Chapter 144
Downstairs, Ella was treating Zachary's wounds, feeling guilty and self-reproachful.
If it weren't for her, Joshua probably wouldn't have hit him.
Joshua was truly beyond help.
How dare he act so wild in someone else's home.
Heath and Rhea watched from the side, also angry.
"This Joshua is too much. How could he beat someone up like this? I have to kick him out."
As Heath spoke, he turned and headed upstairs.
Rhea asked the butler to prepare more medicine.
Worried that Dorian might be disturbed by the bloody scene, she then took Dorian to the back garden.
Only Ella and Zachary remained in the living room.
Ella opened her mouth to apologize, but Zachary spoke first, "Ella, let's get married."
Ella froze, her hands stopping mid-treatment.
She even wondered if she'd heard wrong.
How could Zachary bring up marriage at a time like this?
Though they'd known each other for years, they'd never actually dated. How could they be suitable for marriage?
As Ella's mind raced anxiously, Zachary stated clearly, "Ella, if we get married, Joshua won't keep bothering you."
"Otherwise he'll always think he has a chance, and might never leave you and Dorian alone for the rest of his life."
This time, Ella heard clearly. Zachary was really proposing marriage.
She lowered her head, withdrew her hands, and said tactfully, "Zachary, you know what Joshua is capable of. I'm afraid he'll come after you. I'm afraid you'll suffer because of me..."
"I'm not afraid."
Zachary suddenly grabbed her hand. Despite his bruised face and blood still seeping from his lips, he didn't care at all, gazing at her affectionately, "If I was scared of Joshua, I wouldn't have given up everything in Eldoria to come find you and Dorian."
"Ella, I don't believe you don't understand my feelings. I let you go before because I didn't want to force you, but seeing Joshua torment you like this now, I really can't bear it."
"Let's get married. If he dares to harass you and Dorian after we're married, I'll make sure he goes to jail."
Ella was still hesitating.
Her mind was full of the harsh words Joshua had said to her before.
That if she got together with Zachary, he would fight for custody of Dorian.
What if she couldn't win against Joshua?
"Ella, what are you worried about?"
Seeing Ella looking worried and lost in thought, Zachary's heart rose to his throat.
He was afraid Ella would refuse, afraid she would push him away, and ultimately give in to Joshua's harassment and compromise once again.
How hard would the rest of her life be then?
Coming back to her senses, Ella was still worried, "Joshua isn't easy to deal with. I'm really afraid of dragging you into this."
"That kind of person, when he gets ruthless, he's capable of anything."
Look at the injuries on Zachary's face. Joshua had been so brutal.
Who knows what more extreme things he might do in the future.
But Zachary didn't care at all. He wiped the blood from his lips and smiled, "Do you think I'm the kind of person who's afraid of being dragged into things? No matter how powerful Joshua is, he can't ignore the law."
Zachary held Ella's hand firmly, giving her confidence, "With me here, I won't let him take Dorian away. Besides, Dorian only has you in his heart. Even if a judge makes a ruling, they still have to consider Dorian's wishes, right?"
"Don't worry. Even if it goes to court, Joshua can't win custody of Dorian from us."
Ella lowered her eyes.
She didn't know why, but she still felt anxious.
She didn't even know what she was afraid of.
Just then, someone came down from upstairs.
Ella looked up.
It was Heath and Joshua.
And at that moment, her hand was still being held by Zachary.
Zachary had no intention of letting go. He deliberately kept holding it, waiting for Joshua to come down.
Joshua clearly saw the intimate contact between Ella and Zachary.
He thought he could not care.
But in that moment, jealousy still filled his heart, and his handsome face darkened terrifyingly.
Especially those cold eyes. They looked vicious enough to kill.
Joshua even wanted to go over right in front of Heath, grab Zachary, and beat him up again.
How dare he touch his woman. He must have a death wish.
Walking down the stairs, Heath turned to face Joshua. Given the extensive business cooperation between their families and not wanting to break ties, he said politely, "Joshua, you should go back first. Some things need to be considered carefully."
Joshua didn't want to leave.
But Heath promised him he wouldn't let Ella take Dorian away with Zachary.
That put his mind at ease.
Of course, he still had to post guards.
To prevent them from escaping.
Before leaving, Joshua couldn't help but walk toward the living room again.
He stood before Ella and Zachary, his presence imposing and powerful, "Take your dirty hands off her, or do you want me to chop them off myself?"
Zachary met his gaze and angrily tried to stand up to confront him, but Ella held him back.
She protected Zachary and looked coldly at Joshua, "Get out now, or I'll call the police and report you for assault."
Even if calling the police wouldn't do much about a fight like this, it should still affect him as the CEO of a major company, right?
