"Wait, is that really what you told Zachary?" Nicole asked in disbelief and could not but laugh in
amusement.
Avery nodded slowly and leaned her head to the side in confusion. "What's funny? Is there anything
wrong with what I said?"
"Are you seriously asking me that, or are you really just an idiot? The reason why he wants to marry
you is because he loves you, so I am certain that he will never agree with the terms and conditions you
proposed. By doing such, you are hurting his feelings, you know.
Now, answer me honestly. Why on earth do you hate him so much? I mean, he is nothing but very
good to you, and I don't remember a time he ever disrespected you, so tell me, did he?" Nicole always
wondered why, but in all sincerity, she only hoped that Avery, too, would be happy, and she had no
doubt that Zachary would be able to give Avery that.
That was why she was determined to help resolve whatever issue there was or were between the two
of them.
"To be honest, I actually don't understand myself either. As a matter of fact, I recognize and
acknowledge that Zachary is indeed a great man, but you see, I have always treated him as my brother
before. Now that he suddenly wants to be my husband, I feel a little weird and awkward," Avery
muttered under her breath.
Nicole almost didn't hear what Avery said but chuckled at her for it. Avery didn't make any eye contact
and shyly looked away.
"Well, I think you're just having a difficult time trying to adjust to that situation. What you need is a little
push, I guess," Nicole suggested. A grin made its way to the corners of Nicole's mouth as she took her
phone out and dialed Kerr's number. As soon as he picked up the call, Nicole said, "Kerr, I want to
leave the hospital tonight.
Why don't we and Zachary and Avery have dinner out together? Make sure you invite Zachary, and
Avery is already with me." She smiled after saying this for she knew that Kerr understood what she was
trying to say and knew that he would have the solution ready.
After he agreed to the plan, Nicole hung up the phone and gave Avery an excited smile.
Avery eyed her curiously and wondered what Nicole was up to this time. She asked her.
"You'll know it tonight," Nicole replied with a wink. Thinking about what would happen tonight made
Nicole helplessly blush. More so at the thought that she had changed a lot since she was with Kerr.
Still, she could not help but look forward to the dinner.
Hearing what his mommy had told Kerr on the phone, Jay tugged on Nicole and said, "Mommy, can I
go with you to the dinner?" He looked at Nicole with pitiful eyes. As a matter of fact, he was with Nicole
all the time.
The child had made a deal with Kerr that Jay would keep an eye on Nicole during the day, while Kerr
would be with her in the evening, which was fair for the both of them. That was why they had been
getting along quite well recently.
At first, Nicole hesitated at this predicament and thought that Jay should attend school, but Kerr knew
and convinced her that it was still not safe for him to go to school, especially with their unstable
situation at hand. That was why Kerr ended up hiring a private teacher for Jay. Nicole then agreed.
What was important to her was that her child was still getting the necessary learning and honing of
skills that he needed.
"I'm sorry, my dear, but today's dinner is for adults only. Besides, you have piano lessons tonight, so be
good, okay? I promise that I will take you out with me next time," Nicole said as she gently stroke Jay's
hair. After all, Jay was still at such a young age, and she didn't want to involve him in these things as
early as this.
Then, Nicole grabbed her phone again and sent Kerr a text message.
The thought of tonight made Nicole remember their similar situation back in the past, since Kerr and
Nicole fell in love that way. Then again, they understood now that regardless of how they met, they
were destined to fall in love and be with each other.
Understanding what his mommy had said, Jay nodded reluctantly.
As the sun finally set, Kerr looked at the time and realized that he was going to wrap up all his work for
now. He then drove directly to the hospital to pick Nicole and Avery up, and so the three of them
headed to the restaurant where Nicole had made a reservation ahead of time.
When they reached their table, Zachary still hadn't arrived. Avery then excused herself at the couple to
head to the bathroom. Realizing that it was the perfect time, Nicole nudged Kerr and asked, "Where is
the thing I asked you to prepare?"
Kerr reached from his coat pocket and took out a small transparent glass bottle, containing two small
white pills.
"Are you sure that you want to do this to Avery?" Kerr asked. He looked at the quirky Nicole with
amusement. Moreover, it was said that when a woman was pregnant, some of their behaviors would
affect the character of the fetus.
That was why Kerr wondered and was a little worried that their baby might turn out to be as quirky as
her mother.
He lifted his free hand and fondled with her long hair.
Nicole nodded in determination. "If things keep going the way they are, I'm afraid that my baby girl
won't be able to get engaged to Avery's child." Kerr sighed and opened the bottle for Nicole, while
Nicole reached for Avery's glass and drowned the contents of the pill in it.
She then waved the glass of wine to shake its contents and could not help but feel excited while doing
so. Then she placed the glass back to Avery's side of the table.
Meanwhile, Zachary was walking towards the table and saw what Nicole was doing. "Hey! What are
you doing?" He frowned as he saw Nicole pour in a pill into a glass of wine and placed the glass beside
a purse he recognized was Avery's. Although he knew that Nicole had no intentions to hurt Avery, he
was still worried about it.
Hearing Zachary's discontented and frustrated tone, Nicole could not help but look at him with
resignation. "Why? I did it for your own happiness. Besides, doesn't your relationship with Avery have
any progress at all? I'm just spicing your relationship a bit."
Sighing, Zachary sat down on his side of the table and fell silent. He hesitated for a moment before he
lowered his head and said, "Perhaps I should just call off the wedding."
After all, he did not expect that Avery would react this way and would be so reluctant to marry him. The
closer they got to the wedding day, the more he realized that he shouldn't force her to something that
she didn't want.
