Naomi Shaw ate her fruit in silence, listening quietly as Lillian Huxley smiled and said, "Of course, Willow and I aren’t telling you all this to make you believe Julian Donovan loves you. Just trust that ti will prove everything!"
"Thank you."
She looked up at them and smiled. ’Do I really have to leave everything for ti to prove?’
Willow Sumrs pulled two tickets from her bag and handed them to Naomi Shaw. "Oh, right, Naomi. Superstar Joel Holt is having a concert in a few days. These are for you!"
’Earlier today, my President Sutton brought these two tickets ho. He said Felix Draper booked them and told to give them to Naomi Shaw. It looks like my President Sutton still doesn’t know about Naomi’s entanglent with Julian Donovan. He must think she’s Felix Draper’s woman. He looked pretty sour when he gave the tickets—just tossed them on the table and walked off.’
’So, is Felix Draper using Naomi to get a rise out of my President Sutton?’
"A concert?"
Naomi Shaw took the tickets and looked them over. The face on them was that of a very masculine, cool-looking man. Because of Juliet Jennings, she had paid little attention to entertainnt news in recent years, afraid she might see reports about Juliet and him.
Willow Sumrs encouraged her, "Doesn’t Joy have a real talent for this sort of thing? You should take her!"
What Willow said made sense to Naomi, so she put the tickets away and thanked her. "Thank you, Willow!"
"Oh, co on, you don’t have to be so formal with !"
Willow Sumrs said with the hearty air of a group’s big sister, "And another thing, Naomi! Whenever you’re free, you should co hang out with us more. I’ll introduce you to lots of great people—Huxley, my President Sutton, Editor North, and the lovely Shani, haha!"
Naomi envied Willow Sumrs and Lillian Huxley for having so many good friends, but she could only offer a regretful smile. "I’d love to, but I have to watch Joy, and on weekends I go to the orphanage..."
"You’ve got a doting dad for that! Look at Huxley—she has no qualms about leaving her daughter with Mr. Rhodes to co out and enjoy so ti with her besties!"
Willow blurted it out without thinking. Naomi’s expression froze in awkwardness. Lillian Huxley shot Willow a glare, and Willow quickly added, "Well, you can just bring Joy with you next ti! She’s so well-behaved, and we all adore her anyway!"
Naomi just smiled.
Over the weekend, Naomi first went to a store to buy a new phone and change her number. She didn’t want Julian Donovan or Sean Donovan to be able to find her. Afterward, she took Joy to the orphanage.
Since her relationship with Sean Donovan had beco public, she was sure Jean Coleman already knew about them. And now that Naomi herself knew more about the tangled history of the Donovan family, she felt she couldn’t possibly face Jean. But when she thought of the children, she pushed past the ntal block. She had been volunteering for so long and had grown attached to the kids; she couldn’t bear the thought of suddenly not going anymore.
Over the past few days, the acquisition battle between rcy and the Donovan Group had been raging. rcy announced it was raising its offer from 20 tis the market value to 30. The original offer had already sent the Donovan Group’s shareholders into a panic. Now, with the price raised by another ten tis the market value, even the shareholders with the deepest loyalty to Charles Donovan and the Donovan Group couldn’t help but waver.
A price 30 tis the market value was enough to allow those shareholders to live out the rest of their days in wealth and luxury. Rather than stay with the Donovan Group and bear the risks of competing against rcy, it was far more sensible to sell their shares to rcy in one go and have the cash securely in hand.
All at once, the financial world, the dical industry, and various related sectors were abuzz, all discussing this hostile takeover. People speculated as to why rcy was targeting the Donovan Group so aggressively. Eventually, by connecting the surna of rcy Hospital’s Julian Donovan to the Donovan family, soone unearthed the old feud between him, Charles Donovan, and the Donovan Group. When a reporter tracked down Julian Donovan to ask about it, he answered calmly and indifferently, "I’m just taking back what’s mine."
It was true. The Donovan Group should have been his. Even if not in its entirety, as the direct heir of the Donovan Family, he should have held a portion of the company’s shares. But Charles Donovan had exploited his mont of vulnerability and forced him to give them up.
anwhile, Charles Donovan had secluded himself in a sanatorium, refusing all visitors, and Sean Donovan had vanished without a trace.
When Naomi Shaw arrived at the orphanage, Jean Coleman greeted her with the sa kind smile as always. "You’re here, Anna."
"Yes..."
She, on the other hand, was the one who felt awkward facing Jean Coleman because of her past with Sean Donovan. She offered a brief greeting before heading inside to look after the children. ’And she had no idea if Jean knew about her and Julian Donovan. Then again, Julian had promised he wouldn’t tell his mother unless she wanted him to.’
Jean Coleman watched her slender figure retreat, then shook her head and sighed. ’I really never expected this Anna Quinn to be connected to Sean Donovan. I’d only ever heard from Willow Sumrs that she had a husband, but I’d never t this supposed husband. Oh, well. I suppose it’s just an ill-fated connection.’
Julian Donovan arrived right after, with Dylan in tow. Jean Coleman was overjoyed to see Dylan. She swept him into her arms, smothered him with kisses, and then led him by the hand to her office. For soone who had desperately longed for a grandchild, to suddenly have one this old appear—and one so smart and well-behaved, at that—how could she not dote on him? Ever since Dylan ca into her life, Jean Coleman felt her existence had taken on a new layer of aning.
Julian, however, walked to the door of the classroom Naomi had just entered and watched her through the small window in the door. She was inside teaching a group of children arts and crafts, while Joy sat obediently by her side, watching her mother’s nimble fingers as they cut and folded.
The weather was gradually growing colder. Thanks to his generous financial support, the orphanage was in excellent condition, and the heat was already on inside. She had taken off her coat and was sitting cross-legged on the floor in just a loose, long top, laughing and talking with the children. The baggy top only made her fra seem all the more frail, and a pang of heartache hit him as he watched her. ’Why can’t she seem to gain any weight? She was like this when I first t her, and she’s still like this now, even after having two children. Don’t won usually put on so weight after childbirth? Why hasn’t she? If anything, she looks even thinner.’
He stood there outside the classroom, his mind a jumble of thoughts as he gazed at her serene smile. A stifling tightness spread through his chest, and he didn’t even notice that more than half an hour had slipped by.
At one point, Jean Coleman ca out. She was puzzled to see him standing there, quietly staring into the room where, as far as she knew, Anna was teaching an arts and crafts class. She didn’t dwell on it, though. After a quick glance, she hurried back to her office to play with her grandson.
Naomi was having a wonderful ti playing with the children inside when she suddenly sensed a pair of eyes on her back. She turned her head, and sure enough, there was Julian Donovan standing outside the door, staring at her without even blinking. His gaze was so adoring it was as if she were the only person in his world. She whipped her head back around, her heart suddenly pounding out of control.
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