Love's Cunning Ruse novel Chapter 302

When Ivan awoke, he found himself in a somewhat unfamiliar environment. He rolled over and saw Julie, , sleeping peacefully beside him. Rubbing his eyes with a hint of excitement, he turned his head to see his dad lying on his other side, made a face, and then turned back to Julie, grinning to reveal two adorable little canines.

Waking up next to mom should be a privilege of babyhood, and sadly, Ivan couldn't quite remember having that when he was a baby.

From the moment he opened his eyes, his little brain was working overtime.

Julie, stirred awake by the rustling beside her, opened her eyes to see the little boy grinning at her. Her heart melted instantly.

“Mom, I love you,” Ivan seized the opportunity to confess his sweet affection.

Julie, beaming with joy, cupped his cheek and kissed his forehead. “Morning, my Ivan.” As soon as she finished speaking, a slightly discordant voice chimed in, “I love you too.”

Kieran, propping himself up on one arm, leaned in close to Julie, his face begging for a kiss.

Julie poked his forehead with a finger, “Good morning, my Childie.”

“Where’s my kiss?” Kieran shot a look at his wife, clearly feeling the sting of unequal treatment.

Ivan turned and planted a kiss on Kieran’s cheek, “Good morning, my Kerry.”

Kieran threw back the covers, scooped up Ivan, clad in his bear pajamas, and headed toward the next room. “Do you know how you ended up here last night?”

“I was abducted by aliens?” Ivan, perched on Kerry's shoulder, feigned shock.

“Hmm, more like a mental abduction,” Kieran teased, poking at his son’s head as he carried him.

Ivan, in a half-daze, suddenly remembered and exclaimed, “Oh! Right, it rained last night! My room was leaking, and my pillow got all wet! You don’t believe me? Go look! You only care about work and not your only son!!”

Kieran was speechless.

Julie, wrapped in her robe, followed the father and son duo out, surprised. “It really leaked? What kind of shoddy construction is this?”

They walked towards the room as Ivan pointed to his pillow, “See, I told you it leaked!”

Upon inspection, Julie noticed the pillow did have a damp spot, but upon closer examination…

“Ivan, are you trying to fool me with your drool?” Kieran set the boy down and nudged him, “Go wash up and brush your teeth, Noah will take you to school soon.”

Drool?

“I don’t drool in my dreams!” Ivan huffed and strutted off to the bathroom.

Julie, half-amused, half-exasperated, tapped Kieran’s chest, “You're so blunt, aren’t you afraid of hurting my beloved son’s feelings?”

“And what about me, don’t you love me?”

Julie tiptoed and cupped his face, “Of course I do!”

“No, I’m a big strong man,” he declared, scooping her into his arms and heading back to the bedroom.

After freshening up, Julie and Kieran set off for the Zenith Hotel.

But they were late. The guest who had checked in the previous morning had already checked out. The reservation had been made under Jesse's name.

Julie pulled out her phone and dialed the number they had contacted the day before, only to find it had been disconnected.

Kieran had no choice but to reach out to Zenith Group.

No matter how he tried, even through the company, Kieran couldn’t find any trace of Zenith.

Zenith and Lucian seemed to have appeared out of thin air and vanished just as quickly...

Walking hand in hand, Julie fretted, “Had I known, I would have come last night…”