Chapter 191
Pushing Chris aside, Joshua's face was cold, his presence overwhelming.
"Can't this wait until work on Monday? Did you really have to come bother us now? Don't you know my girlfriend isn't in the mood to talk about work?"
He snatched the documents from Ella's hands and threw them straight at Chris.
Chris caught them in a panic, not daring to confront Joshua. He quickly nodded and said, "I'm very sorry. Ms. Garcia told me to deliver the documents. I apologize for the interruption."
Seeing Ella sitting there without saying much, letting Joshua yell at him, Chris knew he couldn't compare with Joshua. Being smart about it, he quickly left with the documents.
After Chris left, Joshua looked at Ella, his tone dripping with sourness. "Why did you have him deliver it? He's not the only driver at the company."
Ella watched Joshua's behavior, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
She answered indirectly, "Why can't I have him deliver it? And who's your girlfriend? Did I agree to be your girlfriend?"
"Mommy, if you won't agree to be Daddy's girlfriend, will you agree to be Daddy's wife?" Aurora suddenly rushed over to join the conversation, her big eyes sparkling with a bright smile.
Joshua thought Aurora was simply his little sweetheart. He bent down and kissed her, looking at Ella with those same pitiful eyes.
"Did you hear that? Even Aurora thinks so."
"What does a little kid like you know? Go play with Dorian and the others."
Ella pulled Aurora away, then glared at Joshua and ordered, "You too, go do your work, or I won't bring you next time."
As Joshua was leaving, when Ella wasn't paying attention, he bent down and pecked her on the cheek.
Afraid Ella would get angry and kick him, he quickly fled.
Ella sat there, still not quite processing what had happened.
Vida, watching from the side, couldn't help but laugh. "You two have gotten to this point already, openly showing affection?"
Ella wiped her cheek in disgust, glaring in Joshua's direction. "Who's showing affection with him? He dared to take advantage of me. He'll get what's coming to him later."
Ella waved Dorian over. "Dorian, go kick your dad. He just bullied me."
Dorian stood still, saying helplessly, "He was clearly kissing you just now, and you didn't even avoid it."
Ella stared at Dorian, eyes wide. "You saw that? He was clearly taking advantage of me. What, are you on his side now too?"
Dorian sighed, patiently persuading her, "Why not use free labor? Mom, calm down. I'll help you teach him a lesson after he finishes the work, okay?"
Ella gave Dorian a thumbs up, praising his foresight.
She waved for Dorian to go play, her gaze unconsciously drifting toward the two men working on the barbecue.
Come to think of it, when she looked around, there were quite a few families camping nearby.
At least seven or eight families.
Mason and Joshua were the most pleasant to look at. Their appearance and every gesture stood out far more than that of the average man.
Even some young women ran over to ask for their contact information.
Ella shook her head in amazement.
People these days, even when they clearly see someone has a wife and kids, they still shamelessly throw themselves at them.
So shameless.
Ella tugged at Vida. "Who would have thought? They're quite popular with women out here."
Vida was a bit unhappy because she saw Mason chatting with a strange woman.
She got up and went to watch the kids by herself.
Mason, seeing she had finally separated from Ella, grilled a plate of barbecue and headed toward her and their son.
Before long, Joshua also prepared a plate and brought it to Ella, smiling ingratiatingly. "Try it, see how it tastes."
Ella asked him, "Did Mason just give that other woman his contact information?"
Joshua shook his head in denial. "How could he? He refused. That woman just wouldn't give up and begged a few times. I yelled at her, and she left. Don't worry, Mason's not that stupid."
He had finally made it back to the Lewis family, so naturally, he had to perform well. How could he be seduced by just any random woman?
Sitting down next to Ella, Joshua told her, "Mason and that woman who looks like Scarlett, they don't have any physical relationship. He told me he just wants to be a good father now and won't do anything unfaithful to his marriage anymore."
Ella looked into the distance.
Right now, Mason was holding food, trying to coax Vida.
Actually, as long as Vida accepted Mason, she had no right to interfere.
After all, she hadn't even sorted out her own situation.
"Come on, try what I grilled and see how it tastes." Joshua personally brought the grilled meat to Ella's mouth, smiling ingratiatingly.
