CEO Ex-Husband, Don't Bother Me-Chapter 129 - 123: How Could You Misinterpret My Meaning?

Julian chimed in, "It won’t be too late to go out and have fun after your cold gets better. Anyway, we’re staying here for a week!"

Although he was the one who had Lara suggest the idea, he couldn’t bear to drag her out and tire her out when she was in this state.

"Who said anything about staying for a week? You’re the one who took it upon yourself to request a week off for me, all right? I have so much work to do at the hospital. Do you think your family owns it or something?!"

Naomi Shaw protested unhappily. She had only planned to stay for two or three days before heading back. Seeing everyone was enough for now. She would bring Joy back often during future holidays. Besides, she had left in such a hurry that she hadn’t had time to brief her colleagues on a lot of things.

A corner of Julian Donovan’s mouth quirked up into a smile. "I wouldn’t mind making it mine."

Naomi Shaw thought of his hostile takeover of the Donovan Group, and hearing his arrogant words, she was too angry to acknowledge him. She simply lowered her head and continued to eat.

The others exchanged glances. ’Sure enough, in love, the one who loves more is destined to be at a disadvantage.’ Take Julian Donovan, for instance, who would stop at nothing to win her over.

After dinner, the adults chatted in the living room while the children played together. Cheryl Nash looked very seriously at Dylan, who was carefully peeling a banana for his little sister. "Dylan, I heard you were the one who found your mom. Can you help me find my dad?" 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Dylan raised an eyebrow, his expression a carbon copy of Julian Donovan’s. "You should know, we businessmen never make a losing deal."

Cheryl blinked her bright eyes, tilted her head, and thought for a moment. "Then if you help me find my dad, I’ll marry you when I grow up!"

The little girl had no idea what marriage truly meant; she simply felt it was a way to repay someone’s kindness.

Dylan looked horrified. "Forget it! As for payment, just not torturing me anymore would be more than enough!"

Heaven knew what a headache she gave him. He was a boy, and even he wasn’t as hyperactive as her. Cheryl saw his reluctance and pouted. "Fine, you can ask for whatever you want as payment, as long as you agree to help me!"

After saying her piece, she skipped over to Joy, who was sitting quietly on the sofa doing a puzzle. "Joy Donovan, want to go outside and light some fireworks?"

Joy looked up from her puzzle, glanced at her, hesitated, and then shook her head before lowering it to continue her work. With no one to play with, Cheryl grew bored and snatched the Barbie doll nearby, fiddling with it absentmindedly.

That Barbie doll... Joy had just changed it into a new outfit with matching earrings and had styled its hair perfectly. But after just a few moments in Cheryl’s hands, its once-neat hair was yanked into a messy bird’s nest. When Joy, still working on her puzzle, glanced up and saw what Cheryl had done to the Barbie, her big eyes instantly filled with tears of indignation. However, it wasn’t in her nature to confront anyone, so she just stared at Cheryl, her vision blurring with tears.

Dylan noticed Joy’s distress and followed her gaze to the disheveled Barbie doll in Cheryl’s hands. He immediately roared at her, "Cher...yl..."

Cheryl stuck out her tongue, made a face, tossed the Barbie to Dylan, and scurried off to find Lara.

His heart aching for her, Dylan comforted Joy. "Don’t cry, Joy. I’ll fix her up for you!"

Joy said nothing. She took the disheveled Barbie doll from his hands and silently began to fix it herself. Watching her quiet, gentle, and uncomplaining manner, Dylan secretly vowed to himself, ’I will protect and cherish her like a precious treasure for the rest of my life.’

Seeing that Naomi Shaw was sick, the guests only stayed for a short while after dinner before getting up to leave. As Lara was about to leave with Cheryl, Cheryl broke free from her mother’s grasp, ran over to Joy, and said earnestly, "Joy Donovan, I’m sorry about just now!"

’I suddenly really like this new friend, Joy Donovan!’ she thought. ’She didn’t even tattle on me to my mom. If she had, I definitely would have gotten a scolding.’ At kindergarten, whenever she got into trouble, the first thing the other kids did was run and tell the teacher.

Joy shook her head. Lara, standing nearby, frowned at her daughter. "Cheryl, what trouble did you get into now?"

"Nothing!"

Cheryl hugged Lara’s leg and refused to say another word. Naomi said to Lara, "What kind of trouble can a child get into? Don’t make such a big fuss. You two should get going."

Lara shot Cheryl a harsh glare, then lifted her, buckled her into the car, and drove away.

After seeing their guests off, Julian Donovan said he had something to do and drove out. Naomi then took the two children to give them their baths. Dylan was getting older and was a bit too embarrassed to have her wash him, so she drew him a bath and let him wash himself. She waited just outside the door to make sure he didn’t slip or have any accidents; he was still just a child, after all.

While washing himself, Dylan asked Naomi, "Mom, what kind of work does Cheryl’s dad do?"

"I’m not exactly sure what he does now. He’s probably a physicist, I think. He studied physics in the past."

Naomi didn’t realize Dylan was asking for a reason, so she answered casually. She sometimes forgot that her son had such a high IQ, forgot that he had once managed to track her all the way to Wincastle using only a bracelet.

’That one piece of information is enough,’ Dylan thought to himself. ’And I bet Cheryl’s father has "Qiao" in his name. I remember when Arnold first heard Joy’s Chinese name, Xiao Qiao, he turned to Lara and joked that they should call Cheryl "Da Qiao" to make them a sister pair—Big Qiao and Little Qiao. Lara Nash’s expression changed instantly then.’

When Dylan came out from his bath, Naomi Shaw had a set of clean clothes ready for him. After he changed, she dried his hair before going to wash Joy. By the time she was finally done with both children, she was completely exhausted. She handed them over to Mrs. Sommers and returned to her bedroom to take a shower herself. Before stepping into the bathroom, she looked at her bedroom door, hesitated for a moment, and then walked over and locked it.

As the warm water streamed over her, her head felt groggy and her thoughts were a tangled mess. The idea of going back and breaking up with Sean Donovan... she just didn’t know how she could bring herself to do it.

For her, Sean Donovan had been a ray of warmth during the darkest days of her life. She knew he, too, was starved for affection. For the past three years, they had supported each other, and it was a time for which she would always be grateful.