The CEO Gets What He Wants

On New Year's Eve, Cayden, Avery, and the two children had supper while watching the New Year's Eve special on the television since they did not eat much at the Moore residence.

While eating, Cayden's and Avery's phones rang nonstop. They kept receiving all kinds of greeting messages. Most of them were forwarded posts.

Most of the messages Avery received came from friends, family, colleagues whom she was close with, as well as her clients.

Out of courtesy, she reciprocated everyone's blessings.

Cayden, on the contrary, did not care to reply to their greetings.

He only replied to a few people whom he was close with and completely ignored those bootlickers who tried to get in his good books.

The supper might be simple, but they enjoyed the food as a family.

After the supper, the two children felt drowsy and went to bed.

Cayden embraced Avery, wanting to carry her to the bedroom as he knew how worn out she was. The fact that she was pregnant made her even more exhausted. Yet, Avery insisted on making a tray of ravioli. Making ravioli was a tradition in her hometown, as villagers would cook and eat them on New Year because they symbolized prosperity and good fortune.

Initially, Cayden did not want Avery to make ravioli because he was afraid she might be too exhausted, but he gave up persuading her when she looked at him with her puppy eyes.

That was how they got busy again in the kitchen.

The refrigerator contained all kinds of ingredients. After considering Cayden's and the two children's love for meat, Avery decided to use ground meat for the fillings.

Cayden gestured for her to sit, as he did not want her to get more tired than she already was. “Tell me what to do. I'll do it.”

He followed the instructions given by Avery by rinsing a piece of pork and beef and grinding them in the grinder. Once the meat was ready, he added ricotta cheese, cream cheese, egg, and chopped basil. The filling looked even better after Cayden added a pinch of sea salt and black pepper.

Next, Cayden learned to make the dough while Avery added the filling.

With deft hands, Avery was able to make perfectly-shaped ravioli. She even made tortellini and pansotti with the same filling. Cayden was dazzled by the different shapes and sizes of all the stuffed pasta.

He tried making a ravioli, but it looked like a flat turtle that was miserably out of shape. Upon noticing the ravioli he made, Avery burst into laughter.

Who would have guessed an all-rounder like Cayden was a woefully inept cook?

In the end, Avery had to wrap up all the ravioli herself.

After everything was done, it was already about one in the morning. They returned to their bedroom and hit the sack.

Avery had a weaker physique, so she tended to feel cold at night. Cayden embraced her and gave her warmth like a ball of flame in a cold winter night. Leaning on his chest, Avery could hear his heart beating rhythmically.

To this day, she still could not believe they were together. It was as if she was dreaming. The man was her crush during her teenage years, and she thought they would not meet each other again for the rest of their lives. Nonetheless, life had its plan. Her Prince Charming from her younger days was now by her side. Years might have flown by, and things might have changed, but they were still together. That was all that mattered.

Jolted by the fireworks in the neighborhood before dawn, Avery woke up at about five in the morning.

Though Ackleton had banned fireworks, residents would still display them in secret to heighten the New Year spirit.

Avery wanted to get out of bed, but Cayden held her so tightly that she could barely move.

Cayden was always an early bird, but since it was New Year, he wanted to spend more time in bed, hugging the love of his life.

“Daddy! Mommy! Wake up!” Zachary and Rory slammed the door hard and yelled with their adorable voices, trying to wake their parents up.

Avery looked at the man who refused to let her go and chuckled. She then forced him to get out of bed.

Like an aggrieved child, Cayden reluctantly got up and changed his clothes. He looked at Avery resentfully with his charming eyes and began to have second thoughts about the baby in her womb. Having so many kids in the house might not be a good idea. How can I spend quality time with my wife when they keep disturbing us?

Living in a wealthy neighborhood meant residents had more freedom when compared to regular citizens who had to abide by the regulations strictly and could not play fireworks openly. That was why New Year in the neighborhood was more exciting.

Fireworks of all sorts were set off continuously, producing deafening sounds. The loud blasts might have disrupted the peaceful morning, but they did enliven the New Year celebration.

Meanwhile, Avery was busy cooking ravioli in the kitchen. Once she was done cooking, she laid all the dishes on the dining table.

Cayden took out a box of fireworks and lit some up with a lighter in the mansion's courtyard.

The two children standing beside him cheered loudly. Amidst the deafening sound of the fireworks, Avery could hear the kids asking Cayden questions. out of curiosity.

“Daddy, why do we play fireworks during New Year?”

“And why do we need to eat ravioli during New Year?” Zachary shot another question.

While Cayden patiently answered their questions, Avery observed their interaction from the kitchen window. Her heart was filled with warmth and bliss.

The brave Zachary even asked his father for a box of fireworks and was eager to light it himself.

Rory, who was slightly timider, pulled herself away from the fireworks while covering her ears. On and off, she would scream when the fireworks took off.