The poor Billionaire novel (Ethan) novel Chapter 75
After he finished speaking, Egan walked forward. The elderly man in a suit walked by his side.
He asked, "Egan, don't we need to arrange a few members of the Dragon Soul to protect Mr. Warren? Such an incident might repeat itself in the future. I don't think he would be this lucky next time."
"No, we don't need to do that. His father is against it. Despite the love he has for his son, he doesn't want to overpamper him like a delicate flower in the greenhouse. Building a wall around him to prevent any harm from getting to him isn't the best thing to do. How would he grow up to be a strong man if the members of the Dragon Soul serve as bodyguards?"
Egan revealed his boss's stance to the elderly man beside him.
"Well, Mr. Randall has a point there. He might even have other plans. Let's just go back to Antawood and await his orders for the time being."
"Okay," Egan replied. Both of them continued to walk forward side by side.
Now that Egan had left, Horace turned to look at Laila and asked shyly, "Laila, do you remember what you just said? Does your offer still stand? Can I continue to lie on your lap?"
A serious expression appeared on Laila's face after she heard his questions. "Do you like me, Horace?" she asked with squinted eyes.
"Yes! In fact, I love you very much!" Horace blurted out.
He then asked nervously, "What about you?"
Before Laila could answer him, Macie protested, "No, I object! How can you two ignore me? Why are you being so affectionate in my presence? Am I a joke to you? Stop this now!"
Despite her interruption, they didn't pay any attention to her. Laila looked at him and said in a low voice, "Yes, I love you."
With a hint of sadness on her face, she queried, "Horace, does your family have any strict rules? Most rich people like to marry somebody from families on the same level. You are way out of my league. The gap between my family and yours can't be bridged at all. But I can't bear to be apart from you. I don't want to create problems for you, but I'm scared to lose you. How about we have a secret relationship?"
There was a conflict of emotions in Horace's heart after he heard her suggestion. 'We should have a secret relationship? This means she wants to keep our relationship under wraps... Did she mean that or is she just pulling my legs? Why did she suggest such a thing?' The more Horace thought about it, the more horrible he felt. He loved Laila too much to want to hide their relationship. He shook his head and said to her, "Laila, don't talk like that. I don't really know much about my family, but I do know that there are only a few families in the world that are on the same level as mine. For this reason, we never discriminate against people from lesser backgrounds. What matters is love and moral uprightness. Finding love and building long-lasting marriages is easier when there aren't many unhealthy constraints in place. So, I think we should be good."
Half of what Horace said was a lie. He didn't have the slightest idea about his family's doctrines and how his other family members had chosen their spouses. He was only sure that he would never get married to someone because of selfish interests and social status. He was a firm believer in love. If he couldn't be with his beloved, he would give up his identity.
"Really?" Boundless joy replaced the sadness on Laila's face after Horace's assuring words.
"Wow! That's great!" She became happier when he nodded to affirm his statement.
The next second, she embraced him. "Thank you for liking me. It gladdens my heart to know that you have feelings for me," she whispered passionately with her head on his shoulder.
"Laila, you don't have to thank me. You are so important to me. I couldn't just stand by and watch you get harmed. I'm a man, how could I do that?" He threw his head back and chuckled.
"Shush. That's not what I am talking about. Look!"
Laila broke the embrace and stretched out the phone he gave her earlier.
"Here you go!"
Horace's eyes opened wide when he saw that his phone was still unlocked. "Laila, how did you know how this phone works?"
"Ta-da! Mr. Hudson gave me one when you were still in a coma! Macie also got one!"
Laila took out her phone with the other hand and shook it in front of him.
Egan didn't know about the relationship between Laila, Macie, and Horace. He just guessed that they were his friends, so he gave two of them the special cellphones that were produced by the Warren family.
Laila's phone wasn't the same as Horace's, but he recognized his family's emblem on it. "Mr. Hudson is so smart and considerate," he said with a smile.
With a solemn voice, he continued, "Laila, you must keep this phone with you at all times. Don't ever lose it, okay?"
"Okay!" Laila nodded obediently.
When Egan was handing the phones to her and Macie, he had told them that they could trigger an automatic protection device whenever they were in danger.
This was the same for Horace's phone. As Laila remembered how he gave her his phone when they were in danger, she felt warm in her heart. She was moved because he practically laid down his life for her.
No man had ever done that for her before. How then could she not love him more? This was why she became so brave. Before now, there was no way she could have been so romantic and sweet in front of many onlookers.
Sparks of jealousy flickered in Macie's heart as she watched how Laila and Horace behaved so affectionately towards each other. She didn't even know why she was jealous. 'Why am I feeling this way? Is it because Laila managed to win the heart of a big shot? Or is it because of the inestimable love Horace has for her?' Despite racking her brain, she couldn't pinpoint what exactly caused her to be envious.
The two budding lovebirds had been staring at each other affectionately for a long time. The silence was broken by Horace after a while. "Laila, how long was I unconscious? What time is it now?"
Laila checked the time on her phone and replied, "The time is currently thirteen minutes to five o'clock. That means you were unconscious for about three hours. Why do you ask? Are you hungry?"
"No. I was just afraid that I had missed my mother's operation while I was in a coma. Thank God I was only unconscious for three hours."
Horace breathed a sigh of relief. Cara had assured him that the operation was going to be successful because the surgeons were experts, but he was still worried about his mother's safety. He wanted to be present at the hospital. After all, it wasn't a minor operation.
"What? Your mother is going to have an operation tomorrow? Horace, you haven't seen her for close to twelve hours. She must be worried sick about you. Let me accompany you to see her now." Laila was so surprised that she decided to pay his mother a visit.
"Okay, it's almost dinner time. Let's buy something to eat before going to the hospital. The Kobe steak I ordered was ruined during the fight. Let's go back to the Country Music Restaurant and order takeout again. It's so delicious. I want my mother to taste it!"
Milo's men had destroyed the Kobe steak in the takeout bag when they were raining blows on him. He had to return to the Country Music Restaurant to order another one now.
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