My Child and I Married a Billionaire

He was just shooting the breeze when, CRASH! A loud noise came from Damien Vaughn’s end of the line, startling him so much he shot up from the sofa.

"What the hell? What happened? What was that noise? I didn’t just imagine that, did I? Are you okay? Vaughn, you weren’t in an accident, were you? Hello? Hello? Are you all right?"

Damien Vaughn’s face was grim. He gripped the steering wheel, staring for a few speechless seconds at the small white car that had suddenly darted out and collided with his front bumper.

"I’m at the second traffic light on Riverfront Avenue. I need you to get your Mercedes van over here within half an hour. It’s an emergency."

Hearing that Damien Vaughn had been in an accident, Brandon Jacobs floored it and arrived on the scene in less than fifteen minutes.

Damien Vaughn’s car was parked on the side of the road. He had already let the other driver go.

When they met, Damien Vaughn looked at Brandon Jacobs and spoke in a low, serious tone.

"Elsa and my mom are in the car. I need to get my mom to Corvane for surgery immediately. Help me move her. And watch what you say."

Brandon Jacobs didn’t register anything else Damien said, only that Elsa was in the car.

’I get to see her again! This is great.’

"I’m going with you!"

"What?"

"Corvane is a long way away. It’s not safe for you to drive alone. What if something like what just happened happens again? We can take turns. I’m going with you!"

Although Brandon Jacobs sounded earnest, Damien Vaughn knew his real intentions.

"Elsa’s not going to like this..."

"It’s enough that you’re okay with it, that your mom needs help. I’m not doing it for her. Let’s go, Vaughn. Your mom’s condition can’t wait!"

With a THUMP, Brandon Jacobs pulled open the car door.

Damien Vaughn could only lean into the car and murmur a few words to Elsa.

Desperate times called for desperate measures. Besides, Brandon Jacobs had been acting surprisingly cool and decisive lately, so Elsa didn’t object.

And so, Brandon Jacobs successfully got into the same car with her.

Throughout the journey, whether he was driving or riding shotgun, he didn’t dare say a word.

Damien Vaughn was naturally a man of few words who never started a conversation, and his sister was cut from the same cloth.

Fortunately, both of them were easy on the eyes.

By stealing glances, first at one, then at the other, several hours flew by.

At eight o’clock that evening, they arrived in Corvane.

Damien Vaughn took his mother to the hospital, where the professor settled Mrs. Vaughn into a room and ran a series of examinations.

"Her overall physical condition is still quite good, so we can definitely proceed with the surgery tomorrow. That being said, there’s no need for all of you to stay here. For one, it’s too crowded, and the poor air circulation isn’t good for the patient. For another, there’s simply no space in the hospital. Damien, if you trust me, I’ll arrange for a caregiver to watch her. You’ve all had a long journey and must be exhausted. Go get some rest at a hotel."

Damien Vaughn hadn’t been by his mother’s side the last time she’d nearly had an accident. This time, there was no way he was leaving.

Besides, as her son, he felt it was his turn to fulfill his filial duty, especially since Elsa had been watching over her day and night for months.

"That won’t be necessary. I’ll stay and watch over her tonight. Elsa, Brandon, you two should go get something to eat and find a hotel to rest."

’She’s been cooped up in the villa for months since returning to the country; she deserves a night of freedom.’

Without bothering with any pleasantries, Elsa simply gave Damien a nod and left the room. Brandon Jacobs scrambled to follow her.

"I’m heading out then, Damien! I’ll see you tomorrow. She doesn’t know her way around here. I’m worried she’ll get lost, so I’ll go with her!"

Elsa barely spoke any Chinese and couldn’t read the characters, but with a boldness that came from who-knows-where, she charged downstairs anyway.

Brandon Jacobs frantically chased after her, grabbing her arm just as she was about to get into a taxi.

"Where are you going?"

Now that she was out of the villa’s warm confines, she had on a wool sweater and a black overcoat.

Her hair fell casually over her shoulders, and though she wore no makeup, her innate, sophisticated beauty was dazzling.

Elsa’s thin lips parted. "A bar. I haven’t been out in months. It’s not too much to ask to go to a bar, is it?"

The subtext was clear: she didn’t want Brandon Jacobs bothering her. He got the message.

"But do you even know where to find a bar? Can you tell the driver an address?"

Elsa couldn’t. She hadn’t downloaded a translation app, she hadn’t brought any money, and she didn’t know how to use mobile payments.

"So, you want to come with me?"

Brandon Jacobs knew she only saw him as useful at that moment, but he still agreed with delight.

The bar was still quiet before nine in the evening. Elsa marched straight to the counter and rattled off a stream of English at the bartender, who didn’t understand a word.

Brandon Jacobs stepped up to translate: "Do you have food? I mean a proper meal. Dumplings, pasta, cake, fruit, anything like that."

"I’m sorry, sir, we don’t. You’d have to go to a restaurant for that."

’And that’s why you’re just a bartender.’

Used to being the boss, Brandon Jacobs snapped his fingers at the bartender. "Get your manager."

The manager was quickly summoned. Brandon Jacobs repeated his question, and the manager, proving his title, had a solution.

"If you need something picked up, I can send someone out immediately. So, what exactly would you like to eat, sir?"

Brandon Jacobs glanced at Elsa’s slender waist, which was free of a single ounce of fat.

"Dumplings. And make it quick. This beautiful lady is dying for a drink."

Seeing them chatter away without any sign of her drink arriving, Elsa shot Brandon Jacobs an annoyed look.

"What on earth did you tell them?"

Brandon Jacobs didn’t answer directly. "You’re a doctor. You should know better than anyone that drinking on an empty stomach is bad for you."

"So?"

"The service here is very personalized. When they find out you haven’t eaten a proper meal, they require you to have a bowl of dumplings before you can drink."

Elsa looked as if she had just heard the most ridiculous joke in the world.

"You’re definitely messing with me."

"Am I? You’ll find out in a bit. Have some juice in the meantime."

Elsa grew impatient again. Hating to be bossed around, she turned to leave. Brandon Jacobs remained seated and called out casually after her.

"You don’t have any money; you won’t get far. If you really want that drink, just be good and wait a little longer."

With no other choice, Elsa sat back down with a frosty expression, leaving two empty seats between them.

She slowly finished her juice, and by then, the dumplings had arrived.

Brandon Jacobs placed the take-out box in front of her, separated a pair of disposable chopsticks for her, and then returned to his own seat with his portion.

Although she disliked this supposed rule about eating before drinking, Brandon Jacobs wasn’t bothering her, so Elsa began to eat in a slow, deliberate manner.

There was something strangely appealing about dumplings. Though it was her first time trying them, the taste wasn’t bad at all.

Elsa ate several in a row. As she was slowly chewing, a muscular man with rather westernized features and an impressive build sat down next to her.

He opened his mouth and spoke in perfect English.

"Hey, are you here alone? Coming to a bar to eat... that’s interesting."

Elsa slowly lifted her eyelids, giving him a quick once-over.

’So Brandon Jacobs was lying. What kind of bar has a rule that you have to eat a meal before drinking? This man’s single sentence exposed that clumsy lie.’

She didn’t like Brandon Jacobs caring for her like this. She didn’t like *anyone* caring for her.

Growing up, Elsa had never known a father’s love, nor had she ever truly understood a mother’s. She was raised by a series of nannies with whom she maintained distant, polite relationships. As a result, she despised excessive intimacy.

She had no issue interacting with the opposite sex, but the moment a man showed any sign of possessiveness or deep concern, she would become repulsed.

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