What Separates Me and You

Chapter 262 Robert's Scheme

Lewis no longer continued speaking. He stared at Josephine quietly. Only a sense of unfamiliarity lingered as the two made eye contact with each other.

Josephine looked down afterward to avoid his gaze.

Lewis held her in a tender embrace, letting out a quiet sigh. He gently played with her locks. while murmuring, "Go to sleep."

His tone was calm once again, as though nothing had happened between them.

Josephine lay quietly in his arms, listening to the rhythm of his heartbeat. However, she found it difficult to sleep.

Both of them stayed up throughout the night.

Lewis got up at the crack of dawn. The moment he did, Josephine's eyes flew open instantly. She stared at the man's silhouette as he entered the walk-in closet.

Then, she saw him coming out of the enclosed space.

Lewis wasn't wearing a suit today. Instead, he was dressed in a black turtleneck sweater. His entire outfit was black, lending him an air of coldness and emotional detachment.

He grabbed his jacket and left the room without sparing Josephine a glance.

Once Lewis was gone, Josephine propped herself up on the bed and leaned against the headboard so that she could peek out the window.

It had been a few days since it last snowed. The weather was sunny, so the snow had already melted. Only a pile of ice remained lodged in the corners. The once white and clean world was now left in a messy state.

Lewis headed toward the company without bothering to have breakfast.

He had a board of directors' meeting to attend in the morning. After that, he would need to pay Moss Corporation a visit in the afternoon. Today was destined to be one of chaos for him. Josephine's leg injury was nearly healed. She made her way downstairs and soon arrived in the living room, where Mrs. Larson called her for breakfast.

The woman sat in the dining room. She stopped eating after two bites, realizing that she didn't have much of an appetite.

Mrs. Larson noticed how bored Josephine looked, so she turned on the television and put on the cartoons for her.

Josephine's phone suddenly rang the moment she sat on the couch.

She grabbed it, soon noticing Robert's name on the caller ID. That prompted a slight frown to appear on her face as she wondered if the older man had dialed her number by mistake.

Back when she lived in Alvarez Manor, Robert always treated her as though she was invisible. They barely exchanged a few sentences in one year.

If anything were to happen, Robert would talk to Lewis right away. He would never call her.

Despite feeling suspicious, Josephine still answered Robert's call.

"Josephine, where are you right now?"

The moment Robert was done asking that question, he suddenly remembered that Josephine couldn't speak, so he added, "Come over to Alvarez Manor right now. Someone will be there to fetch you shortly." He hung up on Josephine after that. It seemed that his intention was merely to inform her instead of asking her if she was available.

Robert rarely sought Josephine out. If he were to take the initiative to do that, chances were that something had happened. The woman put down her phone before looking at Mrs. Larson. She gestured, "Dad told me to go to Alvarez Manor."

Mrs. Larson looked a little hesitant. "But... Master Lewis ordered you not to go anywhere."

She seemed to have recalled something. "Why don't I call him and ask for his opinion?"

The moment her voice fell, someone knocked on the main door loudly. "Is Madam at home?"

Josephine turned around to see a middle-aged man standing at the doorway. She instantly recognized him as an employee of Alvarez Manor. He was one of the people who served Robert.

Upon noticing Josephine, the man continued, "Madam, Master Robert has requested you to

come home. Please come with me."

Josephine glanced at Mrs. Larson again, who quickly said, "I need to inform Master Lewis of

this matter."

The man strode toward Josephine briskly before stopping in front of her. "Master Robert is the one requesting her presence. Does he lack even the authority to make such requests in this family?"

"Well-"

The man made another gesture for Josephine to follow him. "This way please, Madam."

He might look respectful, but there was a strong hint of aggressive dominance that no one could overlook in his actions.

Mrs. Larson didn't know what to do.

Josephine had no choice but to stand up and follow the man to Alvarez Manor.

After stepping into the courtyard, she got into the family car. Shortly after that, the man took his place in the driver's seat and drove away without the slightest hesitation.

The woman gazed at the scenery outside the car window, where a barren emptiness stretched. in every direction. Only small mounds of snow collected at the street corners broke the monotony. All she perceived was a pervasive sense of hollowness and coldness lingering in the world.

