novelraw Chapter 1103: If He Doesn’t Love Her, Who Else Could He Love?
Chapter 1103: If He Doesn’t Love Her, Who Else Could He Love?
As dawn approached, a black Hummer stopped at the entrance of the Shaw Mansion. A man, weary and travel-worn, got out of the car, told his subordinates to go rest, and stood under the large tree in front of the mansion. He lit a cigarette, his resolute and handsome face partially obscured by the smoke, revealing traces of hesitation.
After more than half a year of separation, a subordinate came to report that she was about to give birth. Richard Shaw then filed a request to return home. The peacekeeping mission was coming to an end; half a month ago, Richard Shaw initiated one last large-scale peacekeeping action, severely damaging the opposing organization and leaving the subsequent clean-up to the local government. He hurried back immediately.
Richard Shaw hadn’t slept for nearly seventy-two hours. Standing in front of his own home, he suddenly felt a sense of apprehension about returning. Once he finished his cigarette, with no more reason to delay entering, he finally stepped into the Shaw Mansion, quietly made his way into the main house, and went upstairs.
The morning light was faint, tree shadows swayed, and all was silent. The man pushed open the bedroom door and walked in.
The room was half-lit, with daylight filtering through the window, everything just as it was when he left.
Richard Shaw approached the bed, kneeling slightly, and gazed at Crystal Landon, who was not sleeping very peacefully. He wondered what she was dreaming about, as tears had yet to dry at the corners of her eyes, the small red mole at her eye corner tinged with a trace of sorrow.
The man reached out to gently wipe away the tears at her eye corner, then leaned over and placed a restrained kiss on her lips. His stubble pricked against her tender chin, immediately startling him into pulling back, only to see the person in bed already awake.
Crystal Landon had been suffering from insomnia lately, waking at the slightest disturbance. Upon realizing someone was present, she met a pair of eyes deep as the night. The man was darker than when he left home, with sharp eyes like a wolf’s, his handsome face marked with a few yet-healed scars, and an aura of chilling fierceness from the battlefield.
Startled by his presence, Crystal Landon’s body shuddered slightly, feeling his intense aura, even nightmares that had plagued her retreated. For a brief moment, there was silence until Leah let out a soft hum and furrowed her brow.
The man immediately leaned down, kneeling at the bedside on one knee, grasping her small hand resting on the blanket, and in a deep, hoarse voice asked, "Did I scare you?"
Crystal Landon shook her head and softly replied, "The baby just kicked me."
Richard Shaw then turned his attention to her belly, wanting to touch but hesitating, asking somewhat awkwardly, "Does it hurt when the baby kicks? What should I do?"
He really wanted to pull the little thing out and give it a spanking.
As Crystal Landon struggled to sit up, her hand accidentally brushed his chin, getting pricked by his stubble, tingling. She said unconsciously, "It doesn’t hurt, just makes me a bit nervous."
She leaned half against the bed, her face soft and fair, features bright, with her long hair spread out, uncharacteristically compliant.
The tumultuous heart Richard Shaw had carried for over half a year suddenly calmed. He gently leaned down, embraced her lightly, and said in a deep voice, "Don’t worry, I’m back."
The man’s stable, reassuring presence enveloped her, making Crystal Landon sigh softly. Her gradually cold heart, embraced like this after more than half a year’s absence, warmed slightly. Perhaps she truly loved this straightforward yet clumsy man. At least when he neglected her, it was to safeguard the country, dedicated to the most honorable profession in the world.
If he showed even a hint of tenderness, she couldn’t help but want to be close to him, to draw a sense of security from him.
After all, in this world, the closest people to her were just him and her grandmother.
Now awake, Crystal Landon no longer tried to sleep, leaning against the bed, watching Richard Shaw moving in and out, tidying and bathing.
The man showered, changed into clean pajamas, and even shaved his beard smooth, leaving only the scars on his face more pronounced. Despite disrupting his organized appearance, it added a rugged masculinity to him.
"What happened to your face?" Crystal Landon originally intended to read poetry; during these days of resting, she kept calm and did mostly contemplative things, reading poetry, listening to music, or practicing calligraphy, with most time spent reading until falling asleep when tired. Now seeing Richard Shaw back, she found it hard to focus.
The man neatly arranged the many books by her pillow and said in a low, deep voice, "A bullet graze, it’s nothing. Just looks a bit ugly."
Crystal Landon slightly smiled. Even with a face full of scars, his aura and the masculine charisma from surviving life-and-death encounters left no room for associating with ugliness.
"Knowing you look ugly, it’s not incurable." She softly laughed, "As long as I look good."
Seeing her playful demeanor, Richard Shaw felt as if none of their previous arguments had happened, instantly relaxing, though finding himself unbelievably delighted. He arranged the books neatly and felt reluctant to leave.
He had always been clumsy with words, originally intending to ask how she had been these past months, but after a moment of silence, he only awkwardly asked, "With the due date next month, why are you still staying at home?"
"The due date isn’t soon; home is quieter and more comfortable than a hospital," Crystal Landon didn’t like the hospital’s smell. Even as a Major General’s spouse, her maternity ward had long been prepared at the highest standards, but she preferred staying home whenever possible.
"Are you leaving again this time?" she quietly asked, her peach blossom eyes gazing at him silently.
Under her gaze, Richard Shaw felt somewhat awkward. This peacekeeping mission, with Crystal Landon pregnant, wasn’t something only he could do, yet he went without hesitation, simply taking time for organizing his feelings.
Through more than half a year’s peacekeeping abroad amidst fire and brimstone, his resilience was further forged, and the initial unwillingness of marriage gradually faded over time. Marrying her meant giving her everything, including his feelings.
If not her, who else could he love? They already had a child, and indeed, he was gradually developing feelings for her.
"I’m not leaving," he promised in a low, hoarse voice. He had thought through their future: he would handle the outside, she the home. She should be free and carefree, while he would be more accommodating. If too indulgent, he’d assert some control, living in harmony thereafter would be quite nice.
In these two years of marriage, Crystal Landon had excelled as the Major General’s wife. After all, raised by her grandmother, no one knew the Shaw family better than her.
Once she had the child, with the Shaw family having an heir, it would be even better.
Hearing this, Crystal Landon froze, staring at him. His tea-colored eyes, as always, carried a cryptic and hard-to-read aura.
Not leaving meant not avoiding this marriage anymore, right? She narrowed her eyes slightly. In fact, this wasn’t his first time avoiding issues between them.
The first year of marriage, he spent almost all his time at the Military District, rarely returning home, until she forced him to come back.
The second year, she got pregnant. During her conflicts with his old flame, Luna Lawrence, he chose to leave for peacekeeping abroad.
Crystal Landon lowered her eyes. Between her and Luna, between duty and emotion, Richard Shaw had yet to make a decision.
Yet, with her strong-willed nature, and Luna being the typical dependent woman requiring a man’s support, Richard Shaw ultimately had to choose. With her, there was no place for Luna, and with Luna, there was none for her.