Chapter 362 James Came


    The woman Norman had brought here was Mildred Shi. She was quite innocent, and he behaved


    very civilly. This was the first time he treated a girl this well.


    Over the next few days, Maria continued living her life to the full, lounging by the beach and eating


    various seafood. She gradually calmed down, and was no longer mad at James.


    She didn''t leave simply because she got addicted to this way of life.


    Later that night, Maria went on a leisurely stroll. She followed the sound of ssical music wafting


    over from the distance, her flip flops pping softly against the cobblestones.


    As she walked alongside the shoreline for a few minutes, she finally caught the source of the music


    —there was a casual bear party by the sea.


    There were many young men and women at the party. Maria joined the party and drank a beer,


    flirting with one of the young men there. "I want a boyfriend, but nothing long term.1'' The young man


    was really handsome. He had nicely chiseled features and a gorgeous tan from living on the ind


    for so long.


    ''''Maria Song, how dare you?" A cold voice suddenly sounded from behind her, startling her so


    abruptly she almost dropped her beer.


    Turning around, she was greeted by James'' livid face.


    "What''re you doing here?" she asked incredulously.


    ''When did he get here?


    And why is he here?'' James'' expression darkened. His suspicions were just confirmed: he caught


    Maria in the act. She was enjoying herself a bit too much here.


    He tore his cold gaze away from her and nted it on the young man next to her. The man


    immediately realized what was going on. Frightened, he ran away like a scared rabbit. ''Oh my God!


    This man is so scary!'' he thought.


    "Hey!" Maria wanted to say something more to the man, but before she could do so, he had already


    disappeared.


    She turned around and whined angrily, "You scared off my date!"


    ''Date?'' James sneered. "Before you think about dating someone, why not think about your son who


    needs to be cared for? You''re his mother. Think about the example you''re setting for your child!"


    Maria stammered, "Well...I..." ''I didn''t know you had a sense of morals.''


    "Bob isn''t here," she said, rolling her eyes.


    He seemed to not want to argue with her any further. He just sat down and eyed the barbequed


    food on the table. "Are you going to eat this?" he asked with a frown.


    "Of course." Maria picked up a skewer of roasted fish and held it in front of him. "Try this."


    "No, thanks." He shook his head firmly.


    "Suit yourself," she said with a shrug. She then took a bite of the skewer herself, relishing the tender


    freshness of the fish.


    James watched in silence as she enjoyed her food. Finally, he said in a soft voice, "Come back with


    me."


    "I''m not done having fun here," she replied nonchntly. Then, she tore off another chunk of fish


    with her teeth and chewed it thoughtfully.


    To her surprise, he didn''t get angry. He just cocked his head at her curiously and asked, "Haven''t


    you had more than enough fun?"


    "No, I haven''t." There was so much more she wanted to try. There was no way she was going to


    leave with him.


    "Okay." James yanked the beer out of her hand and raised it to his lips. After taking a mouthful, he


    said, "Then I''ll stay with you. I can''t let you have all the fun!"


    Maria''s jaw dropped in shock. What was this man talking about?


    Then, the image of Bob all alone in the manor shed through her mind and she instantly felt guilty.


    Wasn''t it unfair to the child if both of his parents were not at home?


    As though he read her mind, James finished off the rest of the beer and said, "The baby is with my


    grandparents. Dad is there, too." Sebastian knew about Bob; after all, he was the child''s


    grandfather.


    Maria put down the fish skewer. Grimly, she grabbed a napkin and gently dabbed at her lips.


    "James," she said in a serious tone.


    "Yes?" "I need to talk to you about something."


    "Okay."


    "The public can''t know about Bob." James studied her carefully.


    He had never seen her so serious before.


    Calmly, she continued, "Colby, Rosa, Alina...all your enemies and mine, any one of them can hurt


    Bob. Am I right?"


    "Yes." He didn''t deny it. How could he? What she was saying was very true and serious.


    "So, don''t expose Bob, and don''t let too many people know about his identity. If anyone asks, just


    tell them Grandpa just came across him on his walk." James looked deep into her eyes. There was


    genuine fear-fear that harm would befall Bob.


    "I want to trust you. You''ll do whatever you can to protect our child, won''t you?" Maria asked.


    Whatever happened between them didn''t matter when it came to the child. Together, they needed to


    protect Bob.


    It was Maria''s dream to watch Bob grow up, happy and healthy.


    "If you can''t, then I won''t me you. No one can predict what''ll happen in the future, and you''re-"


    James interrupted her. "Maria."


    The two looked into each other''s eyes.


    A silence fell over them and only the sound of the waves crashing into the shore could be heard for


    a while. "I will protect our child. And you, too. Just trust me."


    Maria was moved by his words. Her eyes started to glisten with tears.


    "I know you don''t want another tragedy, neither do I, " he added. If he could turn back time, he


    would never have let go of Maria and he would''ve protected Arthur.


    Tears streaming down her cheeks, Maria decided in that moment to trust this man again,


    unconditionally.


    She took a deep breath and tucked her long hair behind her ears. Then, she picked up a skewer of


    roasted squid and handed it to him. ''''The seafood here is fresh catch, unlike the farmed one we


    have in H City. Taste it."


    James still refused. He eyed the skewer warily and said, "The seafood I eat is freshly caught."


    Maria rolled her eyes. He always found opportunities to show off.


    Maria calmly put down the roasted squid and waved a waiter over. "Waiter!"


    When the waiter caught a glimpse of her calling him, he came over with a simple smile. "Hi, what


    can I do for you?"


    "Six cans of beer and five skewers of roasted sea cucumber, only from your freshest catch, please.


    This man is an expert. He can tell if it''s not fresh. And if he finds out it''s not fresh, he might sue your


    ass."


    The waiter nced at the frowning man and continued to smile. He patted himself on the chest and


    vowed, "Don''t worry. I promise we only serve the freshest seafood!"


    The beer was served shortly after. Maria opened two cans and handed one to James. "Cheers!"


    James epted the can wordlessly. The two clinked cans and drank the ice cold beer.


    Eyeing James'' impable suit, Maria put down her beer and asked, "Did you bring extra clothes?"


    "Yes." But as soon as hended, he went to her. He didn''t spare time even to change his clothes.


    "That''s good." They were well into the night by now, and it wasn''t that hot. She was worried he


    would have a heatstrokee daytime, though.


    After a moment of drinking in silence, Maria spoke up again. "This is kind of rare. How about I invite


    Norman over here and we can all drink together?"


    James frowned deeply. "I don’t want to see him." Clearly, she just wanted to make trouble for him.


    "Don''t be like this! You''re brothers! There''s nothing to be ashamed of if you take the initiative to


    show concern for him." The truth was, she pitied Norman. He was unloved by his brother and father.


    James ignored her. Without saying a word, he took another sip of his beer.


    ? 2024 N?v/el/Dram/a.Org.


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