Poor Mr. Smith sacrificed his lunch break to complete Jayson's task. He delivered the still-warm buns to the butler at the Nixon's place, without seeing the legendary Mr. Nixon. The butler took the buns, placed them on a plate, and carried them upstairs to Sidney. Sidney was pleasantly surprised when she saw the buns, not because she was unsure about how they would taste, but because she realized that he already had her in his heart. This was definitely a good start.
"Did the person who brought the gift leave?"
"Yes."
Sidney had initially planned to send something back with him, but since he had already left, she let it go.
"Tell me again, what does Jayson usually like to eat?" Sidney tugged at the housekeeper's sleeve, her other hand quickly stuffing her mouth with the pastries Jayson had sent home—a box of custard-filled donuts. The donuts had a thick, creamy filling that oozed out with each bite. The smooth, rich custard blended perfectly with the light, sweet dough, making them irresistibly delicious. Sidney couldn't help but love these donuts—they were exactly what she needed at the moment.
"Actually, I'm not really sure either. He used to only have breakfast at home."
After the housekeeper left, Sidney pulled out the handmade cookbook again and started carefully studying the menu. She thought, following Jayson's mother's recipes would definitely be fine.
She started going through the dishes on the menu one by one, deciding on the dinner options. After finalizing the menu, she gave the list of ingredients to the housekeeper to confirm, and then for the first time, she went into the storage room to see what was there. While exploring, she found a food processor, an iced drip coffee machine, and several small cookie molds. These must have been left by Jayson's mother, either collected by Finnegan or Jayson and kept here.
Sidney took out the items that might be useful, wiped them clean, and planned to store them in the kitchen for future use. At that moment, her phone rang in her pocket. Without looking at the screen, she answered the call. When she heard the voice on the other end, she regretted answering it.
"Come back this afternoon."
"Shelby... Is there something wrong?"
"I need to see you, just come back."
"Yes." Sidney's mood immediately dropped from heaven to hell. Just hearing Shelby's voice made her feel overwhelmed with pressure. She owed her, and she couldn't dare disobey her commands.
Sidney put everything down, hurried upstairs to grab a coat, and called the bodyguard to take her back to the Calderon's place.
When she left the Calderon's place, even her keys were confiscated. Only after the guard had notified her did she finally get in. She had left in such a rush that she didn't take anything with her. When she saw Shelby, she politely explained, "You called me in such a hurry, I didn't bring any gifts. I'm sorry."
In Shelby's room, only a small light was on. She sat in the shadows, her head lowered, and her facial expression was hard to make out. Sidney hated this dim, unclear lighting, but ever since Shelby broke her leg, she had grown increasingly dark and gloomy.
Shelby didn't even lift her head, sitting in her wheelchair and looking elsewhere.
Sidney rubbed her hands nervously and moved closer, trying to get a better look at her. "May I ask what you need from me?"
"You're supposed to be smart. Can't you figure it out?" Shelby slowly turned her head toward her, coldly eyeing the woman bent over before her.
"...It's about Dad and my sister, right? Jayson can't help with that case, but... hasn't he already promised to lend the money?" Sidney said cautiously.
"You still dare to bring it up? Taking that little money and lowering the status of our Calderon family. You... are you pregnant or not?"
"...No."
"The whole reason we arranged this marriage with the Nixon family was so you could have kids and strengthen our position with them. It's been two months already—why aren't you pregnant yet? You need to see a doctor tomorrow."
"...Two months isn't long enough to be rushing."
"Your sister comes home crying every day, saying the company won't even be able to pay salaries next month, let alone bonuses. If this isn't dealt with soon, it's going to be reported. You're part of this family too—don't you have any shame?"
"Isn't there any other way?"
"What am I supporting you for? Why did I bring this disaster into my life, almost getting me killed?"
Sidney lowered her head and looked at the floor, listening to her accusations.
"...How much money do you need to get through this crisis?"
"Hmph! He's only willing to give you thirty million. If you could get pregnant, maybe there'd be room for negotiation."
"Tell me, how much do you need?"
