the two-faced Adopted Girl Who Melted CEO's Ice-Cold Heart

Chapter 1227: The Man Replied with a String of Kisses

Leah left with Hawk Howard while Griffith Squire was still at the hospital.

Aurora Coldwell had already come out of danger, and regained consciousness. The first thing she did upon waking was soak in a hot bath for two hours, nearly wrinkling her skin beyond recognition, before Griffith Squire forced her out. When she emerged, she was so unsteady she could hardly stand.

Griffith Squire saw her body was flushed red, her small face like a boiled shrimp, her long hair dripping wet. Without a word, he carried her to the bed, feeling how light she was, as if she had no weight at all, and gave her a piercing glance.

Cornelius Turner happened to be bringing easily digestible soup and porridge with some side dishes. He froze upon seeing the scene and tried to slip away after he set down the food box.

Griffith Squire took the food box, opened it one by one, first pouring Aurora a bowl of soup, feeding her while asking Cornelius, "Where’s Leah?"

"Miss went to the United States with the fourth Howard Family son. They’ve boarded the plane tonight, should have already taken off." Cornelius hurriedly explained, constantly giving Aurora meaningful looks.

The young girl had just escaped death, was still in a daze, and her only request upon waking was to bathe. During other times, she followed Griffith Squire’s every word, a command for every action, unable to notice Cornelius’s signals.

Cornelius silently lamented. Last night, for reasons unknown, the siblings quarreled, then Leah went to the United States with Hawk Howard, and the boss wore a bleak expression throughout the day.

Griffith Squire fell silent for a moment, his handsome face clouded, when suddenly his clothes were tugged by the young girl.

Aurora took a couple of sips of soup, and with a raspy voice, she said, "I won’t leave you."

As soon as she spoke, Griffith Squire and Cornelius were both struck as if by lightning, stunned.

"You can talk?" Griffith Squire looked intently at the young girl, his voice slightly hoarse, his peach blossom-shaped eyes flashing a bright light.

Aurora nodded, though she seemed unwilling to speak further. Still, Griffith Squire smiled, reached out to pat her head, suddenly feeling that these past seven days weren’t as unbearable. At least she came back safely, overcame her psychological issues, and could speak again.

"Take it slow, talk when you want, don’t speak if you don’t feel like it." Griffith Squire’s smile deepened, his frequently smiling eyes creased upward, exuding a hint of mature charm.

Aurora reached out to touch the lines at the corner of his eyes, her gaze somewhat blank. Ever since she narrowly escaped death and saw Griffith upon waking, she had relied on him immensely, finding comfort in his scent.

"Come on, have some more soup." Griffith Squire’s voice softened slightly, feeling a bit better now that Leah had left.

Cornelius, seeing this, tried to leave but then shrank back, saying, "Boss, those women and children saved the other day, there’s a little girl who refuses to leave the Military District, so they’ve sent her here. She’s the one holding Miss Aurora’s jade rabbit."

"The one who bit you?" Griffith Squire replied leisurely.

Cornelius’s face showed a forlorn smile.

"You’re the one dealing with it. She’s brought here, so naturally you’re the one to care for her. Aurora’s not in the habit of raising kids. Go on out." Griffith Squire said impatiently.

Cornelius was brusquely kicked out of the ward, his face darkened, speechless when he saw the little girl sent to the hospital. As a rugged man, how was he to care for a teenage girl? Even though she was young, they were two different species.

*

Leah arrived in Los Angeles and returned to Hawk Howard’s apartment by the next afternoon.

"Living alone in a villa feels a bit empty, so I bought a small apartment." Hawk Howard said with a smile as he opened the door and helped carry her luggage inside.

The apartment of 200 square meters wasn’t exactly small.

"Your place is so clean?" Leah noticed the apartment was decorated in American style, but similar to his Imperial City apartment, it was simple and elegant, more like a hotel.

"My mom often comes over to check and clean up a bit." Hawk Howard said, "You can stay in the guest room. If you’re tired, take a bath and rest. I’ll order some groceries, and when you wake, we’ll have dinner ready."

Hawk Howard changed the bed linens for her, then went out to order groceries.

Leah indeed felt tired, took out her things from the luggage, had a shower, and lay in bed, unable to sleep.

She got up and went to the balcony, staring at the high-rise buildings outside, sitting on the balcony railing and lighting a cigarette. Lately, whenever she found herself with free time, she wanted to smoke. Though smoking was bad for teeth, bad for health, the urge to smoke arose when she couldn’t shake off inner turmoil.

Since returning from the sea, she thought she was healed, yet it was only a brief moment before she returned to her old self.

Sometimes, the longer time passes, the emptier one feels inside.

Hawk Howard knocked and came in, saw Leah sitting on the balcony smoking, her expression dull and distant, his gaze deepened. After a moment, he smiled and asked, "Leah, what would you like for dinner?"

Leah turned to him, smiled slightly, and said, "I’m not picky."

"Then come help me out a bit."

Leah nodded, stubbed out her cigarette, then took her phone and came out to help Hawk Howard unpack the specialties he brought. This time, Hawk Howard returned with a lot of sauces and peppers from back home.

Leah unpacked the goods from the suitcase and her phone suddenly lit up.

Casimir Shaw sent a message on WeChat, "Mommy, good morning."

"Today we have parent-teacher conferences. o(╥﹏╥)o" followed by a crying face emoji.

Leah smiled softly, her tightly furrowed brow relaxed, and she replied, "Thomas, with such good grades, what’s there to fear about the conference?"

Casimir Shaw consistently ranked first, the type who could skip grades.

In their timezone, it was still dawn. Reluctantly, Casimir Shaw handed the phone to Mr. Shaw, his big, dark eyes gleaming, "Old Shaw, you must learn to act cute like me, or mommy will notice."

"Go eat." The man didn’t even lift his eyes, said indifferently, "Finish your meal, then we go to the parent-teacher conference."

The man looked at Leah’s WeChat, feeling slightly relieved. After learning last night that she went to the United States, he hadn’t slept a wink. By morning, he could barely endure, so he urged Casimir Shaw to send her a message, in exchange for attending the parent-teacher conference that morning.

This was an unprecedented first. In previous years, either the elder would attend or it’d be directly skipped.

Richard Shaw specially postponed his morning schedule for this.

"Old Shaw is very fierce." The man pondered a bit before typing those four words, then held his breath, awaiting Leah’s reaction.

Leah was momentarily stunned upon seeing the four words on WeChat. Her impression of Richard Shaw was mostly of silence. He had been cold back then, but later grew more accommodating.

Leah sent a kiss emoji back, saying nothing.

The man watched kiss emojis cascading across the screen, the corners of his lips slightly lifted. He reached out rough and slender fingertips, sending a flurry of kiss emojis back in response.