novelraw Chapter 211: Uncommitted Man
Chapter 211: Uncommitted Man
Ruby squinted at him, completely unable to understand his sudden dim-witted appearance, and spontaneously raised her hand to touch his forehead, "No fever."
Ethan Sterling broke into a cold sweat, feeling utterly embarrassed. Why couldn’t this woman take a hint? He took a deep breath, wiped the silly grin off his face, and solemnly insisted, "I’m really a bit tired."
Ruby sighed and stepped aside from the doorway.
She had been following the domestic news all along. L was played pretty badly by him and Aidan Sinclair this time. How could someone like him swallow such a bitter pill in silence? Moreover, it was said that Aidan Sinclair and L had been long-time friends. The sincerity of Aidan Sinclair’s collaboration with Ethan was also questionable. In hindsight, Ethan had taken quite a risky move.
She knew in her heart that he absolutely shouldn’t be appearing in Novaniel right now.
Ruby tried her best to lie at the very edge of the bed, turning her back to him. Unable to hold back after turning off the light, she asked, "Why did you suddenly come?"
Ethan replied lazily with his eyes closed, "Honey said there was a man trying to date you, and it was Seth who set it up. I got anxious."
He felt that at this point, there was no need to lie or bluff. He let her go hoping she would live well, but from their recent interactions, he felt she didn’t seem to hate him so much anymore. So... why not try again? If there’s a chance, why give her up to any other man?
He knew they had too many heavy past events that couldn’t simply be ignored. He didn’t plan to erase those memories, but life needed to move forward. Who lives without any heartbreaks? Ruby Sullivan wasn’t the kind of woman with a fragile heart, and what he intended to offer was a happy future for her.
Ruby felt an uneasy stir from his words and didn’t want to talk more. "The company... is it alright?"
"Yeah, there’re some tricky issues I’ve left for Aidan Sinclair to handle. That guy, who fully inherited his uncle’s ruthlessness, shouldn’t have a problem dealing with them."
"His uncle’s ruthlessness?" In Ruby’s mind appeared the image of his uncle’s adorable smile, and the gentleman’s manner he maintained, sporting a hat to please Vivian while hiding his bald head.
Ethan laughed too, "I’ve heard quite a bit from Vivian recently about what his uncle was like when he was younger. Perhaps he’s a little worried hearing I’m working with Aidan Sinclair, and fears if our business falls apart, it might affect him and Vivian."
Ruby laughed along, "Alright, let’s sleep."
"Alright." Ethan turned to look at her, "Actually, I didn’t intend to meddle in your life, but... I want you to know, I haven’t given up."
"Okay." Ruby responded without knowing what to say, finding his words coming from Ethan to be absurd.
Back then, whenever she saw him, her eyes would sparkle. Every day, she pondered how to catch his attention, studying painting diligently in the hope that her grandmother would say some nice words about her to him, so he could notice her charm...
Ruby cut off her thoughts with a sigh.
If only she hadn’t been so obsessed back then; looking back, loving Ethan Sterling really made her life tumultuous, and she didn’t want to go through that once more.
The next morning, before Ruby and Ethan even got out of bed, Honey knocked on the door. Without waiting for her parents’ response, the little girl turned the doorknob, peeking in, "Mom, Dad, can I come in?"
Ruby groggily sat up, yawning and looking at her, "Come in." Watching her daughter walk in with a silly grin while holding up a dress, she asked, "Mom, which dress do you think looks better on me?"
Ethan also sat up, chuckling sleepily at his daughter, "Everything looks good on you, sweetie."
Honey held up two dresses with difficulty, glancing at the pink one on her left, and the sky-blue one on her right. Hearing her father’s comment, she frowned slightly in dissatisfaction, "Dad, Nina told me that when a man says anything looks good on you, it means he hasn’t thought the matter through properly!"
Ethan’s smile turned awkward, "Nina certainly knows a lot..."
Ruby was amused by the father-daughter dialogue, fully awake now. "Mom thinks the blue one looks nice. Haven’t you always wanted a picture with Princess Elsa? Maybe you’ll see her today."
Honey’s eyes curved with joy, "Yeah, so I was thinking the pink dress might match her blue gown better, but I do want to wear the blue one." She looked expectantly at her dad again, even though she had just questioned his sincerity.
Ethan immediately got serious, "Daddy thinks the blue dress looks prettier too. That way, you’ll look like sisters in the photo with Princess Elsa."
"Then I’ll wear this one." Honey said happily, ran toward the door with her dress, and looked back at them, "You two, hurry up and get ready. Don’t be late, I heard there’ll be lots of people."
Honey had never been to a really crowded place, so when Nina told her that, her anticipation grew even more.
"We’ll get up now." Ruby assured her daughter.
Ethan flexed his arms as he got out of bed, "Honey’s new friend seems to be a lot like Seth."
"Maybe Honey is just drawn to smart kids." Ruby found it a bit curious too. Her daughter seemed to be a bit naive and silly, but her close friends were all quite intelligent. Perhaps, those smart friends meet cute but silly Honey, and instinctively want to protect her.
When Ruby first met Seth, he had no friends. But he, too, was eventually charmed by Honey’s personality.
Ruby thought her daughter was indeed the smart one, knowing exactly what she lacked and finding friends who could complement her.
The family of four finished breakfast and headed to the airport.
The flight from Novaniel to Miridia took about three hours. Jessica had already arranged the itinerary and transportation. The entire family just needed to follow the plan, and they would reach Miridia in the afternoon. They could stroll around the area and take a flight back to Novaniel on Monday night.
Although it was somewhat tiring, their daughter had her heart set on visiting Wonderland.
He loaded the family’s luggage into the car, double-checked everyone’s passports, and sat in the front with Jessica.
On the way to the airport, Honey was bubbling with excitement, constantly asking her mom questions about Wonderland, like about Mickey, Minnie, Tweety, and The elder Mr. Thorne.
Ruby felt a bit overwhelmed, silently vowing to watch some Wonderland cartoons to better understand and keep up with her daughter, rather than lagging behind.
After a three-hour flight, they finally arrived in Miridia. From the hotel window, they could see the towering attractions of Wonderland. Honey stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, shrieking with excitement.