Chapter 97

"Are you so afraid that he'll get hurt, but what about me? Can I screw myself over for you?" Edward looked at her as if he were hearing a joke, but Clarice didn't say anything. "In your heart, am I so inferior to him, Clarice?"

"Edward, I didn't mean that!" Clarice shook her head in panic; she never meant to imply that.

"If that's not what you mean, then what is it? It's my business who I want to cooperate with and what I want to do. Please respect my decision as much as I respect yours!" Edward spoke, turning away to the table. "It's getting late; you can go rest." When he asked her to leave, it meant he didn't want to hear anything more from Clarice.

Clarice turned and left the room, a bit disappointed, but understanding that there was no way to stop Edward now.

The sky gradually turned cold, and when the first snow fell, it had been five months since the child grew in Clarice's belly. Gretta was very nervous, calling a doctor to examine her thoroughly every week. Filippo's days at