CEO Ex-Husband, Don't Bother Me-Chapter 57: Infinitely Charming (Part 2)

He tentatively reached for the little one’s tiny fist, his large palm gently enveloping it. The baby immediately stopped kicking and blinked his large, dark eyes, watching him quietly. For a moment, Julian felt as if he were looking into her clean, pure eyes. Nearby, Mrs. Sommers watched Julian and sighed to herself. Perhaps he didn’t realize just how gentle his expression was right now, the corners of his mouth unknowingly turned up in a faint smile. ’How wonderful would it be if this child could bring him and Naomi closer?’

After a long moment, Julian Donovan let go of the baby’s hand, stood up, and asked Mrs. Sommers,

"She just left like that? Doesn’t the baby need to be fed?"

Mrs. Sommers answered truthfully,

"The premature birth left her too weak. She isn’t producing much milk, so Dylan has to drink formula."

For some reason, Julian Donovan’s heart clenched.

"I have something else to do. I’ll come back when I have time."

He turned and left as soon as he finished speaking. Mrs. Sommers held her tongue, refraining from speaking her mind, because she knew Naomi was now determined to forget him. What she really wanted to tell Julian Donovan was that no matter what was going on between him and Naomi, he should come back to see his child more often.

But thinking of Naomi’s resolute attitude, and of how Julian Donovan had shown no interest for the past few months, she could only sigh in the end.

That evening, Julian Donovan hosted dinner for Caleb Rhodes and the others. He also invited Ronan Joyce and Arnold. Arnold was there to be their driver, as on an occasion like this, they weren’t planning on going home sober.

After the group arrived at the private room and sat down, Felix Draper immediately started looking around. Julian Donovan simply ignored him. He knew what Felix was looking for. He hadn’t told them she’d gone on a trip. How much face would he lose? He had just returned to the country, and she took off on a trip right after?

Caleb Rhodes and Henry Hale were smart enough not to comment, but Felix Draper couldn’t hold back any longer.

"Hey, Donovan, the dishes are almost all here. How come your wife hasn’t arrived yet?"

Julian Donovan shot him a glare.

"Did I say she was coming?"

"What?! She’s not coming? Then what did I come all this way with you for? Did you think I came just to see your deadpan face? Are you messing with me?"

Julian Donovan raised a hand to his forehead, nursing a headache. He didn’t know how to put off this troublemaker. Caleb Rhodes and Henry Hale were already pretending not to know anything. ’Couldn’t he, for once, not put me in such an awkward position!’

Ronan Joyce, who was sitting next to Arnold, snatched his phone. He had also been constantly refreshing Weibo, waiting for Lara to post an update about the two of them, but she had gone silent after posting that they had arrived. Since everyone present was important, he couldn’t just keep checking his phone. Arnold, however, was still young and not part of their conversation, so it didn’t matter for him.

Lara’s Weibo post showed two large bouquets of fiery red roses, with the caption: "Just had dinner, and a man at the next table sent me and Naomi each a bouquet of fiery red roses! Wow, a romantic encounter on the very first day. Well, I’m not getting my hopes up, but I hope Naomi has better luck!"

Happy Labor Day.

Ronan Joyce didn’t have much of a reaction after reading the post; he knew Lara’s personality. But Felix Draper, sitting next to him, got curious and snatched the phone from Ronan’s hand.

"What’s this? What’s this about my sis-in-law being so cool?"

Ronan Joyce tried to stop him but couldn’t. It probably wouldn’t be good if Julian Donovan found out what was on there. He hoped Young Master Draper would just look and not say anything.

But he had underestimated Young Master Draper’s eccentric personality. Felix Draper held up the phone and read it out loud, word for word, shaking his head.

"’Having dinner, a man at the next table sent me and Naomi a big bouquet of fiery red roses’...? Huh? Some guy is hitting on my sis-in-law?"

As Felix Draper’s words faded, everyone’s gaze fell on Julian Donovan, who was sitting at the head of the table. Seeing Julian’s face darken, Arnold realized he had messed up and yelled anxiously at Felix,

"Give me my phone back!"

