"Haven't we reached an agreement, Jay? You need to sleep alone tonight,"
Nicole gently reminded Jay as her parenting style did not include compromise. Although she openly
doted on him, she still refused to indulge him.
"This is the last night, I promise,"
Jay softly replied while cleverly putting on his innocent look. He played this trump card of his very well
that no one had the heart to decline what he wanted.
Seeing the way how Jay looked, Nicole couldn't bear to reject him. So she finally gave in after pausing
briefly. "You must keep your words!" Nicole could only agree and made room for him. She looked
helpless.
Jay inwardly squealed in glee but nodded with a serious expression on his little face. And still, with a
happy heart, he hurriedly walked towards the bed.
In the banquet hall,
Kerr instantly became the focus of the crowd the moment he showed up. Though he was only wearing
a black suit, a dark purple shirt, and a tie of the same color, which Nicole picked for him, he looked
quite striking.
He was used to keeping a low profile, but even then, his fame and status still attracted lots of people's
attention as soon as he stepped into the room.
While his face remained impassive, Kerr went straight to the sofa and settled himself down. Crossing
his legs, he seemed like he was waiting for someone.
Avery was stunned as she observed that Kerr was alone. She hastily made her way to where he was,
but Jared quickly stopped her.
"Where is Nicole? Didn't Nicole come?" Avery asked anxiously. She was part of the Lin Group, the host
of the party.
Hearing Avery‘s voice, Kerr undoubtedly recognized her. He swiftly glanced at Jared, hinting him that
there was no need to stop her. He then shifted his gaze at Avery, acknowledging her, "Miss Lin, Nicole
is pregnant. She stays at home to rest. If you are free, you can drop by to see her."
Kerr remembered that Nicole valued Avery dearly, so her presence would mean anything to Nicole and
could make her more than happy. With this thought in mind, he would do anything to make Nicole live
in pure bliss.
After hearing what Kerr said, Avery nodded slightly and felt better. Then she countered with a smile,
"Speaking of which, I contributed to your relationship with Nicole. Now that you have won her heart,
you must invite me to dinner, right?"
She vividly recalled how Kerr patiently waited for Nicole in front of her house. She was the one who
had persuaded Nicole, giving her all the courage she needed to step forward.
That was why Avery felt she deserved this credit.
With a slight amusement in his eyes, Kerr casually stood up as he reached out his hand and took a
glass of wine. He then raised the glass in front of Avery before gulping it all in one go. "Of course.
I need to express my gratitude for you when I get married to Nicole,"
Kerr replied. He didn't forget that when he had quarreled with Nicole, it was Avery who took care of her
by her side. That was why he was so grateful and polite to her.
Thinking that her best friend would get to marry him, Avery let out a warm smile at Kerr. She gladly
picked up the glass of champagne in her hand and was about to drink it all in one gulp. However,
before it could touch her lips, the glass was forcibly taken away by someone who appeared suddenly
beside her.
Zachary, who was observing her, made his way towards her direction and reached out in time to take
the champagne glass from Avery‘s hand and took a swig of it. Then he put his arm possessively
around her waist, forcing her to come close to him.
With a serious expression, Zachary turned to look at Avery and said calmly, "Who allows you to drink
with other men?"
Zachary was known for being a gentleman, so Avery didn’t expect that he would act so bossy at the
moment. Unable to hide her shock, she glared at him as if Zachary was a total stranger to her. Sooner
than expected, her astonishment turned into dissatisfaction.
For her, it was so uncomfortable to be controlled by the man she didn’t love.
Kerr could only observe the man who popped up in front of him rather discreetly. And he realized that
Zachary was somewhat identical with him in terms of personality.
"It's none of your business!" Avery hissed angrily. She started getting rid of Zachary's arm, but no
matter how hard she tried pulling herself out, she couldn't get out of his control.
Zachary merely looked at the stubborn little woman. And one could easily discern that his eyes
softened and were full of love the moment his gaze landed at her, and there was even no sign of
impatience or anger. But when Zachary regarded Kerr standing opposite him, he seemed not surprised
at all.
Zachary eyed Kerr calmly as if he had known him for a long time.
"Mr. Kerr Gu, you recovered soon. Congratulations!"
Kerr felt strange hearing the way Zachary addressed him, but he didn't show it. He found him
impressive.
He deduced that Zachary was not a simple man.
"What are you talking about? Didn't Mr. Gu just come back from a business trip?" Avery asked in a
curious tone. She felt that Zachary was acting strange.
And her uneasiness was amplified with what she heard from Zachary. Avery could not understand the
exchange between the two, and she frowned, looking confused.
Sensing her bewilderment, Zachary glimpsed at the little woman who was innocent and unaware of the
whole situation. He could only wish that he could protect Avery for the rest of his life.
"It's not easy for Mr. Lin to take over Lin Group in such a short time. But it seems that it will take some
time before you could win the beauty’s heart,"
Kerr remarked. He could see that Zachary had feelings for Avery.
And Kerr could also perceive that Avery didn’t love him back. However, seeing Zachary's determined
look, Kerr could tell that he was also a man, who would not give up until he got what he wanted.
Zachary was somewhat like him.
"Compared with your way of pursuing Nicole, that is a lot of easier for me. Next month, I'm glad that
you bring Nicole to my engagement party with Avery,"
Zachary said in a firm tone, ignoring Avery, who was still bewildered.
"What the hell are you talking about? Who wants to be engaged to someone like you?"
Avery cried out in her total disbelief. Never did it occur to her that Zachary would say such words, nor
did she even think that she would marry him. In the past, for more than twenty years, she had only
taken him as her brother.
But Zachary never thought of her as his sister. For him, she was his woman. Unknowingly tightening
his arm around her waist, he uttered, "Mr. Gu, I wish we could talk a bit longer, but I have to go now. I'll
invite you alone another day."
After that, Zachary deliberately took Avery, who was still squirming in his arms, out of Kerr's sight.
Kerr watched the two leave interestingly, but his gaze lingered at the back of Zachary. Squinting, Kerr
then ordered, "I want to know more about this guy." With the way Zachary interacted with him, Kerr
sensed that this guy knew some secrets about him. But what surprised him was that he felt that
Zachary was not his enemy.
Owing to the fact that Zachary knew he was previously injured, it made him conclude that things did not
seem that simple.
Jared, who vigilantly stood beside Kerr, nodded agreeably.
Not far from them, Sunny was seated near the corner of the room when she spotted Kerr sitting on the
sofa. Unable to control her excitement, she quickly tidied up her dress and readied herself to ease her
way towards him. She couldn't help wondering why Nicole wasn't with him today.
Since Nicole was not around, Sunny delightedly pondered that it was indeed a good chance for her to
seize. She further thought that thankfully even heaven was on her side today for presenting such
perfect timing. Now, how could she give up?
Sunny looked at Kerr like prey and was about to approach him when she felt that someone was
grabbing her wrist. But before she could see who the person was, she was already taken to the garden
outside the banquet hall.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
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