"Lily is worried about you," Alexander said gently. "She doesn't want you to overdo it."
"I know," Evelyn nodded. "So now I'm the laziest one in this house."
"If you have time, why not think of a name for our baby?"
"You don't want to do it?"
"We'll do it together."
"You handle it. I'm terrible at naming things."
"You're backing out before you even start," Alexander teased.
"No, give me something else to do. Naming the baby is your job," Evelyn tilted her head.
"You pick one, I'll pick one," Alexander said.
"Fine," Evelyn gave in. "Let's eat first."
After dinner, they walked through the garden.
Rare moments like this were precious.
Lately, they had been apart more than together.
Evelyn walked slowly. After a while, she couldn't hold back. "Alexander, I heard the first hearing for your sister is open to the public, right?"
"Yes," he replied flatly.
He didn't ask how she knew. It wasn't a secret. News outlets had covered it. Evelyn had her sources.
He hadn't told her before. Partly because it wasn't necessary. Partly because he didn't want the distraction.
"Your sister must regret it now," Evelyn said, looking up at the stars.
"Everyone faces the consequences of their actions," Alexander said, his face expressionless.
"What about her husband?" Evelyn turned to him.
If the sister was being punished, shouldn't the brother-in-law face the same?
"He shifted all the blame onto her," Alexander said. "Everything he did was in her name. Now he claims he knew nothing. Unless new evidence surfaces, he'll only have to cooperate with the investigation."
"So he gets off scot-free?" Evelyn asked, dismayed.
"The court needs proof. Without it, we can't touch him."
"You're right. But it's frustrating. If your sister hadn't trusted him so much, she wouldn't be in this mess."
"Are you defending her?" Alexander looked at her.
"No. I just feel sorry for her," Evelyn murmured.
"There's no need. She knew what she was doing. She must have known this day could come," Alexander said calmly.
"That's true," Evelyn nodded.
The sister had been too greedy. She wanted shares in the Sterling Group. Knowing her mother-in-law would never agree, she tried other ways.
Her husband encouraged her, of course. But the real problem was her own ambition. Their ideas aligned, so they worked together.
That's why things ended this way. The family might feel some regret, but they wouldn't fight for her.
With the family's influence, they could have made this go away.
But no one was willing to do that for her now.
Evelyn felt a little sorry for her. But she couldn't sympathize with someone who had ignored her family, used Alexander's past against him, and insulted her mother-in-law.
Thinking about the sister's situation now was sad.
As for the media leak about Alexander not being a blood relative, Evelyn never asked how he handled it.
She was curious. But she didn't want to bring it up.
Maybe it was her own fear. Ever since Alexander told her, she felt something wasn't right. There was no smoke without fire.
The sister insisted Alexander wasn't a real Sterling. She even claimed he was the son of another man, making Ethan only a half-brother.
It seemed far-fetched. The sister made it all up to fight for the inheritance. But only the people involved knew the truth.
So Evelyn didn't ask. She was afraid of what she might hear.
Like she said before, she didn't care whose child Alexander was. She only knew he was her husband. Whether his last name was Sterling or not didn't matter. She would spend her life with him.
As long as he was faithful, she would be too.
Alexander was curious. He knew she had questions. But she never pushed.
She was protecting his dignity. She was guarding his privacy.
If she asked, he would tell her the truth.
But she didn't. So he stayed silent.
The truth was, even he didn't know everything.
And the people who did know might never speak.
That day, Evelyn ran into Audrey on her way back from the main house.
Audrey came over to greet her.
"Audrey," Evelyn said politely.
"Evelyn, long time no see," Audrey smiled.
"It's been a few days," Evelyn replied, smiling back.
"Your belly is much bigger now," Audrey said, looking at her.
"Yes. Mom said the baby grows fastest in these two or three months. I feel the same way," Evelyn said, looking down.
"Our house will be lively soon," Audrey said with emotion.
Evelyn nodded. Then she looked at Audrey. She seemed more tired than before.
"Audrey, have you been sleeping well? Your eyes look tired," Evelyn asked.
"How can I sleep? Lillian is driving me crazy," Audrey sighed.
"How is she now?" Evelyn didn't want to mention Lillian. But since Audrey brought it up, she had to respond.
"She regrets everything. She wants Mom and Alexander to forgive her. If only she had known sooner. Why did she do it?" Audrey sighed again.
Evelyn didn't know what to say. She had no right to answer for her mother-in-law.