Chapter 6 Hand In Hand, With You I Shall Grow Old

There was a fleeting moment when Arianne saw Will’s shadow behind Tiffany. The three of them knew each other so well that Tiffany Lane had his tone and expression down impeccably. Arianne’s heart skipped a beat. Her lips parted open, not sure of how to reply. Tiffany waved at her with a grin. “Alright, my mission is done. Whatever you have to say, tell Will yourself! Take care on your way home, see you tomorrow!” She got into her car and left afterward, leaving Arianne stunned on the spot for a long time, what Tiffany had said just now kept replaying in her mind… When Arianne arrived at the Tremont Estate, it had already past eight o’clock at night. She carefully opened the gift box to see that Tiffany had bought her a necklace, while Will had given her a bracelet. In Will’s gift box there was a note which wrote ‘Hand in hand, with you I shall grow old’. Blushing, Arianne hid the gifts in a cardboard box under her bed. Mark Tremont would never agree to the presence of such things, so she dared not wear them out. All of a sudden, Mary’s voice came from behind. “Ari, you’re back? Let me make you a birthday meal.” Arianne picked herself up immediately. “Mama Mary, there’s no need to. I’ve eaten already. Please rest early tonight.” Mary was hesitant to speak as she rubbed her cool hands together. “Ari, sir has rushed back during the middle of his business trip to celebrate your birthday, most likely that is. I saw that he even brought home a present but he didn’t look happy when he saw that you weren’t home. Why are you back at this time? Sir hasn’t even had dinner…” Arianne’s breath was stuck in her throat, a wave of panic flashed across her pale face. Mark Tremont forbade her from spending free time outside. She had accepted Tiffany’s invitation because she thought that he would not return so suddenly. What triggered her warning siren was Mary’s interpretation. How was it possible that Mark Tremont had come back specifically to celebrate her birthday? A present was basically impossible! Seeing that she was frightened, Mary held her hand. “Don’t be afraid, sir won’t bite you. I’ll prepare his meal, you send it up to him. It’s your birthday today. Be sweet with your words, he won’t make things difficult for you.” Arianne nodded. When Mary was done with the meal preparation, she carefully carried it upstairs, freeing a hand to knock at the room door. “Are you there?” There was no reply. Arianne had long grown accustomed to this. Mark Tremont was a man of few words, so it was not uncommon for him to ignore people when he was not in a good mood. Gritting her teeth, Arianne pushed the door open only to be shocked. Mark Tremont was smoking, seated in front of the French window. The room was blanketed in a thin layer of smoke, making one wonder how much he had puffed. She recalled that he rarely smoked… Surrounded by the smoke, he did not look real. He had not even changed, still clad in his tailor suit, while his hair was neat without a single strand out of place. Containing herself to stay calm, Arianne put down the dinner and made her way to open the window on the side for better ventilation. “Where have you been?” Mark Tremont asked without warning. Frozen, the icy wind that came rushing straight through Arianne’s heart. “My… friend asked me to hang out. I didn’t know that you came back.” Her voice was soft, drowned by the chilly wind that gushed in through the window. Arianne was not sure if he heard her clearly. Apparently, his sense of hearing was excellent. “Didn’t know that I came back? So you mean you can do whatever you want if I’m not here?” Arianne Wynn felt ice cold, so piercing cold that she closed the window. “No… I’ve made a mistake. I won’t do it again.” She did not explain any further, nor did she wish to mention that it was her eighteenth birthday today. No matter the situation, she would just apologize for her fault as long as he was unhappy. Mark Tremont let out a light scoff, wearing a smirk as he stubbed out his cigarette and poured himself a glass of liquor. He had just taken a sip when Arianne timidly reminded him, “Drink after you eat…” Mark Tremont looked at the glass in his hand and walked up to her. “It’s your birthday today.” Looking at the liquor he extended, Arianne dared not take it. She did not know how to drink, and it was his glass. He was a clean freak. She would be outrageously bold to touch it, not to mention drink from it. “I… don’t know how to drink.” With an upset frown, Mark Tremont pinched Arianne’s chin abruptly and poured a good flow of liquor into her mouth. Arianne’s throat burned at once, making her cough incessantly. Before she could recover from the harsh cough, she was suddenly pulled into Mark’s embrace.