From Broken to Beloved-Chapter 161-sister-in-law

Chapter 161-sister-in-law

Bert came in shortly afterward, and Catherine immediately turned on him, fuming.

"This is all your fault! If you hadn’t been coming over every night—"

She couldn’t bring herself to finish the sentence and could only glare at him angrily.

Bert looked completely innocent.

"Your mom already knew," he said. "Otherwise, why do you think she agreed to move in with us?"

"You’re the only one who’s been slow on the uptake."

Hand on heart, Renata had known about them long before this—it had absolutely nothing to do with him clinging to Catherine night after night lately.

"I—"

After thinking it over carefully, Catherine realized that he actually had a point. And then, remembering how she’d spent the past few days pretending nothing had happened between her and Bert, she immediately covered her face, wishing she could just disappear.

Bert walked over and pulled her into his arms, soothing her gently.

"There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. We’re all adults. Your mom’s been through it too—she definitely understands."

It would have been better if he hadn’t said that. The moment he did, Catherine couldn’t help recalling how completely lacking in restraint he’d been these past few nights. Annoyed, she raised her hand and pinched the flesh at his waist.

"Understand what? Not everyone’s like you—doing it every single day..."

Thinking about what she’d endured over the last few nights, Catherine actually started to regret moving in with him.

Bert’s waist was firm and solid, and Catherine hadn’t really put much strength into it anyway, so not only did it not hurt him—it was more like teasing. He let out a low grunt. The sound alone made Catherine’s face flush again. She shoved him away and ran out of the room.

Renata had already finished eating and returned to her bedroom. Catherine figured her mother was probably being considerate, deliberately giving her space to recover from the awkwardness.

That weekend, Laurent invited Catherine and Bert over to his place as guests. Lilian and Morrison were there as well—it was essentially a full gathering of the three Burg Eltz siblings.

Unlike previous get-togethers, Bert wasn’t alone this time. He had Catherine with him—his partner—and Morrison felt like he was finally liberated.

In the past, whenever they got together, Bert would take every opportunity to needle him. Morrison would be furious but dared not say a word, which made him dread these gatherings. Unfortunately, Lilian loved spending time with her brothers and was always enthusiastic about family dinners, so Morrison had no choice but to sacrifice himself for his wife.

Now that Catherine was by Bert’s side, Morrison thought, surely Bert wouldn’t be as sharp-tongued and cutting anymore. At the very least, he’d want to maintain a gentle image in front of her... right?

Bert and Catherine arrived last. Lilian hurried over happily.

"Catherine—"

Halfway through, she realized something was off, stuck out her tongue, and corrected herself with a bright smile. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"I can’t call you ’Catherine’ anymore."

Catherine felt a little embarrassed.

"Just call me cici."

Bert smoothly took over the conversation, his voice steady and carrying a natural authority.

"cici is the correct way to address her."

It was an indirect but unmistakable affirmation of Catherine’s status.

Catherine shot him a glare. He pretended not to notice. Having received her brother’s cue, Lilian sweetly called out again,

"Cici, come sit down."

She had been so excited when she rushed over earlier that she completely forgot she was still a pregnant woman with a noticeable baby bump. Morrison was so startled that he had no choice but to follow closely behind her, guarding her the whole way.

That was when Bert noticed him. He raised an eyebrow slightly and ordered Morrison,

"Call her Cici."

Morrison: "..."

Was he serious?! Call her Cici? Catherine was so much younger than him—calling her Cici would be a huge loss for him.

Why was it that they had both married younger wives, yet Bert somehow managed to gain so many advantages? Out of everyone present, only Lilian—who was younger than Catherine—didn’t lose out by calling her Cici. Everyone else was getting the short end of the stick.

Morrison refused on the spot, forcing a laugh as he tried to dodge it.

"At my age, calling her Cici would just make her sound old."

Catherine herself was mortified when she heard Bert tell Morrison to call her Cici. She was much younger than Morrison, and on top of that, this was her first time truly being immersed in such a close-knit sibling-family environment. She already felt a little restrained, and she genuinely couldn’t accept Morrison and the others calling her Cici.

So she hurriedly added,

"No, no, that’s not necessary. Just call me Catherine."

Morrison shot Bert a smug look, full of disdain. See? Even she’s siding against you.

Bert, however, showed no sign of irritation. He glanced at Catherine, then turned back to Morrison.

"As long as you’re Lilian’s husband, you have to call me ’big brother’—and call Catherine ’Cici.’"

As he said this, Bert smiled faintly and added, choking Morrison with a final remark,

"Unless you’re not her husband anymore."

Morrison: "..."

He was so furious he nearly spat out blood. That old fox—so this was what he’d been waiting for. No wonder he hadn’t been angry earlier.

If Morrison refused to say "Cici," it would be the same as admitting he wasn’t Lilian’s husband. With Dave and Bert both present, how could he dare?

More importantly, he didn’t want to deny it. He would be Lilian’s husband for the rest of his life—until his last breath.

In the end, he could only force a smile and look at Catherine, his face plastered with an awkward grin.

"Cici..."

Catherine was mortified beyond words. She quickly walked over, grabbed Lilian, and pulled her away—far from the smoke-filled battlefield between the domineering brother-in-law and the aggrieved brother-in-law-by-marriage.

Laurent and Dave had originally been busy preparing things in the kitchen. Hearing the commotion outside, they came out together to greet Catherine and Bert.

Morrison immediately protested Bert’s unfair treatment.

"Why don’t you make them call her Cici too?"

He had been waiting and watching, yet Bert never once told Dave or Laurent to address Catherine as Cici. Morrison had originally thought that if Dave—who was also older—had to do it too, he might feel a little more balanced. But Dave hadn’t, and Morrison instantly exploded with resentment.

At first, Dave and Cici were confused. Once they figured out what was going on, Cici smiled.

"Since Cici is big brother’s girlfriend, it’s only proper for us to call her Cici."

After saying that, Laurent smiled at Catherine and called her,

"Cici."

Cici genuinely didn’t think there was anything strange about it. Among the three Burg Eltz siblings, Bert was the eldest. No matter how young Catherine was, since she was Bert’s partner, etiquette dictated that they should address her as Cici.

Morrison: "..."

Dave: "..."

Catherine: "..."

After Laurent called her that, the three of them were rendered speechless.

Dave was the one who got dragged into this the hardest—and yet had no room to complain. He cast a long-suffering glance at his wife.

"Mm... Laurent makes a good point."

Just as Morrison thought Dave was about to say sister-in-law as well, Bert spoke up again.

"You guys chat. I’ll go help out in the kitchen."

And with that excuse, he slipped away—still never having called her Cici himself.

The others didn’t really mind anymore. Bert had clearly been targeting Morrison from the start, leaving Morrison alone to stew in resentment over the whole affair.

The group settled into the living room, sipping tea and chatting.