Whether or not to continue on or give up on a marriage was something only the person in it could decide. Even if someone was a close friend, they had no right to interfere.
It was just like back then when I couldn't move on from Irvin. Cordelia hadn't been able to do anything about it either.
Now, I, too, couldn't interfere with her relationship. All I could do was be her unwavering support. No matter what happened in the future, as long as she needed me, I would be there to clear every obstacle in her way.
Pulling myself out of my thoughts, I walked up to Irvin and took our daughter from him. Once I did, he looked at me as though he wanted to say something. But then, as though thinking better of it, he ultimately said nothing.
I hadn't told Irvin what I had gone out to do. But with the power and reach he now held, he knew what I had done without needing me to explain.
He had wanted to ask if I had made things clear with William. But just as he was about to say the words, he realized he no longer had the right to ask questions like these. So, he merely pursed his lips and said nothing in the end.
I know what was going through Irvin's mind, but I didn't bother to explain anything to him. I just held our daughter and went to my room.
We saw each other every day now, and even lived under the same roof. Even so, outside of matters related to our children, I never spoke to him otherwise. When he was in a room, I usually found a reason not to be.
I didn't know how to get over the pain he had inflicted on me in the past or how to get along with him. Hence, I could only avoid him and interact with him minimally.
Initially, our children's existence had felt surreal to me. But as they grew with each day, that surrealness gradually morphed into love.
I also didn't want to take away their chance of feeling their father's love. Plus, Irvin was desperate to make amends.
No matter how wealthy I was or how good a nanny I hired, none of them could ever care for the children as well as he did. They also could never be as devoted to the children as he was.
Hence, if Irvin wanted to look after them, I would let him do as he saw fit. But that was the extent of it. I couldn't give him anything more than this.
The twins were showered with endless love and affection. They also always got the best of everything. So, it wasn't a stretch to say they were the world's happiest children.
When Cordelia had come to visit me, she had looked at Irvin playing in the garden with my daughter. Then, she had glanced at William playing with my son. She had looked torn as she took in both scenes, feeling that both men were wonderful and couldn't decide between the two.
"Emi, maybe the three of you should just live happily together. That might be better than anything else," she had said.
I had been bent over calculating the data I had on hand. Raising my head, I chuckled and replied, "Where do I have that kind of energy? Just this data and the kids alone already take up all of my time."
Cordelia had made the effort to visit me. Yet, I was still going over data and crunching numbers while sipping on afternoon tea with her. Seeing this, she fell silent.
I really didn't have the time to think about relationships. Any free moment I had was devoted entirely to my children.
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