Ella raised her hand to take it. "I'll do it myself."
"No, I'll feed you. Open up." He childishly showed her how to open her mouth.
Ella looked at him like he was an idiot, expressionless.
Joshua got the hint and just handed it to her, then got up and ruffled her hair. "Eat slowly, I'll go grill some more."
After he left, Aurora and Dorian ran over to sit next to Ella.
"Mommy, Daddy's so biased. He only gave food to you."
Ella gestured to them. "If you want some, take it yourselves. Or do you need Daddy to chase after you and feed you?"
Aurora and Dorian quickly sat down and ate properly.
Aurora had that starstruck look again, staring in Joshua's direction as he worked, unable to help selling him to Ella.
"Mommy, look at Daddy—he's tall and handsome, and he can cook. A man like this, who can both earn money and protect us, you should just accept him."
Ella looked at Aurora, whose eyes were full of Joshua. She was really curious, so she pulled her close and asked, "You haven't spent much time with him. Why do you like him so much? Just because he's good-looking?"
She had asked Aurora this question before.
But Aurora couldn't really explain it.
She just liked Joshua, that's all.
Aurora watched Joshua's busy figure, thinking.
After a long while, Aurora finally said seriously to Ella, "Maybe it's because we have the same blood flowing through us. When I'm with him, I feel especially happy, especially secure, like I'm being protected by some mysterious force."
Looking at her mom, Aurora continued, "Mommy, I just want to have a dad. If you really don't like him, you don't have to force yourself."
"Too late." Dorian chimed in from the side, his tone sarcastic. "Someone's already fallen in and can't get out."
Ella didn't deny it. Hearing Aurora's words, she was quite moved.
She hadn't expected Aurora to have such deep feelings about Joshua.
Looking at Dorian again, she asked, "What do you mean fallen in and can't get out?"
Dorian laughed. "Love, Mom. Don't you think the way you look at him now is different?"
Ella was speechless.
Was Dorian saying she had fallen in love with Joshua?
She looked again at the man in the distance. She shook her head in denial. Impossible.
She just didn't have that barrier with Joshua that she used to have.
Fall in love with him? How could that be possible?
"Do you even know what love is? I'm just grateful that your dad traveled all that way abroad to save me. If it weren't for your dad, I might not have made it back even now."
And then there was Brian's death, Megan's injuries.
These were the guilt she carried deep in her heart.
She couldn't be ungrateful.
Whoever did something for her, she remembered it all.
"If you don't believe me, fine. But my eyes don't lie. Mom, if you really marry him, we won't object."
Dorian suddenly found that Joshua's barbecue was pretty good. He couldn't help finishing everything that was left.
Then he took the plate and walked toward Joshua, wanting more.
Aurora snuggled up to Ella, asking with a grin, "Mommy, will you marry Daddy?"
The question left Ella silent.
She hugged Aurora, not knowing how to answer, yet her gaze unconsciously drifted toward Joshua in the distance.
Marry him?
Could they have a marriage between them again?
They say men are different before and after marriage.
What if after a few years of marriage, he turned back into his old self?
Ella felt that marriage was too soon for her right now.
She wouldn't consider it.
On the other side, Mason had also pacified Vida. The family of three was by the lake, enjoying the breeze and taking a walk. The scene was quite beautiful and warm.
Dorian took the initiative to approach Joshua, asking him to teach him how to cook.
When he grew up, he wanted to cook for the girl he liked too.
This was the first time Joshua saw Dorian actively approach him. He taught him with such enthusiasm, speaking especially gently, afraid of doing something wrong that would make Dorian dislike him.
Aurora stayed with Ella.
Constantly praising Joshua to Ella.
The whole day, everyone's camping trip in the countryside was quite pleasant.
In the evening, Joshua dropped them all off at the Lewis family before leaving by himself.
Aurora tried to make him stay, but he didn't.
Because Ella hadn't said anything.
He knew Ella still needed a little time.
He wasn't in a hurry. He'd take it slow.
On his way back to the Thomas family, Joshua received a call from overseas.
The other party reported, "Mr. Thomas, we have a lead on Michael. If we find him, how should we handle it?"
