Chapter 719
719 Chapter 718 Nôv(el)B\\jnn
As they left, neither of them noticed old Mrs. Horton behind them, pursing her lips.
"How dare those people order around my granddaughter-in-law!"
Spitting on them would have been the least of it!
Thinking this, she reached out for a glass of water to rinse her mouth, but as soon as her hand extended, it almost knocked the cup over.
At that moment, a hand appeared and caught the glass.
Old Mrs. Horton turned her head to see Keira standing beside her.
Immediately, she put on an innocent face. "You're such a pretty girl. Who are you?"
"I'm Nora. I made the medicine you've been taking. Lewis and I both know you're fine now, so you can drop the act."
With a sigh, Keira placed the glass back in old Mrs. Horton's hand.
Old Mrs. Horton smiled bitterly. "Even if you can tell, you could just pretend you don't."
Keira took a napkin and gently wiped her mouth. "Why go through all this? Let's just enjoy these last moments together, okay?"
Old Mrs. Horton sighed. "What do you know? I'm getting old, and soon, I won't be able to take care of myself. In a few days, someone will need to help me with... everything. I can't bear to let you and Lewis do that."
Keira's eyes reddened. "But we want to..."
"I know you do, but I've kept myself dignified my whole life. I don't want you two to see me like that. They say there are no dutiful children in front of a sick bed for too long. It's not that I doubt your care. I just want to leave Lewis with a dignified memory."
Old Mrs. Horton smiled. "Besides, I've never been that close to the main branch. Now, in the last stretch, maybe I'll finally spend some time with them. Keira, you should stay by Lewis's side and help him get used to life without me. As for me, I can let go and spend time with the main branch, let my true self show a little."
Hearing this, Keira sighed again and nodded. She didn't say anything more. As she reached for some tissues and a mop to clean up the food old Mrs. Horton had thrown up, old Mrs. Horton turned toward the door and called out, "Oliver, my dear grandson, come quick! There's a stranger here, get her out!"
Keira blinked. "Grandma, I'm cleaning you up."
"No! I don't want you near me!"
Oliver swaggered over, grinning. "Sister-in-law, Grandma only recognizes me and Dad lately. What can we do? Maybe you should just let it go and stay away from her."
Keira frowned, glancing at old Mrs. Horton. "And what about all this mess on the floor?"
Oliver opened his mouth to respond, but old Mrs. Horton beat him to it. "My grandson will clean it up!"
Oliver said, "What?!"
He stared in disbelief at the mess on the floor.
Old Mrs. Horton's age had weakened her stomach. Lately, she hadn't been eating much, and this morning's breakfast didn't agree with her, so she had deliberately eaten more to make herself throw up.
The stench from the vomit made Oliver wrinkle his nose. "Me?"
"Yes, my grandson will clean it!" Old Mrs. Horton seemed utterly dependent on Oliver. She then turned to Keira. "You, get away. Go on, go!"
Seeing this, Oliver quickly said, "Yeah, I'll clean it up! You stay away from Grandma."
Keira didn't know what to say.
She cleared her throat. "Alright, I'll leave it to you then, Oliver."
She handed the rag over to Oliver and turned to head upstairs. But before she reached the top, she noticed Lewis standing in the shadows of the stairwell, watching them quietly. She didn't know how long he had been there.
Keira walked over to him right away. "Did you hear what Grandma said?"
"Yeah, I heard." Lewis gently touched her hair. "She's right. Because of me, she never got close to the main branch. Now's the time for her to build those connections."
Keira took his hand. "I understand why she said it."
She lowered her eyes. "If I ever get old and can't take care of myself, I wouldn't want to burden my kids either. I'd want to leave with dignity.
"She loves you the most. She just doesn't want you to see her at her worst."
Keira smiled softly. "Grandma will always love you the most, Lewis. Don't be sad, okay?"
Lewis gazed at her with deep emotion. After a moment, he spoke. "What did you just say?"
"I said, Grandma will always love you the most. Don't be sad."
"No, before that."
"She doesn't want you to see her at her worst."
"Before that."
Keira, known for her sharp memory, traced back his words. "I said I wouldn't want to burden my kids when I'm old, right?"
"Yeah." Lewis suddenly stepped forward, leaning close to her ear. In a low voice, he whispered, "So, how many kids are we going to have?"
Keira was dumbfounded.
Was he teasing her right now?