Realizing she couldn't escape, Valarie bit Brandon's lip hard.Brandon let out a muffled grunt but didn't release her. Instead, he kissed her even more fiercely.It wasn't until Valarie felt as if she were going to suffocate that Brandon finally let her go.His gaze darkened further as he looked at her swollen lips.After catching her breath, Valarie raised her hand, ready to slap him.However, Brandon caught her wrist and pressed his forehead against hers, his voice low. "Valarie, haven't you ever felt anything for me in these five years?"Valarie bit her lip and replied coldly, "Brandon, do you even know what you're doing? Since we've both chosen to go on blind dates, why can't we just leave each other alone?""But I can't bear to see you dating other men," Brandon muttered.Valarie took a deep breath, placing her hand against his chest as she looked up at him seriously. "We're not suitable for each other.""Why aren't we suitable? What makes us incompatible?" Brandon asked.
As they approached, they noticed that Damon looked upset.Nyla raised an eyebrow and asked, "Mr. Sumner, have you been waiting too long?"Damon suppressed his discontent and forced a smile. "No, let's head inside."Just then, Mason suddenly looked up at Nyla and said, "Mommy, I need to pee. Can you come with me?"Nyla nodded. "Sure.""I'll take Buddy to the restroom. You two go ahead," she said, taking Mason by the hand and walking away.Once Nyla and Mason were gone, Damon's expression turned icy. "Mr. Raynor, we're here at the zoo as a family of three. What's your purpose in showing up?"Oliver smiled, but his eyes remained cold. "Mr. Sumner, the recent troubles with the Raynor Group—that's your doing, isn't it?"Damon didn't deny it. "Just giving you a little reminder not to interfere with our family time."A sneer flashed in Oliver's eyes. "Do you really think Nyla will forgive you? What kind of family do you think you have?"I asked Buddy, and he's fine with me being her
Oliver was usually fine since he took care of most things whenever he spent time with Nyla and Mason.Meanwhile, Damon wasn't typically the considerate type. Today, though, he kept asking her if she was tired, if she wanted to rest, or if she needed something to eat.By noon, Nyla felt that dealing with two men was more exhausting than work.As they left the zoo, she wore an expression of fatigue, mentally resolving never to let Damon and Oliver take Mason out together again.However, Mason seemed blissfully unaware of the tension between Damon and Oliver. His little face was flushed with excitement."Daddy, Uncle Oliver, you have to take me out to play again!" he exclaimed."Sure!" both men replied simultaneously, exchanging glances before looking away in annoyance.Before long, it was time to eat.Nyla just wanted to finish her meal and send the two men on their way.To her surprise, as soon as they sat down in the restaurant, they ran into Valarie.Valarie looked shocked a
After saying that, Nyla quickly hailed a cab and left, leaving the two men staring at each other.Oliver smirked. "Mr. Sumner, I'll be on my way. See you next time."Damon's expression turned cold. "Mr. Raynor, I guess there aren't enough issues at the Raynor Group for you to be this idle.""Go ahead and try to bankrupt the Raynor Group. But if you do, Nyla will only feel sorry for me and hate you even more," Oliver countered.As Damon's expression darkened, Oliver's smile deepened, and he turned to walk toward his car.In a relatively private restaurant in the north of Saintornia…Rebecca glared coldly at the man across from her. "Weren't you supposed to deal with Nyla for me? How come she's still perfectly fine?"The man opposite her, Sullivan, calmly sipped his tea. "Rebecca, don't be so impatient. I need some time."Rebecca gritted her teeth. "Heseltine, don't forget that your dad was on the brink of death in the hospital. If I hadn't kindly lent you money, he wouldn't be a
Ruby bit her lip and recounted what had happened that morning.When she finished, she said angrily, "Leon definitely gave the data to Brody on Friday night, but Brody is completely denying it now."Brody sneered from the side, speaking sarcastically. "I didn't receive anything. How do I know you two aren't colluding to frame me for losing the data?"Leon was furious. He rushed over to grab Brody by the collar. "I handed it to you in person on Friday! Are you going to say again that you didn't receive it?!"In contrast to Leon's flushed face, Brody seemed unconcerned.""What? You want to hit me? Go ahead, but think it through. If you do, I'll definitely call the police," he provokedWorried that Leon might act impulsively, Nyla quickly stepped in to hold him back. "Leon, calm down."Ruby hurriedly joined in to stop Leon as well. Just as Leon began to cool down, Brody spoke up again. "What? Scared to make a move? Coward!"This completely infuriated Leon. He lost control and swu
Once Nyla finished treating her wound at the hospital, she checked her phone and found several messages from Ruby.Ruby: [Nyla, what's going on between you and Mr. Sumner? Did you know each other before?]Ruby: [After you left with Mr. Sumner, everyone started gossiping about your relationship. You're not actually getting together with him, right?]Ruby: [By the way, when Mr. Sumner saw your bleeding hand in the lab, his face darkened. It's obvious he really cares about you!]Ruby: [Ahhh! What exactly is your relationship?]Nyla frowned as she read the messages.Typing with one hand was difficult, so she responded with a voice message instead: "I do know him, but we're just friends. Besides, I have a boyfriend."She didn't feel the need to mention to Ruby that Damon was Mason's biological father. It wasn't something she wanted widely known.After playing the voice message, Ruby quickly followed up, asking if it was Oliver.Nyla confirmed. After responding to Ruby, she hesitate
"Nyla, I'm sorry. I acted impulsively earlier, and I even ran away after you got hurt. I wasn't being responsible. If you're angry, go ahead and hit me… No, kick me, too," Leon apologized."If kicking you would fix the data issue, I would have done it already," Nyla quipped.Leon scratched his head, looking at her apologetically. "I swear I gave the experiment data to Brody on Friday. That jerk must have lost it and is now blaming me."Seeing Leon's guilty and anxious expression, Nyla felt helpless and thought he was still too young."When exactly did you hand him the data on Friday?" she asked."Right after you all got off work. I finished filling in the last few sets of data and gave it to him," Leon answered."So, no one else was there to confirm you handed the data to him in person," Nyla said.Leon frowned. "But no one can prove I didn't give it to him either!"Nyla nodded. "That's true, but the problem is that he's insisting you didn't give it to him, and now you're stuck
Since Nyla planned to be serious about being with Oliver, she needed to genuinely try to see if she could accept him. If she truly couldn't, it would be better to part ways sooner rather than later—for both their sakes.…The next afternoon, Damon received a call from Lydia. "Mr. Sumner, Ms. Kinsey sent Buddy over today."Damon replied calmly, "Got it."There was a brief silence on the other end before Lydia's voice came through, tinged with helplessness. "Mr. Sumner, aren't you going to ask what Ms. Kinsey has to do today?""What is it?" Damon asked."I heard from Buddy that she's going to the movies with Mr. Raynor tonight, which is why she dropped Buddy off," Lydia answered.Damon narrowed his eyes and replied in a low voice, "Alright."After hanging up, he thought for a moment and called in Spencer."Look into where Nyla and Oliver are going to see a movie and buy a ticket for a seat behind them," he instructed.Spencer paused momentarily before replying, "Understood, Mr.