Chapter 171: Chapter 171- too formal
Lilian was returning home in ten days, having wrapped up everything in the U.S.—every single task, every bit of work. The toughest part to hand over had been the finances at Bert’s company.
She worked overtime day after day, pushing herself to compress her schedule into the fastest ten days possible.
Back when she felt hopeless, time used to fly by in a blur. But now... with someone waiting for her in her heart, every single day dragged like a year.
For Morrison, these ten days were just as torturous—but worth every second of waiting.
The day Lilian returned, Morrison was there to pick her up. He drove her straight to his villa, and already in the garage, he kissed her with a hunger that nearly set off the alarm in her chest. By the time they reached home, it had only gotten worse.
Ten days of longing were poured out between them—sometimes fierce, sometimes tender; sometimes rough, sometimes grinding. It was all him, every touch, every motion.
Afterward, Lilian sank into a deep, exhausted sleep, jet lag tugging at her consciousness. When she finally woke, the sky outside was already dark.
Faint voices came from downstairs. Throwing on a simple outfit and tidying herself up, she made her way down, only to freeze at the sight before her: the enormous living room held her parents—and Morrison’s parents too.
In the kitchen, the sounds of cooking drifted over, probably Morrison preparing dinner.
Lilian’s mother, Linda, spotted her frozen halfway down the stairs and beamed, rushing over.
"Lilian, you’re awake!"
She quickly explained the scene. "Morrison said he wanted to treat us to dinner tonight... to show off his cooking skills."
Though, really, it was mostly for the Burg Eltz parents—they’d tasted his cooking plenty of times before.
Even Linda had to admit: her eldest son had thought this through perfectly. Inviting the future in-laws over, personally cooking for them—it was a subtle way of proving that he could take care of their daughter well in the years to come.
Linda’s explanation only made Lilian feel more flustered.
It was already awkward enough to be seen by her own parents resting in Morrison’s house—especially with all those... intense things she and Morrison had done before.
And now, Linda added that Morrison would personally cook dinner for her parents? That made this meeting feel far too formal...
Linda seemed to notice her daughter’s embarrassment. She stepped forward and gently took Lilian’s hand.
"Morrison said that after picking you up, you fell asleep in the car, so he just brought you straight here to let you rest properly," she said softly.
"You’ve been busy with handovers lately—no wonder you were so tired that you fell asleep in the car."
Linda had a way with words, always able to smooth over an awkward moment in just a few sentences. Lilian felt her face cool slightly.
So that’s how he explained it to both sets of parents... just that she fell asleep. He hadn’t said anything about... them.
He really knew how to act. Lilian had intended to go straight home, but he refused, holding her in the car at the airport parking lot, kissing her and telling her how much he missed her. By the time they returned, he had brought her straight to his place.
Still, she was grateful to Linda for diffusing the situation.
"Luckily, it’s all sorted now," she murmured.
Together, they headed downstairs. Lilian greeted her parents and Morrison’s father. Thankfully, she had dressed neatly when she came down—otherwise, the situation would have been unbearably awkward. And he hadn’t even bothered to tell her that her parents would be coming for dinner tonight.
Looking back, Lilian realized just how cunning he was—deliberately keeping her in the dark. If she had known, she would have never agreed to come here, and certainly wouldn’t have fallen asleep until now.
No sooner had Lilian sat down than Morrison appeared from the kitchen. The moment he saw that she had come downstairs, his eyes darkened slightly as he looked at her.
"Awake now?" he asked.
Lilian didn’t even want to respond. She gave him a faint nod and avoided his gaze entirely.
Tiffany chimed in from the side.
"Now that you’re rested, why don’t you go check the kitchen and help Morrison a bit?"
Lilian just... "..."
Yet, Lilian couldn’t deny that her mother had a point. No matter which role she considered—daughter, guest, or future daughter-in-law—she should be the one helping in the kitchen. With a soft, "Oh, okay," she got up, intending to head that way.
"Oh, no, no!"
Linda stepped in to stop her, then turned to Tiffany.
"No need to help. Morrison has it all under control," she said with a smile. "He’s been used to handling things like this on his own since he was little. One person can manage everything."
"Lilian just got back from her flight—she’s been sitting for so long. Don’t make her go."
Linda seemed far more concerned about exhausting Lilian than about her own son preparing a huge spread, treating her daughter-in-law-to-be like her actual daughter.
Morrison just turned and went back into the kitchen without another word. Feeling a bit embarrassed, Lilian quickly reassured her mother,
"It’s fine, Linda. I’m not tired."
And with that, she hurried after him into the kitchen.
Meanwhile, Linda continued praising her son to Tiffany.
"When he was young, both Mos and I were busy with work, so Morrison handled nearly everything at home—especially taking care of Karl. We didn’t have to worry about a thing. It was during that time he perfected his cooking skills."
Her voice softened with memory.
"Looking back, I feel we were a bit unfair to him. Such a young boy carrying all that responsibility. So later, when it came to relationships and those matters... I didn’t interfere much. I thought, having treated him so harshly as a child, I should just let him be."
At this point, Linda added with a playful tone,
"If I had known he’d end up with your Lilian, I would have made sure to train him into a proper gentleman."
Mos coughed lightly from the side, reminding her,
"You say that like he’s not already a good man..."
Linda shot him a sharp look.
"Whether he’s a good man or not isn’t for us to decide—it’s up to Lilian and Mr. and Mrs. Washington."
Then she turned to Tiffany with a bright smile.
"Don’t you agree?"
Tiffany... "..."
The couple worked like a perfect duo—one playing the red-faced role, the other the black-faced role. Their coordination was flawless.
Faced with such a question, could she really say their son wasn’t a good man? Tiffany could only smile faintly and take a sip of her tea.
"He seems... very responsible. Probably good at taking care of people."
Tiffany hadn’t really spent time with Morrison before. She knew he and her son were friends and that their business collaborations were very successful, but she had no idea what Morrison was like in daily life.
However, from what Linda had just said about him taking care of Karl, it was clear that he could be trusted to care for others. And her daughter... she truly needed someone who could.
As the thought surfaced, Tiffany couldn’t help but feel a pang of envy. As a simple housewife, she was no match for a woman like Linda, who had navigated the cutthroat business world. Every word Linda spoke seemed to subtly showcase her son, and before she realized it, Tiffany’s impression of Morrison had improved several notches.
Daniel, meanwhile, remained silent in the corner. His expression was neutral—not unfriendly, but not smiling either. After all, this was a formal occasion.
No one else present could understand the emotions he felt as a father toward his daughter. With two sons, the Mo family simply didn’t share this quiet, peculiar pang of sentiment.