Boss, Your Wife Signed the Divorce Agreement Before the Wedding novel Chapter 385

Sebastian lightly gripped the cold water bottle, opening his mouth as if to say something else to Lily. But the little girl had already scrambled back into her chair, patiently waiting for Raelynn to finish so they could eat. Raelynn scanned the contract with practiced speed, desperate to banish this man from her apartment. "Looks standard. I'll sign." She pulled a pen from the drawer and quickly scrawled her signature on the dotted line. Sebastian watched the sharp strokes of her pen. Raelynn capped the pen. Out of sheer, robotic politeness, she offered a hollow courtesy. "Would you like to stay for dinner?" She deliberately phrased it as an open question, rather than saying the food was ready and he should eat before leaving. It was a fake invitation, offering him the perfect opening to politely decline, just so she wouldn't look entirely uncivilized. Sebastian traced the edge of the signed contract with his thumb. He looked up, his dark eyes locking onto hers. "Thank you. I will." Raelynn froze. She stared at him in utter disbelief. Sebastian was already walking toward the dining table. Raelynn clamped her jaw shut. Was he out of his mind? She had been entirely convinced he would snatch the contract and rush off to hand-deliver it to Seraphina. She never imagined he would actually accept her fake offer. But since the words had already left her mouth, Raelynn had no choice but to bite her tongue and grudgingly walk to the kitchen to fetch another bowl. In the brief window she was gone, Lily watched the tall man carefully. "Are you two friends?" Sebastian slowly dragged his gaze from Raelynn's retreating back. "You can call it that." Lily looked confused by the vague answer, but pushed forward anyway. "You don't seem very close." Prior to this, the man had claimed to know her mom, but Lily didn't buy it. Friends didn't act this cold toward each other. Not close. Sebastian didn't confirm or deny the child's blunt assessment. Instead, he turned the tables. "Why are you here?" He knew Ian was out of the country. And considering the recent public explosion regarding his own marriage to Raelynn, Leo was right—Ian should have drawn a massive line in the sand by now. Yet, here was Ian's daughter, spending the night alone with Raelynn. That required absolute, unshakable trust. Ian was essentially handing over his greatest weakness to Raelynn for safekeeping. "Because we're family. We stay together," Lily answered easily, finding the question incredibly silly. Why wouldn't she be at her mom's place? Sebastian's eyes flickered slightly at the response. Lily, feeling it was unfair for him to be the only one asking questions, immediately went on the offensive. "Aren't you supposed to be on a date with your girlfriend today? It's the weekend." Sebastian didn't correct her assumption. "What makes you think she's my girlfriend?" Lily tilted her head. "Shane told me you and his sister are going to get married. Plus, I can tell you like that lady a lot more than you like your 'friend' here." The 'friend,' of course, was Raelynn. A flicker of something unrecognizable crossed Sebastian's eyes. He didn't bother arguing with a child. Instead, he studied the impossibly pretty little girl with a newfound sense of surprise. She was sharp. She was observant. For someone so young, she had a dangerously keen mind and wasn't afraid to speak it. She was almost... intimidating. He felt a strange, inexplicable surge of fondness for her. But she was Ian Hudson's daughter. That thought alone made Sebastian's eyes narrow slightly. Raelynn hurried out of the kitchen, her eyes darting between the two of them. Seeing that no disaster had struck, the suffocating tension in her chest finally eased. At the same time, a bitter, twisted feeling settled in her stomach. This was the first time their family of three had sat at the same table in six years. Sebastian looked at Raelynn, his tone maddeningly casual. "Mr. Hudson seems very comfortable leaving his kid with you." Raelynn easily slipped her mask back on. "She adores me. Ian and I are a package deal at this point." Ever since her marital status had been leaked, the general consensus among the elite was that Ian—who had very publicly pursued her—would immediately cut ties. By acting casually about it, she was feeding into the narrative. Sebastian's gaze locked onto her face. In other words, Ian was so enamored with Raelynn that he was perfectly fine using his own daughter to tie her to him. He didn't even care that she was still technically married. Sebastian said nothing. Raelynn offered nothing else. The strange, razor-wire tension in the room was suddenly shattered by the upbeat ringtone of Lily's tablet. Sebastian glanced over. An incoming video call was flashing on the screen. The caller ID simply read: Daddy.