He Wouldn't Claim Me — Another Man Did

Chapter 166 - 152: Open-minded

The two of them separated in a flash, but Willow Thorne had already seen them.

If she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, Willow Thorne would never have believed that her cousin, Morgan Hayes, who had always been so stoic, would actually kiss his girlfriend in a public place like a parking garage.

’Men really are different when they’re in a relationship.’

Willow Thorne quickly parked her car, grabbed her bag, and sprinted toward the two of them.

"Sister-in-law, welcome to my home."

"Thank you, Willow."

"Come on, let’s go." Willow Thorne enthusiastically linked her arm with Annabelle Leighton’s. "My mom and dad knew you were coming today, and they started planning the menu and prepping the ingredients yesterday. They’ve been really looking forward to your visit."

"That’s too much trouble for Uncle and Aunt."

"It’s no trouble at all. They wish you two would come back every day."

Annabelle Leighton was pulled forward by Willow Thorne, while Morgan Hayes followed behind, carrying the gifts.

The three of them went upstairs together.

Sure enough, the couple, Sean Thorne and Lily Colton, were already waiting for Annabelle Leighton.

"Uncle, Aunt," Morgan Hayes greeted them first, and Annabelle Leighton followed suit.

Sean Thorne smiled and nodded.

Lily Colton, on the other hand, smiled so widely her eyes nearly disappeared. "Annie, you’re here! Come in, come in."

They welcomed Annabelle Leighton inside.

Morgan Hayes opportunely placed all the gifts Annabelle had prepared on a cabinet in the living room. "Uncle, Aunt, these are all from Annie."

"Oh, my, Annie, you’re too kind. We’re so happy just to have you visit. You didn’t need to bring any gifts," Lily Colton said sincerely.

Annabelle Leighton handed the watch she had prepared to Lily Colton. "Happy wedding anniversary, Uncle and Aunt."

Lily Colton opened it and looked. "Annie, your uncle and I appreciate the thought, but this gift is too expensive. We can’t accept it."

Before Annabelle Leighton could say a word, Willow Thorne stepped in.

"Mom, my sister-in-law specially prepared this gift for you. Why can’t you accept it?" Willow Thorne walked over and held down Lily Colton’s hand, which was trying to return the gift. "Just take it. Don’t let her kind gesture go to waste. If you don’t accept it, she’ll think you don’t approve of her as your nephew’s wife."

"You child, that’s not what I meant at all..."

"Sister-in-law, don’t mind her." Willow then turned back to soothe Annabelle. "This is just my mom’s subconscious reaction. After being Director Thorne’s wife for so many years, her biggest fear is someone ’bribing’ her and ruining our Director Thorne’s reputation for integrity."

Morgan Hayes chimed in at the right moment. "Aunt, just accept it. Annie’s not a stranger."

"Right, right, you’re both right." Lily Colton examined the watch from Annabelle again, this time in detail. "This watch is gorgeous. In that case, your uncle and I will gladly accept it."

Annabelle smiled. "I’m just glad you and Uncle like it."

"We love it, we love it."

"Willow, there’s a gift for you too." Annabelle handed a necklace she had prepared to Willow Thorne. "See if you like it."

"Wow! I get a gift too?" Willow Thorne’s eyes lit up as she opened it. "I love it, I love it! This is the necklace I’ve always wanted but couldn’t bring myself to buy. My sister-in-law is the best! From now on, I’m sticking close to my rich sister-in-law!"

"Listen to the nonsense this child is spouting!"

"If anyone wanted to bribe Director Thorne, going through Willow would definitely be the way to do it," Morgan Hayes added with a jab.

Everyone laughed.

"Go on, sit in the living room," Sean Thorne said. "I’ll just stir-fry two more dishes, and then we can eat."

Hearing this, Annabelle leaned over to Morgan Hayes and said, "So you learned how to cook from your uncle, huh? The real deal."

Morgan Hayes nodded. "My uncle always told me that no matter what great things a man does outside, he has to come home and lend a hand with the chores. It’s good for family harmony. So, he started teaching me how to cook when I was in middle school."

"Your uncle is a good man. You can tell just by looking at your aunt’s face and eyes."

Lily Colton had been married for twenty-five years, yet there wasn’t a trace of weariness on her face. In fact, her eyes had a girlish sparkle—traits only a woman cherished in her marriage would have.

"Don’t worry, I’ll definitely be a good, family-oriented man in the future too," Morgan Hayes said.

"Blowing your own horn, are we?"

"It’s true." Morgan Hayes squeezed Annabelle’s hand, his expression serious. "Whether I’m just boasting or not, time will tell."

Sean Thorne had cooked a table full of delicious dishes, more than half of which were Annabelle’s favorites.

"Annie, it’s your first time visiting, so your uncle didn’t know what you like to eat. I asked Morgan, and he told me these are some of your favorites, so I tried my hand at making them. Give them a try and tell me what you think."

"Okay, thank you, Uncle."

"You’re welcome. Would you like a drink?" Sean Thorne asked, holding up a bottle of red wine. "Your aunt and I are used to having a drink at home from time to time. But if you don’t drink, that’s perfectly fine too."

"I can have some."

Sean Thorne poured a glass of wine for both Annabelle and Morgan. Willow Thorne stealthily pushed her wine glass toward her father. "Dad, I want some too."

"You can’t. You’re a doctor, and you could be called in for surgery at any time. How can you be responsible for your patients if you’ve been drinking?"

"I’m not on call today."

"Who knows if an emergency might come up?"

"Fine." Willow pouted and leaned toward Annabelle to complain. "That’s my dad for you. The interests of the people are above all else. Conveniently, my mom’s a teacher, my cousin is a police officer, and I’m a doctor. Our whole family has to serve the people under his supervision."

Annabelle laughed. Looking at it that way, they really were a family dedicated to public service.

"Willow, now that your cousin has found a girlfriend, it’s about time you start thinking about your own future," Lily Colton said.

"I’m doomed. I used to have my cousin as a shield, but now I have no protection. I’m completely exposed to the crossfire of these two marriage-crazed maniacs."

"Listen to you. Are your father and I really that terrifying?"

"Of course you are! Sister-in-law, you have no idea how many blind dates my cousin went on because of my parents..."

"AHEM." Morgan Hayes cut Willow off, saying in a voice only she could hear, "Watch your mouth, or I’ll tell them you have a boyfriend."

Willow, who wanted to enjoy her relationship in peace for a while longer, promptly shut her mouth.

Seeing this, Annabelle looked at Morgan. "What? Feeling guilty? Did you meet someone you liked on one of those dates?"

Morgan Hayes shook his head. "I have nothing to feel guilty about."

"Then why are you being so secretive?"

"I’m afraid you’ll get the wrong idea." Under the table, Morgan took Annabelle’s hand and rubbed the back of it. "I swear to God, I never went on those blind dates willingly. And with those girls, I was just going through the motions. I barely even got a clear look at their faces, let alone liked any of them."

"I can vouch for that," Lily Colton said with a laugh. "Our Morgan, every time he went on a blind date, he would just treat the girl to a meal and come right back. No chatting, no trying to get to know them better... it drove me crazy! If he hadn’t brought you home soon, I was about to start setting him up on blind dates with men."

"Aunt, you’re quite open-minded."

"Of course. Life has more than one path. As long as Morgan and Willow are happy, I don’t care one bit if they like men or women. If they really want to stay single, I don’t really mind that either. I’d nag them for a while, but then I’d stop. Of course, my greatest hope is that they can both have a happy family like your uncle and I do."

Annabelle smiled.

’This kind of relaxed, comfortable family atmosphere is truly enviable.’