CEO Ex-Husband, Don't Bother Me-Chapter 48: Returning to the Country (Part 1)

Chapter 48: Chapter 48: Returning to the Country (Part 1)

Julian Donovan finally admitted he was married. He could have easily said he was single, and he wasn’t sure why he’d confessed. Maybe he didn’t want to lie to his sworn brothers, or maybe it was for some other reason.

His three friends immediately started clamoring to see a picture of his wife, but he just sat there morosely, chugging his drink. The reason was simple: he didn’t have a picture of her.

None of them believed him. How could he not have a single picture of his own wife? Felix Draper, in particular, snatched his phone and started rummaging through it himself. When he really couldn’t find one, his eager little heart was deeply wounded, and he refused to let the matter drop.

"Then how about we call your wife? Let us talk to her for a bit. We’re your sworn brothers, after all!"

Of the group, Caleb Rhodes was the oldest, followed by Julian Donovan, then Henry Hale. Felix Draper was the youngest.

Julian Donovan panicked, setting down his glass to snatch his phone back from Felix Draper.

"What’s there to talk about? She doesn’t know any of you!"

Felix deftly dodged his lunge, flashing him a cheeky grin.

"We’ll get to know her after we chat a bit!"

Julian was about to lose his mind. That damn Felix Draper never played by the rules and was completely impulsive. ’Why the sudden urge to make a phone call out of nowhere?’ Felix ducked behind Caleb Rhodes and Henry Hale, muttering in confusion as he scrolled through the phone. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Which one is your wife’s number? How come you didn’t save it under ’Wifey’ or ’My Dearest Darling’?"

Hearing this, Julian Donovan breathed a sigh of relief. He gave up on chasing Felix for the phone and sat back down. He had saved her number under "Naomi Shaw," so Felix would never know it was her. For some reason, just the mention of her name tonight made him feel a pang of longing.

Felix Draper wasn’t about to give up.

"You little sneak, look how smug you are. You think I won’t be able to find her just like that? Let me tell you, my sixth sense is scarily accurate. Just watch, I’ll pick your wife out from this whole list of contacts in one go!"

Caleb Rhodes and Henry Hale were on the sidelines, laughing and enjoying the show. In high spirits, Julian Donovan poured himself a large glass of alcohol and tilted his head back to down it. The drink had just hit his throat when he heard Felix muttering to himself.

"Naomi Shaw? This name feels a little... suspicious..."

"PFFT..."

The alcohol in Julian’s mouth went spraying out. Felix immediately grinned like a fox.

"Oho, so it’s this one!"

Then, under Julian’s mortified and vexed gaze, Felix pressed the call button.

"Hi, sis-in-law!"

Caleb Rhodes and Henry Hale’s gazes snapped in unison toward Julian Donovan. With a dark expression, Julian glared at Felix. ’Idiot. With her personality, this kind of "enthusiasm" will just scare her.’

"Sis-in-law?"

It was nighttime in Meridia, but broad daylight in Thailos. On the other end of the line, Naomi Shaw was out having tea and chatting with Lara Nash. She was taken aback by the sudden call from a strange number, especially when the person on the other end immediately called her "sis-in-law." Around her, besides Arnold who called her Miss Naomi, everyone else seemed to be older than her.

Ever since Julian Donovan went to Meridia, they hadn’t been in contact at all. He never gave her his number there, and she never asked for it. Ken had tried to give it to her several times, but she always refused. ’If I don’t know, I won’t have to worry. I won’t have to think about him.’

On the other end, Felix Draper was already making himself familiar and introducing himself.

"I’m your husband’s brother. My name is Felix Draper, but you can just call me Felix!"

Hearing him offer his first name, Caleb Rhodes and Henry Hale both pretended to gag. Julian, however, just frowned and glared at Felix. The word "husband" made his own heart skip a beat.

"Husband? What husband?"

Having not lived a single day of married life, Naomi Shaw had no concept of the word "husband" in her mind. She denied it instinctively, causing Lara Nash, who was sitting nearby, to raise an eyebrow.

