"Who were you talking to outside?" Tilly asked when she saw Tia coming in.
"Young Master Dylan and Young Mistress Kendall," Tia answered, but she found the old madam's question rather weird. Didn't Young Master and Young Mistress come out from inside the house?
When she heard that, Tilly exchanged a glance with her dear friend, who said nothing but sighed.
Tilly didn't know what to say either.
She had never brought up adopting a nibling to Dylan for fear that he would oppose it.
Plus, the adoption would infer that Dylan wasn't a normal, healthy man; it would be rubbing his nose in it. As such, even though she had plans to do so, she never mentioned it to Dylan.
Nonetheless, surely the man knew of it as nothing in this household could escape him.
Meanwhile, Dylan stayed silent the entire journey home, and Kendall could relate to his feelings.
At the very beginning, she had thought about adopting a nibling as well. She even suggested adopting in general to him, but he said he wanted no child except for ones who shared his blood.
At that time, she even thought to herself, How will you have a child of your own when you can't even pull your weight?!
Come to think of it, she felt like an idiot at times. He had hinted at her so many times, yet she never understood what he implied once.
When they returned to Dylan's residence, Amos happened to be heading out for who-knew-what.
"Young Master Dylan, Young Mistress Kendall," Amos greeted with a smile.
"Where are you heading off to, Mr. Miller?" Kendall asked casually.
"I'm going to grab some ingredients from the central kitchen," Amos answered, to which Kendall hummed a response.
There would be times when Amos and the others didn't feel like eating in the central kitchen. As such, they'd ask for some ingredients to cook it here, deciding for themselves whatever they wanted to have for the day.
The meals the central kitchen prepared for them were practically cafeteria food, and all the meals were decided in advance. Since the food was either this or that all year round, it wasn't a surprise that the guys would get sick of the same food, no matter how delectable they were.
Amos snuck a peek at Dylan and could tell that the young master wasn't in a good mood. However, he didn't ask any questions, for he knew Kendall could hold down the fort even if the world would end tomorrow.
Kendall didn't push Dylan into the house but to the swing bench in the backyard.
"Is the great Master Dylan allowed to be tardy for work?" Kendall asked teasingly as she helped him to the swing.
At that, Dylan riveted his gaze at her, saying in a deep voice, "I can do whatever I want."
You're the one who can't be late.
"It sure is nice to be a boss." Kendall wrapped her arms around his and rested her head on his shoulder.
"It isn't nice to be a boss either. It's super stressful, and when business isn't looking up, your employees' wages alone are enough to give you a good headache." Dylan wrapped an arm around her. "You'll experience the stress of being a boss once you become the matriarch of the Parker Family."
Even when the Colemans were a huge family and the massive Coleman Empire was running smoothly, they still had to work hard. Between Dylan, his siblings, and his cousins, they had to be conscientious no matter which industry they took up, for their peers would try to eliminate them as soon as they slacked a little or fell short.
Kendall smiled in response. "Every industry and every job has its own pressures. Also, it's not like you really can't pull your weight. There's no need to take your grandmother's words to heart."
Dylan fell silent for a moment before saying, "My grandmother had already thought about the possibility after my accident; she just never talked to me about it. I guess she's still holding out hope. Also, Yoseph and Jane won't get married or have kids before you get pregnant."
Those most affected by it would be Yoseph and Matthew. Then again, Matthew still hadn't gone steady with anyone yet, so it wasn't too big of a deal for him.
At that, Kendall sat upright and looked him in the eyes. "Are you not going to talk to Yoseph about this?"
Dylan felt a little speechless. "And how am I supposed to put it?" Am I going to tell him that my manhood is functioning perfectly fine?
Kendall was at a loss for words too.
She wouldn't want to talk about their sex life to anyone else either.
She and Jane might get along pretty well, but it didn't mean that she could bring herself to tell Jane about their nighttime activities. Sure, she acted all shameless when she first latched herself onto Dylan, but that was between them, and they were a married couple.
"Just go with the flow, I guess." At that, she rubbed her flat belly. "Who knows, I might already have Dylan Junior in my belly."
They hadn't used proper protection on their first night, and if they really hit the jackpot, she'd surely keep the little guy.
Then again, there was her dream. In the dream, the baby wanted her to carry them, but she couldn't do so in the end. From a superstitious point of view, it would mean that the baby still wanted to be her daughter. However, because they had been careful, the baby had no chance even if it wanted to.
With that in mind, Kendall no longer wrapped her head around the issue.
"I'll talk to Yoseph about it when the time is right. Our issue shouldn't disrupt his future with Jane."
The fellow had been waiting for Jane's return for years. Now that the wait was finally over and she wouldn't leave the country for good anymore, it was time the childhood sweethearts had an ending of their own.
All in all, Dylan felt bad for his brother, unwilling to see Yoseph's love life being affected because of him.
"Okay."
"Go on, get to work. You don't want to be late. You still need to have a good work attitude and lead by example, even if you're the real daughter of the Parker Family."
Kendall's face flushed with embarrassment, for she kept asking for leaves.
"What about you?"
"I'm going to sit here for a while longer."
"Alright, I'll head off then. See you at lunch." With that, she gave him a peck on the cheek. "See you, dear."
Dylan watched her leave with a smile.
Moments later, Amos came over. "Young Master Dylan."
Dylan happened to be swinging in silence. In his formative years, he had never played on the swing.
It wasn't that the Colemans didn't have one at home; in fact, they had a massive playground. However, it wasn't somewhere he could spend his time. He had the greatest burden among his brothers, and he would either be learning or taking up arduous training.
"Young Master, Ronnie and the others are waiting for you." Amos had come to remind Dylan that it was time to head to work.
After the swing gradually stopped, Dylan stood up on his own. Amos wanted to support him, but Dylan turned him down, taking firm steps under Amos' nervous gaze before sitting down on the wheelchair.
With that, Amos pushed him away.
"Mr. Miller."
"What can I do for you, Young Master?"
"Have the central kitchen boil some ginseng soup for me. I'll drink it when I come home tonight."
Amos turned nervous reflexively. "Are you having some trouble, Young Master?"
The old man was in seventh heaven, knowing that his master could very well produce a progeny, wholly wishing that Kendall would be eating for two soon. That way, she'd truly have a firm foothold in the Coleman Mansion.
Though the Colemans need not worry about keeping the family name alive, the elders would still be happy to know that their young ones were expecting.
This was especially the case for Dylan. After he was met with a terrible accident, everyone just assumed that the eldest young master of the Coleman Family would never be able to produce a child of his own.
It would definitely be sensational, good news if Kendall fell pregnant.
Meanwhile, Dylan was at a loss for words. Having trouble? I can have Kendall begging in tears beneath me.
"I went a little overboard last night," said Dylan as awkwardness rose to his face. Alas, for the sake of his dear brother's happiness, he even resorted to drinking ginseng soup this once.
He would have to call his dear father-in-law later in the evening and ask that he'd give Kendall a day off to rest the following day.
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