Sunday morning, in the bathroom.
After carefully finishing her washing, Janet walked solemnly to the sink. She let out a soft breath, clasped her hands in front of her chest, and even prayed for a moment before finally picking up the pregnancy test on the counter.
"Ah..."
With a small cry of disappointment, Janet rushed out of the bathroom and threw herself at Simon, who had just pulled on a pair of trousers and was still bare-chested, biting and gnawing at him.
Simon wrapped an arm around her waist, feeling the two rows of small teeth opening and closing on his shoulder. He soothed her gently. "Once we get through this busy stretch, I'll take some time off and rest with you."
Janet bit down a little harder, grinding her teeth against the firm muscle of his shoulder and mumbling through it, "I don't believe you."
Simon could only sigh helplessly.
Since their wedding last year, the two of them had been diligently trying. Now nearly a year had passed, yet Janet's belly showed no sign of change. They had both secretly undergone several checkups, and neither of them had any health issues.
Janet had been born on March 13, 1960. In two months she would turn thirty-one, which meant she would officially pass the prime age for childbirth.
Pulling her a little tighter into his arms, Simon said softly, "If that's the case, let's rest today. That's one promise I can easily keep. Where do you want to go?"
Janet finally loosened her teeth and buried her face in the crook of his neck, rubbing against him. "I don't want to go anywhere."
"Then we'll stay home," Simon said. He lifted her up in his arms, leaned forward and kissed her lips. "How about we try again?"
Janet wrapped her arms around his neck, quickly calculating the timing in her head, and softly hummed in agreement.
By the time the couple sat down in the dining room for breakfast, it was already past nine in the morning.
January was the coldest season across much of the Northern Hemisphere, but in Los Angeles, where it felt like spring all year round, the average temperature still hovered above ten degrees Celsius. As usual, the day was bright and sunny.
Since he had decided to rest, Simon completely set aside anything related to work. He didn't even pay attention to the inevitable media coverage of today's Golden Globe Awards.
Ever since moving into the Dume Point estate, he hadn't properly explored the shell villa perched on the cliff. Aside from the initial exterior design, most of the interior details had been personally handled by Janet. For the rest of the day, Simon followed Janet from room to room throughout the villa. [TL/N: Oh shit, i made a mistake couple of chapters ago (Doom point = Dume Point) my bad.]
In the private library, he listened as she explained how she had selected the thousands of books lining the shelves.
In the upstairs sitting room, he heard how she had spotted a certain carpet at an auction and immediately decided it belonged here.
In the kitchen on the first floor, she told him where each set of custom tableware had been ordered.
Down in the underground wine cellar, she proudly recounted how she had outmaneuvered Unilever, purchasing Château Latour for nearly half its original price while still keeping most of the finest vintage wines.
...
As he listened, Simon suddenly remembered something from long ago.
Back then, Janet had helped him rent an empty house and gradually filled it piece by piece, carefully choosing every item.
Perhaps it was from that moment that Janet had playfully cast herself into a certain role.
Simon increasingly realized that although his wife often appeared lazy and preferred to let others handle things whenever possible, over the past few years she had actually given a great deal for him.
For one thing, Simon had been constantly buying properties around the world, purchasing land across Tasmania in Australia, and Westeros Company had been investing nonstop. If Janet hadn't carefully watched every expense and managed everything so meticulously, Simon felt his finances would probably be a complete mess by now.
After all, too many celebrities had gone bankrupt because of reckless spending and poor asset management.
Simon always paid attention to his financial situation, but his energy was limited. It was precisely because of Janet's efforts that his personal finances remained in perfect order.
So the day passed.
By evening they had toured most of the rooms in the villa. When Janet casually mentioned that she had recently bought another piece of land in Tasmania, and that the doomsday shelter they had conceived during last year's honeymoon was already under construction deep in the Tasmanian wilderness, Simon suddenly felt the urge to go see everything for himself.
He didn't want to become like the emperors of ancient times.
Men who spent their entire lives conquering vast territories yet never got to truly see the beautiful lands they ruled, instead remaining confined within the walls of a single palace.
So they left.
First stop: Florida.
