Kayden’s heart jolted!
His brows furrowed as he stared at Ivy. This woman was indeed beautiful, but he was already married. Besides, he couldn’t possibly become someone else’s father!
Ivy quickly explained, “I’m not asking you to marry me. I just promised Vivian that her dad would come back for her fifth birthday. With only a month left until then, if I can’t find her father by that time, could you pretend to be her father?”
She quickly added, “Don’t worry. I’ll pay you, and I’ll have someone coach you to present yourself like a soldier from the Battlefield. I want Vivian to believe her dad is a real soldier. That way, I can at least pretend to fulfill my promise. Otherwise, I’d be indirectly hurting a child. You know it’s tough to heal a child’s heart once it’s broken.”
Kayden smirked slightly and replied, “No need. I don’t have the time.”
Ivy’s expression dimmed instantly. After saying so much, she hadn’t expected Kayden to remain so indifferent, completely unmoved. If it were someone else, she might have been angry.
Seeing Ivy’s downcast expression, Kayden said, “Don’t worry. I’ll be there. But I won’t have time to rehearse, and I don’t need to put on the show you mentioned.”
Ivy nodded. Although it wasn’t the effect she had hoped for to satisfy Vivian’s vanity, as long as Kayden showed up, Vivian’s heart might not be hurt.
Before long, Vivian returned, chattering away about everything, as if she had to tell Kayden every little detail.
As they basked in this joyful moment, suddenly, some commotion erupted outside.
“Don’t move!” a domineering voice shouted, and soon after, a group of muscular men stormed in.
These men looked like street thugs, many with their arms exposed, deliberately showing off their tattoos. Leading the group were Kyler and his cousin Finn, both radiating an air of arrogance.
They were numerous, filling the room almost to capacity! Many tried to flee, but Finn’s shout had them sitting back down.
The moment Ivy saw Kyler, she quickly hugged Vivian.
Kyler chuckled, “Didn’t expect to see you again, beauty.”
“What do you want?” Ivy asked, clutching Vivian, her face filled with terror.
Seeing Ivy’s fright, Kayden quickly grabbed her hand, reassuringly saying, “It’s okay.”
Kayden’s words steadied Ivy’s panicked heart. The sight of Kyler reminded her of yesterday’s ordeal, which felt like a disaster she couldn’t shake off. After all, she was just an inexperienced girl, naive to the darker sides of life.
Kyler’s anger flared upon witnessing this scene. He had pulled Ivy for so long, and now, apart from seeing her hair caught on the car, he never got a chance to touch her hand. Now that loser was holding Ivy’s hand.
“Kid, are you interested in my woman? Why do you keep going after the girls I like? First it was Nadia, now Ivy? Are you trying to piss me off?”
Kayden calmly looked up at Kyler. It had been a while since he last saw Kyler, and he recalled their last encounter when Kyler had wanted him dead.
However, time had passed, and Kayden didn’t wish to dwell on it any longer. He coldly replied, “I’ll give you a chance. I don’t want to deal with you right now. While I’m still calm, you’d better take your people and leave.”
Kayden’s tone sounded genuinely defiant! In front of so many, he didn’t seem intimidated at all. Did he have some big shot behind him?
Kyler couldn’t take it anymore. His anger surged.
Ivy felt a pang of fear and nudged Kayden, squeezing his hand, trying to signal him. This wasn’t the same place as yesterday. There were hundreds here today, while yesterday had only been seven or eight. No matter how strong Kayden was, he couldn’t fight them all.
Suddenly, little Vivian piped up, “You’re all bad guys! My dad will beat you up just like he did those other bad guys yesterday!”
Kyler’s face changed dramatically at her words. He glared at Vivian, then turned his furious gaze toward Ivy, almost shouting, “Dad?”
Ivy quickly grasped Kayden’s hand and declared, “Yes, he is my daughter’s father, my husband, and the person I came here to find. You should stop your advances. We’re a family now, so leave.”
Kyler, enraged, gave a mocking thumbs-up to Ivy. “You’re impressive! I always thought you were a proud and arrogant woman. I’ve invested so much in you, only to find you’ve lowered yourself. To be with someone like this, letting your daughter call him ‘dad’? If someone like him can sleep with you, then I don’t get why I can’t.”
Ivy felt her dignity was being trampled. She looked up fiercely but was immediately cowed by Kyler’s intimidating presence, her gaze falling away.
Kyler scoffed and continued to Kayden, “You really are something. You’ve stolen my women twice, and each time with such arrogance. I don’t know how you escaped Fletcher before, but I won’t let you get away today. You dare to touch my woman? We’ll settle old scores and new ones today.”
Kayden fixed Kyler with a cold smile. “Just you?”
Kyler’s cheek twitched as he pointed to Finn beside him. “Do you know who this is? This is my cousin Finn Miller, the young master of the Miller family. You’re finished!”
Kayden took a deep breath, sizing Finn up before asking, “Are you going to take your people and leave? Or do you want them all to die here?”
Finn looked as if he’d heard wrong. He glanced around, confirming Kayden was indeed pointing at him, then raised a finger to himself, questioning, “Are you talking to me?”
Kayden took a bite of the food in front of him, retorting, “Who else would I be talking to?”
Finn laughed, turning to his lackeys. “Did you see that? This guy actually told me to leave. Did he even check who I am? In Vernon, there are fewer than ten who dare tell me to leave. Who the hell do you think you are?”
“Kill him!” Finn ordered without hesitation.
The group behind him surged forward, a wave of bodies rushing to crush Kayden.
But just at that critical moment, a loud voice boomed, “Let me see who dares to touch the young master of the Scott family!”