Faye Ford was somewhat dumbfounded, never expecting to be hit by a little brat. Unable to hold back his anger, he rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight Jonathan Shaw.
Seeing that Faye was dead serious, Zoe Shaw felt completely exasperated. She immediately stepped in to stop him. "You’re a grown adult, yet you’re squaring up against a child. Are you even a man?"
Roasted by Zoe, Faye’s fragile ego shattered into pieces. "Damn it, if only I didn’t have a rule against hitting women!"
Faye scratched his head in frustration. He glanced at Zoe’s face again, and a familiar image flashed through his mind. "I think you look a bit familiar."
Before Zoe could speak, Jonathan grew displeased. He stood guard protectively in front of his mommy, his face full of vigilance. With his hands on his hips, Jonathan clamored, "Hey, hey! Don’t even think about using your charms on my mommy! I already have a daddy."
Besides, this man was a bit younger than his daddy and somewhat handsome. Just in case his mommy got swept off her feet later, he had to take on the responsibility of guarding her.
Faye held grudges. He hadn’t forgotten that Jonathan had punched him without a word just moments ago. He deliberately stirred up trouble, flirting with Zoe right in front of the boy’s face.
"Is that so? Well, miss, meeting here must be fate. How about we grab a drink?"
Jonathan’s eyes widened in anger. He pinched Faye, but the man easily pushed him aside. The boy was completely defenseless against him.
With a smirk on his lips, Faye acted as if Jonathan didn’t exist and continued hitting on Zoe.
"Sure, let’s go," Zoe said, the corners of her lips curling into a faint smile as she walked toward the door.
"Mommy!" Jonathan frantically tugged at Zoe’s sleeve, trying to stop her.
"It would be my absolute honor!" Faye’s eyes lit up. Mistaking Zoe’s response as an agreement to get a drink with him at a bar, he eagerly followed her.
Just like that, they made their way to the entryway.
The moment Faye stepped out the door, before he could even turn around, Zoe gave him a hard shove outside.
Caught off guard, Faye stumbled forward a few steps. He turned back and wailed loudly, "Hey, beautiful, you can’t just burn your bridges like this! Just a second ago inside, we were flirting so sweetly."
Hearing this, Zoe’s pupils shrank abruptly, and she subconsciously stepped back.
For some reason, upon seeing Zoe’s reaction, Faye felt a chill run down his spine. He didn’t dare to move a muscle. Then, he heard the sound of approaching footsteps.
Cyrus Ford approached and smacked the back of Faye’s head. Faye trembled in terror, tightly squeezing his eyes shut as he spun around on the spot. "I didn’t mean to offend! Don’t come after me, don’t come after me..."
Cyrus stared coldly at Faye’s spineless display, utterly speechless.
After a moment, realizing there was no more commotion nearby, Faye stealthily peeked his eyes open, only to find that the newcomer was Cyrus!
"Bro!! Why is it you?!"
"Catch her. It’ll redeem you," Cyrus ordered calmly.
Zoe’s heart tightened. She hadn’t expected Cyrus to catch up to them so quickly. She swiftly turned around, grabbing Jonathan to make a run for it.
But before she could take more than a few steps, Faye blocked their path. Having just pieced together the situation, Faye spread his arms wide, cutting off Zoe’s escape route. "My brother said so! I’m taking you back to redeem myself!"
Zoe was utterly speechless. Holding Jonathan, she knew she wouldn’t be able to escape.
Zoe thought, "Cyrus Ford, you’re so damn insidious!"
In the end, Zoe had no choice but to get into Faye’s car, sitting right next to Cyrus. Whether it was a guilty conscience from being stared down by Cyrus or sheer anger, Zoe remained dead silent the entire ride, seemingly trying to minimize her existence.
Perhaps the atmosphere in the car was too delicate, making a chatterbox like Faye feel restless. He stole several glances at Zoe, unable to suppress his gossip-loving instincts. "Bro, whose runaway wife is this? She’s so pretty!"
As soon as those words left his mouth, the temperature in the car seemed to plummet even further.
Sitting in the driver’s seat, Sean Shelton replied faintly, "She’s your brother’s."
Faye’s eyes widened in sheer shock; he couldn’t believe his own ears. "What?!!! My brother’s? My brother has a wife? How did I not know?!"
After confirming it multiple times, what Faye found even harder to accept was that not only did his brother have a wife, but he actually had a kid too!!
After the scuffle they had just had, no matter how Faye looked at Jonathan, he felt awkward. It was an indescribable feeling. But viewing the boy through the rosy lens of being his actual nephew, Faye decisively began to dote on Jonathan. He rummaged through his suitcase, trying to find a toy the boy might like.
"Come here, look at the presents I prepared for you!"
But one after another, all he pulled out were anime models and Lego sets.
Jonathan wasn’t interested in the slightest. He looked at Faye as if staring at an idiot.
Faye, however, turned a blind eye to it, completely oblivious to Jonathan’s thoughts. He’s just a little brat, isn’t he? When it came to researching toys, Faye was an expert. How could he not win the kid over?!
Sean shivered for no reason. He felt that something was off with this guy—definitely off!
Back at the Ford Estate.
Stepping foot into this place once more, Zoe’s mind was flooded with thoughts, but she knew Cyrus wouldn’t let her off easily this time.
Without Zoe acting as a stumbling block, Claire Lockwood had been in a great mood while watering the flowers, fantasizing about having a romantic dinner with Cyrus once he returned from work.
To her surprise, Zoe returned with Cyrus like a lingering ghost. Her previous solemn vows to leave had been nothing but empty words.
Claire’s face twisted uncontrollably. Her venomous eyes glared fixedly at Zoe, looking as though she wanted to rip her to shreds.
Zoe ignored her and walked toward her room. She couldn’t help it. This wasn’t her own wish; she had been forced back here by Cyrus.
Completely ignoring Claire as well, Cyrus followed Zoe.
Inside the room.
Cyrus closed the door and walked straight toward Zoe. Zoe’s eyelid twitched. Just as she was about to speak, Cyrus grabbed her by the throat and pinned her against the wall.
Cyrus rarely lost his temper, but right now, his face was as dark as ink. His icy gaze shot straight at Zoe, bearing down on her with an overwhelming sense of oppression.
"Never again!"
Cyrus’s voice was laced with thick anger, and the grip of his large hand tightened.
A wave of suffocation hit her. Zoe struggled painfully, grabbing Cyrus’s hand with both of hers, but she couldn’t budge him an inch.
She knew Cyrus was truly enraged. But why? Was it just because she had run away with Jonathan? He hadn’t known about Jonathan’s existence all these years, and his life had been perfectly fine! She wondered why he was making such a huge fuss now.
Seeing that Zoe’s face had flushed red and her breathing was becoming increasingly difficult, Cyrus finally let go of her like granting a royal pardon. Then, without even sparing Zoe another glance, he strode out of the room.
Clutching her neck, Zoe stared at Cyrus’s retreating back. She felt resentful, furious, and above all, hateful of her own powerlessness.
Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she unlocked her phone, only to find a new message from the Ford Family in her inbox.
"Penney, you said you were coming, and the Ford Family has been waiting for you. What is the meaning of randomly hiring someone to brush us off?"