A note on the second male lead: I never said he was a good guy or a bad guy, so there’s no such thing as intentionally making him evil.
10,000-character updates on Saturdays and Sundays.
Naomi Shaw held Lara Nash, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Lara, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry!"
Joy stood to the side, her little face tilted up, quietly watching the two tear-streaked won. After a good, long cry in each other’s arms, their emotions finally cald down a bit. Lara looked down at little Joy.
"Naomi, this little girl...?"
Naomi Shaw bent down and picked Joy up.
"Co on, Joy. Say hi to Auntie!"
"Joy?"
A flash of pain crossed Lara Nash’s face.
"Naomi, are you doing this on purpose? Trying to reopen old wounds?"
Naomi Shaw froze. ’She thought of Ronan Joyce. Sotis, when you can’t let go of soone, even a single word related to them can cause unbearable pain.’ She looked at Lara apologetically and explained,
"Lara, I didn’t an it like that..."
Back then, she hadn’t known why she’d chosen that na for Joy. She just felt the na had a gentle, lovely sound, perfect for a little girl.
Lara smiled.
"Alright, alright, I’m just being too sensitive! Let’s go ho first. You’re not planning to catch up with right here on the street, are you?"
Naomi Shaw rembered they were still outside. Holding Joy, she led Lara ho.
Joy played quietly by herself while the two won curled up on the living room sofa, chatting and catching up just like they used to when they shared a rented apartnt. The warm afternoon sun stread into the room, gentle and comforting, and Lara’s smile seed just as bright. She had cut her hair short, giving her a sharp, capable look, but Naomi Shaw couldn’t help but feel that sothing was missing from her smile.
Lara and Ronan Joyce’s separation wasn’t like her own breakup with Julian Donovan. They had been forced apart, and in such a tragic way. The damage it did to her was bone-deep. That was why Naomi had been afraid to bring up Ronan Joyce. It was only later, while talking about Joy, that she found an opening to ask,
"Lara, what’s your... and his... child’s na?"
Lara had only just gotten pregnant when Naomi left, so she didn’t know if the baby was a boy or a girl. She didn’t dare ntion Ronan Joyce’s na, using "him" instead.
Lara’s eyes dimd.
"She’s a girl, too. Because she was born in the morning, I decided to na her Cheryl Nash."
"Cheryl? That’s a lovely na."
Naomi Shaw repeated the na softly, then asked Lara,
"Why didn’t you bring her with you?"
The mont her daughter was ntioned, Lara looked like she was about to lose her mind.
"Oh, please, how could I dare bring her out? If only she were half as well-behaved as Joy, I’d be thrilled. She’s a little terror, running wild all day, nothing like a proper little girl! Taking her out for one trip nearly kills !"
"Isn’t that because she’s just like you?"
Naomi Shaw couldn’t stop laughing. ’It seed the wild Lara had finally t her match. Looks like none of Ronan Joyce’s calm deanor was passed down to their child.’
Lara snorted.
"What a waste of the perfectly serene na I gave her. I think she should have been called Hurricane Cheryl instead!"
"Who talks about their own daughter like that!"
Naomi Shaw laughed until tears stread down her face. ’This was the Lara she knew and rembered.’ Lara grabbed her arm and continued to complain,
"Listen, you have no idea how wild she is. The slightest bit of fun and she goes completely hyper, constantly demanding you play and roughhouse with her. One ti, we were playing on the bed, and she was just jumping and hopping around. I turned my head for a second, and she fell right off onto the floor! She nearly gave a heart attack!"
Lara’s stories made Naomi Shaw eager to et the adorable little girl.
"Do you have any pictures of her? Let see!"
Lara pulled out her phone, found the photos, and showed them to Naomi. It was an impish-looking little girl with short hair, making all sorts of funny faces at the cara. Lara said as she swiped through them,
"She doesn’t have a single picture with a normal expression. They’re all like this. Can’t she just let take one decent photo? Other people set pictures of their kids as their phone’s wallpaper, but with her, I can’t even show these to anyone!"