It prompted her to pull the flaps of her down jacket tightly around herself before she tore her gaze away from the desolate surroundings.

Soon, they arrived at Alvarez Manor. He drove into the courtyard and rolled to a stop outside. the main entrance, which served as the gateway for visitors to enter the mansion's living

room.

"Please get out of the car, Madam."

Josephine nodded before doing what she was told. Then, she observed the mansion's surroundings, quickly noticing the small changes.

For instance, the oak tree planted in the courtyard was gone. Instead, a parterre outlined the space where it once stood. Flowers no longer decorated the sides of the driveway, having been replaced by evergreen shrubs.

Josephine trailed behind the man as she looked around quietly while counting the changes that Alvarez Manor had gone through.

They walked into the living room, where Nancy could be spotted resting there.

She was currently sporting a sickly and pale complexion as she lounged on the couch while snugly wrapped in a blanket. A housekeeper stood behind her, diligently massaging her

shoulders.

Nancy must have heard the footsteps coming from the outside, seeing as she opened her eyes immediately. She didn't bother hiding the disdain in her eyes after glancing at Josephine. Initially, Josephine intended to greet Nancy, but she immediately averted her gaze elsewhere. After that, she closed her eyes, having made up her mind to ignore Josephine. Josephine felt rather awkward as she stood where she was. She couldn't help but notice the mocking glances being directed toward her.

The man said to her, "Please head upstairs, Madam. Master Robert is waiting for you in his study."

Josephine stared at Nancy for another two seconds before averting her gaze and following the

man upstairs.

The moment she opened the study's door, she noticed Robert sitting on the couch with a birdcage. He was playing with the parrot confined inside. She paused for a moment before walking toward Robert.

Robert never spared her a glance. He continued giving his undivided attention to the parrot. At the moment, he was occupied with feeding the bird.

That parrot sported green feathers. Josephine didn't know what breed it was, but that bird didn't know how to speak. The way it squawked made it sound like any other regular bird. Once Robert grew weary of playing with the bird, he set the birdcage down. Finally, he raised his head to look at Josephine.

Despite feeling her knees going weak and wobbly after standing for a long time, Josephine didn't dare to sit since Robert never gave her permission to do so.

"Take a seat."

It was then Josephine walked to the couch across from Robert and took her seat there. She placed her hands on her knees and held her back as straight and rigid as a board.

Robert scanned Josephine's face a few times before smiling at her. "Don't be nervous. I didn't call you here just to berate you. You should loosen up a little."

That man had never smiled at her before, but his smile was unexpectedly kind and warm this time. Naturally, Josephine didn't dare to relax at all. All she did was tug at the corners of her mouth before squeezing out a smile in return.

As Robert playfully poked his finger through the gaps of the birdcage, teasing the casually asked, "How long has it been since you joined our household, Josephine?"

Josephine froze, not knowing how to answer that question.

parrot, he

Dr. Halliday had mentioned that she should have been with the Alvarez family for nearly 20 years. However, according to her recollections, it had only been ten years. Those ten years were the happiest years she had experienced in her entire life. It also encompassed her youth and puppy love.

However, everyone kept telling her that it was no longer the case for her. It had been many years since the last day of her happiest memory.

Robert stared at Josephine for a while after that. He wasn't angry at all when he realized that she wasn't going to answer him. He continued to speak as though he was having a monologue. "I heard that you and Lewis got divorced. Why are you two still living together?"

Josephine clenched her fists instantly. At the same time, her heart began racing.

Everyone kept calling her "madam," but nobody had informed her about her divorce from

Lewis.

As soon as she opened her eyes, she discovered a perplexing revelation. She had apparently been married to Lewis in the past, only to recently undergo a divorce. The circumstances left. her wondering what exactly they had experienced together.

Robert added, "Even though you're already divorced, you're still considered a daughter to us. After all, you did grow up in this household."

Josephine's eyes went as wide as dinner plates as she stared at Robert in confusion.

It was as though she could predict that whatever he would say next would be unpleasant.