Chapter 42
Chapter 42
After saying this, Diana glanced at the breakfast spread and said to Josephine, “As I age, I find myself preferring Epean food. to others, but it seems you youngsters like your milk and cereal better, huh? I’m not sure what you’re used to, but I had the kitchen whip up a little bit of everything anyway.”
Josephine smiled and said, “I’m not much of a milk and cereal person, Grandma Diana. On the contrary, churros, hot cross buns, and oat milk are more my kind of breakfast! There’s a hearty element to them, don’t you think?”
Diana nodded in wholehearted agreement. “Yes, the food of our ancestors is what warms the soul and packs the most flavor, unlike those tasteless, instant, microwaveable nonsense that kids these days are into!”
While they conversed, Diana slipped helpings of quinoa, hot cross buns, churros, and oat milk to Josephine in a motherly
manner.
“Josie, what would you like?” she asked affectionately.
Josephine picked the quinoa and hot cross buns.
They ate breakfast in comfortable silence for a moment. Then, Diana glanced at Josephine and asked softly, “Do you not like the clothes and accessories I got for you, Josie? I don’t see you wearing them.”
Josephine quickly denied, “Oh, no, it’s not that.”
Diana’s smile was kind and warm as she assured Josephine, “It’s all right if you don’t like them, Josie. How about you tell me what styles you prefer, and I’ll get them for you instead?”
“No, Grandma Diana, it’s not that I don’t like what you gave me. If anything, I love them,” Josephine said. “It’s just that I’m working as a nanny right now, and I don’t think those expensive clothes and jewelry fit my job. Also…”
Josephine hesitated momentarily before continuing, “I know my clothes aren’t the fanciest, but they fit me well, and I’m used to them. I’m more comfortable in them, I suppose.” Apologetically, she added, “I’m sorry, Grandma Diana.”
Diana laughed. “Oh, there’s nothing you need to be sorry about. I should have been more considerate of your circumstances, especially your job. Don’t worry about it. I’m your grandmother, after all! You can do whatever you want and be yourself around me, all right?”
Josephine nodded gratefully in response.
They went back to eating their breakfast. Suddenly, Diana noticed the dark circles under Ragnar’s eyes and asked playfully, “Did you not sleep well last night, Ragnar?”
Ragnar shot Josephine an accusatory look before nodding. “Yeah, that’s it.”
Josephine lowered her head as a pink flush crept over her cheeks. She kept her eyes on her food, not daring to look at either Diana or Ragnar.
Diana laughed, clearly amused by their interaction. With only the best intentions, she reminded them gently. “You youngsters are full of energy, and it’s only normal for you to do what you love! However, you must take care not to strain your bodies. Remember, there’s still a long way to go for the both of you.”
She looked at Ragnar meaningfully and said, “You can have your fun, Ragnar, but don’t forget that Josie is just a girl whose strength and stamina cannot come close to yours! You’ve got to make sure she’s well–rested too.”
Josephine knew what Diana was implying, but the old lady could not be more wrong. “She thinks Ragnar and I were up to all kinds of unspeakable nonsense last night,” she thought grimly.
However, she did not try to clear up the misunderstanding. She and Ragnar were supposedly married, so Diana’s presumptions, however wrong they might be, worked in their favor. At the thought of this, Josephine’s blush deepened. She did not look up and stubbornly fixed her stare on the quinoa before her.
Chapter 42
“Got it,” Ragnar answered flatly, going along with his grandmother.
He thought about Josephine’s tossing and turning last night and how that had gotten in the way of his own slumber. It was torture, but he could not bring himself to shove her away.
Nonetheless, in what might be petty revenge, he looked at Diana and said gravely, “I promise I won’t wear her out, but I wish she’d show some restraint before I collapse in bed!”
Josephine choked on her quinoa.
She started coughing and hacking to case the discomfort in her throat.
Diana asked hastily, “Josie, are you all right? Did you choke on your food?” She proceeded to glare at Ragnar. “You punk! Look what you did! You practically scared her to death!”
Ragnar pointed out in a deadpan tone, “I was only telling the truth.”
This earned Ragnar another dark look from Diana before she eyed Josephine encouragingly and said, “Pay him no mind, dear. Let’s finish our breakfast.”
Josephine’s face was still red, but she nodded to signify her agreement.
She quickly wolfed down her food and said, “I’m done, Grandma Diana. I have to go to work now. Enjoy your breakfast!”
“Very well,” Diana replied.
Josephine stood up, but just as she was about to leave, Diana said, “Hold on, Josie.”
Confused, Josephine stopped in her track and looked at the old lady curiously.
Diana glanced at Ragnar. “Aren’t you supposed to leave for work too? Stop eating and drop Josephine off at her workplace!”
Before Ragnar could say anything, Josephine hurriedly interjected, “There’s no need for that! I can go to work by myself,
Grandma Diana.”
She even added emphatically for good measure, “Besides, none of my friends at work know about my marriage to Ragnar yet. I’m just a girl from an ordinary family, and I don’t want my life to change drastically because of my marriage. I guess I still need some time to get used to all this.”
Diana understood and did not press further, though she offered Josephine, “Then I’ll have the driver send you to work.”
Thank you, Grandma Diana, Josephine said with an appreciative nod.
After Josephine left, Diana glowered at Ragnar and warned, “Josie’s a good girl, and I like her a lot. You’d better treat her well and take care of her now that she’s your wife!”
Ragnar replied unaffectedly, “I know that.”
“Humph!” Diana scoffed. She had seen plenty in this lifetime, and she could tell there were issues going on between Ragnar and Josephine,
More importantly, she had already secretly asked Conner about this. She knew Josephine only agreed to marry Ragnar because of Danny and Manny and that there was a contract binding her to this arrangement.
Diana was also aware that Ragnar and Josephine were only putting up an act to appease her.
It was a three–year contract. Once Danny and Manny had grown up, Josephine would have nothing to do with Ragnar
anymore.
“How am I supposed to cope with that? Josie is wonderful! I will not let Ragnar give that girl a hard time!” Diana vowed -silently.
Chapter 42
Diana had made up her mind. As far as she was concerned, Ragnar and Josephine were legally married, thus making them husband and wife for all intents and purposes.
That would not change after a mere three years. Marriage was meant to be forever.
Diana’s kind and wizened gaze fell upon Ragnar as she asked, “Well, since you and Josie appear to get along swimmingly, when are you planning to have a child with her?”
Even though Ragnar was startled by this question, he did not show it at all.
He simply looked at Diana and answered calmly, “We’re not planning to have children that soon. Danny and Manny are still young and need someone to take care of them, which was why I married Josephine in the first place. If I were to have a child with her, who would look after Danny and Manny?”
This made Diana think of Danny and Manny, who were born into such unfortunate circumstances. She heaved a deep sigh. then looked at Ragnar evenly as she pointed out in resignation, “You’re right. I suppose you can wait to have another child, especially while Danny and Manny need all the attention right now. But you must remember that Josie is your wife now.”
She went on to tell Ragnar about her and Alfred’s love story and the older generation’s take on romance.
After that, she concluded longwindedly, “Ragnar, now that you and Josie are married, you must take good care of her. That’s your responsibility as her husband. Don’t bully her or give her a hard time, you hear? If you break Josie’s heart. I’ll be the first to teach you a lesson!”
Meanwhile, the first thing Josephine did after leaving the Levine mansion was head over to the training institute.
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