Diary of Fragile Heart (Spin of Loving You Too Long)

The awaited time never came for Gladwin. Somehow, there were so many obstacles to uncovering all these facts. When Gladwin was about to reveal everything to his mother, she fell ill instead, and therefore Gladwin had to restrain himself because he didn’t want to worsen her health condition.

Then, after his mother’s health improved, suddenly Gladwin had to substitute for a doctor who happened to be unable to attend a medical seminar held in Bali, Indonesia. For three days, Gladwin had to leave Flavia under Abigail’s supervision again, and during that time, he never stopped feeling anxious.

Jonas had contacted Hendrick and decided to end their cooperation. Although Gladwin had requested the investigation to be stopped, Hendrick promised to still inform him if he found anything suspicious regarding Phoebe because the man said he himself was still not satisfied with finding out, and Gladwin thanked him.

And in the third week after Gladwin received the envelope from his grandmother-in-law, Gladwin finally received a call from Julie asking him to have dinner at her house. He, who initially wanted to spend time with his beloved wife, had to restrain himself because he thought this was a golden opportunity.

Not wanting to waste the opportunity given by his mother, Gladwin immediately contacted Abigail and asked her to come to Julie’s house while he entrusted Flavia to the care of Antony and Claire.

Gladwin-as usual when he didn’t intend to stay long-parked his car in the outdoor area of the house. He saw Phoebe’s car already neatly parked in Abigail’s family garage. His assumption was correct; this was an opportunity he couldn’t afford to miss. Greeting, this time Gladwin entered through the front door feeling happy. Another coincidence made a smile clearly appear on his face when he saw Phoebe’s mother.

Gladwin chose to sit in the farthest area from the women he deliberately avoided. Barely two seconds after he sat down, he heard, “I’m really curious. You’ve been married for almost six months, but you’ve never visited my house once. Phoebe’s father even asked me about you.” The woman, always identifiable by her bright red lips, spoke.

“Forgive me, Mrs. Madsen. Lately, I’ve been occupied with work matters,” Gladwin replied, causing the eyebrows of the three women to furrow.

“Gladwin, Penelope here is your mother-in-law,” Julie intervened, to which Gladwin responded with a shrug.

“So what?”

“You should address her as ‘mom’ too,” Julie commanded sharply.

“I rarely even call Antony, who’s my real father-in-law, ‘dad,'” Gladwin replied flatly. “Besides, if Mr. Madsen really wanted to meet me, why didn’t he come along with you? Why do you always come here alone?”

Penelope waved her hand exaggeratedly. “That old man with his stiff attitude never wants to accompany me anywhere. Besides, if he came here, who would he talk to? He doesn’t have any friends to chat with,” she replied, indirectly referring to Gladwin’s mother, who was a widow.

“Yet if Mr. Madsen were here, I could talk to him at the same time,” Gladwin said, causing Penelope and Phoebe to frown with curiosity.

“What exactly do you need to discuss with Phoebe’s father?” Julie inquired. “If what you want to discuss is so important, why don’t you just visit their house?”

Gladwin responded to his mother’s suggestion with a wry smile. “There’s no need for that; what I want to discuss isn’t that important,” he replied again. Just as Gladwin was about to speak, their house assistant arrived and announced that the food was ready. Gladwin was slightly surprised because neither his elder brother nor his wife were in sight.

“Where’s my brother?” he asked the house assistant.

“Your brother and her wife went to an event. They left with the kids,” Julie replied. Gladwin nodded, though inwardly he was somewhat annoyed at having to face the three women alone. Initially, Gladwin had hoped that with his brother’s presence, he could engage in some banter, but his wish wasn’t granted. And where was Abigail? Why hadn’t she shown up yet?

Gladwin was already seated at the end of the dining table. Phoebe, without being asked, deliberately positioned herself next to him. Meanwhile, her mother, Penelope, sat on Phoebe’s right. Julie’s mother sat on a chair to Gladwin’s left.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

The dinner conversation was dominated by the three women. Although they often tried to involve Gladwin in the conversation, he only commented briefly without wanting to continue. He also knew that amidst the conversation, Phoebe was trying to get his attention. She always flashed her best smile, offered him food which Gladwin usually declined, and often attempted to touch him.

Did she think Gladwin craved a woman’s touch just because it had been six months – she thought – since he hadn’t touched a woman? It was merely their assumption, unaware that Gladwin was now living together again with his wife, Flavia.

As dinner was nearing its end, Gladwin finally breathed a sigh of relief as the person he had been waiting for finally arrived.

“Wow, looks like there’s a dinner party going on. Why wasn’t I invited?” Abigail muttered with a disgruntled expression, then promptly sat in a chair next to Julie. Abigail turned her plate over and began filling it with food.

“Where have you been all this time? I thought you forgot where your home is,” Julie chided bluntly.

Abigail chuckled with her mouth full. “Grandma, after not seeing you for so long, instead of hugging me, you’re scolding me for no reason. Do you want to know where I’ve been all this time? I’ve been keeping a lonely sugar daddy company,” she said, nodding her head towards Gladwin.

“If you’re aware that your uncle is lonely, why don’t you tell him to go to Phoebe’s house?” The question came out effortlessly from Abigail’s adversary, Mrs. Lipstick.

“Of course, I’ve been persuading him, not just once or twice but a million times, Grandma,” Abigail said enthusiastically. “But what can I do if he doesn’t want to? Every time I tell him to go to Aunt Phoebe’s residence, he always says he only misses Flavia. He misses Flavia and always says that Flavia is his true love.” Abigail’s statement earned a snort from Penelope.

“What’s the point of missing a woman who has been missing for six months?” Penelope retorted, her murmurs audible to everyone.

Gladwin clenched his hands on the table, while Abigail smirked. “I’ve said the same thing. But fundamentally, my uncle is a cheap man, he has no shame and stubbornly begs for love from a woman who has left him. I even told him to divorce Flavia, but this foolish man still refuses.”

“Why defend a selfish woman like that? He doesn’t want a divorce. He can’t marry another woman. Yet, he himself is gone,” Mrs. Lipstick interjected.

“That’s right. Even though if he had stayed here, who knows, he might have gotten someone pregnant by now,” Abigail sneered.

“What do you mean?” Julie Hampton glanced at her granddaughter.

“What do you mean she’s pregnant?” Abigail countered innocently.

Abigail shrugged. “I mean, if she had stayed here and accepted Aunt Phoebe as Uncle Gladwin’s second wife, maybe by now they would be competing to get pregnant. And who knows, maybe Flavia would win and get pregnant first.” Abigail looked at her grandmother and their two guests alternately. The two guests, in turn, looked at her disapprovingly. “As fellow wives, maybe you could help each other. Aunt Phoebe might be able to assist her with fertility programs. And perhaps, Aunt Phoebe could provide free consultation considering her position as Uncle Gladwin’s other wife. Just consider it as a token of gratitude for being willing to share a husband. Or a rental fee because Flavia has lent Uncle Gladwin to her. Isn’t that right, Aunty?” Once again, Abigail looked at her two guests, who returned her sharp gaze. It was evident that both women were very angry with Abigail’s opinion.

“Abigail!” Julie scolded, annoyed that Abigail had offended their guests with her words.