Janet had recently purchased a stretch of beachfront land in Miami and planned to build a new estate there from scratch. In the meantime, Simon already owned another property in Miami they could stay at.
They spent several days flying across the United States, then headed to Europe, and a week later continued on to Australia.
Deep in the forests of central-western Tasmania.
Without realizing it, February had arrived when Simon and Janet appeared together at a construction site hidden in the jungle.
This was the location of the doomsday shelter.
The site was extremely secretive. There were no roads through the forest, so all construction equipment and workers were transported in by helicopter. Everyone had signed strict confidentiality agreements in advance.
Aside from a few core project managers, most of the workers had no idea who the client behind the project actually was.
Many even speculated that it might be a secret base built by the Australian military.
Because of the complexity of the project, the shelter would take at least another year to complete.
The couple kept a low profile during their half-day visit. They even descended to the deepest underground level for a tour before finally leaving together by helicopter.
"About thirty miles south of our land there's a copper mine that's on the verge of bankruptcy," Janet said. "Aunt is currently negotiating to acquire it. If we buy the mine, our territory can extend much farther south."
The helicopter landed directly at the Johnston family estate outside Melbourne.
After stepping off the aircraft, Janet was still discussing the land expansion in Tasmania.
"But since news of our land purchases leaked over the past two years, even though no one knows exactly what you're planning, a lot of people have started buying land in Tasmania too. It's actually becoming troublesome. Land prices there have gone up quite a bit."
Simon didn't seem too concerned and smiled. "Once they realize Tasmanian land doesn't really serve any purpose, they'll gradually back out."
Janet thought about it and nodded in agreement.
In just a few years, Simon had accumulated one of the largest private fortunes in the world. Whatever he did now inevitably sparked waves of imitation.
But people eventually calmed down.
And aside from Simon, very few people had enough spare money to simply buy land and let it sit there without generating any income.
Eventually the trend would fade.
It was evening when they entered the house. Dinner preparations had already begun.
Simon and Janet's sudden return to Australia made Janet's parents very happy, and they hoped the couple would visit more often.
Raymond Johnston had not yet returned from work. Janet went to help her mother prepare dinner, while Simon wandered into a sitting room by himself instead of joining them.
Just as he entered, he was surprised to find Veronica Johnston sitting on the sofa casually flipping through a newspaper. The television in the room was also on.
Even after all this time, Veronica couldn't help looking slightly tense when she suddenly saw Simon. She quickly relaxed her expression and said softly, "I just got back from Perth. I heard you and Jenny came to Australia."
Simon nodded and walked over, sitting in a single armchair beside her. He casually picked up the remote control from the coffee table and began flipping through channels aimlessly.
After greeting him, Veronica lowered her gaze back to the newspaper. Yet the relaxed posture of her back unconsciously straightened slightly, and even her breathing became quieter.
As if she feared something might happen.
Ready to flee at any moment.
After a long silence, Simon still hadn't spoken a single word. Veronica had no choice but to find a topic herself.
"Um... how long are you and Jenny planning to stay?"
"We're leaving tomorrow."
"Oh."
Silence again.
She wanted to get up and leave, but somehow knew he probably didn't want her to.
So she remained seated.
She tried to think of another topic to keep the conversation going, but after turning it over in her mind, she realized that no matter what she said, he would probably only reply with a few cold words.
Suddenly she felt wronged.
A powerful, uncontrollable sense of grievance.
So strong that tears began to fall.
Lowering her head, the tears dripped onto the newspaper with soft pattering sounds.
She endured it for a moment, but eventually a sob escaped.
Then his voice sounded again, still cold.
"Stop crying."
But this time she didn't stop.
I'm crying. What's it to you?
And then she completely gave up holding back, covering her face as her sobs grew louder.
Simon looked at the crying woman beside him, then glanced toward the door. His scalp tingled uneasily.
After hesitating for a moment, he stood up and walked over to lock the sitting room door.
Returning to his seat, he finally relaxed a little.
Patiently accompanying the crying woman.
Veronica showed no sign of calming down. Perhaps noticing the movement around her and sensing his presence nearby, she kept her face covered but lifted one leg and kicked at Simon.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Simon endured it for a while before reaching out to hold her foot.
