Rowan laughed. “Nah, it’s fine. It’s their business, I’m not going to poke my nose into it.”He knew the head missus of the York family had to manage quite a few smaller businesses. The profits from those businesses were for the ladies who married into the York family to spend, and for covering the various expenses the manor came with.The men would handle the external affairs, while the women would handle the internal, so the men just needed to manage the family business well.The two brothers entered Westbrooke Gardens and looked at several places.In the end, Alex bought a penthouse unit. He signed the contract and paid the deposit on the spot.When they left Westbrooke Gardens, however, Rowan was left alone. Alex had said he wanted to check out the area alone to familiarize himself with the surroundings.Rowan felt that something was off about Alex, but could not pinpoint it. He had no choice but to head back to Wildridge Manor by himself.Once he was back at the manor, Rowa

Ivor went upstairs and walked up to Sheila’s room door. He knocked as he called through it, “Are you up, Sheila?”“I’m up.” Sheila had already changed out of her pajamas and was about to go downstairs to have her meal before heading to work. She walked over to pull open the door.“Is it time to eat, Ivor?” Sheila thought her brother was there to wake her and tell her to eat.“I’m on night shifts, so I always get up around this time.” She walked out of her room with a smile on her face. “Because my stomach wakes me up.”However, Ivor said, “Alex York is here. He brought a bouquet of flowers and even said he’s giving you a banner at the hospital tomorrow.”“Alex York?” Sheila was taken aback. “Why is he here? How does he know we live here?”She had only spoken to Alex a little bit before, during her rounds in the hospital. Usually, she was too busy, and he was meant to be recuperating, so they had not interacted much. She remembered she had never told him where she lived.In fact,

To the other Joneses, Alex said he had come to express his thanks. However, to Sheila, he said his main purpose was house-hunting, and knowing this was her home, he decided to stop by to thank her for her care during his hospital stay.The Joneses all looked at Alex. Ivor felt that Alex definitely had some interest in his sister.Sheila, however, did not overthink it. What she found curious was why Alex had come here to buy a house. There were no villa districts in this area. Given Alex’s status and position, if he were buying property, it should be a villa.“You came to look at properties?” Sheila sat down next to her brother and asked curiously, “Which ones did you view? Are you planning to buy a place nearby?”Alex said, “I went to Westbrooke Gardens and found a nice penthouse that I liked. I’ve already paid the deposit. I’ll pay the balance when we complete the paperwork.”“Westbrooke Gardens? Oh, that’s a nice place. Our family also has an apartment there, but we usually live

Sheila stood up as well. She walked Alex out. However, Alex told her it was alright and walked in the direction of Westbrooke Gardens. Sheila watched him walk out of sight before turning to go back into the clinic.The lady who helped cook for them had already come downstairs to call them upstairs for dinner.“Did Mr. York walk here? Didn’t he drive?” Ivor glanced in the direction Alex had vanished and asked.“Well, he came by to look at properties to buy, so his car must be parked at Westbrooke Gardens. No, wait, his hands aren’t fully healed yet, so he probably didn’t drive.“Though he should already be well enough to drive, actually,” Sheila replied as she walked. “Anyway, who cares? Rich young masters like him always have drivers when they go out. They hardly need to drive themselves.“His eldest cousin even goes everywhere with several bodyguards—it’s even more of a parade.”Ivor remarked, “I’ve heard he does that, but it’s not to parade his wealth or anything like that. I

Alex chuckled, “Alright then, you do your thing. Don’t drink too much, and be careful. I’ll call a cab back myself.“By the way, I’m not going back to the manor. I’ll stay at my own place for a few days. If I go back, I’ll just be on the receiving end of Mom’s disapproving looks again, as if being single is so shameful. River isn’t even married yet! He just brought his girlfriend home to meet the family, and Mom’s already that anxious.“She doesn’t consider how old River is. He’s almost thirty-two, while I still have like a year or two before I hit thirty.“River’s not innocent either. He always used to say he definitely wouldn’t get married before he turned thirty-five. I thought if he got married at thirty-five, he could be our shield and let us enjoy a few more carefree years.“But then, before this summer’s even over, River brought his girlfriend home. That was really fast.”So even rivals could become lovers. River really was something else.Then again, River and Ms. Lafayet