I Faked My Death—Now I Have to Tame the Crazy Men I Left Behind-Chapter 104 - 102: If You Don’t Believe Me, Feel It
Yates Donovan had to admit, her "you won’t" was far more alluring than a taunt like "you wouldn’t dare."
He’d always been an easy man to please.
She’d paid him a rare compliment, whatever her reasons, so he figured he should just accept it.
By all rights, that should have been the end of it.
He couldn’t quite figure out what had possessed him to ask all those questions that followed.
He’d wanted to ask, so he did. Simple as that.
But why did he feel so damn annoyed after he’d asked?
She’d guessed right. When he was in his right mind, he certainly wouldn’t do anything to her.
But when he wasn’t... well, who could say for sure?
Take now, for example.
He had to assert his rightful place.
Mia Grant’s eyes widened in shock. She never thought he’d actually do it!
He’d said he wanted to try it, too...
’Try what? Kissing in bed, obviously!’
The thought of all his past flings made Mia Grant bite his lip.
Yates Donovan sucked in a sharp breath. He leaned back abruptly, dodging her attack and resting against the headboard.
He licked the cut on his lip, the taste lingering. "Is milk always this sweet?" he mused.
"..." Mia Grant’s face instantly turned crimson.
But then she realized he hadn’t deepened the kiss.
It was a kiss, but not really.
His only goal, it seemed, was to wipe the milk from her lips.
Their lips simply pressed together, a warm, restrained touch that lingered on the surface.
It wasn’t the fierce, passionate, and lingering kiss she’d imagined. It felt more like a formality.
Yates Donovan studied her expression.
Her cheeks were a shade redder than before. Her large, limpid eyes darted away, refusing to meet his, and he had no idea what she was thinking.
After a few seconds, he leaned in and casually rested his head in her lap, trying to meet her eyes. "Mad at me?"
He looked so smug, just begging for a punch.
Mia Grant decisively raised her hand. "Hey!" Yates Donovan yelped, grinning as he blocked her.
"Not the face. It’ll be hard to explain when I go back next door."
"When the old man asks, I can’t exactly say I’m a victim of domestic abuse, can I?"
"Then you’ll have to come back with me and kneel in the ancestral hall as punishment."
"Get lost! I’m going to sleep!" Mia Grant snapped, mortified. The sight of him was infuriating.
"Perfect." Yates Donovan yawned, shifted his upper body, and lay down in the empty space beside her. Then he tugged her blanket over himself.
Mia Grant jumped and yanked it back. "What the hell do you think you’re doing?!"
"Going to sleep. Didn’t you say you needed to rest?"
Yates Donovan’s eyes drooped. He lazily patted the bed. "Come on. I’ve already warmed up the covers for you."
"I’m the one resting. What are you doing lying down?"
"I watched over you all last night."
"So?"
"I need to sleep too."
Mia Grant was about to curse him out when she heard him say plaintively, "I really haven’t had any rest in ages. If you don’t believe me, feel my chest. My heart is beating so fast."
"You..."
"If I don’t get some sleep, I’ll end up joining your fake ashes. Then we’d be buried together, and you wouldn’t want that."
Mia Grant clamped her mouth shut.
Yates Donovan fell asleep almost instantly.
’He must be exhausted.’
Mia Grant glanced at the blanket. Despite her outward annoyance, her body betrayed her as she honestly pulled a large portion of it over him.
The moment he fell silent, Mia Grant felt the entire world quiet down.
’But maybe it’s a little too quiet. I’m not used to it.’
She couldn’t stifle a yawn. A moment later, Mia Grant lay down, keeping her distance from him.
She fell asleep quickly, and before long, her consciousness began to fade.
Beside her, the man silently lifted his eyelids.
He gazed at her, his eyes clear and serious, his thoughts unreadable.
「Midcrest, Portia.」
It was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the manor was a little livelier than usual.
The butler received a call from the airport, immediately dropped what he was doing, and hurried upstairs to find the old master.
"Hayes is back?" The old master, who was in the middle of a chess game against himself, paused. The black stone hovered over the board, not yet placed.
"Yes. I’ve confirmed it with the airport. It is indeed the Second Young Master."
The old master seemed rather surprised. "Didn’t he say he wasn’t coming back?"
"Did he call you?"
The butler shook his head. "The Second Young Master never said he would be returning."
They had told Mia Grant that Hayes Hughes was staying in Jynsia to work overtime. It wasn’t exactly a lie, as that was the excuse Hayes himself had given.
The old master hadn’t pressed the issue at the time.
Hayes Hughes held the title of eldest grandson, but in practice, the old master had always treated his maternal grandson, Silas Grant, as if he were the heir.
To put it bluntly, for a holiday this important, as long as Silas Grant returned, it didn’t matter whether Hayes Hughes or anyone else did.
On top of that, Hayes Hughes had been overtly and covertly trying to break free from the Hughes family’s control for the past few years.
The old master had turned a blind eye, neither warning nor stopping him, which suggested he didn’t think much of his eldest grandson.
So, when Hayes Hughes said he couldn’t return for the festival, the butler hadn’t taken it upon himself to call him again.
But now, unexpectedly, Hayes Hughes had rushed back specifically for the occasion.
"The Second Young Master still cares for you, sir. He’s injured, yet he still made a special trip back to celebrate the festival with you."
Hearing the butler’s words, the old master chuckled, tossing the stone onto the chessboard. He narrowed his eyes at the butler. "Do you really think he came back to celebrate the festival with an old man like me?"
The butler swallowed nervously. The flattering words on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back down.
"Have someone prepare his room. Since he’s back, he can stay for a few days and rest his injuries."
"..."
"Yes, sir."
After leaving the study, the butler stood frozen in place for a long time. After a moment’s silence, he pulled out his phone and composed a text message to Hayes Hughes.
He subtly warned him that it would be best not to return today.
’I don’t know if Hayes Hughes will understand... But considering our past, this is all I can do.’
If the old master found out, he would have a very hard time explaining himself.
’I just hope Hayes Hughes sees the message in time and is clever enough...’
Because after returning today, leaving again wouldn’t be so easy.
Thinking of the Eldest Young Master upstairs, still having his wounds dressed, the butler shook his head helplessly. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺
’What a disaster.’
Half an hour later, the butler received word and hurried to the entrance to greet him.
Hayes Hughes got out of the car.
The butler glanced at him, his expression complicated.
"Second Young Master." He stepped forward and lowered his voice. "Didn’t you receive my message?"
"I saw it."
"Then..."
Hayes Hughes offered a reassuring smile. "It’s alright. I have to face it eventually. Thank you."
The butler could only fall silent.
"Big Brother is here too, isn’t he?"
The butler grunted in affirmation.
"But..."
He trailed off, but Hayes Hughes understood immediately.
He didn’t break his stride. "How bad are his injuries? Has the family doctor seen him?"
"He’s already upstairs."
"As for his injuries, I’m afraid he’ll need a long time to recuperate."
"Don’t worry, the old master didn’t strike a fatal blow. He isn’t angry that the Eldest Young Master made a move against the Grant family. On the contrary, he’s quite pleased."
"He’s very satisfied with the Eldest Young Master’s wolfish ambition. It’s just..."
"The old master said his ambition was applied in the wrong place."
Hayes Hughes glanced to the side, his tone certain. "So, Grandfather wants to kill Mia Grant, doesn’t he?"
