Chapter 381 - 361: Don’t Coax Me Like I’m Nina

Her voice was sharp, tinged with petulance.

Elliot Sheridan stopped moving. He propped his hands on the bed and leaned down close to Georgia Thorne. "Still mad?"

"..." Silence came from under the covers.

"Come on, don’t be mad. Just think, Nina is still so little. She can’t be without her mother..."

Elliot tried to reason with Georgia, but before he could finish, she cut him off!

Georgia threw off the covers with a jerk. Her elbow slammed into Elliot’s chin—so hard, in fact, that a sharp pain shot through her own elbow.

But Georgia was furious. "All you ever do is use our child to placate me! You said the exact same thing a year ago!"

Georgia had brought this up with him before, half a year after Nina was born.

He had used the same excuse back then. And besides, watching her baby grow a little more each day, Georgia hadn’t been able to bear the thought of being away from her for long, so she had agreed to stay home and look after her.

She never expected that arrangement to last for another six months.

Georgia glared at him angrily and threw a pillow at him with all her might. "Go away! I don’t want to talk to you."

Georgia was so angry that not only did she refuse to speak to Elliot, she also refused to look after the baby.

The next morning, Elliot woke to find Georgia’s side of the bed empty. He wandered through the house, searching.

He couldn’t find Georgia or their daughter.

He asked Katherine, who shook her head. "Dad, did you and Auntie get in a fight?"

"I guess you could say that." Elliot shrugged. ’Looks like Georgia’s serious this time.’

’Even though it was adult business and none of her concern...’

’But if Ms. Thorne fought with Dad, life would be hard for everyone else.’

Katherine looked at him and said earnestly, "Dad, if you did something wrong, you have to apologize properly to Auntie."

Elliot was speechless.

’He didn’t want Georgia to go back to work because he didn’t want her to be too tired. He wanted her to be able to rely on him.’

’Was he wrong for that?’

After Katherine said her piece, she hurried to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. She still had to get ready for school.

The housekeeper said that Georgia had taken the baby and left early in the morning, saying she needed to get out and clear her head.

Feeling uneasy, Elliot called Georgia. The phone rang for a long time, only to be hung up.

Georgia hung up the phone in a huff and took a sip of water. ’I’m just not answering your calls.’

Across from her, Seraphina Goldsmith smiled. "Who was that?"

"A bad guy!" Georgia fumed.

Seraphina’s smile widened. "Looks like Mr. Sheridan really cares about you. He has to call and check on you when you’re out!"

"Don’t mention him!" Just thinking about him made her angry.

Seraphina had been traveling for a while and had just gotten back yesterday.

Georgia had kept in touch with her, so when she heard Seraphina was back, she’d wanted to meet up.

Seraphina had changed so much. She laughed openly now, as if she’d become a completely different person.

"By the way, I heard there’s an exhibition tomorrow night. I have invitations. Want to go?"

"Really?" Georgia asked, pleasantly surprised. Then she hesitated. "At night?"

’To be honest, ever since she’d had the baby, her life had become extremely predictable.’

’Dinner was at six. Then, she’d take the baby out for a walk for an hour or so, come home, put the baby to sleep, and then wash up and go to bed herself.’

’Occasionally, if she and Elliot were in the mood, they’d stay up very late.’

"Yep, it starts at six p.m. If you have time, you should come with me. I heard a lot of famous international designers will be there!"

"I’ll be there!" she said firmly after a moment’s thought.

Seraphina gave her a playful wink. "I trust your husband won’t mind?"

"He doesn’t get to tell me what to do!"

Georgia spent the day out with Nina. As soon as they got home, she went online to look up the exhibition.

There was a detailed description online. She glanced at the list of names and saw that, sure enough, many big-name designers would be attending.

She grew even more excited for the next night’s exhibition.

Her excitement for the exhibition put Georgia in a great mood, and that evening she even made a special effort to cook a full dinner.

Elliot watched his wife bustling around the kitchen, a smile playing on his lips. With one easy motion, he wrapped a long arm around her and pulled her into his embrace.

Georgia’s anger was quick to fade. She let out a huff and squirmed, her fine brows knitting in irritation. "Hey, I’m cooking! Get out!"

"I just want to hold you a little longer." Elliot held her tight, refusing to let go. He bent down, resting his chin on her shoulder.

He tilted his head. "Did you have fun out today?"

Georgia huffed. "What do you think?"

"Come on, sweetheart, don’t be mad anymore. I know I was wrong."

Georgia pursed her lips and ignored him, deliberately keeping her expression stern.

’Just to show Elliot she was still angry!’

"How about a kiss to make you stop being angry? Give me a smile, what do you say?"