"Oh, Zachary..." Before Nicole could finish her sentence, Kerr stopped her by placing a hand on her
arm and giving it a gentle squeeze. Nicole then stopped talking and turned to face Kerr.
"What? What is it?" Zachary asked. He gave Kerr a curious glance.
"Well, by how I see it, it seems like you don't really care about her that much, because if you really say
that you do, you won't just drop and give up everything and move on like that," Kerr said in a blunt tone.
With disdain and disappointment evident on his face, Kerr shook his head slightly at Zachary before he
reached for his glass and took a sip of his wine.
Kerr intended to irritate Zachary on purpose.
As expected, Zachary's forehead creased into a frown and replied in a defensive tone, "I have
protected her for a long time, and I only want what she wants. Plus, how can you understand that?" He
then did not continue to talk any further, afraid that he might say something he might regret. Then
again, it was a fact that Zachary still did not want to give up despite Avery's reluctance, but he could not
help but hesitate as well.
"Well Zachary, as for me, the way I see it, if you really don't want to give up on her, then you should
keep taking the initiative to fight for her. Perhaps, all these changes between the two of you is a lot for
her to process right now, so I think she just needs a little push. Sooner or later, she will understand and
may even open her heart eagerly," Nicole interjected, not wanting both men to start a steamy
argument.
She gave Zachary a reassuring smile to cheer him up. After all, she knew that Zachary was a good
man inside and out and that he would no doubt take good care of Avery. She really hoped that Avery
would not regret pushing Zachary, who loved her very much, away.
At this moment, Kerr placed his arm on the table and leaned his head on his palm as he turned his full
attention on Nicole. He then caressed her hair and cheeks gently.
"In a relationship, if someone has decided to give up, then no matter what we do to try and help, it
won't work out anymore. It takes two to tango." As he said this, he did not take his eyes off of Nicole
even though his words were meant for Zachary.
"What did I miss?" Avery asked as she walked towards them and sat down on her seat. Doubt was
written all over her face as she only heard the last bits of the conversation.
Nicole gave her a smile and said, "We said we should have some fun tonight!" Then, she raised her
glass and gestured for Avery to pick up hers.
Thinking that Nicole wanted to clink glasses, Avery picked her glass up in front of her and clinked glass
with Nicole. When she was about to drink the wine, Zachary stopped her by holding her wrist.
Avery was puzzled at this gesture and turned to face Zachary. He just shrugged and calmly offered,
"Let me drink it for you."
After all, as much as he wanted to accept Nicole's help, he could not bear watch Avery suffer, so
without waiting for Avery's reply, he took her glass and down all the wine in it, leaving no drop left.
It happened so fast that Nicole froze as she watched. She placed her glass down without drinking from
it and felt a little bit disappointed with Zachary. She wanted him to take advantage of this opportunity,
but by being such a great man, it seemed that the situation was now a little bit out of their control.
"Right, I remembered that Nicole could not stay out late and needs to take ample time for rest, so we
are going to take our leave now," Kerr offered and got up, reaching for Nicole's handbag. He knew very
well what would happen as soon as the drug would take effect on Zachary. He would become a hungry
wolf, and that was why Kerr knew better and made sure that before then, he and Nicole would be out of
sight.
Avery watched as Kerr helped Nicole up to leave. She then looked at the untouched dishes on the
table with confusion. She didn't understand what they were trying to do or what they had planned when
she was in the bathroom, so she turned to look at Zachary for answers. However, after seeing
Zachary's current state, she frowned at him.
"Hey, are you all right? What's wrong with you? Your face is completely red," Avery asked casually with
a little bit of concern.
Without thinking much about it, Zachary reached for Avery's hand and asked her to help him up to a
room as he was feeling a bit dizzy. Avery hesitated for a moment, but seeing Zachary that way gave
her no other choice. More so that it looked like Kerr and Nicole were not going to help him. The two of
them then headed to the top floor of the hotel. They were in the restaurant of the Lin Group's hotel, so
Zachary would have no problem with directions in the hotel.
Hiding by the door, Nicole and Kerr watched both of them walk inside the elevator. With a triumph smile
on her face, she turned to Kerr and asked, "Do you think that they will make some progress tonight?"
Despite having the plan turn out differently, she was still full of expectations as she watched Avery help
Zachary out.
This sight made Nicole remember the moment Kerr had taken the pill and how he turned out to be
moments after the drug took effect. With that thought lingering in her mind, she could not help but feel
sorry for Avery as well.
"Hey, are you all right? What's wrong with you? Your face is completely red," Avery asked casually with
a little bit of concern.
Without thinking much about it, Zachary reached for Avery's hand and asked her to help him up to a
room as he was feeling a bit dizzy. Avery hesitated for a moment, but seeing Zachary that way gave
her no other choice. More so that it looked like Kerr and Nicole were not going to help him. The two of
them then headed to the top floor of the hotel. They were in the restaurant of the Lin Group's hotel, so
Zachary would have no problem with directions in the hotel.
Hiding by the door, Nicole and Kerr watched both of them walk inside the elevator. With a triumph smile
on her face, she turned to Kerr and asked, "Do you think that they will make some progress tonight?"
Despite having the plan turn out differently, she was still full of expectations as she watched Avery help
Zachary out.
This sight made Nicole remember the moment Kerr had taken the pill and how he turned out to be
moments after the drug took effect. With that thought lingering in her mind, she could not help but feel
sorry for Avery as well.
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