Chapter 3 Axton House

Axton parked his car in front of a minimalist-style house located in an upscale residential area in the city center. This medium-sized house had a very spacious yard, but the plants in the garden were limited, consisting of only a few lush trees and a fountain in the middle of the garden.

"Get out," Axton said, causing Emily, who was mesmerized by the view of the house, to nod her head. She stepped out of the car and joined Axton, who was already in conversation with a middle-aged man. Emily wasn't sure if this was Axton's new home or just a rented house for them. Previously, Emily knew that Axton's house was not in such an upscale neighborhood, and it was not a place he or Grace had lived before.

The middle-aged man talking to Axton stopped their conversation when he saw Emily getting out of the car, mirroring Axton's reaction.

"David, let me introduce my wife, her name is Emily," Axton said, making the middle-aged man smile faintly and nod his head.

"And Emily, let me introduce him; he used to be the caretaker of this house. You could say he also oversees the workers here. His name is David," Axton added, making Emily return a smile to David. Despite his older appearance, David still looked very fit with a tall and robust physique.

Emily then observed the very spacious garden, but unfortunately, the variety of plants was limited. It wasn't clear if this was the house's design concept or if Axton simply didn't prefer too many plants in the garden.

"Alright then, David will show you around the house," Axton said, about to turn around. However, Emily reached for the edge of Axton's shirt.

"You're not coming?" Emily asked, causing Axton to look at his wrist before answering.

"I have to finish up some work. You know, we just had a break a few days ago, so I need to tidy up my schedule going forward," Axton replied before heading inside the house. Emily watched him with a frustrated expression, feeling that Axton could have taken her to explore the house right away.

However, when David approached, Emily finally nodded, and they entered through the main door. They walked directly into the main living area, which opened up to the entire space. Emily could see several rooms divided by partitions and a staircase leading to the second floor. With slow steps, Emily began to notice several paintings displayed in the main area, and she started to think that Axton might indeed not be fond of ornaments or other decorations. His minimalist-style house looked simple, neat, yet still exuded a luxurious atmosphere.

"This is the family room, and to the right is the living room. This is the lounge area; the master enjoys reading books here when he's at home," David explained, and Emily nodded. However, she furrowed her brow afterward.

"Does Axton rarely come to this house?" Emily asked, making David nod.

"As you knew before, Mr. Axton used to live in another house with Mrs. Grace, and this is the second home he has ever occupied before marrying Mrs. Grace. It seems from now on, he will be living here with you," David explained, making Emily nod.

Emily had just learned that Axton had such a nice house. When Axton was still dating Grace, Emily knew he lived in an apartment. Perhaps this was the result of his efforts before marrying Grace, thought Emily, who then continued her exploration of the house.

The house felt spacious enough to start a family, not too big but not too small either. Emily felt comfortable here and followed David to various areas such as the kitchen, the backyard, and several other rooms before they headed up to the second floor.

"There's Mr. Axton's office; he usually immerses himself in his work in there," David said, pointing to a slightly ajar wooden door. Emily saw Axton busy with documents and a computer screen in front of him. Emily just nodded, not wanting to disturb Axton's concentration. She then turned and approached David.

"And over there is the master bedroom, the room he usually occupies, and there are a few guest rooms and lounging areas on this floor," David explained, making Emily nod. She began to memorize the overall layout of the house, which wasn't too difficult because the house wasn't very large.

"Thank you for accompanying me around here," Emily said to David, who only nodded.

"It's my duty. Shortly, there will be a vehicle bringing Mrs.'s belongings. I'll need to instruct some workers to unload them, and you can rest right away," David said before preparing to leave. However, something crossed Emily's mind.

David hadn't informed her where Emily would be resting, but Emily decided not to ask him. She felt it wouldn't be proper to inquire of David. It would be better to ask Axton directly later, Emily thought, and she allowed David to go about his tasks.

Emily hadn't even opened her master bedroom yet. Currently, she chose to return to Axton's workspace. Even though Axton was focused on his work, Emily wasn't too concerned. She didn't want to make the situation awkward. Emily took a slow breath before finally opening Axton's already slightly ajar office door. Axton looked at her as usual, without a smile or any other expression.

Emily didn't know why Axton always seemed so stiff. She decided to ignore it and walked closer to Axton's cluttered desk, which looked very messy at the moment.

Axton quickly closed his laptop when he saw Emily walking towards him. Emily then asked, "Are you busy?"

Axton replied, "Yes, you can see for yourself, I have a lot of work. What's up?"

"Didn't you take a day off from the office tomorrow?" Emily asked again.

"Yes, and I plan to use this day off to work on some strategies related to other fabric materials," Axton said, making Emily nod. Axton seemed very focused on his work and didn't have any intention of chatting with Emily about anything else.

Emily attempted to strike up a conversation, "I just finished touring the house with David. It's a comfortable house."

Axton only nodded while continuing to check the documents in front of him with fabric swatches attached. Axton was an entrepreneur who owned a fabric factory, and several fashion companies collaborated with his fabric factory in their fashion product manufacturing. Emily realized that Axton's company was very advanced, as seen from the house he lived in, the vehicles he owned, and perhaps other hidden assets she wasn't aware of.