Sweet to the heart

Chapter 9

Frank's response was exactly what Mr. Ryan wanted to hear. He eagerly grasped Frank and Emily's hands, his voice full of excitement. "Good, you two are good children. Try to give Grandpa a great-grandson by next year."

Frank nodded in agreement. Emily, however, sat at the side with a helpless smile. After all, it was Frank who had promised to work on having a child. When next year came, she would be curious to see how he planned to fulfill that promise.

Mr. Ryan, being old and ill, couldn't stay awake for long after lunch. The maid mentioned that he had woken up early today and would probably sleep until evening. She told them they didn’t need to wait for him to wake up, as he had already prepared gifts for them.

Standing by the car, Emily watched as the maids loaded boxes of wolfberry tea, ginseng, and deer antler into the trunk. She covered her forehead with her hand. These all seemed like things to boost a man's energy. She glanced at Frank, who stood calmly by his side, his expression as composed as ever.

It was clear that Mr. Ryan was eager for a great-grandson. Unfortunately, she and Frank were only husband and wife in name, destined to disappoint him.

On the way back, Emily couldn’t help but say, "We can pretend to love making Mr. Ryan happy, but we shouldn't deceive him about having a child. It would be cruel to raise his hopes for nothing."

Frank glanced at her and replied indifferently, "Mr. Ryan said to try to give him a great-grandson by next year, not right now."

Emily was taken aback. "I can't have a child next year either."

"We’ll deal with it next year when it comes. We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it," Frank said, speeding up the car, his tone nonchalant.

Emily wondered what he meant by that. Could it be that he already had a plan. Placate Mr. Ryan for now and then have a child when they could no longer put it off?

Seeing how calm Frank was about Mr. Ryan's urging, she began to suspect that he might actually want a child himself.

In a family like the Ryans, having an additional child could mean inheriting more wealth. Mr. Ryan held significant assets, and now that his health was declining, he was gradually transferring his shares to the younger generation to avoid future conflicts. She had heard that the second and third branches of the family were actively trying to have children, and even Frank’s younger half-brother, who was three years younger than him, had a daughter last year. In this situation, it wouldn’t be surprising if Frank wanted a child to please Mr. Ryan and secure more assets for himself.

But Mr. Ryan placed great importance on the marriage between the Ryans and the Dh Group. Frank certainly wouldn’t dare bring an illegitimate child home for Mr. Ryan to acknowledge, so if he wanted a child, she would have to cooperate.

With this realization, Emily felt a tightness in her stomach and instinctively touched it.

"Frank, do you want a child too?"

Frank smiled slightly but instead of answering, he asked, "Do you want to have one?"

Emily's heart skipped a beat. She crossed her arms and coughed lightly. "I don’t want to have a child.

Besides, nothing has happened between us, and I hope we can keep things that way in the future. I believe marriage between our families offers you far more than a child ever could. Of course, if you want a child, we can discuss ending this arrangement early." In other words, ending their marriage.

Frank’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. After a moment of silence, he said, "You’re overthinking it."

Seeing his noble and aloof demeanor, Emily sighed in relief. It was a good thing he didn’t want a child.

By the time they got home, it was nearly dark. Maid Louis wasn’t there, and there was no one to cook.

Remembering how good Frank’s breakfast had been, Emily suddenly had an appetite for his cooking. She was about to ask him what he wanted for dinner, hinting for him to cook, but as soon as they got home, he walked straight upstairs to his study without even a glance in her direction, treating her like she was invisible.

Emily stood in the living room, watching his back as he ascended the stairs, cold and distant. She faintly sensed a cloud of gloom hanging over his head. It suddenly dawned on her that he hadn’t said much on the way back either.

She guessed that seeing Mr. Ryan today had reminded him of his father’s illegitimate children and how they were trying to have more kids to secure their inheritance, which had put him in a bad mood.

Emily had met those people in the Ryan family. Even if Mr. Ryan didn’t pass on the Ryan Group’s control to Frank. His two uncles, who were only good at internal bickering, couldn’t shoulder the responsibility, let alone his father, who spent his days indulging in pleasures.

With these thoughts, Emily didn’t mind being treated as invisible by Frank.

Since he wasn’t going to cook, she had no choice but to order takeout.

Taking out her phone, she ordered from a hotel nearby that she frequented. While waiting for the food, she removed her makeup and lounged in bed, scrolling through her phone.

Half an hour earlier, Summer had shared a video with her titled "From now on, the CEO in the novels I read will have this face."

The thumbnail was of the front row at last night’s charity gala. Without even watching, Emily could guess who the video featured. Parts of the gala had been streamed live online, and the camera had captured Frank several times.

She opened the video, and the first shot was an overhead view of Frank. He was dressed in a black suit, his chin slightly raised. The warm yellow light bathed the right side of his body, casting a shadow on his profile. With sharp eyebrows, starry eyes, and chiseled features, he looked regal and imposing, exuding an aura of inscrutability.

The rest of the video was made up of various close-ups of Frank’s face, all edited into a short, 30-second clip. The editor had added a piece of English background music, giving it the feel of a 20th-century tycoon attending a negotiation.

After watching the video, Emily naturally scrolled down to the comments.