Chapter 28 A Moment Etched in Memory

Yvonne found her car, but before she could unlock it, Elijah caught up with her.

"Miss Brooks, are you angry?"

Listening to Elijah's lack of apology, Yvonne smiled instead of getting angry. "I won't bother with an immature man."

Elijah's face grew darker. "Joseph is different from other children. Sudden asthma attacks could take his life."

"Mr. Harper, please rest assured, it won't happen again." Yvonne still had some pride left. She had sworn never to come back to Bird Hills.

Elijah sensed her determination and softened his tone. "Once Joseph recovers completely, he can go out."

"Joseph is your son, it's none of my concern how you arrange things." Yvonne reached for the door handle, but Elijah's arm blocked her.

"Leave after dinner, alright?" Elijah said.

"Sorry, I have plans tonight." Yvonne lied, with a faint smile playing on her lips.

Elijah raised an eyebrow, his gaze piercing. "Ryan?"

"It's personal, not convenient to talk about." Yvonne deliberately dragged her tone, a flirtatious look on her face. "Besides, I've been pursued by quite a few men recently."

Suddenly, Elijah pressed her against the car window and spoke harshly in her ear, "Am I not satisfying you enough?"

With his warm breath and possessive voice, Yvonne was instantly stirred up.

She held onto Elijah's waist, whispering with a low voice, "You're shameless in bed, and I love it."

Elijah's breathing became heavy, and his normally restrained demeanor crumbled.

He leaned down to kiss the woman in his arms, but she extended her hand to block his lips.

The kiss missed, but he didn't rush. One of his hands slipped under her hoodie and pinched her slender waist.

"Elijah, you jerk-" Yvonne wanted to scold him in pain, but he sealed her lips.

Yvonne's brain shut down completely.

It was not yet completely dark outside, and there were pedestrians constantly passing by in the neighborhood. Elijah truly didn't care about his dignity anymore!

A single kiss almost snapped Yvonne's waist.

When Elijah let her go, there was still a hint of desire in his pitch-black eyes. "No matter who asks you out today, you are not allowed to go. After dinner, come back with me to Rhode Hills," Elijah said.

Yvonne lazily licked her swollen lips and squinted her eyes. "Why should I listen to whatever you say? Who are you to me?"

"I want to sleep with you. Isn't that enough?" Elijah pulled her closer again, desire burning in his intense gaze. "As long as I have this thought, I won't allow you to get tangled up with other men."

The night breeze brushed against Yvonne's waist-length hair, occasionally grazing Elijah's cheek.

Their eyes locked, and Yvonne burst into laughter, mocking in her tone.

"Elijah, who gave you the confidence?" Yvonne used her finger to tap Elijah's forehead. "If you want to sleep with me, say something nice. I don't plan on playing along with your commanding attitude!"

"Yvonne." Elijah clasped her hands behind her back and growled her name. "You initiated this. I'm not tired of it yet, and you don't have the right to refuse."

Yvonne playfully scrutinized Elijah several times, intentionally provoking him. "Are you addicted to sleeping with me? Have you fallen in love with me?"

Elijah's face turned pale, and he quickly distanced himself from her.

"I hit the bull's eye, didn't I?" Yvonne giggled and tried to pinch his face, but he swatted her hand away.

"You jerk!" Yvonne winced in pain, forcefully closing the car door after getting in.

She stepped on the gas and left Bird Hills.

Elijah's mind was in disarray, and he searched his pockets but couldn't find a cigarette.

At that moment, his phone rang. It was Philippe. "Are you coming? CC, we're having a drinking session."

"I'm not going," Elijah blurted out.

"I've already found out what you asked me to investigate." Philippe spoke seriously. "Anthony is Yvonne's Spanish professor from college. They used to date. Three years ago, when the White Group was on the verge of bankruptcy, Anthony got engaged to Abigail, and the Davis family helped the White Group out financially."

Elijah made a sound of acknowledgment.

"Some drama unfolded back then. Anthony preferred to sever ties with his family rather than leave Yvonne. Anthony's mother and Abigail caused a scene, accusing Yvonne of seducing the teacher and forcing Seattle University to expel her. In order to be with the woman he loved, Anthony had to resign and leave Seattle University, allowing Yvonne to continue her studies."

"The pain of a love torn apart must be deeply engraved." Elijah bit his lip.

"Why do I sense some jealousy in your voice?" Philippe chuckled. "Haven't we all had our pasts? Didn't you and Emily love each other to the point of madness?"

Elijah fell silent.

The phone rang again, and it was Michael.

Elijah had almost forgotten that he had made plans to have lunch with Michael in the afternoon.

It was that woman, Yvonne, who made him angry.

Yvonne's anger came quickly and dissipated just as quickly. She was already in a good mood before arriving at the Sunshine Community.

Ryan called for help, saying that Mrs. Winston wanted to have dinner with her girlfriends, and they would bring their daughters-in-law, so Mrs. Winston also wanted Yvonne to come along.

Considering Mrs. Winston's generosity, Yvonne agreed without hesitation.

Ryan sent the address to a hotel, and Yvonne navigated there by car.

The first thing Mrs. Winston did when she saw Yvonne was add her as a WhatsApp friend.

Then she complained about Ryan: "Which mother-in-law relies on her son to deliver messages to her future daughter-in-law?"

