Flash Marriage: Shrewd Wife, Devious Husband
Chapter 36: Man With a Plan

Chapter 36: Man With a Plan

Marcella didn’t want to stand there anymore. On the one hand, she was happy he agreed to her deal but on the other, he just confirmed that he had no feelings for her. She must be used to handling disappointments when it came to him but the more she experienced the disappointment, the more it hurt.

She didn’t want to deal with him anymore and turned to leave.

"Marcella," Tony held her arm to stop her.

Marcella didn’t turn back. He sounded very deep.

"It’s not about the Codex. I...For years, I’ve loved~"

"No, Tony!" Marcella turned. Her eyes had turned red because of anger and she glared at him. The last thing she needed him to do was come up with excuses; whatever his reasoning might be. It hurt her for him to pierce her heart further by finding excuses. "Enough!" she clenched her jaws.

Tony let go of her arm and took a step back. He couldn’t believe that she had that expression on her face. The same expression her father had when he told him that he loved his daughter: angry and disappointed.

She looked exactly like her father with the angry curves of her eyebrows and her twitching lips.

She really is his daughter! She won’t even listen to me. From the time she left the house, she hasn’t changed one bit.

With his hands up, Tony took a step back to give her space. With that step he took back, he could feel the miles-long chasm forming between them. The distance was getting filled up with dark feelings of mistrust but he felt helpless as he didn’t know how to stop it.

What can he do? Force her to listen? That would be impossible. If she was the type to listen to others once she made a decision, she wouldn’t have left the house. She didn’t even listen to her father.

Marcella wetted her lips. She saw Tony getting pale out of shock. It was not her intent to show him her ugly side. She calmed down. "We should talk to Uncle Karl," she cleared her throat. "I’m sorry, I lost my temper. But you don’t have to come up with a reason, Tony. No hard feelings. Let’s move forward."

Marcella scratched her forehead. He might be wrong but she didn’t have to lose her temper like that. Acting calmly would have made this situation a lot better. They will have to live together. She cannot show her anger like that and expect a smooth life.

She needed to be prudent. It’s a man’s world. No matter what, she needed him to attain her goal. She cannot let her hurt emotions get the better of her when it comes to him. She should forget that she ever liked him.

"Can I ask you something, Marcella?" Tony asked.

By now he had composed himself. Every word from her hurt him but when she apologized, he could see the familiarity in her eyes. She was ruminating. He couldn’t get what she was thinking. He never was on the wrong side of her and the recipient of her anger. But he cannot give up. He cannot live knowing she hated him, and he cannot die when she hated him. He is stuck.

He was a man who had plans. He planned on living a long, happy marriage with her. For that, he needs to take some steps. But first...

He wanted to check her heart. It’s not like her to throw away her feelings easily.

Marcella nodded.

Tony held back smiling seeing her furrowed brows. She was confused. "Earlier, you said that you’ll be "A wife" to me. Can you elaborate on that?"

Marcella folded her hands over her chest. She felt defensive. Why must he talk about it now?

"A regular wife... Cooking, cleaning, I don’t know what else... Laundry, maybe? Attending dinners and parties with you, hosting dinners..."

"Isn’t there an entire movement going on to stop assigning gender roles and demanding equality for women? Why do you~"

"Didn’t you want a traditional wife? Plus, I am not going to quit my job so..." Marcella interjected Tony. He sounded so conceited, and she hated that.

"You’re not going to quit your job?" he raised his brows. He didn’t think that she had thought this through. "You are going to hire a nanny for Joseph?"

Marcella turned to her side. She needed the job to have a source of income. She cannot be depending on Tony for everything. She didn’t want to wait for the day he pulled his support.

But he is right. What is she going to do about the baby?

Her anxiety rose.

"Let’s discuss that later," Tony said.

He could see that she was getting anxious. It’s a shame she didn’t inherit the strong heart from her father though. She is a little neurotic. But it’s fine. She has him by her side to pull her to reality.

Marcella looked at him.

"Whoa," she took a step backward as she got flustered seeing Tony’s face so close to hers.

When did he get this close? I could feel his breath on me.

Tony wrapped his arm around her waist. Marcella tried to take a step back but stumbled on a small rock. Tony’s hold tightened and he pulled her to his chest. She ended up slamming into his chest.

He felt her heart. It was racing. He smiled.

Just as always...

"What are you laughing about?" Marcella placed her hands on his chest and tried to push him back. But she couldn’t.

He pulled her into his embrace and leaned to her ear. Her loose strands of hair tickled his nose. He fixed them with his fingers. He could feel her warm breath on his shoulder and her breath had turned shallow.

"Will hugging me come under your wifely duties?" he asked.

"...Yes," she said. He could hear the shortness of her breath and his lips curved up.

"When it is necessary..." she added.

"When it is necessary?" he asked back.

"Yes, when..."

She looked for answers and he wanted to see her expression.

"When...?" he looked at her face.

She leaned backward and her back arched. He feared she might snap her back and let her go carefully.

"I figured you might want to have babies of your own?" she asked. "We can hug when you want to make..." she cleared her throat.

"Make love?" Tony asked.

"Babies..." She said forcefully as if she was correcting him. By now, she had covered her mouth with her hand.

Tony pressed his lips. For some reason, she believed that she doesn’t blush. But what is that red blooming on her cheeks if not a blush? This is not the first time he was seeing it either.

Marcella wanted to run away. And that’s what she did.

He’s such a pervert! Of all things related to marriage, he wanted to talk only about "that"!

Traditional, my foot! He’s a scoundrel! After everything, he has the nerve to talk to me about that!

Mumbling under her breath, she walked inside the house.

Tony chuckled watching her run away.

There she is... My little bird...