Chapter 2: Visit Her Parents-in-law

Becky Scarlett, thirty years old this year, had worked here for seven years.

Eight years ago, Becky got married to Elias after she had just graduated from university. Elias had a position as the CEO of the Sophronia Group. About Becky, she was still not his personal assistant at that time.

When Becky was twenty-two and Elias was twenty-seven, they applied for a marriage license in New York City. Then, they made a secret marriage. They had a quiet wedding - only their parents and a few friends attended it.

The bridegroom's family was very rich. So, the piss-poor Becky Scarlett, married Elias Sophronia, a descendant of Bill W. Sophronia and a scion of one of America's wealthiest banking families, made people speechless with surprise. They rumored she had certainly gone up in the world since she married that rich man. She loved him because of his rich family, but it was actually not true.

Becky smiled reluctantly, stopped chasing the mice in her head, and the car stopped.

"Miss Jess, here we are."

"Oh, are we here?" Jessica asked.

"Yeah. This is it." She nodded.

Jessica looked at her and said, "Becky, let's just come together and get in, okay? My parents miss you."

"I can't. I still have work to do." She gave a constructive denial, "Elias is expecting me."

"You're not talking. You don't get to refuse." Jessica gave her a reason that she could not refuse, "I have just informed mom you took me home."

"I'm not refusing, Jess." She could not see any reason for refusing her offer, "Okay, let's go in."

Since Mr. Bill W. Sophronia gave all his work in the company to his eldest son, Elias moved out of his family when he got married. His parents started enjoying a comfortable life after retirement and constantly traveling to many countries. Some of the best adventures that they could indulge in were Colorado River rafting, helicopter tours and other guided tours via land. Most of the time, they would be very busy traveling around the world, so Becky seldom visited them.

"Mom, dad, we're home!!" Jessica shouted exuberantly.

"Jessica, Becky!! Come here. Come here. I missed you so much." This beautiful lady was Becky's mother-in-law, Julia Sophronia. Julia lived in the lap of luxury. Not only was her family very wealthy, but her husband also coddled her like a child. At the age of nearly fifty, Julia was still keenly beautiful. She lavished the most delicate attention on her husband, coaxed and fondled him. And so great was her charm that many years after their marriage, Bill discovered he loved his wife even more than during the first days of their honeymoon.

"Mom, I'm an adult now. Don't treat me like a baby." When Jessica heard that, she shook her head in disapproval.

Although two of these brothers did not agree on how their mom treated them like a baby, they quite satisfied Becky with this. Becky stepped over and stood beside mom. Then, she took mom's hand, smiled happily and said, "Mom, I miss you too. Did you enjoy your trip?"

"Oh, my sweetheart. Bill is a lot of fun to go out with, but he has a tendency to step out of line. For example, I thought it would be fun to take a ride in the balloon, but Bill didn't agree. He said it was so dangerous to play. Just forget about it. Oh, I have bought a lot of souvenirs for you. Do you want to see them?"

"Thanks, mom. I will check later." She smiled her thanks and asked, "And where's dad, mom? I haven't said hello to him yet. Is he in the kitchen?"

Julia answered with a nod, then she said in a proud voice, "Yes, I don't know why I have a craving for green carry, so Bill said that he could cook that food for me."

Becky nodded in approval, then she went into the kitchen. When she came, Bill was cooking in a very spacious kitchen. He put new potatoes, cut into chunks, in a pan of boiling water and cooked for five minutes. Then, he added trimmed and halved green beans and cooked for a further three minutes, by which time both should be just tender but not too soft. After that, he drained and put to one side. While he was pouring in a can of coconut milk and letting it come to a bubble, she came up and said hello.

"Dad!!"

"Oh, Becky!! I'm glad you're here." Bill beckoned her to come nearer, "Come here. Do you want a taste?"

"Okay." She sampled the soup and found the flavor delicate. However, she had had nothing since breakfast time. An empty stomach could make nausea worse, but her father-in-law cooked a really delightful meal, so she had to respect him, "You needn't have worried about the dinner - it was delicious, dad!"

Bill laughed, abruptly lightening the mood. The expression on Bill's face was unmistakably serious for a moment, and then his mood shifted and he smiled.

