CHAPTER 159: CHAPTER 158: HOMECOMING (4 UPDATES)

Sienna Thornton didn’t have much affection for her half-sister.

When they were young, they constantly argued over the scarce resources at home. After growing up, they hadn’t seen each other for over ten years, and because of past grievances, Sienna’s impression of her sister was even worse than that of a stranger.

If it wasn’t for the fact that Jenna Raines took care of Melinda Linton diligently, Sienna wouldn’t have bothered with her at all.

Sienna scrutinized Jenna, who was sitting nervously in front of her, thought for a while, then turned to Melinda and said, "Mom, it’s okay to take Jenna to the city, but I have a requirement."

Both Melinda and her daughter looked at her expectantly.

Sienna said, "If Jenna goes, you have to go with her."

Melinda hesitated, "But Jared and his family might have a baby soon... and Jenna’s dad needs someone to take care of him..."

Sienna didn’t want to hear any more and instantly felt annoyed, so she decisively said, "Anyway, you guys discuss it. It’s not something that can be forced."

She knew that Jenna could find a way to convince Melinda.

Late at night, Sienna lay down in her clothes beside Jenna.

Jenna was also awake, constantly fidgeting on her side.

Sienna turned over and asked indifferently, "Jenna, what is your education level?"

In the darkness, Jenna whispered, "I graduated from junior high school."

Sienna felt a headache coming on.

What can you do in Brimfield with just a junior high school education? Wash dishes in a restaurant? Or be a cleaning lady?

After a moment’s thought, she asked, "Do you have any skills or interests?"

Jenna said, "I like watching people bake cakes."

Sienna said, "Then I’ll sign you up for a baking course later. You should learn some skills, it’ll help you find a job. If you do well, I’ll open a cake shop for you in the future."

In the darkness, Jenna was so agitated that she sat up straight and looked at Sienna and asked, "Really?"

"Yes," Sienna replied, her voice suddenly more serious, "but you have to take good care of Mom for me. If you don’t, forget about the cake shop!"

"Yes, yes! I definitely will! Thank you, big sister!" Jenna was so excited that she didn’t fall asleep until the second half of the night.

Sienna also couldn’t sleep. Besides the fact that it was a different bed, it was the middle of September, and she hadn’t taken a shower or changed her clothes.

The same was true for Simon Forrester, who was sleeping in the living room.

When Sienna went out to use the bathroom, she saw that there was no one on the sofa, but there was a flickering light on the balcony.

She walked out and saw him holding a cigarette in his right hand, his hands resting on the balcony railing, looking into the distance, lost in thought.

Sienna tightened the coat around her, approached him, and wrapped her arms around his waist, asking, "Can’t sleep?"

He extinguished the cigarette in the ashtray beside him, turned around to hug her, rested his chin on her head, and laughed, "Shall we go stay somewhere else tomorrow?"

"Okay."

"When do you plan to return to Brimfield?"

"As soon as I settle things for Mom and Jenna to go to the city, I’ll leave."

"All right, I’ll go with you."

The two stayed on the balcony for a while, and then went back inside.

Simon took off his suit jacket, laid it on the sofa, and lay down in his dress pants and shirt.

Sienna lay in his arms for a while, they whispered quietly, and then returned to bed.

However, they slept uneasily.

It was unclear how long they had slept when suddenly a woman’s yelling was heard outside.

It was the voice of Jared Raines’s plump wife.

Sienna shivered, immediately got out of bed, and rushed out.

In the living room, Simon stood black-faced next to the coffee table, while the plump wife sat on the floor in front of him, dressed in a camisole nightgown, her flesh nearly spilling out of the thin fabric.

"What’s going on?" Sienna walked up to them.

The plump wife initially said nothing, but when she saw Felix Raines and Melinda Linton come out, her expression changed drastically, and she ran behind Felix, pointing at Simon and saying, "He, he! He harassed me!"

Sienna: "..."

Simon: "..."

Felix: "..."

Melinda: "..."

Jenna: "..."

Felix was the first to react, his face turning bright red as he turned and slapped the plump wife, shouting, "Did you seduce him? Huh?"

The plump wife covered her face, tears welling in her eyes, defending herself, "No, I didn’t, it was him, he wanted to harass me..."

"Is he blind to harass you?" Felix gave her another slap, making the plump wife see stars.

Melinda also felt embarrassed and kept winking at Sienna, motioning her to take Simon out to avoid the situation.

Sienna wordlessly pulled Simon away.

They returned to the car, and just as dawn was breaking.

Sienna glanced at Simon and noticed his jaw was tense and his face didn’t look good.

She held his hand with concern and asked, "Are you okay?"

As she spoke, Simon suddenly took a disinfectant wipe from the armrest box and vigorously wiped his hand.

Sienna instantly understood and teased, "Did she touch your hand?"

"Yes."

"What happened? Tell me!"

Catching the smile on her face, Simon’s face darkened further, irritated, he said, "When can we leave? I’m disgusted."

Sienna still laughed, "Where exactly did she touch you?"

"Just my hand." Simon said no more.

Sienna comfortingly touched his hand, "It’s okay, she’s not a monster or anything."

Simon: "..."

*

Later, Melinda said she wanted to visit her childhood home, so Sienna and Simon took her to Raines Village, with Jenna also taking leave to accompany them.

Sienna knew that Melinda had likely decided to move away with her, and this trip to Raines Village felt more like a farewell, so she gladly went along.

Simon drove the Urus, carrying the three of them and their luggage, along with some gifts for relatives, for over two hours on mountain roads before finally reaching Raines Village.

As the car drove into the village, the villagers sitting at the village entrance gossiping all turned to look, following the car all the way to the old Raines Family house.

The four got out of the car, and Jenna helped Melinda into the house, while Sienna and Simon stayed outside for a while.

A neighbor woman, who was drying sweet potato starch in the courtyard, called out, "Oh, isn’t that the American university student from Felix’s family?"

Hearing the voice, Sienna looked over and nodded to her.

Simon suggested, "Shall we go inside and see if they need any help?"

Sienna looked back at him, and they held hands, stepping inside together.

Melinda was wiping the table used for ancestor worship, and then she took some freshly made pastries out of a bag and placed them on the table, following it by lighting candles and incense.

When she asked Sienna to go offer rituals, Sienna didn’t want to and ran outside.

Simon followed her out.

Sienna sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, lost in thought.

Simon sat down beside her, pulled her into his shoulder, and gently patted her arm, "Can you tell me about your background?"