Chapter 19

The girl stood up politely and nodded. "Yes, Grandpa."

Megan looked at the shy girl walking toward her-Lina Reid,Julian's daughter.From a past life, she vaguely remembered her. Lina had been classmates and close friends with Megan's sister, Chloe.

"Megan,want me to show you around a bit?"

"Sure."

They left the mansion and headed toward the man-made lake behind it. The lake shimmered in a soft green hue, with the breeze stirring gentle ripples across the surface.

"Megan, my mom sometimes talks without thinking.Don't take her words too seriously,okay?"

Megan smiled. "I wasn't really bothered by your mom today-just that third aunt's words were kinda outta line."

Lina let out a sigh. "She's been married into the Reids for years but never had kids. Uncle's never exactly lived like a saint either... so she's got a lot of pent-up anger and tends to take it out on everyone."

"She's like that with everybody, really. Just tune her out."

"Okay,got it." "Lina!"

A crisp voice called out.

They turned and saw a girl in a bright red dress walking over, long black hair down to her shoulders, and a sweet-looking face that instantly caught attention.

Lina waved at her and whispered, "That's Rachel, my aunt's adopted daughter. She's about your age.They've been living in France, didn't expect her to show up today."

The girl stepped up, gave Lina a big hug, then turned to Megan. "And who's this?"

Lina smiled brightly. "Sis, this is Tristan's wife, Megan."

Rachel immediately hugged Megan, eyes bright and clear. "Hi! I'm Rachel."

Megan had never met her before. All those novels and dramas had made her cautious around characters like "adopted daughters"-you never knew if they had that fake sweet thing going on like Molly.

So she kept things polite. "Nice to meet you."

Before she could finish, Rachel already had an arm around her shoulder.

Then came the nonstop chatter, sounding more like a nosy aunt than someone her age. "Girl, what were you thinking, trying to run away from a wedding?Tristan is tall, handsome, stylish-every rich girl in town drools over him, and you almost passed him up?"

"You two finally got together now, huh? I mean, if you hadn't bailed on the engagement six months ago,you'd probably be married by now."

"Shoot, maybe even have a baby cooking by this point."

Megan hadn't expected someone who looked so calm and sweet to have this kind of... bold personality.

She covered her mouth and laughed. "Six months ago I was clearly not thinking straight. Good thing I came to my senses."

"Well, glad you snapped out of it! But you best hold onto my brother tight-there are plenty of ggirls just waiting for a chance."

Rachel glanced at Megan's ring, then teased, "Sis, that rock on your finger is massive! I'm so telling my boyfriend he needs to up his game."

Lina just shrugged helplessly and followed after them.

After chatting a while, it turned out that Penelope Reid -Tristan's only aunt-wasn't planning to return to France. She'd brought Rachel back with her to settle down permanently in the Capital City.

Later back at the mansion, Rachel found Penelope chatting with Pearl and Evelyn.

Grabbing Penelope's arm, Rachel swayed it like a spoiled kid. "Mom, Megan's studying design over at Meridian University-I wanna apply there too!"

Penelope turned around and spotted Megan walking toward them. The woman looked about forty, with an elegant face that barely showed signs of age-she could easily pass for thirty. Her gentle expression gave off a warm,welcoming vibe.

She walked over with a smile and held Megan's hands."You must be Megan. What a beautiful face you have.No wonder Tristan is so taken with you."

Megan blushed lightly, cheeks turning pink. "Thank you,Auntie."

Penelope glanced at the lively Rachel and said with a smile, "Rachel, you could learn a thing or two from Megan's calm demeanor. If you're serious about getting into Meridian University, you might want to ask Tristan for help."

Rachel chuckled, eyes gleaming with mischief. "Asking Tristan won't get me anywhere-I'll just stick to his sweet wife instead!"

With that, she suddenly lunged forward,throwing her arms around Megan in an exaggerated hug, even leaning in like she was about to plant a kiss on her cheek.

Before she could get close, Megan was swiftly pulled into a familiar, protective embrace-firm, possessive,and warm.

Tristan's low voice cut through the moment,calm but edged with danger. "Touch her again, and and you'll be in trouble."

Rachel blinked, then pouted dramatically.,come on, Tristan. I'm a girl too!"

Tristan arched a brow, his hold on Megan tightening just slightly. "Doesn't matter. She's mine."

Rachel rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath,"Jeez.Possessive,much?"

She clasped her hands together, eyes sparkling as she looked to Megan. "Please,Megan?"

Megan met her gaze with a soft smile. "If Rachel wants to get into Meridian University too,it'd be nice to have a buddy in class with me."

Tristan looked at her dotingly and gently tousled her silky hair. "Alright, whatever makes you happy."

Rachel tugged at Lina beside her. "See that? Tristan actually smiles-like, full on sunshine and flowers."

Lina cleared her throat. "Right? First time I've seen it too. It's kinda surreal."

Just then, Mrs. Ford came over and said, "Young Master, everything's ready. Lunch is served."

With an arm wrapped around Megan's waist, Tristan casually led her toward the dining room.

As they walked, he said in that lazy drawl, "The chef here's Michelin three-star. If you like his cooking,I'll just have him moved to our place."

Megan hesitated, "Isn't that a bit much?"

Tristan looked at Megan lovingly and replied, "As long as you like it, who cares?" Geoffrey had just stepped out of the study and caught that last line.

Geoffrey:[Guess I've been replaced by his wife now.]

Everyone else:[Yep, we're all officially sidelined.]

Tristan:[l only care about my wife. If she's happy,that's all that matters.]

The round dining table was packed with famnily.

Tristan reached for the wine bottle and poured Megan a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, his movements smooth and unhurried. He even topped it off with a gentle swirl, then handed it to her with a soft smile.

Rachel, sitting nearby, fluttered her lashes. "Tristan,don't I get a little love too? MMy glass is feeling awfully empty."

He gave her a cool glance, picked up a bottle of sparkling water, and poured it into her glass instead."There. Bubbly-just like you."

Rachel blinked.Her cousin-the famously aloof Tristan -had actually poured her a drink? Even if it wasn't wine, it was... something.

Lina nearly choked on her sip of wine, then burst out laughing.

"What now?" Rachel asked, narrowing her eyes.

Lina leaned in with a smirk. "Sparking water. Zero alcohol, zero depth-just fizz and noise. Translation?He's politely telling you to chill."

Rachel forced a smile and sipped the water like it was Dom Pérignon, pretending not to care. But inside?

Yep. Tristan was savage as ever.

By the end of lunch, everyone was stuffed-not from the food, but from the nonstop sugar overload between Tristan and Megan.

Later, Tristan took Megan to his old room in the mansion.

He opened the door, revealing a sleek black-and-white design, all clean lines and minimalist vibes.

Holding her hand, he led her in and shut the door behind them.

"I lived here from eight to fifteen. Then I left for the U.S., but someone's always been keeping it clean.

Let's chill here for a bit. We'll head to the Prestige later tonight."

Staring at his ridiculously handsome face,Megan couldn't help blushing at the thought of all the "newlywed" things they could finally do now that they were officially married.

Tristan traced her jawline lightly and whispered,"You know, your name's right next to mine now-on paper and in life."

Megan's eyes sparkled. "And I signed it with my whole heart."

She tiptoed and kissed his lips.

Tristan, never one to resist her, pulled her tightly into his arms. They tumbled onto the fresh-scented bed, wrapped in each other's warmth.