Chapter 930
Shirley slammed the car door shut, clearly frustrated.
A few moments later, the door opened again. Gray returned, carrying a small shopping bag in one hand and Shirley's backpack in the other.
Seeing Shirley still sitting in the car, he raised an eyebrow and tossed her backpack to her.
Shirley grabbed it angrily and reached for the car door handle, but she wasn't going anywhere.
Gray was quicker, grabbing her and shutting the door, then instructing the driver to start the car.
As the car slowly pulled away, Shirley puffed her cheeks and stayed silent.
Gray, on the other hand, seemed relaxed, leisurely opening the shopping bag.
Shirley was fuming inside, annoyed that Gray did whatever he wanted without listening to her.
What made her even angrier was how easily he could provoke her, making it impossible for her to stay calm.
Just as she was stewing, a cool, sweet scent wafted to her nose.
Shirley blinked in surprise and looked down to see a small wooden spoon holding a scoop of creamy white ice cream near her lips.
Before she could react, the ice cream was already in her mouth.
Feeling agitated and needing something cool to calm down, she instinctively opened her mouth and took the ice cream.
The rich, sweet flavor spread through her mouth, oddly soothing her anger.
Shirley glanced at Gray, who was holding a box of ice cream.
In her line of sight, he pulled the spoon from her mouth and scooped some ice cream for himself.
Gray raised an eyebrow, "Now we're sharing a spoon and eating from the same box of ice cream."
Shirley was speechless.
She thought about the few words she had said to Gray earlier.
She had just stated a fact casually.
But Gray insisted she was jealous and had gone out of his way to buy the ice cream.
With his actions, even if she wasn't jealous, he made it seem like she was.
Shirley was annoyed, but Gray scooped another spoonful of ice cream and brought it to her lips.
"Come on, open up."
Shirley turned her face away, "I don't want it, take it away!"
Her brows furrowed, showing her impatience.
Gray, provoked by her seemingly disdainful and distant expression, leaned in and blocked her mouth with his lips.
His lips, unlike the hot and dry ones from their previous kiss, were now cool and moist from the ice cream.
As he kissed her, Shirley involuntarily trembled, but Gray didn't give her a chance to resist, breaking through her defenses and deepening the kiss.
His mouth still held a large scoop of ice cream, which he forcefully transferred to her.
The cold and sweet sensation melted into water, mixing together in the intense kiss.
The alternating hot and cold feelings made Shirley tremble from head to toe.
She pushed against Gray, but he held her tightly against the seat.
The kiss transitioned from cool to hot, from intense to tender. When Gray finally released Shirley, she was breathless and dizzy.
Her cheeks were flushed as she pushed Gray away, panting lightly.
Seeing her rare moment of vulnerability, Gray's heart softened too, and he explained again.
"Look, there's nothing going on with Kaida. We barely talked privately. That photo of us eating ice cream was taken after a night shoot with the crew. There were a bunch of people around who got cropped out. I didn't share a box of ice cream with her; I just helped her with her shoelace."
Gray didn't wait for Shirley to respond and quickly explained everything.
It was as if he feared that if he spoke too late, Shirley wouldn't give him a chance to explain.
After patiently explaining, he saw Shirley's lack of reaction and thought she didn't believe him. He took out his phone and showed her two photos.
"Look, I've never been unfaithful. If I had a new love, why would I chase after you? Revenge? I don't have that much free time."
The photos he showed were similar to the one Shirley had seen of Gray and Kaida eating ice cream, but with a wider view.
Besides Gray and Kaida under the streetlight, there were indeed several other people around.
Shirley looked away from the photos and glanced at Gray.
"Even if you and Kaida have nothing going on, it has nothing to do with me."
Gray didn't say anything, just raised an eyebrow, his gaze falling on Shirley's lips, swollen from the kiss.
The meaning was clear, as if saying, 'You let me kiss you like that, and you still say it has nothing to do with you?'
Shirley showed no embarrassment. She wiped her lips and glared at Gray.
"A kiss means nothing, especially since it wasn't initiated by me. Why should I be responsible for you? Anyway, I'll say it again, I won't regret not getting back together!"
She crossed her arms and looked out the window, ignoring Gray.
Her cold and indifferent attitude made Gray want to pull her into his arms and tease her again.
But it didn't matter; he had plenty of time to wear her down.
Gray crossed his legs and looked at Shirley's seemingly indifferent profile.
"You were just softened by my kiss, but keep being stubborn."
Shirley's ears burned, and she ignored him even more.
Gray casually reported his schedule for the next month.
"I'll finish filming in about a week, then I'll come visit you on set."
"Absolutely not!"
Shirley turned and refused outright.
Gray saw her fear of any association with him and almost lost his composure.
He smirked, "Why do you care? In what capacity are you telling me this? If it's as my girlfriend, not wanting to publicize our relationship, I might listen to you."
He meant that if she admitted to being his girlfriend, he would respect her wishes and not visit her on set.
