The CEO's Mischievous Little Bride
Chapter 436 Concern

Patrick reached out, gently pinching Vera's chin as he drew her close to him.

Vera's mouth was chewing meat, her cheeks puffed out.

With Patrick's large hand pinching her face, her mouth was forced into a pout.

Patrick said, "Once you swallow the meat in your mouth, you're done eating, Overindulgence isn't good for you."

Vera pouted, her expression one of disappointment. She glanced longingly at the last two pieces of roasted meat left in her bowl, wishing she could have more.

Brianna also thought Vera had eaten quite a bit, so she immediately instructed the maid to clear away the leftovers on the table after the meal to prevent Vera from sneaking any. Later in the evening, Patrick took Vera for a walk on the lawn. Once they had both calmed down and reconciled, they began to discuss the disagreement from the other day. Patrick said, "Punishing you to stand the other day was a bit impulsive of me." He could have chosen other ways to punish Vera but opted for making her stand.

Vera also reflected on her mistake. "I was wrong this time, too. I shouldn't have taken a risk."

As she spoke, Vera headed towards a bench nestled between two trees, hoping to sit and relax. But just as she started moving in that direction, Patrick pulled her into his arms. Vera, who had hoped to take a break, wasn't pleased with this.

Patrick asked, "Why didn't you come back to our house that day and instead went to your parents' home crying?"

Vera glanced at the bench, then at Patrick holding her waist. "I felt guilty, but when I saw you so angry, I was even more scared. I knew I couldn't face you, especially not sharing the same bed. I wouldn't have been able to sleep a wink." Patrick found it rare to hear her, who was usually unshakable, admit fear so openly.

"Why didn't you come back yesterday?" Patrick asked again.

Vera was candid, "I was afraid you'd still be mad. You didn't even call, so I figured you were still upset. I didn't want to risk running into you. Besides, I felt a bit wronged myself."

Patrick couldn't help but smile; Vera didn't hide anything from him.

"You know, darling," Vera continued, "you clearly care about me. You even sent someone to look out for me. So why didn't you come to find me yesterday? You couldn't even manage a phone call."

Patrick was surprised. "Who told you I sent people to protect you?"

He hadn't told anyone.

Every time he thought it was a secret, Vera would talk about it as if it were a common thing.

Vera pressed her lips. "Honey, I'm somewhat famous in the Shadow Syndicate United. I can tell the difference between being followed and being protected.

"The only ones who care about my safety like this are you, Dad, and Cindy. Cindy doesn't handle these things, and Dad came to see me yesterday afternoon. So it must be you. You knew Jeffrey escaped and were afraid something would happen to me."

Patrick thought he had arranged it very discreetly, but she had discovered it the day before.

"You care so much about me, yet you don't care if I'm crying." Vera complained softly.

Patrick said, "I came to see you yesterday."

Vera was shocked and turned to look at Patrick holding her, her voice soft., "Then why didn't you show up?"

Patrick explained, "If I had shown up too soon, you wouldn't have learned your lesson. Next time, I want you to remember this punishment and let it serve as a warning. I've usually indulged you and enjoyed spoiling you, but Jeffrey is a different case, and you're not as quick as before. The punishment was meant to be a reminder, to keep you from making the same mistakes in the future. Even though your help was valuable to us, your safety is what matters most." Vera understood Patrick's intention. She initiatively interlocked her fingers with Patrick's. "I understand, honey."

Patrick later said, "There's no right side in this matter. We both were wrong. Let's just let it go."

Vera nodded, not dwelling on it.

Vera asked, "Honey, it's been ten minutes of walking, right? Can I sit down now?"

"No, it's only been eight minutes. Walk a bit more."

Vera looked at the comfortable bench helplessly.

Vera bit her lip. "Is it ten minutes now?"

"One more minute."

That night, Patrick and Vera stayed at the Linister Manor. Early the next morning, Patrick received a call from Shawn, scolding him for arguing with Vera. "Dad, it's Vera."

As soon as Vera spoke, Patrick immediately became Shawn's good son again.

Vera felt she hadn't visited Molly in a long time, so after making up with Patrick, she went to the hospital.

Molly was getting an IV. When she saw Patrick and Vera, she immediately sat up in bed. "You two made up?" Vera nodded, sitting by Molly's bed, looking at her hand with the IV, and asked about her recent condition. Patrick walked over, picked up Molly's medical report from the table, and went outside with it. Molly asked, "Where did Patrick go?"

"He probably went to pay your hospital bill." Vera guessed.

With only the two of them in the room, Molly directly asked, "Vera, how did you and Patrick make up?"

Vera briefly recounted the events of the previous day to Molly.

After that, Molly said, "I thought you'd give Patrick the cold shoulder for a while, especially since he punished you to the point of leg swelling."

"We are couple. If we give each other the cold shoulder every time we have a conflict, there's no point in continuing this relationship. He must have felt bad for me that night when my legs swelled. Marriages require mutual understanding and care to last long."

After speaking, Vera suddenly remembered that Patrick and Molly both knew about her leg swelling, and she asked, "Molly, did Zoey tell you about my leg swelling, and then you told Patrick?"

"I didn't mention your leg swelling. I just said you had an incident and came to the hospital. Patrick found out about the swelling himself when he came to the hospital."

Vera reflected on how she and Patrick had missed each other that night. She looked down, a smile of realization spreading across her face.

Vera thought, 'Men are really strange. Patrick is so concerned, yet he never says 'I love you.' If I hadn't accidentally found out, I might never have known.'

"Patrick never takes credit in front of me." Vera said.