“What are you doing?” Dorothy asked.
How could he make such an intimate move in front of their daughter? Dorothy subconsciously dodged to avoid his touch and turned to stick out her tongue at him.
Her sudden playfulness made Credence squint his eyes. His heart tickled as if it had been grazed by a soft feather.
He realized that the more Dorothy opened up to him, the more she would act like a playful little girl.
He remembered Jonathan would occasionally say, ‘The ultimate way of pampering a woman is to dote on her like she is your daughter.’
Seeing Dorothy become more mischievous towards him meant that she was beginning to feel more at ease having him around.
It was great. This proved that his plan to win her over was working.
A smart man would pamper his woman beyond limits, turning her so bratty that no other man could stand her.
Belle did not notice the flirty gestures between the two adults. She stared at the gift box in Credence’s hand with wide eyes, got up from the bed, threw herself into his strong arms, and shouted in excitement, “Daddy, you’re the best. You are the most handsome man in the world. I knew you would bring me my favorite gift. Did you buy me my favorite comic?”
Favorite comic?
What comic?!
Credence had no idea what she was talking about. He let out a few coughs and shot panic glances at Dorothy, who was trying to hold her laughter in, asking her to help him out. “Why didn’t you tell me about this when I went and bought the gift?” His eyes told her everything.
With her daughter as a protective measure, Dorothy was not afraid of fighting back. She replied to him with a meaningful glance, “I already told you what she wanted, but you didn’t listen. That’s on you!”
With that, Credence was completely mesmerized by Dorothy’s charm. Not only did his heart get affected, so did somewhere else. He warned her with darkened eyes, “Don’t look at me like that, I will get hard!”
Following that, Dorothy felt him touch her thighs. His touch felt hot, making her want to jump out of her own skin as her ears reddened. She then mumbled softly but angrily, “Can you not touch me when we talk?”
“I like touching you when we talk.” The man murmured with a serious tone.
Then, he opened the gift box and handed it to Belle. He smiled and took on the role of a loving father as he announced to Belle, “A complete set of Barbie dolls, a yellow duck plushie, and some other dolls. Have a look, do you like them?”
Belle poked the Barbie doll and the pink cat plushie with a saddened expression, “Daddy, shouldn’t you ask me what I like before buying me gifts? Germaine said I’m not weak like Mommy. I’m a tough girl and I have to protect her when I grow up. I’d be happier if you gave me a knife or a gun.”
Oh gosh, it turned out that her Daddy was a huge softie.
Belle pinched the duck’s flat beak sadly. However, this was his first time buying her gifts, so she forced a smile and accepted the ugly gifts, “Thank you, Daddy. I don’t hate them completely.”
Her tone was insincere no matter how he listened.
This was Credence’s first time giving his daughter a gift, yet he was despised for it. He felt as if his heart was brutally stung by a bee.
It did not hurt much; however, it did make him uncomfortable.
His little girl had already grown up after all. He had only bought according to the list Jonathan had given him instead of asking his daughter what she actually liked.
He wanted to give his daughter the best of everything. However, no matter how expensive the item was, it would be useless if she didn’t like it.
Credence caressed her soft golden hair as he smiled gently at her and apologized, “Belle, I’m sorry. I wasn’t thoughtful enough. I will definitely get you something you’d like next time.”
Belle was placated after having her head patted. She stretched lazily and replied, “Oh, okay, Daddy. You’ve never taken care of me ever since I was born, so it’s normal for you to not know what I like!
If you don’t know what I like, you can ask Mommy. She knows everything about me!”
His face darkened as he was once again stabbed by his innocent daughter’s words.
He would have loved to raise her as well. However, there we so many conflicts and misunderstandings back then, so he didn’t know of Belle’s existence at all.
Her words had inadvertently hurt him time and time again. She really was his daughter.
Dorothy had been trying her best to suppress her laughter, but because of his cold aura, she daren’t make fun of him. “I don’t know where Belle gets this personality from. The more familiar she is with someone, the sharper her tongue would get.” She said softly.
After that, she looked at the man’s darkened expression and could not help but laugh out loud. She did not realize the unique charm she exuded was alluring to Credence.
He quietly enjoyed the scene for a while, then he noticed that his leg was beginning to ache after standing for such a long time. So, he walked lazily to the sofa behind Dorothy and sat down. He looked at his wristwatch to check the time and said softly, “Let’s go. I’m taking you somewhere.”
“What? Only the two of us? What about Belle?”
Dorothy clenched her fingers as she spoke. She had a hunch as to where he was going to bring her. A sweet feeling arose in her heart, but an indescribable bitterness followed after.
She had known him for over a decade, yet this was the first time he had been willing to celebrate her birthday with her. It made her feel that her efforts had finally begun to pay off after so many years.
But as a dutiful mother, she did not have the heart to leave Belle alone in the ICU while she celebrated her birthday.
“I’ve already arranged for Maria and Germaine to take care of Belle.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a knock could be heard from the door. Dorothy rushed over excitedly and saw Maria on the other side of the door. Both of them cried from excitement the second they met.
“Maria, it’s really you!”
“Mrs. Scott, I’m so happy that you’re back. You even brought Miss Belle. Mr. Scott is so lucky.”
Compared to six years ago, Maria’s hair had turned a little bit grey, but she was still in good spirits. She could recognize Dorothy with just a single glance. She was so happy that she began to tear up, “Mrs. Scott, when Benjamin called me a few days ago, he said that he would increase my salary by five folds to take care of you and Miss Belle. I’m so happy.”
“Oh Maria, I’m so happy to be able to see you again.”
Dorothy did not expect Credence to arrange for Benjamin to rehire Maria. She was a little surprised and shocked.
In her miserable four-year marriage with Credence, she was lucky that Maria had treated her well sincerely. It was the only reason why she hadn’t gone crazy from living that hellish life.
Now they were reunited, they held hands exchanged a lot of pleasantries. It wasn’t until Germaine came in and handed a beautifully packaged gift to Dorothy, that they reluctantly changed the topic.
Germaine winked and said, “Dory, Maria and I will take care of Belle. You go have some fun with Mr. Scott. No need to come back tonight, there’s no place for you to sleep here anyway.”
Dorothy pretended to not hear Germaine’s ambiguous and perverted implications. She took the gift box and just when she was about to open it, Germaine stopped her. She pulled her aside and whispered, “There are lots of those things in there, it comes in various sizes and flavors, there’s strawberry, carrot, even durian and barbecue. There are so many that I’ve honestly lost count.
Dory, the night is still young. You can use all of it with your man tonight.”
Dorothy felt so embarrassed that her cheeks turned extremely red. She only told her perverted friend, “Scram!”
Germaine burst into laughter after that.
After they waved goodbye to Belle and the others, Dorothy and Credence got into the back seat of the black car. After that, Jonathan, their temporary driver, drove them to a scenic spot in Talco City.