Chapter 244 Benjamin Was Very Afraid of Him
After Benji crashed, she went to find Xavier and showed him the paper Benji had scribbled down.
Xavier felt all kinds of messed up after reading it. He thought, 'Do I really come off like those scumbag traffickers who beat him up? Maybe. After all those years in the trenches, I guess I do have a bit of a rough edge.'
He let out a long sigh, "Alright, let's take it easy. I'll try to be nicer and smile at him more."
The kid needed some serious TLC, both body and soul.
"Thanks for all the hard work on this trip," Ava said to Xavier, her gratitude practically oozing out.
But there was something she had to clear up with him.
She pulled out a hairpin, fiddled with the lamp wick, and the flame flickered, lighting up her thin cheeks and pale lips.
She spoke softly, "Given Benji's state, he won't be able to leave me for at least three years. If we're still doing this marriage thing, I'll have to bring him with me to the Duke's Mansion. I can't just leave him alone at the Duke's place."
Xavier's handsome face stayed calm, his dark eyes catching the light. "Our marriage is still on, and yeah, we can't leave him alone at the Duke's place. He should come along, get taken care of, detoxed, and have his leg fixed so he can get better. Then he can keep up with his studies and martial arts. Or if he doesn't want to, that's cool too. I'll treat him like my own kid."
His words wiped away all of Ava's worries. Thinking back on everything, Ava knew he was really committed to her. She believed that even if there was no love between them after marriage, they could still respect each other.
But they had to figure out a way for Benji to warm up to him, at least drop his guard a bit. Otherwise, how could they live together?
Xavier was a prince. He might put up with Benji's attitude once or twice, but over time, he'd get fed up, especially since Felicity would also be living in the mansion.
Honestly, it would've been better if she didn't get married right now, but the King had issued that verbal decree.
Going to the Palace wasn't an option; she wouldn't be able to take care of Benji, let alone see him.
Seeing her deep in thought, Xavier said, "For now, don't stress about anything else. Focus on Benji. Don't worry about how the folks in the Duke's Mansion will treat him. As long as I'm around, no one's gonna mess with him."
Ava looked at him gratefully. "Thanks, Your Highness."
Xavier grinned and said, "You keep thanking me. Aren't you tired of it? I'm tired of hearing it. Go rest. We gotta leave early tomorrow."
"Alright, I'll head back now. If Benji wakes up in the middle of the night and doesn't see me, he'll freak out." Ava stood up, bowed, and left.
Xavier didn't sleep. He sat cross-legged on the bed, thinking about how to get Benji to chill around him.
In the past few days, Benji was genuinely scared of him. When getting off the carriage, Benji would first hide behind Ava, not daring to look at him.
If Xavier took a step closer, Benji would tense up.
Xavier glanced at the paper on the table, a flash of anger in his eyes. No matter where those human traffickers ran, he would hunt them down to avenge Benji and the other kids they had hurt.
The next day, he started being way more gentle with Benji, even throwing in a smile here and there. But for some reason, Benji seemed even more freaked out when he smiled.
After two days of this, he realized that smiling at Benji was a total fail, so he switched up his game plan.
He stopped trying to buddy up to Benji and instead focused on being super nice to Ava.
He showed Ava care and concern, being really thoughtful.
At first, Ava was kinda lost on how to handle his kindness, but she quickly got the hint.
So, she played along, responding to Xavier's gentleness and enthusiasm.
Since Benji was now closest to Ava, he would naturally feel more at ease with someone who treated Ava well.
Unexpectedly, after two days of this, not only did it fail to ease Benji's wariness of Xavier, but it also seemed to crank up his hostility.
How weird!