“But I’m not alone.” Winnie walked up to Xavier’s side and held his hand to coax him. “There’ll be someone protecting me the entire way.”
If it was in the past, Xavier would have either pulled her onto his lap or grabbed her hand without letting go.
But this time, he struggled free from her grip.
Moreover, he got to his feet. There were displeasure and annoyance written all over his face.
“If that’s the case, what did you think I came all the way here for? Just to split up with you again? Shouldn’t I just stay in Avenport and provided you moral support from there?”
His words stumped Winnie. He’s getting increasingly demanding.
Knitting her brows, she replied in a serious tone, “No one ever wants to come back to a place like this unless one has no choice. Therefore, we have to make sure everything is perfectly executed the first time. Besides, don’t you realize that splitting up will increase our efficiency?”
Xavier stared intently at her. “Not at all.”
“Oh?” Winnie cocked a brow. “In that case, what do you propose?”
“Get him to go.” Without a moment’s hesitation, Xavier’s finger pointed at Josiah.
“Huh?” Josiah was caught off guard when his name was mentioned abruptly.
It took him a moment before he regained his senses and nodded in agreement.
“I-I won’t say no, but you have to increase my pay. After all, this task is risky.”
“Deal!” Xavier sealed their agreement before turning toward Winnie. “Look, it’s resolved.”
“That’s right.” Josiah flashed a smile at the duo. “Money makes the world go round, and your husband has successfully paid me off.”
Despite the gravity of the situation, Josiah’s humor almost elicited a smile from Winnie.
Nonetheless, she rolled her eyes at him. “Only you can utter such words. I am truly amazed at what you’re capable of.”
Josiah shamelessly declared, “I guess I have no choice. Capability and responsibility come hand in hand.”
“Cut the crap. Let me brief you on Yulissa’s current situation.”
Xavier didn’t like the direction things were going when he watched how Josiah’s eloquent tongue captured his wife’s attention.
Dumbo is my wife and she can only have eyes on me.
As for Winnie, she didn’t protest any further, for she knew there was no way of convincing Xavier to split up with her.
In fact, she couldn’t help but feel secretly delighted over the arrangement.
While the two were still in the midst of their discussion, she reminded them, “You should hurry. It’s about time already.”
“Almost done.” Xavier glanced at his watch. “We should be able to reach Lightspring before dark.”
Just as Winnie responded with a nod, she received a call from Mason.
She went to the washroom to take the call as she didn’t want to disturb Xavier and Josiah’s conversation.
By the time she emerged, the two men were already done with their discussion.
Seeing her, Xavier reached out his hand.
“All right, we can go now. We’ll leave three men with Josiah, while the rest will come with us. They will rest here tonight, whereas we’ll head toward Lightspring first.”
“Are three men even enough?” Looking at Josiah, Winnie commented half-jokingly, “Given how gentle Dr. Houghton looks, he probably can barely defend himself. What if something happens to him?”
Even though she was teasing him, it wasn’t lost upon Xavier and Josiah that it was her way of showing her concern.
Amused, Josiah removed his spectacles to reveal a fearsome look in his eyes.
“Don’t judge a book by its cover. When I get serious, no one can stand in my way,” he bantered in response before putting his spectacles back.
No sooner had he done so than his seriousness returned. “Don’t worry. I’ll get a few more bodyguards to come with me, but I’m not as weak as you imagine me to be. Anyway, I hope everything goes smoothly for all of us.”
“It will,” Xavier asserted.
“Yea. Lady luck has always smiled upon me!” Josiah had barely spoken when he stepped forward to give Xavier a hug.
However, when he walked up to Winnie, he simply smiled at her.
“Remember to stay safe. Or else, Xavier will come crying to me again.”
The grinning Winnie threw him a glance before surprising him with a hug.
Despite being momentarily stunned, he quickly regained his composure.
It wasn’t until Winnie and the rest were gone that he realized how fragrant her natural scent was.
Soon, Mason arrived in a small convoy that consisted of more than ten men.
Winnie’s brows knitted slightly at the sight of the four cars in front of her.
She asked Mason, “Won’t we stick out like a sore thumb with so many cars?”
“It’s normal,” he reassured her. “Anyone who’s slightly rich will have at least a few men by their side. Why don’t you ride in my car? It’ll be safer, as we’ll be in the center of the convoy.”
Upon nodding in agreement, Winnie and Xavier joined him.
Manchernius wasn’t a particularly developed country, and its public amenities paled in comparison to Chanaea’s. It didn’t help that Mason took the narrow streets that were littered with potholes, causing the car to bounce violently.
In spite of the conditions, Winnie unexpectedly managed to fall asleep on Xavier’s shoulder.
By the time she opened her eyes, darkness had already fallen.
When she felt as if she was hanging in the air, she quickly realized that Xavier was carrying her in his arms.
Remembering the injury on his arm, she—without a moment’s hesitation—jumped off to the ground.
“You should’ve woken me,” she remarked.
He lowered his gaze to throw her a glance. “I couldn’t bring myself to do that when I saw how soundly you were sleeping.”
Winnie then gently pounded on her sore neck. “I didn’t sleep well on the plane last night. By the way, what is this place?”
While she was speaking, she scrutinized the surroundings and quickly found them to be foreign.
The wariness on her face caused Xavier to hold her hand at once.
“This is an inn in Lightspring where we’ll be staying the night. It was Mason who brought us here.”
Xavier looked in front while explaining to her.
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