When His Perfect Mask Shattered I Awoke (Anneliese) novel Chapter 600

"How could you not know this would happen?"

Anneliese felt the heat leeching off her face. Oh, God. He looks pissed.

Before she could start spiraling, he suddenly said something that she never saw coming. "You must believe that it happened!"

"Huh?" Anneliese couldn't keep up.

Derek patted her arm, not at all shy about spelling things out for her as he continued, "Jonathan is never one for frivolous words. He always says what he means and means what he says.

"He is completely devoted to you and only you. You need to trust him! You can't just run away and hide because of a little bump in the road. You'll only hurt him that way.

"You'll also disappoint both Penelope and me. Do you understand?"

Anneliese nodded resolutely under Derek's searching gaze. "I understand, Grandpa."

"Good. I always knew you were the sensible sort." Derek patted her arm again. He'd had his grief when it came to Anneliese, but that was all in the past.

After all, she was legally married to Jonathan, which makes her one of them. Her identity as the Fullbuster family's granddaughter-in-law was written in black and white. So, they shouldn't be wasting their time with internal conflict.

Instead, they should be pointing their swords at their enemies, together.

Besides, Jonathan had his heart set on her. He'd even gone to great lengths just to marry her. Derek knew right then that he could never win that tug-of-war.

Fortunately, he discovered that Anneliese had some redeeming qualities after spending some time with her. Sure, she was still rather naïve and green around the edges, but she had good character, so he was confident that a diamond in the rough like her would shine in the future.

Penelope had her hands full with Nishay, and he wasn't about to dodder around doing nothing.

He was certain he could get Anneliese to see things his way. It'd be a piece of cake, really. Hmph. Jonathan should thank his lucky stars that he has a grandfather like me.

"But your grandmother is very stubborn," Derek continued. "Do you have a plan to win her over?"

"Time," Anneliese answered. "She'll come to accept it if I give her time to think it over."

"I doubt that'd work." Derek shook his head. "But I do have an idea. Do you want to hear it?"

Anneliese nodded eagerly, her eyes bright with hope.

With Derek's experience in life, she was sure he'd come up with a stellar plan. Alas, her hopes were dashed when he said, "You and Jonathan should hurry up and have a child."

Anneliese was rendered speechless.

Anneliese smiled as she told Jessica all about Penelope and Derek's visit.

"I think Grandma's softening up."

Jessica beamed. "Well, Derek and Penelope visiting personally proves they value you. Your grandmother objected to your union with Jonathan because she thought you and Jonathan weren't a good match.

"She was worried that his family would look down on you or that they'd mistreat you. Now that she sees that her worries are unfounded, it's only natural for her to ease up on the objections. I'm really happy for you."

Honestly, Jessica had shared those same concerns before. After all, Elizabeth was difficult to please, so she felt her worries ease now that she knew how much Penelope and Derek cared about Anneliese.

After a beat, she commented, "I told you that you should find someone reliable, didn't I? It'd be so much easier to navigate difficult in-laws when your husband is a dependable man.

"But if he isn't… God, you're better off praying for an early death to your marriage."

Anneliese's smile deepened as she recalled Derek telling her how Jonathan had insisted that she was the only one for him.

She knew very well she wasn't easy to love. She was only human and had plenty of flaws.

The only reason Derek and Penelope were being so nice to her was because of Jonathan. They had chosen to treat her with respect because he'd made his stance clear right from the start.