"Everyone in the city knows that the Nixon family makes money from Opal Lounge as easily as drinking water. A hundred million isn't difficult to arrange."
"Are you serious?"
"When have I ever joked with you?"
"..." The amount stunned Sidney. How could Jayson possibly lend her a hundred million? Even if their relationship improved, it didn't seem likely that he would lend her such a large sum... And even if he did, considering how her sister and brother-in-law managed things, they might not be able to repay it…
Sidney was troubled, unsure of how to bring it up with Jayson.
"Don't forget, if it weren't for me, you wouldn't even know which street you'd be on right now. Do you think you'd be living such a good life? It's me who covered up your shame, and both you and your disgraceful mother owe me!" She began poking at Sidney's wounds again, her words like a magic spell, always at the ready.
"...I understand, I'll talk to him when I get back." Sidney kept her eyes lowered, troubled but not daring to say more.
"If you can't get the money, I will expose everything about you and ruin your reputation. Let's see how you'll still be able to call yourself Mrs. Nixon."
She brought up that matter again, and Sidney felt like crying. She had been trying so hard to forget it, but this person kept reminding her.
Sidney left the suffocating Calderon's place and returned to the Nixon's place, where the butler had already prepared the ingredients she had listed for her.
Sidney was distracted while cooking, still thinking about the threatening words Shelby had said to her earlier. In her absent-mindedness, she burned her wrist. She absentmindedly turned on the tap and ran cold water over the wound, unable to feel the pain because her heart hurt even more. She wanted to face this marriage with Jayson as equals, but if he continued to use money and power to define their relationship, could there still be love? The thought stung her, a sharp reminder that perhaps she was just another piece in his game.
No matter how she looked at it, it felt like she was selling herself to him.
The butler spoke nearby, but Sidney couldn't hear anything. She almost burned a dish, and in the end, the butler had to push her out of the kitchen to put an end to the disaster. When Jayson returned, he saw the table full of dishes and Sidney sitting motionless in the dining chair. He gently rubbed her shoulders. Seeing him, Sidney felt guilty and lowered her head. She stood up to serve him more food.
Jayson sensed the atmosphere was strange and asked Sidney what was wrong. She just shook her head, her smile stiff and forced.
He knew she had gone back to the Calderon's residence today and could guess that something must have happened, but since she wasn't willing to talk about it, there was nothing he could do to help.
Sidney ate very little. After the meal, she politely sat beside him, waiting for him to finish eating.
Jayson gave a silent gesture, dismissing the butler, before setting the utensils down and leaning back in his chair. "Alright, tell me. What is it?"
Sidney stared at Jayson for a long time before taking a deep breath and gathering the courage to ask, "Can you lend me some money?"
"What are you going to use that money for?" he looked at her.
"For my father and sister, to help with their finances." Sidney felt embarrassed under his gaze, glancing at him before quickly looking down at her own lap.
"I offered to lend them 30 million previously, but they never followed up to collect it."
"I want to borrow 100 million."
"Hah! They sent you to borrow it?" He sneered.
"Yeah." Sidney felt guilty and couldn't look at him.
Have them reach out to me," he said, his tone becoming serious.
"Please, lend it to me," she almost pleaded.
"Your sister is always causing trouble, then sending you to borrow money to fix it. Don't you know she's a bottomless pit?"
"I promised them I would."
"You're incredibly stupid!" Jayson was angry.
"Sorry." She didn't dare to look up.
"I think you need to be re-educated about your servitude to the Calderon family. I can accept your background, even if the Calderon family tries to use it to threaten me, I don't care."
"It's not that."
"Then what is it that's caused this servitude in you?"
"...I don't want to talk about it."
"If you don't want to say, then forget it. I'm not lending you anything."
After saying that, Jayson pushed his chair back and went to his study without another word to her. Sidney cleared the table, and as she washed, she couldn't help but cry.
Her heart was a mix of regret and helplessness, the words she wanted to say stuck in her throat. The past—something she could never undo—hung over her like a shadow, suffocating her. She had already paid the price for it, for so many years. Why did she have to face it again?
