That evening at Peaceful Medical Center, Natasha waltzed in through the doors happily with two bottles of wine in her hand. “Honey, I’m back! Look what I brought! These are aged wines, I’m sure you’ll love them!”
All of a sudden, the smile on her face froze as she noticed that not only was Dustin not inside, but there were also two strangers in there instead. Gregory, who was usually in a drunken stupor, now sat upright with a stern expression on his face. How peculiar.
“Mr. Jones, who are they?” Natasha’s curiosity was piqued.
“You’re back, lass? Here, let me introduce them. This one here is Dustin’s father, and this one is an old pal of mine.” Gregory gestured to Rufus and Albert, respectively, as he introduced them to Natasha.
“Dustin’s father?” Natasha’s eyes lit up.
“Oh, so my father–in–law is here! I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you!” As she spoke, she immediately got up and poured them each a cup of tea. Then, she smiled sweetly and said to Rufus, “Please have some tea, Father!”
“What?” Rufus took a while to adapt to such enthusiasm. “Young lady, may I know who you might be?”
“As this is our first time meeting, it’s only expected that you do not know me, Father. My name is Natasha Harmon, and I’m Dustin’s wife, so I’m your daughter–in–law.” Natasha beamed brightly with confidence.
“My daughter–in–law?” Rufus was taken aback momentarily. Then, it quickly dawned on him what exactly was going on. He broke out into a hearty laugh.
“That’s great, that’s great! How lucky my son is to have such an enchanting wife like you! This is amazing!” As expected of a man from the Rhys family. Dustin managed to snag two charming ladies without anyone knowing. He sure had his way with women! Rufus was delighted.
“Oh, you flatter me too much, Father. I’m the lucky one to have Dustin. He’s such an amazing man. I’d say he’s quite a catch!” Natasha chuckled.
“Oh, is that lad really such a fine man?” Rufus teased.
“Of course he is!” Natasha did not go easy on her praise. “Not only is he capable intellectually, but he’s also skilled in martial arts. Besides, his medical skills are top–notch. It seems like there isn’t anything he can’t do! And to top it off, he’s such a gentle and caring man who shoulders his responsibilities well. You don’t come by men like him these days!”
“Hahaha! You sure know your man well!” Rufus chortled loudly when he heard his son being praised. He beamed so brightly that his wrinkles showed, but pride was evident on his face. He was beyond himself with joy. What was more delightful than hearing one’s own child being praised by others?
“Of course, it goes without saying that you must have taught him well for him to turn out into such an amazing person, Father. Now that I think about it, ultimately, you’re the one who has the
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wisdom to raise such a brilliant son!” Natasha took the opportunity to praise Rufus as well.
“Hahaha!” Rufus was truly over the moon. He laughed so much that his cheeks started to hurt. He had never been so happy in the past ten years.
Albert, who sat beside him, smiled brightly too. He was happy for Rufus that he had yet another daughter–in–law.
“Oh, you do have your way with your words, young lady! Since you called me ‘father‘, I must give you a present.” After Rufus calmed down from his joyful laughter, Rufus took out a dagger and handed it to Natasha. “This dagger has been by my side for many, many years. It shall be my gift to you to mark our first meeting.”
“This is too precious! I cannot have it!” Natasha waved her hands in protest. With her sharp eyes, she could tell at a glance that the dagger wasn’t just any other dagger. Just the gemstones embedded on the hilt for decoration alone were worth an exorbitant amount, much less the blade itself.
“Have it. It isn’t worth much. It’d be good to carry it around as protection,” Rufus chuckled. Seeing how understanding his daughter–in–law was, he would gladly give her the stars above if she so wished, let alone just a dagger.
“Just accept it, lass. This is your father–in–law’s affection towards you.” Mr. Jones winked at her. The dagger was listed as one of the top ten blades in the world. Even the Sword Whisperer, who was obsessed with swords, had requested to have the dagger multiple times before, but Rufus had never been willing to part with it.
“Alright, then. Thank you, Father.” Natasha smiled sweetly at him and quickly stashed the dagger away safely.
Then, they both had a good chat and quickly bonded with each other, so they decided to just address each other as father and daughter, respectively.
For a moment, all was warm and cozy in the medical center.
“Natasha, when did you come?” Right then, Dustin, who was just done shopping, entered. There was a smile on his face when he saw Natasha, however, when he caught sight of Rufus, his smile died down.
“Oh, not too long ago. And what a coincidence that I met Father! Why did you not tell me that Father was coming? I had nothing prepared!” Natasha whined. Had she known that Dustin’s father would drop by, she would have prepared some presents for him to win him over and gain her future father–in–law’s favor.