Felix acted like he didn’t hear and continued scrolling through the previous posts.

"’A trip to Lyrden, a journey of forgetting. Naomi Shaw, happy breakup, I wish you happiness, you can find someone better!’"

Julian Donovan’s expression was now indescribably foul. Ronan Joyce couldn’t help but kick Felix Draper under the table. Arnold, for his part, threw all respect out the window, got up, rushed over, and snatched his phone back from Felix’s hand to stop him from spouting any more nonsense.

Looking like he reveled in the chaos, Felix Draper questioned Julian Donovan,

"Donovan, did you and your wife break up? If you broke up, you should’ve said so earlier! You made us come all this way for nothing. So she’s not our sis-in-law anymore, huh? Bro, I’m not trying to criticize you, but at this rate, you’re going to be the death of me!"

’His gaze, cold enough to kill, shot toward Felix Draper. One of these days, that mouth of his is going to be the death of *me*. Fine, he could look at the Weibo post, but why did he have to read it out loud? If I hadn’t known, I wouldn’t be this furious! Roses, romantic encounters, forgetting, breakups... What man could stay calm after hearing his wife was acting like this?’

Hearing Felix Draper say that Julian Donovan and Naomi Shaw had broken up, Arnold couldn’t help but retort,

"They didn’t break up, okay! It’s just that Miss Naomi asked for a divorce before, and Julian didn’t agree. Since they’re not divorced, they haven’t broken up, right?"

Arnold might have been trying to defend their relationship with good intentions, but his words were like another knife twisting in Julian Donovan’s heart. Now even *that* was out in the open. Julian Donovan had completely lost face in front of his brothers.

"She asked *you* for a divorce? That’s pathetic, haha..."

Felix Draper roared with laughter without a hint of restraint. This time, even the usually composed Caleb Rhodes couldn’t help but comment,

"I really didn’t see that coming."

Julian Donovan was furious now. He picked up his glass of wine and downed it in one go. Only then did Arnold realize he had misspoken. He didn’t dare look at Julian’s enraged face.

"You guys take your time eating. I’ll wait outside."

He fled in a hurry after saying that.

Seeing that Julian Donovan was no longer in the mood to entertain his friends, Ronan Joyce had to take over as host. For the rest of the evening, Caleb Rhodes and the other two chatted with Ronan, while Julian Donovan was left alone, drinking sullenly by himself.

After a few rounds of drinks, Julian Donovan stepped out for a bit. It was only then that the other three learned from Ronan Joyce about the complicated history between him and Naomi Shaw. They had always thought he was a man with a story, but they never expected it to be this complex.

Julian Donovan went out and found Arnold in the hotel lobby. Arnold was sitting there, head down, playing on his phone. Julian walked over and snatched it. He never used things like Weibo, so he had to use Arnold’s phone to check. It seemed Naomi Shaw didn’t have a Weibo account either; all the posts were from Lara:

To thank the man who sent the flowers, Naomi and I decided to have a drink with him. We ended up hitting it off while chatting, so we started a drinking competition. I’ve always been a good drinker, but I didn’t expect Naomi to get so into it! She can’t usually hold her liquor, but she actually drank two bottles of beer! It seems like some things can be achieved if you’re just willing to do them. I hope she’ll be just as decisive about forgetting a certain someone.

Julian Donovan’s hand wanted to crush Arnold’s phone. ’Fine. Very good, Naomi Shaw. You want to forget me? How could I possibly let you get what you want?’

He tossed the phone back to Arnold and returned to the private room.

When the dinner ended, Caleb Rhodes and the other two returned to their hotel. Ronan Joyce went back to the place he was staying with Lara. Julian Donovan had originally planned to go back to the room next to Ronan’s, but the thought of that cold, empty space made him change his mind. He had Arnold drive him to the Shaw Residence instead. Since she wasn’t there anyway, he could also check on his son. For some reason, that little boy had inexplicably tugged at his heartstrings.

Mrs. Sommers was very surprised to see him return.

"Julian, are you staying the night? Look at me, I haven’t even prepared your room yet..."