Prosperous Marriage: Married to My Brother-in-law

Hansen Ruiz didn't accept her money. He simply smiled, his gaze burning intensely as he locked eyes with Rachel Bailey. After a minute of eye contact, she was startled by the heat in his eyes and looked away.

"Hurry up and take the money, I need to get busy," Rachel said. She felt slightly panicked under his gaze, unsure why this man kept appearing before her. Had she known seeking his help would lead to such a nuisance, she would never have asked for it. She had neither money nor looks. If he's truly interested in me, there must be something wrong with his eyes, she mused. He definitely needs an eye check-up at the hospital.

A pair of warm, powerful hands enveloped hers, enclosing both her hand and the money.

Rachel immediately withdrew her hand as if she'd received an electric shock. Her cheeks flushed a shade redder with anger, and her eyes widened in fury. She opened her mouth several times, wanting to say something, then seemed to remember something and ultimately said nothing.

Seeing her, usually sharp-tongued, now hesitating to speak, Hansen Ruiz unabashedly laughed out loud.

He took advantage of me and he dares to laugh!

Rachel's anger flared. She quickly rolled up the stack of cash she still held, stepped forward, rose onto her tiptoes, grabbed Hansen Ruiz by the chin, and jerked his still-laughing mouth open to stuff the rolled-up money inside. Then she tossed her ponytail and turned to get back to her work.

Hansen Ruiz pulled the money from his mouth, his smile deepening.

Who am I, Hansen Ruiz? he thought. Few people can get close to me. She could only stuff money into my mouth because I deliberately allowed it. The first time I met her, she stuffed a fifty USD bill into my hand as cab fare. Now she's stuffing money into my mouth. Interesting.

He took the money, walked over to Rachel, pulled open the fanny pack around her waist, stuffed the money inside, and zipped it up. Then, with a meaningful smile, he asked, "Boss Rachel, do you need help? You seem quite busy."

"No need, I can manage on my own. Hansen Ruiz, I've told you before, we should go our separate ways. Don't show up here anymore." Otherwise, I won't be able to stop my mind from wandering, she added silently.

Every girl harbors dreams of love, and I have my own romantic aspirations too, Rachel thought. But I'm also pragmatic. I know Hansen Ruiz and I are from different worlds. I don't want to aim too high. I'd rather create some distance now, while I can still control my fluttering heart.

"Rachel," Hansen Ruiz suddenly leaned down, bringing his face close to the back of her ear. In a husky whisper, he said, "Don't you know that bridges and roads are connected? The ends of a bridge are always roads; they are inseparable. Therefore, bridges cannot just be bridges, and roads cannot just be roads."

Rachel's entire body trembled. What did he mean by that?

Finally, Hansen Ruiz blew gently into her ear with a teasing warmth, making Rachel tremble even more. She quickly took two steps forward, putting distance between them, her heart pounding uncontrollably. His actions are clearly flirtatious!

Hansen Ruiz chuckled softly, pleased with her reaction. As long as she reacts to my closeness, that's all that matters, he thought. Her indifference would be the real problem; that would make things more difficult.

Rachel glared at him fiercely.

Hansen Ruiz, unconcerned by her glare, simply gave her a deep, inscrutable look before leaving her side to busy himself helping out. Rachel remained standing where she was.

I want us to go our separate ways, but he says bridges and roads are connected. That means he's unwilling to draw clear lines between us, she thought. This man… his laughter is just a facade, his gentleness an illusion. He's as deep as an abyss. He doesn't want to set boundaries, but I can.

However, seeing Hansen Ruiz deftly helping out, Rachel decided to postpone any discussion about bridges and roads. She returned to her tasks, feigning nonchalance.

If business continues to be this good, I'll soon have my own independent shop, Rachel thought. Once I make enough money, I can bring my parents from the countryside to live with me and let them enjoy some happiness.

With someone helping, Rachel felt much more at ease.

Hansen Ruiz was articulate. Any customer who stopped to look at her clothes ended up buying something thanks to his convincing sales pitch. All she had to do was take the money.

I'm new to business and still learning everything, Rachel mused, observing Hansen Ruiz handle things with such aplomb. She began to take note of his skills. As the Assistant of the Valence Group and deeply trusted by Glades Horne, he obviously has excellent business acumen. I don't need to learn from anyone else; I can just learn from him.

Damn! she inwardly cursed her fickleness. Just moments ago, I was thinking about setting clear boundaries with him, and now I'm considering learning business skills from him! Whatever, I'll just go with the flow.

「 」

Glades Horne arrived at Julia Bluen's Trading Company around four o'clock in the afternoon to wait for her to get off work.

Julia finished work at five-thirty. Remembering her promise at noon to make dumplings for him that evening, she told Glades to go to the market or a shopping mall to buy the necessary ingredients.

Hearing this, Glades stood up from his chair. The trading company was small and not yet well-established. Julia's office was tiny; it wasn't spacious like the General Manager's Office at a major corporation and had no sofa, only ordinary chairs. But it didn't bother him. As long as he could sit there and watch Julia, that was enough for him.

"What ingredients do we need?" Glades asked in a low voice, his eyes fixed on Julia's face. He hadn't eaten dumplings since childhood—over twenty years ago. He couldn't even remember their taste. However, the thought that Julia was making them for him filled him with happiness and anticipation, even though he had no idea what ingredients were needed.

"I'll make a list for you. Just buy what's on it," Julia said, casually pulling out an A4 sheet of paper. She jotted down some indispensable ingredients for making dumplings. She didn't like a single type of filling; she preferred variety, so she listed quite a few items. Once finished, she handed the list to Glades.

Glades took it, looked over it carefully, said nothing, and turned to leave.