After lunch, Melinda had desserts and fruits with Nelson as she continued to play chess with him.
Melinda was bowled over by his enthusiasm. Leonard had taught her to play chess, and therefore, Nelson could decipher the methods and defeat her easily.
"Grandpa, I accept my defeat. We can play some other game next time."
Melinda was bad at chess and didn't stand a chance to defeat Nelson. But she was skillful in playing Go.
She could easily defeat everyone.
"Okay. You have kept me company all this while. I'm sure you'd be tired. Go to your room and rest."
Nelson looked at the chessboard and studied all the possible moves to see if Melinda had a way to escape. However, Melinda shuffled the chess pieces and stared at him. "Grandpa, it's time to take a break."
"You naughty girl! I see what you did there." Nelson chuckled and stood up to leave for his room.
Melinda picked the chess pieces, packed them neatly, and went back to the villa.
Jonas was still immersed in the story. He snapped back to his senses when he heard Mary greet Melinda. He felt guilty for peeking into her laptop without her consent, so he quickly pressed the power button, and closed it.
Melinda opened the door and walked into the bedroom. She frowned when she saw Jonas smiling sheepishly at her.
"When did you come back?"
"Just now. Something is wrong with my computer and I was wondering if I could borrow yours. I need to read a document," Jonas said.
Melinda did not suspect him. He didn't want to tell her that he had been reading her story. He knew that she would be embarrassed.
"Yeah, hold on for a second. My computer is messy. I'll give it to you after closing the tabs and saving my work."
Melinda bit her lip and looked away as she thought about the novel. She didn't want Jonas to read it. "It's okay. I'll go back to the company," Jonas said nonchalantly.
"Okay." Melinda heaved a sigh of relief.
Although Jonas and Melinda had their own plans, they didn't bother each other because of their tacit understanding.
Jonas returned to his company in a daze. His mind was filled with thoughts about the novel Melinda had written.
She had made subtle changes, twisting even the sorrow parts of life into happier ones. Jonas could feel the pain and resentment hidden behind her words. He understood that he had been emotionally abusing her. He was mad at himself for everything he had done in the past.
He had married Melinda with a heavy heart only because his grandfather had forced him to. He didn't know that Melinda had married him because she was in love with him. She had started her life at the Gu's mansion with a lot of hopes and aspirations but he had ruined everything for her.
He had been a ruthless husband but Melinda was always kind to him.
Melinda deserved the best in the world. He should have treated her like a queen but he never cared for her. She had learned to endure all the pain and humiliation.
He was a villain in the eyes of the readers.
Jonas was disturbed. He couldn't concentrate on his work because his mind was whirling with the thoughts of Melinda and how his life had changed after meeting her. He had slowly begun to realize his mistakes.
He wondered if he had gone too far.
When Jonas returned to the Gu's mansion, he remembered that Melinda was fond of the dessert of Chen's pastry shop. He immediately went there to get something for her. Mr. and Mrs. Chen were surprised to see Jonas. They wondered what he was doing here.
Jonas was sitting in the shop for a long time staring at a distance. The couple broke into a cold sweat when they remembered that Holley had a miscarriage in the same place a few days ago.
"Mr. Gu, what would you like to have?"
"No, thank you," Jonas replied tersely.
The couple knitted their eyebrows and exchanged quizzical glances.
"Well, pack one from every variety of cake and pastry,"
Jonas said.
"Err... one from every kind?"
Mrs. Chen's eyes widened with shock. All the cakes and pastries were pre-ordered and she would get into trouble if she gave one from every batch.
"Is there a problem?"
"Mr. Gu, are you looking to buy pastries for Mr. Nelson?" she asked.
"No, it's for my wife."
Mrs. Chen breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.
"Mrs. Gu loves peach blossom shortbread. Darling, go and pack some."
Jonas sat on the chair and waited for the shortbread to arrive. Mrs. Chen also made a cup of flower tea as it would go well with the peach blossom shortbread.
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