wanting to say something. ’His brother actually went into the kitchen!’

"Is that so strange?" Estelle Lockwood asked coolly.

Liam Sloan immediately shook his head. "No, no, no, not strange at all."

"Mm," Estelle Lockwood said calmly. "I don’t find it strange either."

What else could Liam Sloan say? He could only sit nervously on the sofa, terrified that Estelle would ask him for the fastest and most effective way to get a divorce. How was he supposed to answer that? 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

But Estelle Lockwood was busy with something on her phone.

Liam Sloan hadn’t meant to look, but he accidentally caught a glimpse and was stunned.

’Was Estelle... ordering takeout?!’

’But his brother was already making dinner. Why would she order takeout?’

"Food delivery services don’t come out to Imperial Crest..."

"I know. This private kitchen I ordered from has its own delivery service. I’m a regular."

Estelle Lockwood gave her phone a little shake. After placing the order, she made a call with practiced ease. "Yes, to Imperial Crest again. That’s right. And make it extra spicy."

Only then did Liam Sloan see her phone screen. She had ordered chicken in chili oil, spicy fish, and water-boiled pork—a veritable feast of everything scallion, ginger, garlic, spicy, and greasy.

’Who was it just now who said she didn’t eat scallions, ginger, or anything spicy and greasy?’

Liam Sloan said tentatively, "Estelle, um... my brother’s cooking is... is pretty good, you know."

’He didn’t want to get involved in a married couple’s business, but still! This was... this was a total disregard for his brother’s efforts!’

’She’d already sent Nathaniel to cook, but then she ordered takeout. What was that supposed to mean? Wasn’t it just her way of saying his brother’s cooking wasn’t good enough for her?’

Estelle Lockwood just hummed in acknowledgment, not offering a real answer.

An awkward silence fell between them. Liam Sloan was sitting on pins and needles, while Estelle Lockwood remained perfectly composed.

A short while later, the doorbell rang. Estelle Lockwood answered it and had the delivery person place the food from the private kitchen on the table.

Just then, Nathaniel Sloan came out of the kitchen carrying a dish he had prepared. He paused for a moment, saying nothing, and silently placed the steamed fish he’d made next to the spicy chili fish Estelle Lockwood had ordered.

Liam Sloan sucked in a sharp breath.

’Honestly, even he thought this was going too far. He felt indignant on his brother’s behalf. If she was going to be so disdainful, why make him cook in the first place? This was just... it was just...’

Estelle Lockwood was already seated at the dining table, her eyes glistening. "Mr. Sloan, you don’t have to cook anymore. I ordered from the private kitchen. Come, sit and eat."

Nathaniel Sloan was silent for a moment. "I thought you didn’t eat greasy or spicy food?"

Estelle Lockwood’s expression didn’t flicker. "I lied. What of it?"

Liam gasped. ’It’s over, it’s over! There’s no way his brother will put up with this!’

But Nathaniel Sloan actually let out a soft laugh. "So this is what you like to eat. I’ll remember that. But overly greasy food isn’t healthy. You can have some, but not too much."

Liam choked on his breath, holding it in. ’Well, what do you know. The logic of a love-addled brain really is on another level.’

Estelle Lockwood asked in a low voice, "Mr. Sloan, I sent you to cook, but then I ordered takeout. Don’t you think I’m disrespecting you?"

Nathaniel Sloan’s heart clenched with a pang of bitterness and pain.

It wasn’t for himself that he felt the pain, but because he knew just how terribly he had been in the wrong before.

He had already guessed what Estelle Lockwood would say next.

Estelle Lockwood said, "But really, Mr. Sloan, my heart just aches for you. There are so many other things you could be doing at home. You could go out with friends, or learn a new skill if you’re bored. There’s no need to waste your time cooking. After all, we have a chef at home, and private kitchens outside. Do you have so much free time that you feel the need to play chef?"

Was there anything wrong with her words? On the surface, they sounded perfectly reasonable.

But back then, Estelle Lockwood had cooked a whole table of food and was waiting for Nathaniel Sloan to come home.

She waited until nine o’clock at night.

Only to be met with Nathaniel Sloan’s words: "I’ve already eaten. If you’re that bored at home, you can go out with friends more. We have a chef; you don’t need to be so eager to play one."

He hadn’t just rejected her kind gesture; he had told her not to do it again.

And so, the meal grew cold. The dishes Estelle Lockwood had spent all evening preparing went completely unappreciated.

Nathaniel Sloan snapped back to the present. His heart ached with an even deeper, numbing bitterness. When he spoke again, his voice was several shades huskier.

"Miss Lockwood, I told you," he said, "however you choose to treat me, I will gladly endure it."

He wasn’t afraid of these petty acts of revenge. He was afraid of the day she wouldn’t even have the energy to bother with revenge at all.

If she could get her own back from him, little by little, perhaps she could finally untangle the knots in her heart. How could Nathaniel Sloan be anything but happy about that?

Liam Sloan was utterly stunned. "?"

While still reeling from shock, he heard Nathaniel Sloan ask, his tone casual and seemingly unconcerned, though the tightening of his fingertips betrayed his tension, "What were you two just talking about?"

Liam, who had in fact discussed nothing at all, was just about to open his mouth.

But Estelle Lockwood beat him to it. "Oh, just the divorce."