Divorce and Freedom No More Homemaker for Him novel Chapter 270

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The next second, James took matters into his own hands and slid the bowl untouched by Halle in front of Draven. “Here you go. Ayla ladled it anyway, so it’s the same thing.”

Draven rolled his eyes. How is this the same? That bowl was supposed to be mine, but he took it.

Halle was too stunned to speak. Hey, not fair. Ayla served that for me!

James then picked up the bowl he hadn’t used yet, ladled out a bowl, and handed it to Halle. “This one’s yours.”

That move left both Halle and Ayla speechless.

Ayla felt like she was watching a skit. She’d also discovered that James was a professional troublemaker.

It’s just stew. Why make it so complicated?

Halle was a pro in social settings. Reading the room came naturally to her.

James was annoyed that Ayla had scooped a bowl of stew for Halle. He wanted to be the one to do it himself. That was why he went through all this nonsense.

Halle wasn’t that self–absorbed. She wasn’t so confident as to assume James had feelings for her. But what he was doing was obvious. Even with all the detours, the intention was clear.

That night, they’d ended up sleeping together by accident. Halle had said that the next time they met, they should pretend it never happened. James had actually kept his word. He never brought it up again.

Then, in the blink of an eye, he became her neighbor.

And now he was being this petty over a bowl of stew.

Halle was pretty sure she could interpret his behavior as jealousy.

James showing interest in her wasn’t something she couldn’t sense.

But she couldn’t but help wonder if James was sick or something.

It was just one night.

First of all, James was handsome. Second, aside from how he acted around her, his personality was actually likable. Women fell for that kind of thing easily. He’d seen all kinds of women before. So why was he suddenly fixated on her?

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Chapter 2701 Mean It

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Halle had money and a career. She made more than enough to last a lifetime. Marrying into wealth didn’t matter to her. With her current net worth, she was practically upper class already. She could pick men freely, order male models at will, and only choose ones who pleased her, who treated her like a queen. There were plenty of those.

So to her, James was just noise.

Not to mention, he could piss her off just by talking. And their family backgrounds didn’t match. No matter how capable the weaker side was, people would look down on them.

Halle didn’t care about that, but she couldn’t stand swallowing that kind of humiliation. That was why, from the very beginning, she’d never considered James as a serious option.

Sleeping with him was already trouble enough.

Besides, Halle still had a fiancé who had taken another woman abroad on the very day of their engagement. She held grudges. To her, the engagement was just a formality. It didn’t bind her at all.

She hadn’t broken it off simply to make that jerk suffer every day, at least until she felt better.

With an engagement in place and given her personality, she usually only chose relationships she could control. She had to be the dominant one.

James looked warm and outgoing, but the more you talked to him, the more you could tell he was strong–willed and proud at his core. He wasn’t someone she could control.

If she played with his feelings and tried to walk away cleanly, it probably wouldn’t be easy. He was already clingy enough as it was.

She liked being in control of everything, including relationships.

No matter how good someone was, if they didn’t meet her standards, she wouldn’t consider them at all.

Halle just hoped James wouldn’t cross the line. She could pretend she didn’t see anything.

Ayla didn’t know what had happened between them and didn’t think too much about it. When she’d first met James, he’d also been mouthy and loved stirring things up.

Before she got to know him, James really was annoying. But after that, Ayla realized she actually needed friends who were warm and proactive like him.

Because they could heal her.

Just spending this short time together had pushed all the trouble Troy caused completely out of

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Chapter 270 I Mean It

her mind. She was immersed in the happiness of the moment.

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Ayla stepped in to smooth things over. “Halle, just eat.” Honestly, watching the two of them bicker made Ayla happy too, even though she felt a little bad for Halle.

James said, “Yeah. It’s just a bowl of stew. Don’t make a big deal out of it.” He handed the bowl to Halle. “Don’t worry. I washed my hands before eating.”

Halle was annoyed, but she still took it. Of course, it was for Ayla’s sake.

Ayla felt satisfied. James really had helped today, so she said to him, “Sometimes, you’re kinda noisy, but other times, you’re like the sun–warm, passionate, and always full of energy.”

Even a stagnant life could ripple because of him.

That sudden compliment hit James right in the heart. “Oh, my god, Ayla. You really get me.“”

Ayla smiled. “I mean it.”

“I’m so touched,” James said. Ayla didn’t talk much, but when she did, she was sincere. He had noticed that from the start.

She was the kind of person who took everything seriously. If she made a promise, she kept it. If she decided someone was a friend, she gave them her whole heart. There weren’t many people like that. They got hurt easily. But the friends who stayed were always sincere ones.

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