Contract marriage:Mother for rent, wife for free
Chapter 32: The beginning

Chapter 32: The beginning

If Lin wei thought her life was about to change, she was right.

Only her life was about to change for the worse.

The only reason why her life wasn’t crumbling right in front of her_and she wasn’t being shipped off to the county_was the layers of heavy makeup on her face.

Ezekiel stood by the door, his arm full of stuffed toys and textbooks. Lin wei spied the title of one and it read "The study of human Anatomy"

Why was he even reading that?

She scrambled up right when three identical pairs of eyes stared at her.

"Who are you?" One of the twins asked.

They were handsome boys, tall for their age. The other one was holding Ezekiel’s hand, staring at Lin wei like she was a Christmas gift.

Ezekiel said nothing, just crossed his legs.

Curse the man! Even with both arms full, he had the audacity to lean against the doorframe like some brooding model from a winter edition magazine. As if the chaos he brought into her life wasn’t already enough.

"I said—who are you?" the bolder twin repeated, stepping forward. Garry, she assumed. He had that defiant glint in his eyes that screamed troublemaker-in-chief.

Lin Wei blinked. Her mouth opened, then closed again.

"I’m Lin Wei," she finally said, forcing a smile so bright it could blind the truth. "I’ll be staying with you boys for a while."

Harry, still holding tightly onto Ezekiel’s hand, tilted his head. "Are you the new mommy?"

Ezekiel cleared his throat, sharp and immediate.

"No," he said coldly, not looking at her.

Lin Wei’s smile wavered just a fraction. The word hung in the air like a slap.

Harry frowned. "But Uncle Lu said—"

"Uncle Lu says a lot of things," Ezekiel cut in smoothly, dropping the toys and books onto a nearby side table. The sound echoed through the hallway like punctuation.

Lin Wei tried to find a place to tuck her hands—her jeans pockets were too tight, and crossing her arms felt too defensive. So she settled for awkwardly smoothing her already ironed blouse.

"Well," she said, mostly to herself, "this is going great."

The twins didn’t seem to mind the tension one bit. Garry was already rifling through the stack of toys, tossing a stuffed bear at his brother who caught it like a reflex.

"Can you cook?" Garry asked suddenly.

Lin Wei blinked. "Uh. Yes?"

"Better than Miss Sharon?" he challenged.

She didn’t know who Miss Sharon was, but based on the way Harry visibly recoiled at the name, she assumed the bar was low.

"Infinitely better," she declared with a confidence she did not possess.

Garry looked pleased. "Okay. You can stay."

Ezekiel sighed from the corner, massaging his temple. "That’s not how this works, Garry."

"That’s exactly how it works," Harry muttered.

Ezekiel gave Lin Wei a long, unreadable look. It wasn’t anger, not exactly. But it was distant. Dismissive. As though he was deciding whether to bother remembering her name.

"I expect order," he said finally. "No emotional mess. No loud crying. No sugary cereal."

"Got it," she said. "You hate fun."

"Precisely."

He turned on his heel, coat flaring behind him like a dramatic villain from a telenovela. Garry made a mock-explosion noise with his mouth. Harry giggled.

"I don’t know how you haven’t been fired yet," Ezekiel muttered as he passed.

"I just got here," she muttered back.

**

An hour later, Lin Wei stood in the massive, sterile kitchen, staring at a fridge so fancy it made a soft whoosh when opened—as if sighing at her.

She sighed back.

The twins were upstairs in what could only be described as a jungle disguised as a playroom. It had everything: a slide, a trampoline, and, for some reason, a telescope pointed directly at the neighbor’s balcony.

Rich people.

She pulled out some vegetables and started chopping, thankful for something normal. Predictable. Solid.

She was halfway through slicing carrots when Harry wandered in, dragging a blanket behind him like a sleepy puppy.

"Do you miss your mommy?" he asked suddenly, staring at her.

The knife paused mid-air.

She looked at him slowly. "Every day."

Harry nodded like that was the only acceptable answer, then climbed onto one of the barstools.

"You’ll do," he said, picking at a grape from the bowl on the counter.

Lin Wei didn’t know whether to feel proud or deeply unsettled.

**

Upstairs, Ezekiel stood in his study, arms crossed, watching the nanny cam feed on his tablet.

He told himself it wasn’t spying. It was responsible parenting.

He zoomed in as Lin Wei gave Harry a small smile and handed him a cookie. It was oatmeal, at least. No sugar bombs.

She was calm. Controlled. But there was something beneath it. A tension around her eyes. A flicker of something familiar.

Pain.

He didn’t like it.

Pain meant history. Luggage. Complications.

He didn’t want another broken person under his roof. This house had enough ghosts already.

Still...

The twins had taken to her faster than anyone before. And she hadn’t flinched—not at their questions, or their moods, or even him.

That, in itself, was unusual.

Ezekiel lowered the tablet, exhaling sharply.

Lu Chen had better be right about her.

Because if he wasn’t, he’d have to fire her.

And somehow, he suspected... this one might be harder to let go.

Still...

The twins had taken to her faster than anyone before. And she hadn’t flinched—not at their questions, or their moods, or even him.

That, in itself, was unusual.

Ezekiel lowered the tablet, exhaling sharply.

Lu Chen had better be right about her.

Because if he wasn’t, he’d have to fire her.

And somehow, he suspected... this one might be harder to let go.

