The Paper Wife’s Empire novel Chapter 4

Ramona’s eyes landed at once on the lavish breakfast spread across the table.

There were always staff in the house to cook, and Jotham never bothered with breakfast himself. He certainly wasn’t the type to experiment in the kitchen. Normally, their breakfasts were more traditional fare, but today, everything was distinctly different: scrambled eggs, pancakes, bacon, fresh fruit, pastries—an impressive variety. It was obvious who this was all for.-

Ramona saw through it, but didn’t let on. She smiled and turned to Brianna. “All your favorites, I take it?”

“That’s right,” Brianna replied brightly. “Jotham’s just being considerate. He was worried I wouldn’t be used to anything else. Honestly, men as thoughtful as him are hard to come by. Ramona, you’re lucky to have snagged such a good husband.”

Brianna responded smoothly, meeting Ramona’s eyes with a subtle air of superiority.

“Oh, Jotham’s always considerate,” Ramona replied, her tone light, almost teasing. “Not just with me, he’s a real gentleman with every woman.”

“Don’t listen to her. That’s not true,” Jotham protested, a little flustered. Ramona’s words had a double meaning, but her manner was playful, almost flirtatious.

But Brianna’s smile faltered.

Noticing Brianna’s shift in mood, Milo suddenly grabbed the last piece of fried egg just as Ramona reached for it, and doused it in so much soy sauce that some splattered onto Ramona’s pale hand.

“Milo! What are you doing?!”

Jotham’s face darkened instantly.

Brianna hurried to hand Ramona a napkin and leaned over to scold Milo in a hushed voice. “Milo, even if you’re full, you shouldn’t waste food. And look, you’ve dirtied your mother’s hand. You should apologize to her.”

Reluctantly, Milo muttered, “Sorry,” glaring at Ramona as he did.

Ramona wiped her hand, looking up at the pair.

Milo stuck his chin out in defiance as he apologized, while Brianna tried to brush off the incident, glossing over what mattered.

“All right, you’re done. Go back to your room,” Brianna said before Ramona could respond.

“Wait.”

Just as Milo was about to leave, Ramona stood and grabbed his arm, pulling him firmly to the wall.

“Stand up straight.”

“Let go of me, you witch!” Milo wriggled and fought, but Ramona—used to handling his tantrums—twisted his arms behind his back and pinned him there. She snatched a slender switch from the vase nearby and landed it hard across his backside.

Milo yelped and burst into tears, terrified and in pain.

“Ramona, what do you think you’re doing? Milo already apologized! Do you really have to be so harsh?” Brianna cried, rushing to intervene.

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify