Reagan completed her inspection with satisfaction.
The cp she had personally shipped hadn't ended badly and were still sweet and affectionate, maybe they would be expecting soon!
Reagan held Dakota's hand.
Mother-in-law and daughter-in-law sat on the sofa eating fruit and chatting, while the two men sat beside them peeling oranges and slicing apples for their respective wives.
Curtis rarely did such servile tasks.
But he was still skilled.
It seemed to be in his DNA, no need to ask where he got it from.
However, compared to Andre's gentlemanly demeanor,
Curtis was more rebellious, lounging on the sofa with his legs crossed, absentmindedly playing with the orange in his hand.
Peel one segment, she secretly loves him.
Peel two segments, she doesn't secretly love him.
Peel three segments, she loves him desperately.
Peel four segments, he's overthinking.
……
An orange has ten segments.
The final segment was "he's overthinking."
Damn, this orange is inaccurate.
Get a more accurate one.
So, Curtis grabbed Dakota's wrist, pulled her hand over, and stuffed all the orange segments into her hand.
Dakota looked at him confusedly, "Why did you peel all the segments off and give them to me? Wouldn't it be better to just peel the skin?"
Curtis lifted his eyelid to look at her.
He didn't say anything.
Just bent down to grab the whole basket of oranges.
Continued from where he left off.
First segment, second segment, third segment...
Curtis was completely absorbed in peeling the oranges, not noticing Andre observing him.
He was engrossed in peeling.
Andre finally couldn't bear it anymore. Avoiding his wife's attention, he bluntly addressed his son, "The room we just saw, that's the guest bedroom where you usually sleep, right?"
"What?" Curtis didn't react.
He wasn't paying attention to Andre's words, recalling which segment he had counted and tapping them in his palm.
Tsk, why another even number?
Curtis stuffed the orange segments back into Dakota's hand, taking a new orange and starting from "he's overthinking."
And this one ended up being odd.
Andre couldn't stand this attention seeker anymore, "You think I can't see that Kota doesn't live in the wedding house?"
Curtis paused in peeling the orange.
He slowly lifted his eyelid, threw the orange segment into his mouth, and laughed casually, "You're overthinking it."
But Andre's eyes had seen many people.
It was only because Reagan, as a shipper, had a strong bias towards them, thinking everything was nice.
"Is it not?" "Is that so?" Andre didn't play along, "Then what about the underwear hanging on the balcony?"
Curtis: "..."
He squinted at Andre, his expression complicated. 'At your age, you're still keeping up with this stuff?
"I just know you."
Andre spoke calmly, "Ever since Kota stole your underwear from the pool when you were 21 and you had to come home without any, you always hide your underwear unless you're living alone. And now your roommate is Kota, who stole your underwear."
Curtis: "..."
He huffed indignantly, "Can't we be sweet and loving after marriage without worrying about her stealing them? And isn't it normal to hang clean underwear on the balcony? Where else am I supposed to dry them?"
"You'd rather throw them away and wear new ones each time, thinking it's better than having them stolen again."
"Or lock the balcony."
Curtis: "..."
Alright, his dad was ruthless and knew him well.
"So what? Are you going to tattle to Mom? Make her think we're lying to her?"
"No, I won't." Andre had a sense of propriety.
He knew he could tease his son, but his wife was off-limits, "But to avoid your mom finding out the truth someday, you'd better get Kota to stay."
"How do I get her to stay?"
"Are you having trouble getting your wife to stay?"
"..."
Curtis scoffed, "How could that be? Didn't you see the way she looks at me? She likes me."
Andre: "Really?"
Curtis: "You don't believe me?"
Andre: "Then figure out a way to get her to stay here, so your mom doesn't catch you during her next surprise visit and I have to console your mom."
Curtis: "..."
He glared at Andre, feeling a bit annoyed and wondering if his birth was unnecessary.
Just then, Reagan looked over, "What are you two talking about behind our backs?"
"Nothing," Andre said with a warm smile.
He handed the freshly sliced apple to Reagan, "Did you have a good chat with Kota? Let's go. We old folks shouldn't be here disturbing the young couple. I have an appointment with H at eleven to take you shopping for bags."
"Okay." Reagan smiled.
She turned to Dakota, "Kota, we'll be going now. You and Curtis be good and take care of each other. If he bullies you, tell us!"
Dakota nodded vigorously.
Reagan got up, and Andre skillfully handed her a wet wipe to clean her hands. The two left Whispering Pines.
"Ah...
Dakota breathed a sigh of relief.
She patted her chest, still a bit shaken, "Thank goodness I was smart enough to set up the scene beforehand, or we would have been caught."
Curtis: "..."
Actually, they were already caught, thanks to the underwear.
Dakota turned curiously, "Why aren't you saying anything? Oh, right, what did your dad say to you? Did he notice anything?"
She had always thought Uncle Pineda was impressive.
After all, he was the head of the Pineda family, capable of managing business affairs and maintaining harmony within the family with his unique methods and insights.
"Just nothing."
But Curtis didn't explain clearly to Dakota. For some inexplicable reason, he didn't want to tell her the truth when he saw her gleaming, triumphant eyes.
"That's good." Dakota relaxed.
She spun around joyfully, "Now that the inspection is over, I'm going to pack up and go home."
As she spoke, she prepared to go upstairs to wash her face.
But then, Curtis suddenly called out to her, "Dakota."
"What's wrong?" Dakota turned to look at him.
Curtis leaned against the stairs lazily, seeming a bit indifferent.
"I just wanted to ask if you've considered... staying here at Whispering Pines with me?"
Dakota's expression turned incredulous.
Dakota was completely taken aback and slowly turned around.
"Stay here with you?"
She looked at Curtis with a complex expression, "Why? Curtis, do you have a secret crush on me? Are you suggesting we try love after marriage? Are you inviting me to live together?"
"How could that be?"
Curtis scoffed, "I just think you probably want to live with me."
"As a gentleman, I figured girls might be too shy to bring it up, so I'm offering a suggestion."
Dakota: "..."
"Curtis..."
"Mm." He lifted his chin proudly.
Dakota gave a half-hearted laugh. "I was wondering why the rain stopped this morning—turns out it's because you've drained all my words."
"Are you crazy?"
She rolled her eyes mercilessly and left him with a final assessment, "You're really a attention seeker."
