Chapter 16: Soften Him

Back at the office, Emily found Stuart sitting on the sofa.

She frowned and asked, "Where's Raymond?"

"Ms. Lowe, Mr. Thomas had some urgent matters to attend to. He specifically instructed me to take you home."

Stuart's voice was polite and gentle, yet it pierced Emily's heart like a sharp blade.

A wave of indescribable loss surged in Emily's heart.

Raymond had never deprived her materially, but they always kept their distance. He had never said he loved her, let alone mentioned marrying her.

This distant way of interacting made it hard for her to distinguish whether they were lovers or friends.

Emily gave a bitter smile, packed her bag, and left the CEO's office without looking back.

It turned out that to get out of prison, Hugh begged Melinda to write a letter of understanding.

Hearing that Paula went to trouble Melinda, he yelled at Paula over the phone, "If you dare ruin my future, I'll sell Eternal Elegance Jewelry, and none of the money will go to you!"

Paula, fearing she would end up destitute and homeless, had no choice but to agree to personally apologize to Melinda.

Melinda only found out about this later.

On a weekend morning, Melinda was lying in bed, enjoying a rare moment of leisure.

She thought she didn't have to work today, but unexpectedly, Delilah's call came early in the morning.

"Melinda, why aren't you here for overtime?" Delilah's tone was somewhat urgent. "Overtime?" Melinda sat up abruptly, rubbing her forehead.

"Did you forget? There's a batch of antiviral drugs waiting to be tested. So, we need to work overtime for the next few weeks."

Delilah explained, "Hurry up and come over!"

Melinda paused and cautiously asked, "Um, can I bring my son Sam to the office?"

"Alright!" Delilah agreed, understanding the difficulties of a single mother.

Melinda hung up the phone and immediately woke up the still-sleeping Sam, "Sam, get up, come with mommy to work overtime."

Sam squinted his eyes and reluctantly nodded.

By the time she arrived at the office, it was already 9:50.

Kathy walked into Melinda's office with a cup of coffee and saw Sam sitting on the sofa.

Her eyes widened in surprise, "Oh my God! He's so cute!" Curly eyelashes, rosy lips, and an adorable little face.

At that moment, Melinda's phone on the desk suddenly rang. She glanced at the caller ID; it was Delilah. "Melinda, come to my office."

"Kathy, I need to go to Ms. Lewis's office. Please watch Sam for me," Melinda said after hanging up the phone.

"Got it, Melinda, no problem." Kathy made an OK gesture.

Meanwhile, Raymond drove to the lab, his expression stern, just arriving at the office area entrance.

A little boy hurriedly ran over.

"Excuse me, where's the restroom?" Sam looked up at Raymond and asked, "I need to

pee."

"I can't hold it any longer, please take me to the restroom!"

Sam clutched his pants tightly, his face turning red, urgently shouting.

Raymond was stunned by Sam's sudden question.

He looked at Sam, who was only as tall as his thigh, and was amazed by his delicate features.

He's so exquisite! Raymond couldn't help but marvel.

Raymond regained his composure and responded in a deep, powerful voice, "Alright, follow me." He took long strides towards the elevator.

He bent down, picked up Sam, and quickly walked towards the restroom.

After using the restroom, Sam sighed in relief and looked at Raymond with grateful eyes, "Thank you."

Raymond slightly curled his lips into a faint smile and curiously asked, "What's your name? Why are you here?"

"My name is Sam. I'm here with my mommy for work." Sam answered crisply, his voice filled with pride.

Raymond raised an eyebrow, a ripple of curiosity rising in his heart, "Is your mommy named Melinda?" he asked tentatively.

"You know my mommy?" Sam's eyes widened in surprise as he looked at Raymond. Raymond didn't answer, just quietly looked at him, but his heart was already in turmoil. He suddenly realized that Sam's eyebrows, nose, lips, and even the curve of his chin bore a striking resemblance to his own.

"You look a lot like me!" Sam suddenly blurted out, breaking the silence.

Raymond's heart skipped a beat. He carefully examined Sam, his shock indescribable.

Is this really just a coincidence? Or is fate playing a trick on him?

"Are you single? Do you have a girlfriend?" Sam asked curiously, his big eyes sparkling with curiosity.

Raymond looked at him, feeling a warm sensation in his heart. He answered truthfully, "Yes, I'm single, no girlfriend."

"Then would you consider my mommy?" Sam eagerly promoted, "She's young, beautiful, has a great figure, is gentle and caring, a fantastic cook, and she's single too!"

Enjoying the book? Don't forget to visit novi L5s.com for the full experience. You won't

find the next chapter anywhere else. Happy reading!

Raymond's eyes flashed with surprise. Sam was truly amusing.

Moreover, for some reason, he felt a vague sense of familiarity with Melinda. This feeling made him uneasy and confused. He hoped Stuart could quickly uncover the truth and solve this mystery for him.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, his lips curling into a playful smile, "Well, you'll have to ask Melinda if she's willing."

