Our Love Story: Hard to Guard Against the Sudden Love Strike

Chapter 568 - 540: Good Night

The two of them returned to their room and closed the door. Sienna immediately asked, "What did Thornton say?"Simon Forrester replied, "He said he’s living alone in the old house, always thinking about Ian Grant during those days before he left, feeling very depressed, having nightmares every night. If this goes on, he’s going to get sick."

Sienna was speechless.

Simon asked, "How about on your side? What did our mom say?"

"She said she’s afraid Thornton might pass out at home and no one would know until..." Sienna trailed off, sitting on the end bench of the bed, holding her head up, staring blankly into the void, unsure of how to resolve this issue.

Simon sat next to her, chuckling, "She’s not wrong, you know. Haven’t you seen the newspapers? So many elderly people living alone die at home each year, and no one knows..."

"Ah!" Sienna exclaimed, grabbing his mouth to stop him from continuing, "You’re so annoying! I’m pregnant, and you’re scaring me with this!"

Simon grinned as he pulled her into his arms, leaning back onto the large bed, kissing her forehead repeatedly to comfort her.

"Alright, alright, let’s just leave it at that. Compared to our parents’ health, what do other people’s words matter? If they like to talk, let them. Just ignore it."

Sienna nestled in his embrace, making a few muffled sounds, saying nothing more.

Her feelings were mixed. This matter, though hard to accept at first, actually made her quite happy when she thought deeply about it. She never imagined in her life she would see her parents living together again.

Such compassion from God to allow such an arrangement.

Simon consoled her some more, gently yet firmly, and finally, she waved the white flag, agreeing to the matter.

.

That night, the two stayed at Melinda Linton’s place.

Quentin Thorne and Simon Forrester, after dinner, had tea, played chess, and watched the news discussing current affairs, enjoying themselves quite a bit.

Sienna went to her room with Melinda for a while, telling her she had a half-month holiday coming up and asking if Melinda wanted to go to Kitano.

At the mention of going abroad, Melinda, who had never flown or left the country, immediately asked, "Won’t it cost a lot of money?"

Sienna laughed, "Just a few thousand per person for airfare and nice hotels."

Upon hearing this, Melinda didn’t want to go, saying she was too old and afraid of flying.

Sienna knew she was frugal but couldn’t persuade her and thought about having Quentin try later.

She hadn’t told Melinda about her pregnancy, planning to wait until all related check-ups were done and everything was confirmed before telling her parents.

.

When Sienna went back to her room to sleep, Simon Forrester was not yet back.

Though the room was heated, when she got under the blanket, it still felt a little cold, not as comfortable as when Simon had warmed it for her, lacking the warmth of human presence.

She warmed the bed for a while herself, likely due to early pregnancy reactions, and soon felt sleepy. In a foggy state, she felt the mattress dip slightly behind her, and the man embraced her, whispering softly in her ear, "Goodnight, darling. Goodnight, little one."

-

On Monday, as soon as Sienna entered the office, colorful confetti rained down upon her. Her subordinates applauded, congratulating her on another victory.

She brushed off the ribbons from her suit and laughed, "I’m inviting everyone over for dinner at my place tonight, cancel all your dates!"

Her subordinates clapped again, cheering and asking where she planned to go for her upcoming vacation.

Just as Sienna was about to speak, Director-General Linton arrived, striding in with a hearty laugh that echoed throughout the floor. He patted Sienna on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Director Thorne, come in and have a word!"

The two walked into the office. Once the door was closed, Sienna hung her coat and handbag, then sat opposite Director-General Linton, "Director-General, I’m planning to invite everyone to my place for dinner tonight. Will you join us?"

Director-General Linton smiled, "You young people go have fun. This old man will only dampen your party spirit!"

Sienna burst into laughter.

"Your vacation starts next Monday, right?" Director-General Linton asked.

Sienna nodded, "That’s correct."

"Then this week, you don’t need to handle work, as new cases will wait until after your vacation to be assigned."

"Alright."

"This week, focus mainly on cooperating with interviews from official media. It’ll be similar to last year’s process, and you have experience. Furthermore, the organization will be doing some coverage on your personal performance and growth, all positive, so you don’t need to worry."

"Understood."

Director-General Linton and Quentin Thorne seemed to have a good private relationship, so Sienna was confident in the arrangements. From another perspective, Quentin was also aware of these arrangements.

Sienna had a feeling Quentin was trying to guide her into politics. Two or three years ago, he had mentioned it, but she turned it down at the time.

Back then, Cognitas was newly founded, and even before that, she had only worked with The Forresters and Vantage, all private firms. At that time, she didn’t know that striving for national interests and receiving recognition from the organization and community could be so addictive.

Now, she didn’t mind the path Quentin was paving for her, and she was willing to cooperate, believing she was capable of accomplishing things that would bring welfare to the nation and the people.

Director-General Linton analyzed her performance this time, pointed out a few shortcomings, and then left, not mentioning who would be appointed as Deputy Director-General after the new year.

But Sienna had thought it through. Her due date was early August next year, and even if she worked until delivery, postpartum she would have to rest for several months. If she were promoted to Deputy Director-General, her whole maternity leave would be spent uneasily.

With this thought, she felt much more relaxed.

.

Throughout the following week, Sienna was busy dealing with media from various units. With previous experience, she waited in front of the TV every night at seven to see if she would be on TV again.

Sure enough, on Wednesday night, she appeared on the seven o’clock news again. This time, besides a personal one-minute interview, there were shots of them emerging from the airport exit.

She was in the middle of the group, surrounded by others, looking quite grand.

However... at that time, she wore a heavy sweater underneath, a dark coat on top, no makeup on her face, her long hair casually tied in a ponytail, and a U-shaped pillow around her neck.

Her look was somewhat... unflattering.

Seeing this, Sienna almost despaired, covering her eyes and shouting, "Oh no! So ugly! Unprecedentedly ugly! I look so fat!"

Sitting beside her, Simon wrapped an arm around her shoulders, smiling, "I think it’s great. Very real, and down-to-earth. The message conveyed is also wonderful—kids, focus on your studies rather than just on dressing up. See these unassuming uncles and aunties? Because they don’t bother about appearances, they can stand on the international trade stage and earn glory for the country."

Sienna turned and playfully punched him, "Are you blind? Haven’t you seen how pretty I can be?"