The long, eloquent speech Felix Draper had prepared was cut short by this one nonchalant question. The ever-so-slick Young Master Draper was momentarily stumped. ’Why does this girl’s tone make it sound like she doesn’t even know who her husband is? What’s going on here?’

It was rare for Caleb Rhodes and Henry Hale to see Felix get shut down, so they both watched him with amused expressions. Felix shot a dissatisfied glare at Julian, who was sipping his drink while staring intently at him. With great effort, Felix managed to make his voice sound normal again.

"Isn’t Julian Donovan your husband?"

Julian, who had just taken another sip of his drink, nearly spat it out again. He slammed his glass down, flames of anger igniting in his eyes. ’So she didn’t even realize Felix was talking about me? Wait...’ He suddenly remembered that he’d never given her his number in Meridia. ’But is not knowing my number an excuse to forget you even have a husband?’

’Looks like she’s been living quite comfortably these past few months since I left, completely going against my original intention of torturing her with this marriage.’ The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. His grip tightened, nearly shattering the glass in his hand.

"Oh..."

Hearing that long-unheard name sent a dull ache through Naomi Shaw’s heart. She lowered her gaze and asked coolly,

"May I ask what you’re calling about?"

’These past few days, I’ve been trying to learn how to forget, trying to learn how to not let him affect my emotions anymore.’

"Nothing, really. I just wanted to get to know you!"

Felix Draper had finally regained his usual suave composure. He narrowed his eyes, gloating at Julian’s furious expression.

"Oh. It’s nice to meet you!"

Naomi Shaw’s reply was polite but distant. ’What does Julian mean by this? Didn’t he scorn this marriage? Why would he need to admit my identity to others? Why stir things up again now that my heart has finally found some peace?’

Just as she was thinking this, the phone was snatched from her hand by Lara Nash, who was sitting across from her. Lara had been listening in and had a pretty good idea of what was happening. Infuriated by Naomi’s meek demeanor, she grabbed the phone and started yelling into it without a shred of courtesy.

"Hey, who the hell are you? Do you even know what kind of relationship Julian Donovan has with her? How dare you just call her that?"

"Sis-in-law? Sis-in-law my ass! And you, Julian Donovan, you scum! You abandoned your own wife on your wedding night to go abroad! How do you have the nerve to admit to outsiders that she’s your wife now? Do you even see her as your wife?"

After her tirade, Lara coolly hung up and turned off the phone. In the fiery Lara’s opinion, just cursing him out wasn’t nearly enough to vent her anger. Scratching up Julian Donovan’s face might have helped a little.

But, if Naomi Shaw had a personality like hers, she wouldn’t be Naomi Shaw, and her relationship with Julian Donovan would never have reached this point.

Naomi Shaw took her phone back and said uneasily,

"Hey, hey, Lara, isn’t it a bit rude to just hang up on them like that?"

"Who needs to be polite with people like that!"

Naomi couldn’t say anything more to her. ’But this might be for the best,’ she thought. ’Lara’s outburst made Julian lose face in front of his friends. He’ll probably hate me even more now.’

Felix Draper, for his part, was first startled by Lara’s shout, then quickly pulled the phone away from his ear. Lara’s sharp voice could be heard faintly coming from the receiver. Caleb Rhodes, Henry Hale, and Felix exchanged a look before all turning to Julian Donovan in unison, their eyes full of questions.

Julian Donovan’s expression grew even colder. ’So she’s with Lara Nash right now. Lara still loves sticking up for her just as much as ever.’ Felix held up the phone that had been unceremoniously hung up on, shrugging to ease the awkwardness of having just been thoroughly chewed out.

"Fiery! Very fiery! I like it!"

Julian irritably snatched his phone back from him.

"It’s useless even if you like her. She’s already taken!"

Felix Draper let out a wounded cry, picked up his glass, and downed a large mouthful. Then he sidled up to Julian Donovan.