"Excuse me."
Kerr stood up abruptly and walked out of the dining room.
When Nicole saw what Kerr had done, she couldn't help feeling touched. Had he hidden his injury
because he was worried that she would faint at the sight of blood? Was he taking care of her feelings
subconsciously?
The thought made her feel slightly melancholy. She couldn't believe that Kerr cared about her that
much.
"Mommy, Uncle Gu is angry."
Next to her, Jay looked up at her innocently. He didn't look panicked, instead his little eyes seemed to
be filled with helplessness.
It seemed that the grownups world was a lot more complicated than his.
"It's not your fault, dear. Don't worry about it,"
she smiled at him comfortingly as she stroked his hair. She temporarily ignored her curiosity about
Kerr's sudden departure and focused on Jay. Looking at his little face, she felt like she was looking at
Kerr.
She didn't see Kerr again until the dinner ended.
"Miss Ning, my apologies but Mr Gu can't be interrupted at the moment. He is currently taking an
overseas call,"
Vedder told her respectfully. He was standing at the entrance of Gu family villa.
"It's okay, Vedder. Could you please tell him I'm very sorry about what happened earlier? It's already
rather late, I need to take Jay home."
Nicole took a quick look in the direction of the stairs before saying goodbye to Vedder. Then she took
Jay's hand and left.
When they got into the car, Nicole leaned her head against the door. She felt and looked as though she
hadn't slept in days.
"If you are tired, you can close your eyes for a while. I'll wake you up when we arrive,"
Baron told her. Even though he was driving, he could still catch the strange look on Nicole's face from
the corner of his eye.
Back in Manhattan, she had never looked this tired no matter how busy her schedule was. He could
even detect a slight sense of loss from her behavior. He knew better than to ask but it was obvious that
she had been through a lot.
Nicole nodded gratefully at his words and her eyes fluttered shut gently.
She knew it would be impossible to sleep, but she just wasn't in the mood to talk. Anyway, Jay was
there, so there wasn't much she could say. To tell the truth, she didn't exactly know how to face Baron
either.
Her life seemed to be a huge mess ever since she had met Kerr. No matter how hard she tried, it
looked like her life would never be under control again.
It didn't take long before they arrived home.
"Mommy, it's okay if you like Uncle Fang. I will try my best to accept him,"
Jay told her earnestly before entering his room.
Nicole watched her son disappearing into his room and sighed to herself.
The man she liked...
Without any warning, Kerr's good-looking face popped into her head. She shook her head violently to
get rid of the image.
When Baron arrived home, his mother was on the phone with a smile on her face. She seemed to be
planning something.
Sure enough, as soon as she saw him coming in, she hung up and beamed at him happily.
"Baron, Maggie's flight here has been confirmed. She will be here in three days. Don't forget to go pick
her up, okay? This is her first time here, so be nice,"
his mother told him, in a tone that said that he had no choice in that matter.
"Mom, I told you before, I've fallen in love with someone else. I mean it. I want her to be my wife. You'll
give me your blessing, right?"
He knew he couldn't avoid the topic anymore. He didn't want anyone other than Nicole, but at the same
time, he didn't want to disappoint his mother. As hard as it was, it was time to take a stand for the sake
of his happiness.
Marriage was a lifelong matter, and he wanted to be in control of his happiness. He should have the
right to make his own choice. The existence of Jay posed a slight problem, but it wasn't anything that
couldn't be handled.
"No matter what, you still need to bring her home to meet us, Baron. We need to evaluate your other
half's identity and status since you are the only heir of the Fang family."
His mother was slight annoyed with his stubbornness. He should know by now that his family didn't
have the luxury of marrying for love. For a family of their status, marriage was more like a partnership,
it was all about mutual benefits. All they had to do was respect each other and take care of each
other's image in the public eye. What happened in private was a whole different story.
"The Fang Group's party will be happening in three days. I plan to bring her as my plus one."
It was the perfect opportunity to introduce Nicole to everyone and let them know she was his.
Mrs. Fang didn't think it was a good idea at all, but she didn't say no to him. After all, it was better to
meet the woman who had won his heart sooner rather later, so it would be easier for her future
planning.
She was also curious to know what kind of woman he had fallen so madly for. She must be quite a
wonder if he was this persistent about being with her.
In the three days that followed, Nicole didn't meet Kerr at all. No one mentioned him either, not even
Jay and the other company staff.
She even felt as though life was finally going back to the way it had been before she had met him. It
was as though she had never gotten to know him. Even though she had wished for her life to go back
to normal, she couldn't help feeling a faint sense of loss and emptiness.
"Director Ning, this is the dress that you asked me to pick up. It's lovely. Do you have any plans
tonight?"
Lily asked as she placed a gift box on Nicole's desk.
"I'm going to attend a party with a friend."
When the workday finally ended, Nicole waited for her colleagues to leave one by one. After they were
all gone, she finally went to the washroom to change into the dress that Baron had picked out for her.
She knew that it was actually not a proper time for her to show up at the Fang Group's party. After all,
she and Baron was still preparing to bid for the tender. It was a rather sensitive time to even be in a
relationship.
But since she owed him such a huge favor, there was no way she could turn him down.
She looked in the mirror and applied some light makeup, making adjustments until she was fully
satisfied with her look. She checked her appearance again carefully and finding nothing wrong, she
picked up her handbag and left the Gu Group building.
Baron's car was already waiting at the entrance.
"You look amazing! I knew this dress would suit you well. I really hope you'll have a good time tonight.
Don't worry, I've already arranged for someone to pick Jay up,"
he told her, his eyes sparkling as he looked at the gorgeous beauty in the passenger seat.
"Why did you ask me to dress up like this?"
She frowned slightly as she took in his outfit that matched her dark purple dress. She knew that as a
couple, it was only fitting that they wore matching outfits to an event like this.
But she couldn't help feeling bad. She was only pretending to be with Baron so that Kerr would think
that she was already in a relationship. She had not expected Baron to start taking this seriously.
"It's the Fang Group's prestigious wine party today, so there will be a lot of peers from our industry.
Even Kerr is going to be there."
To be honest, Baron had had second thoughts about inviting Kerr since he knew that his presence
might affect Nicole. But after giving it some careful thought, he decided to send Kerr an invitation
anyway, hoping that Nicole would not reject him if Kerr was there.
He was actually very nervous that Nicole was going to reject him during such an important function.
After all, it was the day that he was planning to expose her identity as his girlfriend to everyone.
"Got it."
When she heard that Kerr was going to be there, she couldn't help feeling nervous.
"It's the Fang Group's prestigious wine party today, so there will be a lot of peers from our industry.
Even Kerr is going to be there."
To be honest, Baron had had second thoughts about inviting Kerr since he knew that his presence
might affect Nicole. But after giving it some careful thought, he decided to send Kerr an invitation
anyway, hoping that Nicole would not reject him if Kerr was there.
He was actually very nervous that Nicole was going to reject him during such an important function.
After all, it was the day that he was planning to expose her identity as his girlfriend to everyone.
"Got it."
When she heard that Kerr was going to be there, she couldn't help feeling nervous.
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