Since returning, Joshua had learned that Brian was dead.
It was Michael and Zachary who sent people to chase him, forcing Brian's car off a cliff. He had no intention of letting those two go.
Since there was a lead on Michael, he didn't need to show any mercy anymore.
Wearing a Bluetooth earpiece, Joshua drove, his face like dark iron, his eyes frighteningly deep.
"I'll transfer money to you immediately. Send mercenaries to take him out. If you can bring me his head, I'll add another payment."
After receiving the order, the other party immediately got to work.
As for Zachary, it seemed he had been released.
No matter. They could settle things in the business world then!
From then on, besides work, Joshua tirelessly went to the Lewis family every day to pick up and drop off the kids at school, and to take Ella to the company.
Ella thought he was very idle, with nothing to do at his company.
Little did she know that behind the scenes, Joshua was joining forces with multiple companies to attack the Baker Group.
Creating some negative publicity on top of that, Zachary was no match for him at all.
Ella ended up firing Chris.
Because she knew in her heart that Chris had impure motives for staying by her side.
A little money was enough to get rid of him.
She threw herself back into work.
One day, just after arriving at the company and turning on her computer, she saw news pop up on the webpage about the Baker family company being involved in smuggling, tax fraud, and selling prohibited goods.
She clicked on it and saw that the company's legal representative was Zachary.
Ella wondered who was so capable that they could bring down a family as big as the Baker Group.
After returning, she had also been extremely disappointed in Zachary.
She swore she would never have any connection with him again in this lifetime.
She didn't expect that in just a month, he would be caught.
Who exactly was doing this righteous work?
Thinking of Joshua, Ella picked up her phone and called him on her own initiative.
He answered, his voice coming through gently, "Ella, do you miss me? But didn't we just see each other this morning?"
Ella was somewhat helpless and scolded him, "Don't be so improper. I have something to ask you."
Joshua immediately became serious, but his voice was still pleasant and warm. "Okay, ask away. I'll tell you everything I know."
Ella got straight to the point. "Did you know Zachary is being investigated? If the news online is true, he's probably going away for quite a few years."
Smuggling, tax fraud, and selling prohibited goods.
These crimes, in any country, were unforgivable.
At the very least, he'd be looking at over twenty years.
Joshua was afraid Ella still had feelings for Zachary, afraid she'd plead for him, so he pretended to know nothing.
"When did this happen? How come I haven't heard about it?"
"So it wasn't you?"
Ella had suspected it was Joshua's doing, but then thought it couldn't be.
After all, his tone sounded like he really didn't know.
Joshua continued pretending, laughing, "You're giving me too much credit. How would I have the ability to deal with him? If he were in Emerald City, I might have some means."
"But he's abroad. Don't worry, I don't have that kind of power. It wasn't me."
Hearing him deny it so strongly, Ella believed him.
As she was about to hang up, Joshua asked, "What's wrong? Do you feel sorry for him, pity him?"
Ella quickly explained, "How could I? If he hadn't schemed against me, if he hadn't joined forces with Michael, I might really feel sorry for him going to prison."
"But after what he did to me, if I still felt sorry for him, wouldn't Brian have died for nothing? Megan is still in the hospital."
Between her and Zachary stood Brian's life.
And Megan's ruined lifetime.
So she couldn't possibly feel sorry for Zachary.
Joshua breathed a sigh of relief, his mood lifting.
"I'm relieved to hear you say that. Don't worry, I won't let Brian die in vain."
He would make Michael and Zachary pay with their lives.
Michael liked to hide, did he? Let's see how long he could hide.
Foreign mercenaries wanting to take someone's head—as long as the money was right, it was quite easy.
Ella, hearing his words, felt again that the Baker family matter couldn't be unrelated to Joshua.
But Joshua had denied it.
She was very suspicious.
However, Zachary had gotten his punishment. If Joshua wouldn't admit it, why should she keep pressing?
Thinking about how Joshua had been behaving quite well lately.
Every day, he'd drop the kids off at the Lewis family and sensibly turn around and leave, not actively asking to stay for dinner or anything.
To repay him, Ella invited, "If you're free tonight, after you pick up Aurora and Dorian and bring them home, stay for dinner!"