Freya stayed in the room for a while. Then, she prepared herself to head downstairs to see if she could run into James and explain this matter to him.

James was her benefactor. Her medical skills all came from his help.

When she left the Smiths pretending to be a simpleton just wandering the streets, it was James who reached out to help her.

He provided her with food, a place to stay, and even recommended her to Mr. Gunther, the renowned master of medicine, to be his apprentice.

Freya had great talent in medicine, and Mr. Gunther greatly appreciated her, teaching her all the skills he had picked up. Afterward, Freya emerged as Lexi, a famous doctor, who would go on to open her own clinics in various parts of the country.

At that time, due to family pressure, James had to go abroad for further studies. They had not seen each other for three years.

Just as Freya walked out of the room, a door nearby also swung open as James walked out from inside.

When their eyes met, the two understood each other's thoughts and headed downstairs, one after the other.

Freya meandered a little before heading to a secluded spot in the garden, and by then, James was right behind her.

"Freya."

James had called her by name.

Freya smiled. "Long time no see, James."

It had been a long time. In the three years, the two of them had never seen or talked to each other, aside from the few short calls and messages to keep in touch.

"I thought you had forgotten about me."

At the dining table, Freya had intentionally avoided his gaze.

It had upset James, causing him to rudely leave the table.

"I'm sorry. I had no choice but to pretend I don't know you…"

Freya wanted to explain herself when James grabbed her hand. There was a faint smile on his handsome face that was as gentle as the spring breeze and as warm as the sun. Even his voice was low and pleasant.

"No need to apologize, Freya. You don't need to be so restrained around me. There are no misunderstandings between us."

His palms were large and warm, but they made Freya extremely uncomfortable. She instinctively pulled away and sighed. "James, I am now your aunt. We can't do this. I'll be bad if others see us."

"Aunt? I know you didn't marry Uncle Bradley because you want to. Freya, if you're distressed, I can help you…"

"It's fine. I am perfectly fine."

After interrupting him, Freya continued, "I willingly married him."

Pain surged through James, which shone in his eyes as he languidly leaned against the wall and softly asked, "For revenge?"

"Yes."

Freya did not deny it. She had full faith in James.

"If it's for revenge, I can help you…" James pulled her into his arms, disregarding her struggles. "You know what I feel for you. I like you. No, after all these years of waiting, I am now deeply in love with you. You feel no love for my uncle, and he can't give you a normal marital life. Freya, leave him and return to me."

"J-"

"Don't say no just yet. I'll give you time to consider. If you're only getting close to my uncle for revenge, I'm more suitable than him."

Freya lowered her head. She had to admit that James was right. Logically speaking, he was a better candidate than Bradley. However…

She did not dislike Bradley. On the contrary, she felt safe by his side, especially when he protected her. It made her feel like she was cherished.

"James, before today, I didn't even know you were part of the Austins. Even if things between Bradley and I don't work out, we aren't suited for each other either. If I divorce Bradley to be with you, what would people think?

"It's not just you. Even Bradley would be laughed at. I can't bear to see you two become enemies over me, and I won't be the one to challenge the boundaries of morality by doing something so shameful. Let's just be friends, James."

Freya then gently pushed him away. She had feelings for James, and it might be possible for them to be together if he were not Bradley's nephew. However, they were now destined to never to be together.

They had known each other for so long, yet she had never asked about his family.

She believed whatever he told her.

All these years, she never thought of him as part of the Austins. Since he kept a low profile and never appeared publicly, there was some awkward tension in the air to meet in this type of situation after three whole years.

Sorrow lurked in his eyes. Friends?

He clenched his fists as a tight feeling wrapped around his chest. "Freya, I'm not afraid of what they'll say. I can…"

"James, you really don't need to do this. If you keep pushing, we can't even be friends." Freya looked at him. What an excellent man he is, but he is, unfortunately, not mine.

Not far away, Lydia and Arthur watched them interact.

"I was right. The fool really knows James."

Lydia kept taking photos with her phone as a sinister glint shone in her eyes.

"What do you plan to do next?" Arthur asked, looking at her.

"Simple. I'll let them build up the heat before getting Bradley to catch them red-handed. How do you think he'll react?"

"Lydia, you really are my great partner. If this works, I won't just buy you the necklace. I would even dig my heart out for you if that's what you want!"

Arthur could just imagine the interesting faces Bradley would pull when he found out he had been cheated on.

Freya and James talked for a long time.

She knew she had hurt him with what she said, but she had no choice. James was innocent. She did not want to drag him into this.

"Freya, I…"

Just as James was about to speak, a cold voice interrupted him.

"Freya, why are you here?"

Bradley wheeled himself over with his cold eyes trained on James who looked back at him. When their eyes met, sparks filled the air. Two full minutes passed before Bradley spoke again.

"Thank you, James, for taking care of my wife. If that's all, I'll be taking her back to our room."

The emphasis on "my wife" caused the look on James face to turn very ugly.

Without saying another word, Bradley pulled Freya onto his lap.

Freya gasped in shock before turning to shoot James an awkward look.

Her odd behavior was observed by Bradley.

His entire body was seething with rage as he carried around away from the garden. Freya did not need to ask to know he was in a bad mood.

He was a paranoid person, so he had to have noticed something.

Although nothing happened between James and her, she also did not want to Bradley to misunderstand anything or even cause bad blood between the two men.