"Pepper, you're pregnant?"
Artoria was shocked when she heard the news; she even dropped the steak in her hand onto the plate. She thought Pepper had only invited her out for shopping, and they had a great time. But during the meal, Pepper pulled out a test report and placed it in front of Artoria. This made Artoria very curious. Had Tony become unable to stand due to constant partying and gone to the hospital for a check-up? Artoria wouldn't be surprised if Tony had that problem. Driven by curiosity, Artoria picked up the report and looked at it. The result belonged to Pepper. This made Artoria subconsciously glance at Pepper. What was wrong with Pepper? Why did she go to the hospital? Artoria continued reading, and the result shocked her.
"This shouldn't be mine, right? What is it, Pepper?"
Artoria said this subconsciously, making Pepper extremely embarrassed and angry, wanting to hit Artoria, but Artoria dodged. Seriously, if Artoria couldn't even dodge Pepper's small 'attack,' she would have lived all those years in vain. Looking at the flushed Pepper and the waiters throwing surprised glances from a distance, Artoria knew she had said the wrong thing. After all, she didn't even have a younger brother; how could she have a child?
"It's Tony's. Two months."
Pepper regretted not hitting Artoria. How did this child become so naughty, even teasing her own sister-in-law? It was too much. Thinking this, Pepper subconsciously touched her abdomen. It hadn't swelled yet, but she felt the arrival of a new life. At this moment, a happy smile unconsciously appeared on Pepper's face. Years of hard work had finally paid off. Back then, she worried constantly over Tony, that philandering radish. She often transformed into a Master of arguments, fighting with various women—some who thought they were the mistress of the stark family after sleeping with Tony, others who brought children to claim kinship. She had endured this for years. Now, that effort was rewarded. With the feeling of having a child, it felt as if Tony himself was less important.
"I'm going to be an aunt?"
After Pepper spoke, the shock on Artoria's face disappeared, replaced by great joy as she looked at Pepper. The stark family was gaining a new member! Artoria had to tell Maria about this great news. When Artoria was born, Maria was very happy because the stark family had long been single-line descendants, and besides Tony, a little princess had appeared under Howard's generation. Maria and Howard were ecstatic. Now that Tony was branching out, it was time to make the elders happy. Artoria wondered if her arrival as a 'butterfly' in this world would turn her niece into a nephew. The stark family all loved daughters, and Artoria didn't want her cute niece to become a nephew.
"Boy or girl? Let me listen."
Artoria, whose appetite was diminished by the joy of the upcoming newborn, no longer looked at the delicious steak on the table. She leaned down and rested her head on Pepper's body. This made Pepper a little shy, but she didn't stop Artoria. After spending so much time together, she had come to treat Artoria like her own younger sister. Sometimes, she considered Artoria's feelings more than Tony's. This made Pepper wonder at times if she had married Tony or fallen for Artoria? She didn't understand, but she couldn't deny that she was very happy now. Artoria had never rejected her and treated her like family, and now with a baby on the way, Pepper felt as if her life had no regrets.
"Stop being silly, it's only two months, how could we know if it's a boy or a girl? Besides, what can you hear?"
Although Pepper didn't dislike Artoria's actions, the waiter's gaze made Pepper feel embarrassed. She gently pushed Artoria, signaling that there were still people around and not to be so reckless. Pepper's words made Artoria realize she was too excited, even overly so. Artoria touched Pepper's lower abdomen and sat up, a little regretfully.
"Have you told Tony?"
After sitting up, Artoria tidied her clothes. Just as she was about to pick up her knife and fork to finish the steak, Artoria suddenly realized something was amiss. Logically, if Tony knew Pepper was pregnant, the protective Tony would never allow Pepper to wander around. Even with her accompanying Pepper, he wouldn't let Pepper out, because he was such a possessive man. But now, not only was Pepper not being protected by Tony, but she was out shopping and eating steak with Artoria. This situation was clearly abnormal, very un-Tony.
"Not yet, I'm not planning to tell him for now."
Upon hearing Artoria's words, the smile on Pepper's face disappeared. Her expression was sullen as she spoke to Artoria. It was obvious that Tony must have angered her again, otherwise, for such a big matter, she wouldn't tell Artoria, her sister-in-law, instead of Tony. It was very unusual! Furthermore, Pepper should also understand Tony's personality and his domineering nature. Pepper might also be worried about Tony reacting in a certain way, and was preparing to find a suitable opportunity to tell him.
"There are advantages to telling him early and advantages to telling him late. You just need to handle it well. Since you're not telling Tony for now, I'll keep this secret for you."
Pepper's words made Artoria understand her concerns. Like almost all women, prenatal depression, in other words, meant overthinking, which increased stress. This was a psychological issue, and Artoria couldn't help her with it. This was originally a matter between husband and wife, and Artoria didn't want to get involved in her brother and sister-in-law's affairs. There's a saying that's very true: 'Even an honest official finds it hard to settle a family dispute,' which shows how difficult family matters can be.
"Thank you, Artoria."
Artoria's words brought a smile back to Pepper's face. Pepper happily left a lipstick mark on Artoria's cheek, causing Maya, who was secretly watching from the side, to bend the spoon in her hand. Across from her was Helen Cho, who noticed Maya's strange expression and wanted to look back, but forced herself to resist. If they were discovered now, it would confirm that they were following them! Not wanting to leave the impression of a stalker in Artoria's mind, Helen Cho could only endure, her cheeks flushing. Although she had done this many times, she still felt incredibly ashamed.
"It's nothing, just a normal meal between sisters-in-law."
Maya, at this moment, could hardly believe her eyes, as if she was trying to comfort herself with that sentence. The two of them had only coincidentally seen Artoria on the street, 'coincidentally' walked the same path behind Artoria, then 'coincidentally' entered the same restaurant to eat, and 'coincidentally' witnessed this scene that made her jealous. This woman was Artoria's sister-in-law; she couldn't possibly have inappropriate thoughts about Artoria. Thinking of this, Maya breathed a sigh of relief.
"Really? What exactly did you see?"
Helen Cho took a bite of her salad while quietly asking Maya. Their furtive behavior made the nearby waiter hesitate whether to call the police. These two women were too suspicious. Helen Cho seemed to notice this and signaled Maya to eat something and stop staring over there.
"Nothing, let's go back after dinner! We must have some confidence in Artoria, and there are still experiments to finish."
As if giving up on something, Maya entered a'sage mode' at this moment. She opened the menu, called the waiter, and ordered a few dishes, seemingly really preparing to eat more and go back to work. This made Helen Cho even more curious, but she still didn't dare to look back, so she acquiesced to Maya's words, also ordered her favorite dishes, and prepared to go back and work hard.
"What are you two doing, being so sneaky?"
Unfortunately, an accident occurred.
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