The service staff soon started serving the food.

Although they were at an Italian restaurant, the food was surprisingly served to them on small plates like the other time. The sight of the numerous little plates of food on the table made Nora’s eyes twitch again and again.

What the heck was this?

The bored young woman held her fork idly and took bite after bite.

Opposite her, Justin’s lip corners slowly curled into a smile. He said, “Ms. Smith, you should chew your food well and eat slowly. It’s not good for your health if you eat too fast.”

“…”

Even so, surely one couldn’t eat that slowly either, right?!

Some of the plates had only two cucumber strips on them…

Nora suspected that Justin was doing this on purpose. After all, when she was on her way here just now, the diners in the hall had all been using normal-sized plates.

She twirled the bit of pasta in the bowl with her fork and casually put it into her mouth.

Seeing how bored she was, Justin tried to find something to talk about. He asked, “How did you know that the real estate industry won’t do too well in the future, Ms. Smith?”

Nora swallowed the pasta and speared a piece of vegetable from the salad bowl. Only then did she reply, “Weren’t you the one who told me that, Mr. Hunt?”

Justin raised his brows. Then, he heard her continue. “I heard that the Lowes approached the Hunts first, but the Hunts refused the offer.”

Justin let out a low chuckle and replied, “But outsiders are also saying that I was just in a bad mood because of my son.”

Nora blinked. She rested on the table with one arm and lazily put the vegetable into her mouth with her other hand. “Well, if Mr. Hunt were one to do business based on his mood, the Hunt Corporation wouldn’t be what it is today. You’ve always had a good eye for business.”

“…”

Justin had nearly grown up having praises sung of him. Everyone hailed him as a business genius but he had never cared about what they said.

But when the woman flippantly said that he had always had a good eye for business, he actually found himself in an exceptionally good mood.

He picked up the glass of apple juice next to him without much thought and took a sip to conceal his smile, but when he looked back up, he instead saw Nora staring at him in shock. She said, “That’s my juice you’re drinking, Mr. Hunt.”

Justin, “!!”

His gaze fell onto the glass of juice. There seemed to be remnants of the warmth of the woman’s lips on the rim of the glass, making him feel like his lips had been scalded a little.

However, he pretended to be calm and put the glass down. Then, he immediately said, “Oh. Sorry, I picked up the wrong glass.”

Nora couldn’t help being astonished when she noticed that his earlobes seemed to have turned a little red.

Little did she think that the dignified leader of the number one family and the Imperial League’s ruthless and decisive Eagle would actually have moments where he was shy and innocent?

In particular, when he innocently cast his seemingly bottomless eyes down, even the beauty mark at the corner of his eye seemed to be exuding an alluring aura that screamed ‘Please bully me’… It actually made her lick her lips for some inexplicable reason.

The atmosphere suddenly became rather romantic, and even the air seemed to have become somewhat thick and viscous.

After dinner, the two went to the car park together.

When they were walking past the restaurant’s main hall, Nora suddenly sensed a probing gaze. Her head whipped to the side, but what entered her sight was instead a lush green curtain of devil’s ivy that blocked her from the view beyond.

As the plants swayed, behind the dappled light through the gaps, she seemed to see a man in a white suit sitting there quietly and looking at the menu.

It seemed like everything just now was just an illusion.

Nora’s brows knitted together. For some reason, it suddenly gave her the creeps.

She suppressed the feeling and followed Justin to the car park.

Before they separated, Nora asked, “Where is your birthday party going to be held tomorrow, Mr. Hunt?”

Justin gave her an address. It was where he and Pete were currently staying at.

Nora nodded. “I’ll be there at noon tomorrow.”

Justin also nodded. “See you then.”

Justin continued to stand where he was even after Nora started the car and left.

Sean couldn’t help but ask, “What if Ms. Smith doesn’t bring a gift, Mr. Hunt?”

Justin glanced at him coolly and replied confidently, “That’s impossible.”

Why wouldn’t she bring one when she liked him so much?

She wanted to see the birthday card that Pete made for him though… Justin got in the car and said, “Let’s go home.”

When he got back to the villa, Pete was practicing his martial arts after dinner.

Justin stood in front of him and said haughtily, “It’s my birthday tomorrow.”

Pete raised his head. His expressionless face was just like a miniature version of Justin. He said, “… Oh.”

The corners of Justin’s lips spasmed a little and his expression darkened. “Is that all you have to say?”

Pete, who was utterly confused, replied, “…? Uh, happy birthday?”

“…”

Justin took a deep breath and reminded him, “It seems like other kids make birthday cards for their parents during their birthdays.”

Pete curled his lip in disgust and said, “… That’s so childish. I’m not going to do it.”

Justin, who was mercilessly rejected by his son, went to the study sullenly after leaving behind the words ‘You little brat’. Then, he took out two pieces of card stock.

After Pete was done with his practice, the sweaty little boy got ready to take a bath. On the way to the bedroom, he passed by the study. Through the gap at the door, he noticed that Justin was doing some craft work with his head down. He walked in curiously to see his mighty and domineering father writing ‘Happy Birthday, Daddy’ in crooked and messy handwriting on an ugly card.

Pete, “…”

He looked at the tyrant with a complicated look and asked worriedly, “Have you seen a psychiatrist this month, Daddy?”

“…”

—

When Nora returned home, Melissa was still out.

Afraid that she would be bullied at the Woods, Nora immediately sent her a text message. It was only when Melissa replied that everything was fine that she finally went upstairs with peace of mind.

Cherry, who had won another live-stream face-off, was now ranked among the top 300 live-streamers. In another five days, she would be in the top ten and facing fierce showdowns with the other nine live-streamers!

However, the little fellow was completely unaware of this. After happily saying goodbye to Sponsor Grandpa, she turned off the live-stream, washed up, and climbed into bed obediently.

After she fell asleep, Nora sat up.

She took out her earphones, stuffed them into her ears, and located an audio recording on her cell phone. When she played it, a clear voice started to speak: “Nora, by the time you’re listening to this, Mom will no longer be around. Remember this—do not expose your capabilities. Before you’re strong enough to protect yourself, be as mediocre as you can. Otherwise, your life will be in danger!”

Nora narrowed her eyes and stared in front of her coldly.

After a while, she finally took off the earphones, laid down, and closed her eyes. For some reason, the man in the white suit whom she had seen today flashed across her mind…

The next day, it was almost noon when Nora finally woke up. After a simple breakfast, she said to Cherry, “Go and get ready. We’re going to celebrate your father’s birthday.”

Cherry was in disbelief. “Are you really taking me there, Mommy?”

Was she planning a showdown?

Nora smiled and replied, “Yes, of course.”

First, it was her father’s birthday after all, so it was better that they celebrated it. Second, she also wanted Cherry to see how sweet her son was to his elders!