Sam blinked and nodded seriously, "Okay!" With that, he ran towards the office, looking like a little adult.

Raymond watched his receding figure, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. He suddenly realized that Sam was not only interesting but also inexplicably made him feel close.

When Melinda finished her work, she found Sam missing. After asking Kathy, she learned that Sam had somehow gotten acquainted with Raymond.

He had gone to the office next to the director's, where Raymond was temporarily working.

Melinda almost ran to Raymond's office door, impatiently knocking and even pushing the door open without waiting for a response.

Her eyes quickly scanned the room, finally settling on Sam sitting on the sofa. Seeing Sam safe and sound, Melinda breathed a sigh of relief, the weight in her heart finally lifted.

However, what followed was a surge of indescribable anger.

She glared at Sam, her voice trembling slightly, "Sam! Why are you running around?"

Sam was frightened by Melinda's stern tone. He quickly jumped off the sofa, ran to Melinda, and hugged her leg. His little face was full of apology, "Mommy, I'm sorry, I was wrong."

Seeing Sam admit his mistake, Melinda's anger subsided a bit.

She squatted down, tightly hugging Sam, and sighed softly, "Don't run around anymore, okay? Mommy will worry."

"Go ahead and work, I'll take care of him."

Behind her, a deep voice like a breeze through the woods made Melinda pause. She turned to see Raymond sitting steadily in the opposite office chair.

Sam was her weakness, her everything.

"No need to trouble you, thank you for your kindness, Mr. Thomas." Melinda's voice

was icy. She reached out to take Sam's hand.

However, at that moment, Sam unexpectedly let go of her hand. He blinked and cautiously asked, "Mommy, I think he's nice. Can I stay a little longer?" Sam pouted, his voice full of a pleading tone.

Melinda was momentarily speechless. Whenever Sam showed this look, her heart would melt.

She was about to refuse when she saw Raymond extend his long arm and gently pull Sam into his embrace. This scene made her heart beat faster, her thoughts drifting back to five years ago. If it weren't for that accident, she might have had a happy family, a loving husband, and a child doted on by his father like now.

But, life is unpredictable.

She sighed softly, a soft spot in her heart touched.

She paused and said softly, "Alright, but you have to be good."

Melinda turned and left, leaving Sam happily sitting on the sofa. He took out a colorful

Rubik's cube from his pocket and skillfully turned it.

Enjoying the book? Don't forget to visit novi L5s.com for the full experience. You won't

find the next chapter anywhere else. Happy reading!

Raymond sat quietly opposite, his gaze occasionally falling on Sam.

In less than ten minutes, Sam had skillfully solved the Rubik's cube.

He looked up, proudly showing Raymond, "Look, am I amazing?"

Raymond took the Rubik's cube, scrambled it, and then, with lightning-fast moves,

restored it in less than a minute.

Sam's eyes widened in admiration, "Wow! Raymond, you're awesome!"

At noon, Melinda finished her work and prepared to take Sam to the cafeteria for

lunch.

At that moment, her phone rang. Seeing Raymond's name, she answered, and his magnetic voice came through, "Melinda, I'm taking Sam to eat. You should join us." Melinda was slightly stunned, a surge of inexplicable anger rising in her heart.

Raymond had taken Sam out without her permission.

She grabbed her phone and bag, hurriedly leaving the office. Following the address Raymond provided, Melinda found the restaurant.

From a distance, she saw Raymond and Sam sitting by the window. Sam was happily eating spaghetti, his mouth covered in tomato sauce, chatting excitedly.

She took a deep breath, walked over, and sat down gracefully, trying to keep her voice calm, "Mr. Thomas, let me treat this meal as a thank you for taking care of Sam."

Raymond looked up, his voice cold, "No need, it's just a working meal."

A working meal?

Melinda was momentarily taken aback.

Raymond, this high-and-mighty boss, really was different. Eating at a high-end restaurant was just a working meal to him, spoken so casually.

Raymond looked at Melinda, feeling a sense of disorientation. This scene, he had longed for countless times a family, warm and harmonious. But those women who threw themselves at him all had ulterior motives, all wanting to climb the Thomas Group, to get what they wanted.

He looked away, his voice cold, "I have things to do after eating."

With that, he continued eating, while Melinda watched him, feeling conflicted.

At 5 PM, Melinda finally finished her work and hurriedly took Sam home. She didn't want to bring Sam to the lab, where there were too many people and too much gossip, especially after Raymond was seen helping her with Sam, rumors spread like wildfire. She reluctantly contacted a temporary nanny to help look after Sam.

On Monday, Melinda sent Sam to kindergarten as usual, but Raymond seemed to have gotten used to working at the lab.

Just as Melinda picked up some documents and was about to leave the office, she

turned a corner and suddenly saw a figure.

She reacted quickly, stopping just in time to avoid bumping into the person.

Raymond's deep eyes were also fixed on her at that moment.