But if she didn't acknowledge being his girlfriend, she had no say in his actions.
The entertainment industry wasn't that big; any small incident could become widely known in a day or two.
Especially someone like Gray, if he really visited her on set, things would spiral out of control.
Shirley just wanted to focus on her acting career quietly.
She didn't want any messy rumors or to be labeled as Gray's girlfriend.
Although she didn't want to admit it, Gray's image and charm meant most of his fans were girlfriend fans.
Shirley was gaining some fame, but she wasn't on Gray's level.
She couldn't imagine the chaos if Gray visited her on set and it spread online.
Her head hurt, and she glared at Gray.
"Can you behave? Do you have any other tricks besides threats?"
Gray saw her getting anxious and became even more relaxed and innocent.
"How am I threatening you? I'm just visiting you on set. Why are you so nervous?"
Shirley didn't believe he was just visiting.
She took a deep breath, knowing that if she didn't make some concessions today, she wouldn't be able to get rid of Gray.
She nodded, "I promise not to block you anymore, but you can't come to my set looking for attention, okay?"
Gray wanted to visit Shirley's set to announce his claim.
But he knew Shirley had a fiery temper, and pushing her too hard might backfire.
He decided to compromise, pretending to think it over before agreeing.
"Not visiting your set is fine, but you have to agree to two conditions."
Shirley sighed in relief, "Go ahead."
"First, keep your distance from Tommy and don't clarify our relationship."
Shirley was annoyed, "Why?"
Gray sneered, "Do you have feelings for him?"
Otherwise, why would she be so opposed to not explaining their relationship?
Thinking Shirley might have feelings for Tommy or even a new love interest made Gray's eyes fill with anger.
He wanted to crush Tommy.
Shirley instinctively replied, "Of course not, I see him as a little brother."
Tommy had just turned eighteen; she wasn't that crazy.
She wasn't explaining to Gray but worried he might do something bad to Tommy.
Gray's coldness faded slightly, but Shirley added.
"Don't cause trouble for Tommy."
Gray felt uncomfortable, laughing coldly.
"You're really protective of him."
Shirley snapped, "Are you done yet?!"
Gray smirked, "Just because you don't have feelings for him doesn't mean he doesn't have feelings for you. Tommy just turned eighteen; if you only see him as a brother, why explain anything? Or are you keeping him as a backup boyfriend?"
Shirley was speechless.
If she had a backup boyfriend, Gray would be the last choice.
But Gray had a point; she didn't plan to get involved with Tommy.
Not explaining was fine.
She nodded, "What's the second condition?"
Gray's expression softened, "Not just unblocking me, but you have to respond to every Facebook message I send and return my calls when you can."
Shirley was furious again.
Who was chasing whom?
Gray's demands were outrageous.
"Impossible! I can't do that!"
She wasn't willing, and it was impractical.
She was filming and couldn't always answer his calls.
Gray didn't expect her to agree; he was just lowering the conditions to make her accept the next one.
"Okay, then just respond to my Facebook messages and return my calls when you can."
Shirley could reluctantly accept that.
She was tired of his antics and quickly nodded.
"Deal, don't forget your promise."
"Not visiting your set, I won't go."
Shirley quickly added, "Not just the set, if we meet elsewhere, pretend you don't know me, thanks."
Gray was speechless. Was he that embarrassing?
---
At the hospital, after Shirley and Gray left, Lillian couldn't help but ask Jackson.
"What does Gray mean?"
Lillian knew Gray and Shirley hadn't contacted each other since their breakup.
It was clearly over, but now Gray was back, acting persistent.
Jackson sat by the bed, Taylor already asleep. He saw Taylor's collar was tight and unbuttoned two buttons, speaking softly.
"He still has feelings for Shirley. Don't interfere too much in their relationship."
Lillian was angry, "A few feelings? My Shirley deserves someone's full attention and love, not just a few feelings. Is he that special?"
Seeing her anger, Jackson quickly agreed.
"You're right, Gray isn't good enough! He likes her but can't let go of his pride. That's not right. He should learn from me, giving his all to love and cherish his wife. He's hopeless."
Jackson pulled Lillian into his arms.
She laughed, knowing he was defending Gray while praising himself.
Lillian chuckled, "You sure know how to speak well for both of you."
She playfully slapped Jackson.
Jackson caught her hand and pressed it to his chest.
"Feel my full heart?"
Under her fingers, through his chest, Jackson's heart beat steadily.
Lillian felt a tingling sensation, amazed at his smooth talk.
If this continued, she might agree to remarry him without hesitation.
She pulled her hand back, "I didn't feel your full heart, but I felt your fever, Mr. Frane!"
Jackson's temperature was high. Lillian touched his forehead, confirming a low fever.
"I'll call the doctor."
Lillian tried to get off Jackson's lap, but he held her waist, pressing his warm forehead to hers.
"A little fever is normal with injuries. No need to worry. Lillian, should we discuss registering Taylor's birth?"
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