Tangled Temptations

Eloise hurried to the nursery.

Darrien was sick, running a high fever of 102 degrees. His tiny face was flushed. Eloise was heartbroken. She quickly changed into a different outfit and ordered the housekeeper, "Prepare the car,. We need to go to the hospital immediately."

She was a little panicked. Harvey took her hand. "It will take at least half an hour for the chauffeur to arrive. I'll drive you."

With that, he picked up Darrien. He was tall and strong, holding the child with ease. Eloise quickly followed him.

The night was cool and crisp.

Eloise opened the rear car door and got in. Harvey carefully handed Darrien to her. Their eyes met as she looked up.

Harvey whispered, "Eloise, no matter how disappointed you are in me. Linda and Darrien are my children. I can't be indifferent to them."

Eloise's eyes welled up with tears, but she didn't say anything. She thought, at least at times like this, they couldn't argue.

The black car sped through the night. Half an hour later, they arrived at the hospital.

After an examination, it was found that Darrien had acute pneumonia. It wasn't serious, but he would need to be hospitalized for a week.

Darrien had to be put on an IV, and the ordeal made Darrien cry until his face turned red. Eloise was in agony.

Late into the night, Darrien's temperature finally dropped to 38 degrees. Eloise sat by the hospital bed, gently stroking Darrien's chubby cheek. She felt guilty. The stress of moving had not been good for Darrien's health.

Harvey stood by the window, silently watching Eloise. Previously, he had looked at her from a man's perspective, but now Eloise was a young mother, and her focus was on their child. She seemed so vulnerable.

Harvey couldn't help but walk over. He gently stroked Eloise's long hair, resting her head against his chest. Perhaps she was too tired, but Eloise didn't resist. She even closed her eyes.

However, such intimacy lasted only a few seconds, and she quickly pushed him away.

Harvey hoarsely said, "You sleep a little. I'll watch Darrien."

Eloise nodded, but how could she sleep? She went to the bathroom and soaked a hot towel, gently wiping Darrien's small body. After she was done, she went to wash the towel.noveldrama

Harvey stood behind her, asking softly, "How did we get along before?"

Eloise paused. She knew him too well. Everything he had shown tonight and the question he was asking now indicated that he wanted to return to the family. Eloise responded calmly, "What's the point in asking that..."

Harvey rested his face on her shoulder, murmuring, "Eloise, will you tell me, please?"

Eloise gave a faint smile. "You're not him."

She gently pushed him away, saying seriously, "Harvey, we're divorced. Apart from our two children, there's really no need for any other contact, and certainly no need for ambiguity. In the morning, you should leave."

Harvey was somewhat disappointed. Under the dim light, he gazed at her, softly saying, "Darrien is also my son."

He probably truly wanted to be a good father and spent the next few days at the hospital.

Darrien improved significantly and could be discharged the day after tomorrow. Eloise sat in the ward, reviewing some documents. When she looked up, Harvey was feeding Darrien some milk. After a few days of practice, he had become quite adept. Darrien's chubby little body was nestled in his arms, and Harvey's expression was tender.

Eloise watched quietly. At that moment, she seemed to see Harvey from before the memory loss, who was also so gentle with Linda. She felt a pang of melancholy, and her eyes grew moist.

Harvey suddenly looked up, catching her in her vulnerable moment.

Eloise whispered, "I'm going to get a cup of coffee." She got up, adjusting her Dior shawl. Harvey didn't try to stop her. He could tell that Eloise was reminiscing about that Harvey.

Eloise walked out of the inpatient department, exhaling a sigh of relief. The hospital's first floor had a Starbucks. Eloise ordered a cup of coffee and sat down, savoring it slowly. She didn't expect to run into familiar faces.

It was Monika and Gunner.

Gunner was rather impatient. He had only slept with this woman a few times, and now she was clinging onto him, insisting on meeting him. He toyed with his cigarette between his fingers. "What, you need money again?"

Monika slid a pregnancy test across the table, her voice barely audible. "That's not what I mean, Mr. Gunner... I'm pregnant."

