Without waiting for Olivia to answer, Lily quickly added, “I don’t even remember what you said.”
“Lily...”
“Enough. If you takeas a friend, stop blaming yourself, okay? If | were you, | would be upset as well. What you did was normal,
and | bet you felt sad when you said those things.” Lily could understand how she felt. She would surely side with her husband if
she chose between Alexander and Edward.
Olivia felt she needed to apologize since she and Lily were friends. Olivia would side with who was most important to her if she had
to choose.
“But...”
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Lily grabbed Olivia's hand. Then Lily cleared her throat and said thoughtfully, “No buts, okay? Stop dwelling on it. | know you were
in a tight spot. We're not just partners but also good friends!”
Lily smiled at Olivia and appeared casual before continuing, “Since we're friends, we shouldn't get hung up on this. | don’t, so you
shouldn't, too, okay?”
Since she had put it that way, Olivia knew she would be too petty if she did not let it go. She smiled and held Lily’s hands while
nodding.
Lily repeatedly told Olivia not to tell anyone about the experiment as she saw her friend off. Since Edward was involved, Olivia
understood the importance of keeping it a secret.
After that, Lily put the cushion behind her waist and lay on the sofa to relax. Suddenly, she heard movements upstairs and looked
over. Galen stood at the bend at the staircase and gazed down at her but did not continue his descent.
Lily’s smile beckoned him, then sat up and spread her arms.
Galen seemed somewhat hesitant, but since Lily kept her arms outstretched to get up, he stepped downstairs while holding the
railing. Galen climbed the sofa and snuggled up to his mother before looking at her. However, he did not chatter incessantly as he
usually would.
Lily sensed something was off and held his head into her chest. Then she asked gently, “What's wrong?”
“Mommy, have | been a naughty boy?” Galen muttered softly in her embrace.
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His voice was soft, but Lily heard it. Puzzled, she looked down at him. “Of course not. You're a good boy!”
“But you said my younger siblings are not as naughty as me.” His voice sounded muffled since he was facing her tummy.
Lily was surprised.
‘He must've overheard my conversation with Olivia, huh?’
Lily felt terrible for being careless. She held his face, kissed his forehead, then said, “You got it wrong. Mommy doesn’t think you're
naughty, and Mommy loves you because you're a good boy, okay?”
“But you said | was naughty!” Galen looked pitiful and pouted with his eyes red-rimmed.
At this juncture, Lily seemed to have neglected how her child felt. She had not spent enough twith him because she had been
busy with many things over the last few months. When she finally took Galen home, he overheard her conversation with Olivia
about him being mischievous.