"Julia, I'm very happy that you're jealous because of me."

"I told you, I'm not jealous." Julia Bluen's face flushed, and she was unwilling to admit she was jealous of her sister.

"Heh," Glades Horne chuckled softly, not pointing out her lie.

"I'm tired. I'm going to sleep." Julia reached out to pry his large hand from her waist.

"Alright." He bent down and scooped her up.

Julia didn't scream. Instead, she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck. After all, they were a legally married couple. If he wanted to hold her, then let him. She had no objections, and it even saved her the effort of walking.

He carried her into the bedroom and laid her on the bed. He first touched Julia's short hair to make sure it was dry. Only then did he lower his head, gaze at her intently, and say with a smile, "Want to hear a story?"

Listen to a story?

"Can you even tell a story?" Julia eyed him with a hint of skepticism.

"If you want to hear one, I can tell one." Glades Horne lay down on his side beside her, casually pulling her into his embrace. From the first time they slept in an embrace, he had grown to love this intimate feeling.

"Alright, go ahead." Julia adopted an air of rapt attention; she was curious to hear what kind of story Glades Horne would tell.

"There were two families who were longtime friends, both very wealthy. One family had a baby boy, and the other had two girls. The boy's family held a higher social status than the girls' family. The little boy knew the two little girls from childhood and doted on both of them. He was older than both—four years older than the older sister and six years older than the younger sister. The three of them grew up together, innocent childhood friends, and gradually matured. Somehow, quite inexplicably, the boy and the older sister became boyfriend and girlfriend, and both families were delighted at the prospect of becoming in-laws. However, even though he was dating the older sister, the boy didn't stop caring for the younger one. He still doted on her as before. He felt the younger sister was simply his sister. In the future, she would also be his sister-in-law, so it was perfectly natural for him to cherish her."

Glades Horne's voice was steady, powerful, and pleasant. At first, Julia was only listening to try him out, but as his steady, magnetic voice continuously flowed into her ears, she gradually became engrossed and listened quietly.

Glades Horne looked at her even more intensely, tightening his embrace, drawing her closer. His full lips parted as he continued, "The boy and the older sister had been in love for six years, and finally, their parents set a wedding date. All that was left was to register and have the ceremony. But who would have known that when it was time to register, the boy waited for a long time, but the older sister never showed up. She had run off, jilting him. She treated their six years of love as if it were a play. Once the play was over, the protagonist simply made their exit. The boy was furious, absolutely furious, and also desolate. He believed he had treated the older sister very well. Why would she run away? Had he not done enough? Yet, the boy was also puzzled; aside from anger, he felt no heartache. Later, the younger sister came to comfort him. They both had a little to drink, and the younger sister said something that brought him a sudden realization. He realized that the reason he felt no heartache after the older sister abandoned him was because the person he truly loved wasn't the older sister at all, but the younger one. His six years of affection for the older sister were, in fact, merely sibling-like affection; his feelings for the younger sister were true romantic love."

Having said this, Glades Horne fell silent, his gaze fixed on Julia's disbelieving face.

Because the story he was telling was about him and the Bluen sisters.

He had never told Julia outright that the person he truly loved was her.

Now, he wanted to tell Julia that the person he truly loved had always been her, Julia Bluen, not Ruby Bluen. Everything in the past was an error, a failure on his part to see his own feelings clearly. As Hansen Ruiz would say, someone so smart could become so foolish when facing true love.

He wanted Julia to know that she didn't need to be jealous of Ruby Bluen, because everything in this villa was also designed according to Julia's preferences.

"Julia, I am that boy, and you are that younger sister. The person I truly love is not your sister, but you."

Julia was shocked.

She couldn't believe that Glades Horne's true love was her.

Carefully recalling all the little details of their past, she suddenly realized just how deep and profound Glades Horne's care and affection for her were. She had always believed he continued to treat her so well out of consideration for her sister and because their two families were long-standing friends. It turned out the person he loved was actually her.

"It was my own denseness that forced your sister to flee the wedding," Glades Horne said in a low, hoarse voice. "Even the smartest people can be muddled sometimes. If I had seen my own heart clearly a bit sooner, Ruby Bluen wouldn't have had to flee the marriage, and you, Julia, wouldn't have been abandoned by Nicholas Coldwell."

Nicholas Coldwell?

Thinking of Nicholas Coldwell at this moment, Glades Horne still felt anger flare in his heart.

Tomorrow, he would go to the company for a visit. It was time he checked on Helen Griffin's progress.

Julia blinked hard several times before she could gather her wits. Staring intently at Glades Horne, she asked cautiously, "Really?"

If the person he truly loved was her, then she could finally sweep away the shadows in her heart. She could also dispel the guilt she felt for seemingly snatching her prospective brother-in-law while her sister was away.

"When have I ever lied to you? At this point, if I still can't see my own feelings clearly, then I'm a fool," Glades Horne said with great earnestness.