Gunner scoffed. "Don't trap me. I always took precautions."

Monika lowered her gaze. "The first time, we thought we were done, but then you suddenly got in the mood, and..."

Gunner remembered. However, he knew Monika had deliberately chosen not to take the pill. She had planned to get pregnant.

He was somewhat irritated. After a while, he gruffly said, "I'll give you some money. Get it taken care of."

He was only willing to give her 20,000 dollars. Monika pursed her lips, speaking softly, "I want to keep it."

Gunner stared at her. After a long while, his lips moved, as if he was about to relent.

But at that moment, a family of three entered the coffee shop.

Veronica and Riley. They had come to visit Darrien and happened to see Eloise there, so they came over to say hello.

And, they saw Gunner too.

Veronica was rather uncomfortable. Gunner's cigarette was crushed between his fingers. He watched the woman he once loved, his longtime wife, now in a loving relationship with another man, their child old enough to be walking around. And there he was, negotiating terms with a woman selling her body.

Gunner's eyes turned red. Looking back at Monika, he was firm. "Abort it, I'll give you 50,000."

Monika still wanted to argue, but Gunner wrote a check, coldly saying, "Get lost." Monika was no fool; she didn't dare to keep the child.

On the other hand, Veronica and Riley had gone to the ward, while Eloise was still sitting there drinking her coffee.

Gunner walked over and sat across from her, his gaze intense. Everest Technologies was now his major client. Gunner never thought there would come a day when he would work closely with Eloise, and he could never have imagined how much Eloise had changed.

He made mistakes when he was young. He tossed and turned in his thoughts, realizing only Eloise could fully understand him.

"Eloise, you're probably going to laugh at me for saying this, but I really regret it. No matter how many women I've been with, none compares to Veronica's genuine affection for me."

Oh, how he wished he could turn back time, but he knew that was impossible now.

Eloise gave a nonchalant chuckle.

Gunner looked at her meaningfully. "Eloise, you've really changed a lot."

They'd known each other since their youth, and after all these years, their reunion was filled with a sense of nostalgia. Eloise still simply smiled. She agreed to inject 200 million into Gunner's company. She wore a serene expression as she spoke to him.

Gunner looked at her face, slightly dazed, and was reminded of Veronica.

As they embraced the silence, another person joined them. It was none other than Harvey.

Since Veronica and Riley was watching Darrien, he came around, probably to keep her from being melancholic on her own. Surprisingly, she and Gunner were having a pleasant conversation.

Inside Harvey, a twinge of jealousy arose. He thought Eloise was too attractive, too inviting to be out in the open. She was beautiful, and if she wanted to, she could effortlessly flirt. It was just...

Asserting his dominance subtly, Harvey asked her gently, "Why have you been sitting here for so long?"

Gunner was a jerk, but he was a man. How could he not pick up on Harvey's sour tone? He felt a sense of satisfaction as he thought of the tables turning. 'Let's see how you chase after your wife now.'

He got up, saying in an overly solicitous tone, "Well, I'll swing by Everest Technologies in a few days to sign the contract."

Eloise nodded.

As soon as Gunner left, Harvey started interrogating, "He's not trying to make a move on you, is he?"

"Are you nuts?" Eloise didn't want to entertain him and got up after adjusting her shawl.

Harvey quickly grabbed her slender wrist. "Eloise!" Eloise brushed his hand away.

As she reached the restroom door, Harvey caught her and pulled her into the ladies' room.

She didn't dare to scream, only whispering, "Harvey, have you lost your mind!"

Harvey held her tightly by her waist, leaning in to gently smell her neck. His hoarse voice was barely recognizable. "Promise me you won't see any other men."

"We're divorced."

"I still want you. I want you to be my wife. Eloise, give me a chance."

Eloise retorted, "You're crazy!"

Behind the thin door, Monika covered her mouth in disbelief. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

She refused to believe that Harvey had fallen for Eloise. She couldn't believe that Harvey, ever so noble that Monika didn't dare touch him, would stoop so low to beg for a woman's love.