She retracted her gaze and pointed at the apples. "I want my apples back."
Jun blinked and felt his ears buzz. Her voice and tone strangely felt very similar to Ai's. He noticed the torn brown paper bag through which the apples must have fallen.
"Just shoo away the dog. Plus, it's actually just a puppy really."
The puppy was merrily playing with the apples without a care in the world.
"I cannot," the woman calmly replied. "I am scared of dogs."
His mouth twitched. "I-It's a puppy really…He won't bite you."
"Nevertheless, there is still a chance of it jumping on me."
"The puppy is harmless."
"My reaction to his enthusiasm might not be harmless."
Why am I having this sense of deja vu?
He asked, "Then why are you staring at the puppy if you don't want to shoo him away? You can buy new apples."
"I thought that if I looked at him hard enough, he would back off on his own, sensing my concentration."
"Are you Ai's mother?"
She blinked and tilted her head. "How do you know?"
Jun smiled. "Well, the genes are quite strong between the mother and daughter. Plus, I kind of recognized your voice but didn't want to guess wrong."
I can now see why Ai is .
Jun's gaze traveled from her head to toe, and he noticed the elegance and poise from her figure. She looked around Nana's age, and her eyes exuded the same serenity and softness that Ai held in hers. But apart from her voice, there wasn't much resemblance with her physically. Ai's eyes and facial features didn't quite match with her mother's.
Only her voice and the weirdness in her personality were in perfect tandem with Ai's.
Xie Nuying said, "Oh. As I guessed from your voice too, you must be her boyfriend. Liu Jun, is it?"
"Yes, I am Liu Jun. I am Ai's boyfriend. Pleased to meet you," he bowed.
"The one who lured my innocent daughter at his house on Valentine's night," she spoke unhurriedly.
Why are you saying as if I was some big bad wolf who caught an innocent rabbit?
Jun gave it a thought.
That analogy isn't really wrong if I think about it.
Jun wasn't sure how to exactly answer that sentence. He bent down and picked up the apples while rubbing the puppy's head gently.
He happily nudged his head against his leg.
"Your apples," Jun handed it to her.
Jun thought about Valentine's night and all the times Ai took charge of their rounds. "Your daughter and my girlfriend is really not as innocent as you are thinking her to be," he smiled.
Ai hurried towards them and called out with a beam in her smile. "You are here. I thought you were at home," she alternated her gaze between them, "So, you two already met. What a coincidence."
"Indeed," Xie Nuying replied. "I thought of baking an apple pie for you two. So, I went out to buy some fresh apples. Then I met him."
Jun looked at her in horror.
Are you sure you have the right skills for baking a pie?
Xie Nuying showed a tinge of pride. "I am confident now."
The 'now' didn't really sit well with Jun. So, he promptly offered for the sake of everyone's wellbeing. "How about I bake the pie for you?"
"Oh. You know how to bake? Baking is really hard, you know," Xie Nuying looked interested.
"Yeah, I will be fine. Let's go, shall we?"
Jun stepped into her modest home and felt a sense of warmth and belonging as he looked around. It was just like Ai's apartment where the furniture was perfectly placed and matched with the house's decor. The light colors of the walls and curtains felt homely and welcoming.
His brown orbs shone with tenderness as he saw Ai's pictures hung on the walls from her childhood and teenage years.
"It's a lovely home," he quietly said with an affable voice. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ novelꜰire.net
"Thank you," Xie Nuying sincerely felt pleased with his appreciation.
Ai coughed and felt a tinge of nervousness as she stood beside Jun, holding his hand. "Mom, I want to properly introduce you to Jun. He is my boyfriend, Liu Jun. We c-confessed on Valentine's night and are now in a relationship. He is also the CEO of Sky Publishing, and I will be working in his company from now on."
She looked at Jun and said, "She is Mom and works at XY University as a professor of English and Literature. She is very well reputed in the college and in this area," her expression shone with pride.
Jun nodded and respectfully bowed. "Nice to meet you, Miss. Xie. I am dating your daughter Ai with the intention of marriage in the future. Hope you like my presents."
With the intention of marriage…
The tips of Ai's ears turned redder.
Xie Nuying took his gift. "Thank you. Please take a seat. I will bring water for you."
"You are a guest. Naturally, I should be a good host. Please wait," she promptly left towards the kitchen.
Jun finally let out his breath he had been holding for a long time. "Okay, I am pretty sure she doesn't like me."
Ai furrowed her brows. "What are you saying? She does like you."
"She doesn't like a man who lured her innocent daughter to his house right on the first night of their relationship and slept with her."
"Did she say anything about it?"
"She surely made it a point not to hide it. I am screwed."
She stared at him and burst into a chuckle. "This is the first time I am seeing you not so confident. Didn't you confront her when you talked to her the first time?"
Jun kissed her hand. "That was because she was accusing you. I wouldn't stand for it. Now she is confronting me, which is fine as long as she doesn't say anything to you. But it might be hard to change that opinion of me being a bad wolf."
"Oh. So Liu Jun is giving up?" She curiously asked.
He glared at her. "Nonsense! Nothing will deter me. You are mine, and nothing will change that!"