As he spoke, his lips slowly moved closer. Georgia pressed a hand to his mouth in annoyance. "Oh no you don’t. Don’t treat me like Nina. That routine doesn’t work on me!"

"Then what routine would you prefer?" Elliot gave her a suggestive glance. "Just ask, and I promise to be... hard."

He whispered the last word, his voice soft as he blew gently against her ear, making the word sound exceptionally suggestive.

Georgia’s heart fluttered. ’This man gets more and more shameless every day!’

Her heart felt like it couldn’t take it. She turned off the stove and dropped the spatula, trying to escape his embrace, but he only held her tighter.

He put on a look of feigned innocence. "What’s wrong?"

Georgia gritted her teeth. "Get your hands off me!"

’She wasn’t done being angry yet!’

"Just a little longer!" His gentle voice was dangerously captivating. Georgia took a deep breath, trying her best to stay calm.

’When did this man learn how to wheedle like this?!’

Katherine didn’t know about the lovey-dovey scene in the kitchen. The little sister in her arms started crying, so she guessed Nina must be hungry and wanted to eat.

She ran into the kitchen in a panic. "Auntie, Nina’s hungry!"

She walked right in on her father clinging to Georgia.

Georgia didn’t like being affectionate with Elliot in front of the children. She was mainly afraid they’d get the wrong idea, and besides, she was a shy person by nature.

In her haste, Georgia gave Elliot a hard pinch and wriggled out of his arms.

Georgia hurried out with Katherine, leaving a dumbstruck Elliot behind.

While Georgia fed the baby her formula, Katherine stood by, watching her beautiful, adorable little sister.

Suddenly, a shadow fell over her. Katherine looked up to see Elliot. "Dad!"

Elliot stood with one hand in his pocket. He grunted in acknowledgment. "Come with me."

Later, after Nina’s nap, Georgia fed her and then rushed out the door with the baby in her arms.

She arrived at the Sheridan residence to find Sharon Ennis chatting with a friend. "Mom, I’m here!"

"What brings you here today?" Sharon Ennis asked, taking the baby from Georgia’s arms. "Well now, little Nina! I haven’t seen you in a few days, and you’ve gotten heavier!"

Seeing the grandmother she hadn’t seen in a while, Nina laughed with delight, waving her arms and kicking her legs.

"I wasn’t doing anything at home, so I brought Nina over." Georgia had brought all the baby’s bottles with her. "Mom, could you watch her for me today? I have to meet a friend."

"Nina, you be good for Grandma today. No being naughty, and no crying, okay?"

Georgia stroked the little one’s head. Nina was especially well-behaved, babbling, "Mama... mama..."

"Mom, I already fed her this morning. You’ll just need to give her another bottle at lunchtime."

"I know, I know!" Sharon cooed, tickling the baby in her arms. "By the way, when will you be back to get her?"

"It might be a little late. If Elliot asks where I went, just tell him I went out to clear my head!"

Georgia glanced down at the time. It was almost time for her meeting with Seraphina. She hastily grabbed her bag and ran out.

Georgia rushed all the way, finally making it to a plaza near the exhibition.

Panting for breath, she called Seraphina. "I’m here! Where are you?"

"I’m at the entrance. Come on over!"

Entry to the exhibition had already begun. Georgia followed the stream of people inside and spotted Seraphina at the entrance.

She hurried over. "Sorry to keep you waiting, traffic was a nightmare!"

"It’s fine, let’s get inside!"

The exhibition was crowded. Tall, slender models strutted back and forth on the stage, showing off the clothes they wore.

"Let’s look around for now. The runway show will be starting over there on the catwalk in a bit."

Georgia looked in the direction Seraphina was pointing and hummed in acknowledgment.

She pulled out her phone to check the time. It was exactly five o’clock. ’I wonder if Nina is crying because I’m not there.’

’The little rascal used to cry nonstop whenever she was away for even a moment.’

’But Sharon Ennis hadn’t called, so everything must be fine.’

Georgia’s mind was put at ease, and she continued to browse the exhibition with Seraphina.

"So, are you really planning to go back to work?" Seraphina asked casually.

Georgia nodded. "It’s so boring staying at home taking care of the baby all day. I want to work!"

’She loved design. She didn’t want her child or her family to hold her back from her dreams.’

"I’m planning on setting up shop in the country for a while. If you’re interested, we could open a studio together."

"Are you serious?"

"I am. But opening a studio is hard work. It’s possible that business will be slow at first, and we could even lose money."

"I don’t care about that!" All she wanted was to work, not to sit around doing nothing all day.

"Then it’s settled!"

As the two of them walked around, many of the designers at the exhibition recognized Seraphina and came up one after another to talk with her.

Georgia watched her chat with everyone so confidently and thought, ’Seraphina really has changed so much.’