**

That night, as the twins brushed their teeth (with minimal toothpaste-eating, a small miracle), Lin Wei tiptoed back into the guest room to unpack the one suitcase she’d been allowed to bring.

Clothes. Toiletries. A wrinkled photo of a younger her, arms around a woman whose smile hadn’t faded with time.

Her mother.

She touched the edge of the frame, her throat tightening.

"You said I should start over, Ma," she whispered. "I’m trying."

There was a knock at the door.

Ezekiel.

Standing there in a different shirt, somehow still intimidating in his quiet way.

"I’ve added your name to the household staff list. You’ll get a security badge by morning," he said, voice clipped and formal.

She nodded. "Thank you."

He lingered.

"You can leave whenever you want," he added suddenly.

Lin Wei tilted her head. "Is that a threat or an offer?"

His lips twitched. "Neither. Just a reminder."

"Duly noted," she said.

They stood there a beat longer.

Then he left.

And Lin Wei sat on the edge of her new bed, exhaled slowly, and whispered, "This is going to be a disaster, isn’t it?"

The house was quiet.

But somewhere upstairs, Garry laughed in his sleep.

And somehow, she took that as a yes.

Lin Wei woke up to the scent of strawberries. Not the natural, ripe kind—but the artificial kind that clung to shampoo bottles and candy wrappers. She blinked, disoriented for a moment, before her brain caught up with her senses.

Something was watching her.

She sat up with a jolt, only to find two small heads peeking from behind her half-open door.

"What are you doing?" she asked, her voice still thick with sleep.

"We’re observing," Garry replied solemnly.

"Like scientists," Harry added, holding a notepad. "You sleep with your mouth open. Garry says that’s a sign of stress or maybe brain damage."

Lin Wei sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Well, good morning to you too."

"We made breakfast," Garry said proudly.

She froze. "What kind of breakfast?"

Harry beamed. "Peanut butter and soy sauce sandwiches."

Lin Wei winced. "That sounds... unique."

"Dad eats weird food all the time," Garry said. "Last week he put garlic in his tea."

"He said it was for circulation," Harry added with a shrug.

Lin Wei groaned, got out of bed, and followed them downstairs in bare feet, bracing herself.

The kitchen looked like a battlefield. There were crumbs, smears, and an empty soy sauce bottle tipped dramatically over the marble counter. A loaf of bread sat butchered in the corner, and peanut butter streaks marked the fridge like a crime scene.

She blinked, then slowly turned to the twins. "You two should never become chefs."

Garry looked affronted. "We tried!"

"I’m not ungrateful," she amended quickly. "I’m just alarmed."

Harry handed her a crooked sandwich. "Eat. Then we’ll play scientist again."

Lin Wei took a deep breath, then a bite—because disappointing children felt worse than nausea. "Mmm," she lied. "Nutty... with a kick of regret."

Harry smiled like he’d won a prize.

Garry jumped onto a stool. "Can we do the volcano today?"

"Volcano?" Lin Wei asked warily.

"In the backyard," Harry said. "Uncle Lu bought us a science kit. Dad says it’s a choking hazard."

"It absolutely is," Garry confirmed proudly. "That’s why we like it."

Lin Wei rubbed her temples. "Let me just get some coffee first. Maybe a life insurance plan."

**

Outside, the sun was merciless.

Lin Wei stood barefoot in the grass, wearing a long shirt and shorts she barely had time to throw on. The twins were knee-deep in powder, baking soda, vinegar, and something suspiciously labeled "safe sulfuric fizz."

"Are you sure this is safe?" she asked as Harry handed her a tiny plastic funnel.

"No," Garry said. "But that’s what makes it science."

She gave him a look. "You’re too young to be this cynical."

"I’m six and a half," he said proudly.

Harry nodded. "In twin years, that’s like twelve."

She helped them pour the ingredients, then jumped back as a surprisingly aggressive eruption spewed orange foam into the air.

"Success!" Harry cheered, throwing his hands up. "We have conquered nature!"

Lin Wei laughed in spite of herself. She hadn’t laughed like that in a long time—messy, unscripted, and full-bodied. The twins joined her, and for a few blissful minutes, it was just joy.

Then the sprinkler turned on without warning.

All three of them shrieked as cold water drenched them.

Garry spun like a maniac. "We’re in a monsoon!"

Harry tripped, face-first into a patch of foam, came up grinning like a lunatic.

Lin Wei just stood there, soaked to the bone, arms outstretched like she was asking the heavens why.

And then she looked up.

Ezekiel stood on the balcony, arms crossed, his face unreadable.

He was in a suit—again—watching them like they were part of a wildlife documentary he regretted subscribing to.

"We’re doing science," Lin Wei called up, waving.

"Looks more like chaos," he replied dryly.

"Same thing, different spelling."

His mouth twitched. Not quite a smile—but not the usual stone-cold expression either.

She’d take it.

**

Later, she wrapped the boys in towels and made them sit on the couch with cups of warm chocolate milk. They leaned against her like two sleepy kittens, eyes drooping from the excitement.

"You’re not bad," Garry mumbled.

"Not bad at all," Harry agreed.

Lin Wei smiled, brushing wet hair

out of their eyes. "Thanks. I think that’s the highest praise I’ve ever gotten."

Harry yawned. "We can keep you."

Garry gave a thumbs-up. "We vote yes."

Somewhere upstairs, Ezekiel paused in the hallway, listening.

And for the first time in years... he didn’t immediately feel the need to intervene.

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