Don't push her too far, or she'd do something irrational too.
Joshua's gaze fell on Ella.
He could see she really cared about Zachary.
Though his heart ached, he remained composed and replied calmly, "Fine, I'll go."
"But Ella, don't think about leaving, or you won't be able to handle the consequences."
He asked a nearby servant where Dorian was.
Learning that Rhea had taken him to the back yard, Joshua went to take a look, then left.
The Lewis family didn't welcome him.
He wouldn't stay and be an eyesore.
But after leaving, he posted people outside the Lewis Villa.
Just to prevent Ella from leaving with Dorian and Zachary.
At first, Ella was still hesitating about her relationship with Zachary.
When she learned that Joshua had posted guards around their house and wouldn't let her leave with Dorian, she was furious.
And in her anger, she made a new decision.
In the dining room at breakfast, Heath tried to persuade Ella, "Ella, Mom and Dad know we have no right to ask anything of you, but we really can't bear to see you go."
"For the sake of us waiting twenty years for you, can you please not leave?"
Rhea sat beside them serving food to Dorian, her expression somewhat sad.
Clearly, she was even more reluctant to let Ella go.
Without Ella, this family would feel life had no meaning.
Ella knew she couldn't leave.
Maybe she could, but if she tried to take Dorian with her, the Thomas family would definitely stop them.
They might even take Dorian from her by force.
Considering Heath and Rhea's age and how well they'd treated her, besides, Zachary had given up everything to come be with her. Why should she make unnecessary moves?
After a moment of silence, Ella nodded, "Okay, I won't leave."
Hearing this, Heath and Rhea looked at her, crying tears of joy, "Really? Ella, you really won't take Dorian away?"
Ella confirmed, not daring to look at Heath and Rhea's expressions, thinking of what Zachary had said to her before.
Maybe marriage would make Joshua stop harassing her.
She wanted to take that chance.
She also wanted to completely cut ties with Joshua.
And she didn't want to let down Zachary, whose heart was entirely devoted to her.
So Ella calmly stated her thoughts, "I'm planning to marry Zachary. We'll go get our marriage certificate in a bit. Do you approve of this marriage?"
However, when Ella said this, everyone was shocked.
Especially Zachary.
He hadn't expected Ella to agree.
He was excited and flustered, sitting there feeling his breathing quicken, unable to hide the happiness and smile on his handsome face.
Heath and Rhea were surprised.
They thought Ella and Zachary's relationship shouldn't have reached the marriage stage yet.
But unexpectedly...
Still, since Ella had said it, they couldn't say much.
Finally, they both smiled and nodded in agreement, "As long as it's your choice, of course we agree and support it."
"In that case, we'll immediately start preparing the wedding for you."
Dorian beside them also smiled and clapped, "Mommy is finally going to marry Mr. Baker. This is great. I can finally call Mr. Baker 'Daddy' properly."
Dorian was happy, and everyone was happy with him.
Ella looked at Zachary and indicated to him, "Eat up. After we eat, we'll go get the marriage certificate."
Zachary still couldn't contain his excitement, reaching out to squeeze Ella's hand, "Okay."
No one noticed that Mason, sitting nearby, looked quite unhappy.
He pulled out his phone, wanting to quietly notify Joshua about this.
As if seeing through his intentions, Ella called out, "Mason, what are you doing?"
Mason jumped, quickly put away his phone and looked up, smiling cooperatively, "Nothing. I'm just happy for you two finally being together."
Ella reminded him, "I know you're close with Joshua, and because of Scarlett, you have issues with me. But I hope you'll act like a big brother should and not meddle in our affairs."
In other words, don't tell Joshua she was about to marry Zachary.
At least not before they got the marriage certificate.
Otherwise that lunatic might try to stop them.
Mason looked a bit embarrassed.
He pressed his lips together and nodded, "Don't worry, I won't interfere in your affairs."
"How dare you still have issues with Ella."
Rhea glared at Mason and kicked him under the table, "Scarlett was so vicious. If it weren't for Ella, Dorian and I would have died at her hands. You're not still hung up on Scarlett, are you?"
Bringing up Scarlett made Rhea angry.
The Lewis family had raised her for over twenty years, and in the end, she came at her with a knife.
Rhea reminded Heath to have the lawyer file the lawsuit quickly so the court could make a ruling.
Heath agreed, looking at Mason sternly, "You're not young anymore either. I happen to have a good friend whose daughter is two years younger than you. She just returned from studying abroad. Go meet her later."
Mason looked up wanting to object.
But he was afraid of affecting everyone's mood on the day Ella was getting married.
He could only agree for now.
After the meal, Ella and Zachary left Dorian at home and went together to the marriage registration office.