Naomi Shaw looked at them with a smile. Despite the funny faces, she could still see that she was a very pretty little girl, with traces of both Lara and Ronan Joyce in her features. Lara continued complaining beside her,
"I suspected she had ADHD, so I took her to a doctor. The doctor said she’s perfectly normal, just a bit energetic. Energetic? Is it possible to be this lethally energetic, I ask you! Every ti we agree she’ll strike a normal pose for a picture, the mont I snap it, she makes a goofy face or just turns her back on !"
After looking at Cheryl’s photos, Naomi Shaw smiled and said to Lara,
"Lara, you have to bring her with you next ti so I can et her!"
Lara quickly waved her hands in dismissal.
"No way. I don’t want her turning your Joy into a little maniac!"
Naomi Shaw’s smile faded, and she asked cautiously,
"Have you had any contact with him since?"
The cheerful atmosphere, brought on by the talk of adorable Cheryl, instantly grew heavy again. Lara shook her head with a bitter smile.
"How could we be in contact? And what good would it do? He didn’t have the courage to die for love, and I can’t fight against a powerful family. It’s better this way!"
Naomi Shaw was about to say sothing more, but Lara cut her off.
"Naomi, I don’t want to talk about this anymore..."
Seeing her so resistant, Naomi couldn’t press the issue. Lara turned to look at Joy, who was sitting quietly on the sofa, and then asked,
"Joy... she’s Julian Donovan’s daughter, isn’t she?"
"Mhm..."
Naomi Shaw lowered her eyes and humd in agreent. Lara asked again,
"Does he know?"
Naomi Shaw shook her head.
"No. He suspected, but I told him I got drunk and was with another man. I don’t want him to know Joy is his daughter, because I don’t want to have anything to do with him ever again. You don’t understand, Lara. When soone hurts you that badly, you instinctively want to run, to protect yourself, because you’re terrified of getting hurt by him again!"
Lara was silent for a mont before saying,
"When Julian Donovan called to tell where you were, he also told how he feels about you. He said he wants to win you back. Naomi, you know I was against you two being together from the very beginning. But after everything we’ve both been through, I feel like... love and hate don’t matter anymore. Just being together is enough. Just being alive and well and together is what counts!"
Naomi Shaw understood what Lara was getting at. She was trying to persuade her to accept Julian Donovan.
But...
She shook her head.
"Lara, I don’t trust him!"
She didn’t believe he could love her the way he claid.
Lara looked at her, not knowing what to say. After all, Julian Donovan had brought her so much despair in the past; it was hard for her to suddenly accept the fact that he was now in love with her.
Naomi Shaw held out her left hand for Lara to see.
"Besides... I’ve already accepted another man’s proposal. I didn’t know Julian Donovan would find , and I didn’t know he’d want to get back together. I wanted to build a quiet, peaceful life with this man!"
Lara stared in astonishnt at the diamond ring on her hand. It took her a long mont to recover before she asked with a pained expression,
"What kind of person is he?"
’So be it. Perhaps her fate with Julian Donovan was truly over. She understood Naomi’s state of mind completely. If she ever had to marry in this life, she would definitely choose a man who loved her deeply. She would never love soone else again.’
Naomi Shaw pulled her hand back and said faintly,
"He’s gentle and cheerful, and most importantly, he’s very good to and Joy..."
"Then, Naomi... do you love him?"
Lara looked straight into her eyes. Naomi’s heart ached.
"Love? Lara, to be honest, I don’t even know what love is anymore. If loving soone is destined to leave you covered in scars, then I’d rather choose the peace and quiet I have now!"
Lara was silent for a mont, then said,
"Naomi Shaw, you’re a coward!"
As the words left her mouth, she added,
"Of course, so am I!"
Only soone who has never been hurt by love would fail to understand their ostrich-like ntality.
Not wanting to continue the unpleasant conversation, Lara took out her phone, snapped a few pictures of her, and then said,
"Naomi, you should go back for a visit soti. Everyone misses you, especially Tyson. You know, he was the one who put you on that boat. He’s been living with the guilt all these years..."
Naomi Shaw’s heart ached at the thought. She missed them all terribly, too.
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