Chapter 3

Niel’s voice traveled into my ears along with the wind and dragged me out of my memories. “Does your boss treat you so badly that he won’t even buy you a jacket?”

I spared him a look but refused to talk to him.

Just then, Cloud tugged at his shirt. “Niel, since Yelena’s living such a horrible life now, shouldn’t we help her?”

She looked at me as if she found my entire situation regretful. But I did not miss the scorn in her eyes.

Niel raised an eyebrow in amusement and smirked. “Yelena, as long as you apologize, I’ll marry you.”

When those words came out of Niel’s lips again, I gave him a mocking look. “It’s been three years, and you still haven’t married Cloud?”

She had been looking all pitiful, but after what I said, she immediately started crying.

Iris rolled her eyes at her and grabbed my hand again. “Yelena, I won’t let any random person join the Stalner family,” she said earnestly.

Cloud choked in response, and her face turned even paler.

She cast a pleading look at Niel, but he did not respond.

So, she wore a tragic smile instead.

“Yelena, don’t be a nanny anymore. Get back with Niel. I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”

Niel’s expression changed, and he suddenly yanked my arm.

“Yelena, why must you insist on making Cloud sad? I already told you that I would marry you. What else do you want? Why are you putting her on the spot?!”

His questions made me look at him in surprise.

Before I could retort, Michael started bawling.

I quickly picked him up and patted his back with familiar motions as I looked at him lovingly.

Iris suddenly asked, “Yelena, is that really your son?”

She was a mother too, so she knew how mothers treated their children.

I smiled at her and nodded.

Niel just scoffed. “Mom, are you senile? Yelena is clearly someone’s nanny.

“When she ran away, she was diagnosed with severe depression.

“Besides, Lewis Corporation is an empty shell now. How can she still think about marriage?”

I did not want to talk to Niel. Whatever his thoughts were, they were not important to me.

Iris ignored him too. Instead, she looked at me with a mix of pity and other complex emotions.

After I calmed Michael down, I put him back in the stroller. Then, I bade Iris farewell and attempted to leave.

However, Niel grabbed me again. “Yelena, I said that I would marry you. What else do you want?

“I’m pulling you out of the dumps and making such a huge sacrifice for you. You should be grateful to me.”

I squashed my anger but still sneered at him. “You’re going to marry me? What about your Cloud?”

Cloud gave Niel a hopeful look and treated him as her savior.

Yet, he simply cast her a deep look before he sighed. “I told you many times before that Cloud… is just my sister.”

His words made her tear up, and ruthlessness flashed in her eyes.

She had finally managed to wear down Niel’s defenses. But Yelena just had to come back and cause him to start hesitating again.

At the sight of her losing her composure, his heart was filled with pity. “But after we get married, you have to treat Cloud better. No matter what, she’s our sister,” he immediately said.

I scoffed and replied, “You don’t have to worry about me. You can start treating Cloud nicely now. Then again, that’s exactly what you’ve been doing over the past twenty years or so.”