I Faked My Death—Now I Have to Tame the Crazy Men I Left Behind-Chapter 87 - 85: Be Gentle

A performance fee held no attraction for Yates Donovan whatsoever.

He was naturally rebellious and instinctively wanted to refuse.

But what she said after that sounded rather appealing.

’His lover.’

’Not bad. He liked this setup.’

By the window, Mia Grant was eager to try.

’There isn’t even a single chair in here.’

’It’s over. I’m never getting out of here.’

"How am I supposed to get out?" With no other choice, she turned to the certain someone behind her who was enjoying the show.

Yates Donovan said flippantly, arms crossed, "Just climb up."

"..." Mia Grant beckoned to him. "Come here for a second."

Yates asked with a punchable look on his face, "What, you gonna hit me?"

She smiled. "Of course not."

Even though he knew it was a trap, Yates Donovan still got up and went over.

"Wha—"

Before he could even come to a stop in front of her, she yanked hard on his collar.

He expected a punch straight to the face, but instead, she just pulled him over. "Squat down, squat down."

"?" Before Yates Donovan could react, she pressed down on his shoulders, forcing him to squat.

She circled around behind him.

She patted his shoulder. "Sorry about this. I don’t want to do this either, but there’s no other way."

First she apologized, then she lifted a leg to straddle his shoulders. "You can stand up now."

"You want me to lift you up on my shoulders?" He got it.

"What else?"

Yates Donovan’s lips twitched. He wanted to tell her this wouldn’t be high enough. But since she was determined to try, and he had nothing better to do, he figured he’d play along.

The girl wasn’t heavy. He gripped her slender ankles, finding it easy to walk while carrying her.

The heat from his palms seared her skin.

Mia Grant frowned, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"Alright, stop." Once they reached the wall, she tried to open the window.

’This isn’t as high as I’d hoped. This is tricky. I’ll probably have to grab the window frame and pull myself up.’

’But I don’t have the strength for that.’

"Not ye—" As Yates Donovan looked up, the hem of her skirt fell over his face, blocking his vision.

The sweet, fresh scent of the young woman caught him off guard, filling his senses.

His voice died in his throat.

"What did you say?" Mia couldn’t quite hear him.

Yates Donovan blinked. In his line of sight, a flash of pure white seemed to flicker past.

’What the hell was that...’

’Wait a minute?!’

Yates Donovan froze on the spot.

For a moment, his limbs went numb, and he almost dropped her.

He whipped his head to the side, freeing his gaze.

He spotted the ancestral tablets not far away and let out a long sigh of relief.

He suddenly felt the urge to utter a line more suited to Kian Keller: ’What a sin.’ 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"You... you should get down first." A faint blush crept up his ears, unnoticed even by him.

Mia Grant was still assessing the height and didn’t notice his reaction.

"Try standing on your tiptoes. If I really try, I think I can make it up."

’Try my ass.’

Yates Donovan took a deep breath, grabbed her legs, and without a word, carried her away from the window.

"Whoa!" As Mia Grant swayed, she cried out in alarm and instinctively ducked, hugging Yates Donovan’s head for dear life.

"Stop squirming."

"Ow! Be gentle!"

"Hey, your hands! Where are your hands going?"

"..."

Yael Donovan had just returned from a social engagement and had planned to meet Mia Grant, but the girl was nowhere to be found.

He called for the old butler, who informed him she was in the ancestral hall.

The old butler followed Yael Donovan over, trembling with apprehension. Just as they arrived at the door, they heard some rather... suggestive sounds coming from inside.

A man’s voice and a woman’s, intertwined.

It sounded utterly chaotic.

’This is the ancestral hall, of all places!’

"Scoundrel." As expected, Yael Donovan’s expression darkened.

"Knock on the door!"

The old butler sighed, took a step forward, and lightly tapped the door. "Young Master..."

Inside the room, Mia had covered Yates Donovan’s eyes, and he couldn’t see a thing.

The two were still wrestling with each other, oblivious to the sounds outside.

"Young Master, the Second Master has arrived. We’re... coming in."

The old butler cleared his throat, took the key from Yael Donovan, and deliberately made a great deal of noise with it.

"Take your hands—"

Mia Grant froze. "Shhh. Is someone there?"

Yates Donovan freed a hand to pry hers away and looked toward the door.

At that very moment, the old butler pushed the door open.

Upon seeing their posture, the old butler first froze, then sighed in relief.

"Oh, thank goodness..."

’What’s so good about this?’ The two of them looked utterly baffled.

Before Yates Donovan could ask, a man walked in from behind the butler.

Mia Grant noticed him too.

The middle-aged man who entered scanned the room, his gaze finally landing on them. His brows furrowed, his expression like the calm before a storm.

’That aura, those clothes, that face that bears some resemblance to Yates...’

’It’s Yates Donovan’s second uncle!’

Mia Grant snapped out of it and struggled to get down from Yates’s shoulders.

Yates Donovan snapped back to reality and patted her leg. "What are you squirming for? Can’t you see an elder is present?"

"..." Mia Grant was speechless. ’That’s exactly why I’m trying to get down!’

Acting as if nothing was amiss, Yates Donovan greeted the middle-aged man, still carrying her on his shoulders. "Good evening, Second Uncle."

He grinned, wearing the same cavalier expression he’d had all day.

His grin was infuriating.

He wouldn’t let her down, leaving Mia with no choice but to force a smile at Yael Donovan. "Hello, sir."

"What do you think you’re doing? And have you forgotten where you are?!"

Yael Donovan began with a sharp reprimand.

Mia Grant’s cheeks grew hot.

Yates Donovan, on the other hand, was completely unfazed. "What’s wrong? We were swatting bugs."

The butler hurried forward and whispered to them, "Quickly, get down... The Second Master needs to speak with Miss Grant."

Once her feet were on the ground, Mia Grant looked up at Yael Donovan with an apologetic smile. "You were looking for me?"

Yael Donovan sized her up. "We’ll talk in the front hall."

Mia Grant nodded. Perfect. This saved her the trouble of trying to escape.

She started to walk, but hadn’t gone far before she heard Yael Donovan’s sharp, cold voice again. "You. Stay here."

"Huh?" Mia Grant looked at herself, then realized he wasn’t talking to her and turned to see Yates Donovan following behind.

She blinked in confusion.

He blinked back, grinning without a care in the world.

Turning to his uncle, Yates Donovan began his performance. "She’s timid. She can’t leave my side."

"Either you two talk here, or I go with you."

"Bottom line, she can’t be without me."

"There’s no third option, Second Uncle."

"..."

’My first reaction was that he was insane,’ Mia thought. ’This wasn’t his scene yet. Why was he ad-libbing?’

Then it hit her. She saw sparks fly as the uncle and nephew locked eyes.

’Yates Donovan was following to protect me.’

Yael Donovan turned and left.

’That meant he agreed.’

Mia Grant was still rooted to the spot, thinking.

Yates Donovan had already taken her hand. "Let’s go, fiancée. This time it’s our turn to make a grand entrance together."

Mia had no choice but to let him lead her along. After they’d walked a short distance, she whispered, "He’s going to kill me, isn’t he?"

"He won’t," Yates Donovan said casually.

"He will. I can tell..."

"He won’t." In the darkness, the man turned to look at her, his voice firmer this time. "Even if I were to die by his hand, nothing would happen to you."

He broke into a smile. "I’ll protect you."