"Hey! How's the company going, Becky? Good?"

"Don't worry, dad. Business is good as ever." She smiled gently, "The Shinhwa Group can not wait any longer so they hope to sign the contract with our company. The Shinhwa and Gunplay Group invite boss… Elias to the party, and he is at their party now."

"Good. I'm proud of you guys…" Then, Bill shunted the conversation towards more pleasant topics, "You guys should come and visit us some evening when you are at leisure. Julia will be thrilled, and I can teach Elias to cook."

She slewed her eyes furtively from side to side. She was scared Elias was too busy to come with her. However, she smiled in approval and said, "Okay, dad. I will tell him."

Actually, Elias was an excellent cook, but he seldom cooked for her.

When Becky ran out of the house, she got the car to the dinner party. It was over nine hours.

Becky pulled the car into the car park. The parking lot here was very empty. Becky was sitting in her car. Looking this way and that way, and seeing no people, there was no need to smile falsely. She stopped smiling reluctantly. She never showed other people how she felt. Drawing on her years of practice with trying to be normal for Elias, she was used to keeping her face smooth.

She put away her glasses as though she might break them if she handled them so roughly, and she rubbed her eyes wearily. Then, she leaned back against the seat, drew her hand over her eyes, and had forty winks. When the telephone beside her buzzed, She woke up with a start. She struggled to keep her eyes open, put her glasses on, and laughed a bright artificial laugh.

"Evening, sir."

"Good day, Miss Scarlett!!" Mr. Shinhwa was talking on the phone and giving the glass a good shake before drinking, "Miss Scarlett, you are late again. If you were here, your boss would not drink a lot of wine."

_________

"Boss!!"

Becky glanced at her boss. Elias had sat bolt upright in his seat since the waiter ushered her along the aisle to his seat. He seldom showed his emotions. In fact, he did not know how to express his feelings and emotions. However, she saw him drink too much.

Elias looked at her. He answered her greeting with a distant nod. Then, he reached out his hand to stop Mr. Shinhwa, who wanted to pour a glass of wine for her.

"Miss Scarlett is here to pick me up, and she is also my driver." Elias spoke without a trace of emotion, "I hired her to ensure my safety, so you can't get her drunk, Mr. Shinhwa."

"You're joking!"

Mr. Shinhwa was dressing up the shame with a strained smile on his face. He knew Elias was not a very easygoing person. He did not want to get into trouble, so he stopped forcing drinks on her.

The party was over before she arrived. After the party, she took him home.

_________

"Boss, I parked my car in the parking lot, so please wait for me for a moment!"

Elias did not give her any answers. Then she cocked her head to one side and looked at him. She saw him leaning against the wall and sleeping. She saw him falter and made him lean on her. In this situation, she felt stunned and afraid while she saw him. Yes, Elias looked so handsome that he took her breath away.

"Boss! Boss! Wake up!" She called, but she could not hear the answer.

Elias had a powerful, muscular physique, so she could not sustain a comparison with him. Therefore, he was too heavy for her to carry him to the car. First, she held him upright with his head on her shoulder. Then, she supported his head and back while gently patting the back with her other hand. Finally, she pulled him into the car.

Elias suddenly slipped his arm around her waist, holding her close. She threw her arms around his waist and hugged for one too-short moment, burying her tear - wet face against his chest. Elias, sensing her distress, wrapped an encouraging arm around her waist and kissed the top of her head.

She could feel the warmth of his embrace, which gave her a great affection. They had been married for eight years. People often talked about how close they were, but the truth was they rarely were close to each other.

"Becky." Elias suddenly called her name.

"Huh?"

"You…" There was a momentary pause; then he spoke again, "You must have met Jessica. How is she?"

"Miss Jessica is in a good mood today." She replied. Then, she returned to the driver's seat and added, "Madam and Mr. Bill are back. They look forward to seeing you next time."

"Why are you being so mean to me? Is it because…" Elias frowned and muttered resentfully to himself. And then his voice dropped into a lower key, which made Becky unable to hear clearly.

"Sorry, sir? What did you just say?"

"Nothing." He replied coldly, "Just go home."