Veronica shook off the high heel he had grabbed and kicked at him again and again with her bare foot.
This time Simon didn't bother stopping her, letting her continue.
Eventually Veronica grew tired of crying and kicking. She curled up on the sofa, hugging her legs. Her face was buried in her arms, hair disheveled. One foot still wore a high heel while the other was bare, leaving her looking utterly miserable.
Time passed.
The sky had grown completely dark. Faint voices could be heard in the hallway. Realizing things might become even more troublesome, Simon said, "Pull yourself together. It's time for dinner."
Veronica didn't move.
She looked completely indifferent, as if she had given up on everything.
Simon didn't dare stay in the room any longer. He turned off the television and left the sitting room.
Just as he closed the door, Janet came walking down the hallway.
"Dinner's ready. Oh, by the way, is Aunt here?"
Simon slipped an arm around Janet as she moved toward the sitting room door.
"No. I've been watching TV alone. Your aunt is probably in another room."
"Oh," Janet said without suspicion. "Then go to the dining room first. I'll call Aunt."
"I'll come with you."
Simon accompanied Janet as they checked several other rooms along the hallway. They even went upstairs, but still couldn't find her.
After checking Veronica's bedroom with no results, Simon said, "Your aunt probably left earlier."
Janet frowned slightly. "But the servants said they didn't see her leave."
"Maybe she's outside somewhere. Let's go downstairs first."
With Simon's arm around her waist, Janet didn't refuse, and the two of them went downstairs together.
As they passed the sitting room, Janet glanced briefly at the door. Her eyes flickered, but in the end she didn't go inside. Instead, she followed Simon into the dining room.
There they saw Veronica already seated at the table.
Her expression had returned to its usual icy calm. She simply nodded slightly at Simon and Janet before lowering her head and adjusting the utensils in front of her.
Raymond Johnston had also returned. The family was long accustomed to Veronica's demeanor. Janet often jokingly called her "the iceberg," so no one thought much of it.
After dinner, Veronica was the first to leave the table.
Janet's mother, Tracy Johnston, watched her sister-in-law leave before saying to Raymond, "Vinnie looked like she had been crying."
Raymond Johnston had spent most of dinner discussing two acquisitions Westeros Company was currently pursuing with Simon. Hearing his wife's comment, he glanced in the direction his sister had gone and frowned.
"What happened now?"
"I'm not sure. Didn't she just come back from Perth today? Maybe something happened there."
Raymond frowned even more deeply. "Work issues wouldn't make her cry."
"Could someone have bullied her?"
Raymond shook his head. "Impossible. Who would dare bully her? If anything, she'd be the one bullying others."
Janet listened to her parents' conversation and suddenly said, "I'll go talk to Aunt later."
Raymond nodded and then added, "Why don't you stay a few more days? Keep your aunt company."
Janet hugged Simon's arm and leaned against him. "We've already been away from the U.S. for two weeks. There's a mountain of work waiting for us. We can't delay any longer."
Raymond didn't insist, but his eyes swept over the two of them.
"So... how are things going with the baby?"
Janet's face immediately fell at the topic. She let go of Simon's arm and remained silent.
Simon gave a wry smile and shook his head gently. "Still nothing yet."
Tracy Johnston said with concern, "How about this? Why don't you go to the family's medical center tomorrow for another checkup?"
Janet said to her mother, "Simon and I already talked about it. If I'm still not pregnant after a few more months, we'll try IVF."
Tracy Johnston frowned slightly. "IVF? Isn't that unsafe?"
It had been more than ten years since the world's first IVF baby was born in 1978, and that child had grown up healthy. Even so, Simon, despite knowing more about the future, still had some reservations. Many ordinary people with traditional views felt even more uncertain about it.
But after waiting this long, it was worth trying.
It was better than never having a child at all.
Simon himself wasn't particularly anxious, but Janet couldn't keep waiting forever.
During their travels in Europe earlier, the couple had already met with Robert Edwards, the father of IVF. They decided to wait a few more months. Once Westeros finished its current wave of business, if Janet still wasn't pregnant, they would proceed with the IVF plan.