Love That Came Too Late

"What do you really want to know?"

Serena asked as she stared into Adrian's eyes seriously.

Adrian hesitated for a moment; he hadn't expected his question to make Serena look at him like that—so intense and sharp!

"I'm just curious, Mom!" Adrian replied with a slight smile. "I don't remember how your relationship with Father was. But seeing how you are with Ren makes me wonder—why did you choose to marry Father instead of being with Ren Shield, the man you clearly loved?"

Hearing that, Serena smiled bitterly.

"Because when I married your father, there was no Ren at that time," Serena replied honestly.

Adrian frowned.

"Ren came into the picture about one or two years into my marriage. I don't remember exactly when," Serena added.

Now Adrian widened his eyes in shock at his mother's confession. If what she said was true, that meant Ren Shield had feelings for a married woman.

"Even though we had 'feelings' back then, we never crossed the line. We knew our boundaries, knew what was right and wrong. Especially me—I had a responsibility that I had to carry alone at that time," Serena said.

Adrian fell silent, struggling to believe what he had just heard. But thinking back, he remembered how Serena had always been busy taking care of him and managing the Shine family. A 20-year-old girl was forced to grow up quickly after marriage, burdened with enormous responsibilities.

Adrian now truly felt that his family had been unfair to his stepmother.

"I'm sorry..."

Adrian whispered weakly to Serena.

"Hmm? What did you say?"

Serena asked, not catching his words.

Adrian looked at her and gave her a warm smile.

"Nothing, Mom. I just realized it wasn't easy for you to raise me all this time," Adrian said, choosing not to repeat his earlier words.

"Well... You finally understand!"

Serena replied with a small chuckle.

Adrian simply nodded, agreeing with her words.

_________________

Even though their conversation had ended without conflict, after retreating to her bedroom, Serena fell silent.

"Don't expect me to love you or treat you specially just because you're my wife,"

Andre had once said coldly, his gaze sharp as he stared at Serena.

"Your only duty is to be a good wife in the eyes of others and in the eyes of my son. If you can do that, I promise that all the assets belonging to your family will eventually be returned to you—without exception."

"How can I trust you?"

Serena had asked, meeting his icy gaze without fear.

Their wedding night, which should have been filled with joy, felt completely different—cold, distant, and unbearably tense.

Andre smirked at her question.

"You have no choice but to trust me and obey."

He added, "To ensure our agreement runs smoothly, I'll have John draft a contract. Once it's done, you just have to sign it."

After finishing his words, Andre turned to leave. But before stepping out, he paused for a moment, glancing back at Serena, who was still sitting on the bed in her wedding dress.

"And don't expect us to spend our wedding night together."

He added with a mocking smile.

"From the beginning of this marriage, I expected nothing from the Shine family."

Serena replied calmly.

"Especially... from you."

Hearing that, Andre's smirk disappeared instantly. He shot her a piercing glare before finally walking out of the room.

____________________

Suddenly, the sound of a ringing phone pulled Serena out of her thoughts. Startled, she took a deep breath before answering the call from Ren.

"Hello…"

Serena greeted softly.

Ren, who had been smiling, immediately lost his smile when he heard the sadness in her voice.

"What's wrong?"

Ren asked, concerned.

"Huh?"

Serena was confused by his question. Why was he suddenly asking that?

"You don't have to pretend to be okay when talking to me, Serena,"

Ren said gently.

Serena had no idea that Ren could tell her mood just from the way she spoke.

She smiled bitterly. She didn't understand how he always seemed to know when she wasn't okay.

"How do you know?"

Serena asked, curious.

Ren chuckled softly.

"Because you're in my heart!"

He replied playfully.

Hearing Ren's cheesy words, Serena burst into laughter. She laughed for quite a while, and Ren, instead of feeling annoyed, patiently listened to her laughter through the phone.

"Oh, God! You're… haha… unbelievable… haha…"

Serena spoke between laughs, struggling to breathe.

Now she was panting from laughing too much.

"I just realized… laughing too much can be exhausting!"

Serena protested after finally calming down.

"Ren… tell me, how do you always know my mood?"

"Hmm… it's… a… se…cret…"

Ren teased.

"Rennnn…!"

Serena whined.

Ren chuckled.

"I'll tell you next time," he finally said, coaxing her. "For now… I want to know—what are you planning to do today?"

Serena thought for a moment. She had initially planned to write her novel since Riri had been sending her endless texts, demanding the draft.

But Adrian's question that morning had made her recall memories she had been trying to forget.

Now, she didn't feel like writing anymore.

"Uh… shopping?"

Serena answered hesitantly. "Ah… no, no! I changed my mind—I don't think I'll go anywhere!"

After yesterday's date, Serena still felt exhausted. She didn't want to leave the house today.

"Shopping sounds like a great idea!"

Ren exclaimed, pretending not to hear her last words.

"No!"

Serena refused outright.

"I really don't want to go out today."

Ren, who could never say no to Serena, just smiled lightly.

"Alright then. How about I keep you company at home through a video call?"

Ren suggested.

Serena actually liked the idea. If she was honest, she didn't want to be alone today, so Ren's suggestion was exactly what she needed.

"You're not busy?"

She asked hesitantly, afraid of disturbing his work.

"I'm the boss, Serena. Don't forget that! The perk of being a boss is that I can work anytime and anywhere. If I feel like slacking off, I just let my employees handle everything."

Serena laughed at his words.

"Okay, then, as long as I'm not bothering you."

She finally agreed to video call with Ren all day.

Meanwhile, Rendy, Ren's secretary, who was standing in front of his boss, listened to his boss sweet-talking his future wife. He could only accept his fate—another long night of overtime. Because his boss didn't care about work at all.

Right now, his boss only priority was winning the heart of his future wife.