The four women gathered together, and Ryan found an excuse to slip away under the pretext of "overtime."

Mrs. Winston's girlfriends were wealthy women, but Yvonne was more outstanding in appearance, figure, and speech than the other daughters-in-law, making Mrs. Winston thoroughly enjoy the meal.

After the dinner, Mrs. Winston personally walked Yvonne to the parking lot, holding her hand.

When she saw Yvonne's car, a white Volkswagen, she shook her head repeatedly. "This bastard Ryan doesn't know how to take care of his wife. Tomorrow, I will make him send you a decent car."

Yvonne hurriedly waved her hand. "Auntie, I appreciate your kindness. I just started working at a new company, and if I drive an expensive car, I'm afraid my colleagues will isolate me. Let me stabilize first before considering changing cars."

"Alright then." Mrs. Winston patted her hand with relief. "This little bastard must have accumulated great fortune in his past life to find such a sensible girl like you!"

Yvonne felt embarrassed and couldn't even smile properly.

Mrs. Winston continued to talk about the interesting events in the Winslow family these days. Yvonne couldn't intervene and could only respond with vague "yes" and "uh-huh."

She quietly sent Ryan a WhatsApp message: [The dinner is over. Please call Auntie and persuade her to go home quickly!]

Ryan, being unreliable as usual, didn't reply. Yvonne guessed he was probably enjoying himself with some beautiful woman.

Mrs. Winston talked until her mouth was dry, and then she prepared to say goodbye to Yvonne.

Just as Yvonne let out a quiet sigh of relief, she saw Elijah and a middle-aged man coming down from the elevator.

The middle-aged man was of similar height to Elijah, around forty years old, with salt-and-pepper hair and fine lines around his eyes. It was evident that he had experienced the winds and frosts of life.

If Elijah belonged to the restrained type, then this man was a mature and charming uncle.

"Elijah, it's been three years since we had a drink and chat like this. Next time, it's my treat-," the man said, but his gaze turned toward Yvonne.

Elijah also noticed Yvonne and Mrs. Winston, his furrowed brows relaxing.

"Michael, Elijah!" Mrs. Winston smiled and waved at them.

Yvonne greeted them as well.

Michael politely greeted Mrs. Winston, "Auntie, what a coincidence."

"Michael, let me introduce you. This is Ryan's girlfriend, Yvonne. Elijah has met her before," Mrs. Winston exclaimed enthusiastically. "We recently hired a chef who specializes in French cuisine at home, so when will you have time to come over for dinner?"

"Thank you, Auntie," Elijah said while expressing his gratitude, but his tone carried a hint of coldness.

Upon hearing the name "Yvonne," Michael's smile momentarily froze, and he glanced at Elijah by his side.

Elijah's expression remained eerily calm.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Brooks." Michael extended his hand toward Yvonne. "I am Michael, the CEO of the Watson Group, and Abigail's brother."

Yvonne had no favorable impression of the Davis family and shook his hand half-heartedly. "Hello, Mr. Watson."

Thanks to Mrs. Winston's talkativeness, she effortlessly eased the awkwardness for Yvonne.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Mrs. Winston left first, followed by Michael.

Elijah stood a couple of meters away from Yvonne, smoking and remaining silent.

This time, Yvonne didn't initiate a greeting and got into her car.

Before she could lock the doors, Elijah twisted them open from the outside. "Get out, I have something to tell you."

"Go ahead, I'm listening." Yvonne didn't notice the anger hidden in Elijah's eyes.

Elijah spoke in a low voice, "Get out of the car."

Yvonne scoffed, glancing at him. "Why should I?"

The air froze instantly, suffocating in silence.

"Mr. Harper, your demands have exceeded the scope of a mere casual relationship," Yvonne said, leaning back in her seat and locking eyes with him.

Elijah realized that his emotions had veered off course, so he forced himself to calm down quickly.

He and Yvonne were just casual partners, and he had no right to demand that she stay away from the Winston family.

"You spent a few hours with Joseph today, and I will pay you for your services," his voice sounded defeated, finally coming up with this excuse.

Yvonne chuckled softly. "Three hours and fifteen minutes."

Soon, one thousand and fifty dollars were transferred to her account.

Now Elijah no longer had a reason to hold onto Yvonne.

"Mr. Harper, starting tomorrow, find someone better. I won't accompany Joseph anymore." Yvonne still felt attached to Joseph, but she was afraid that her relationship with Elijah would become more complicated. She just wanted to free herself as soon as possible.

"Fine. I won't waste any more of your precious time." Elijah's demeanor became distant, returning to his former calmness.

"I'm going home. Please make way." Yvonne laughed carefree.

Elijah stepped back and watched her leave the parking lot.

The biting north wind blew, and his heart suddenly felt empty.

The piercing sound of his phone call instantly woke him up.

"Elijah, there's trouble with Uncle Harper." Philippe sounded urgent.

"What happened?" Elijah guessed that Charles must have gotten involved with a woman.

"Uncle Harper was keeping a young mistress. She gave birth to a child recently, claiming it's Uncle Harper's." Philippe spoke cautiously. "The woman was ambitious and went to confront Uncle Harper with the child. Carter ended up hitting her, and she jumped off the top of the Harper Group building while holding the child. Two lives lost, and it attracted a bunch of reporters—the situation here is out of control. You should come over..."

Upon hearing this, Elijah furrowed his brows deeper.