bChapter /bb264 /b

    Yosef gradually fell asleep, holding Skr close. Skr awoke feeling ufortably warm, as if she were lying next bto /ba burning furnace radiating heat onto her. She squirmed slightly, only to find herself trapped in a tight embrace, unable to break free.

    Grumpy from the heat, Skr woke to find Yosef’s face close to hers. Confused, she thought, ‘Did I roll into his arms? Thank goodness bhe’s /bstill asleep; I’d be so embarrassed otherwise.‘ She covered her eyes, scolding herself.

    Their closeness was intensely intimate, with their breaths mingling in the small space between them. Skr attempted to move, but it felt like being trapped in a dream–she couldn’t shift even slightly. She nced down, searching for the source of that constricting sensation- Yosef’srge hand resting possessively on her waist, even beneath the nket.

    Adam was nestled between Yosef and Skr, his bangs slightly damp, likely from the heat. Skr gently moved Yosef’s hand aside bto /bblift /bbthe /bnket, allowing Adam a breath of fresh air.

    As Skr lifted Yosef’s hand, his eyes abruptly opened, his deep, prating gaze fixed directly on hers. “Y–you’re awakei?/ii” /iSkr eximed, her mind goingpletely nk.

    “Yeah.” He had woken up when Skr started squirming, but kept his eyes closed to avoid making her feel ufortable. Who would have thought that Skr would suddenly reach for his hand? Unable to maintain the act any longer, Yosef opened his eyes and asked, “bWhat /bare you doingb?/bb” /b

    Skr, pretending to be casual, released his hand. “Adam is all sweaty. I just wanted to get him some fresh air.”

    Yosef withdrew his hand as well, giving a quick tug that pulled Adam halfway out from under the nket. Adamb, /bstill half–asleep from the movement, mumbled in a drowsy voice, “Daddy, why are you pulling me?”

    Yosef asked, “It’s already dark–aren’t you feeling hungry?”

    They checked into the hotel around 4 p.m. It was the change of seasonb, /bwhen night came quickly, so it was likely past six by now. Adam was alright at first–until Yosef mentioned food, and then it began to rumble loudly.

    Adam rubbed his belly andined, “I’m hungry… I want to eat now.”

    Skr felt the damp fabric on Adam’s back. “Adam, you’re quite sweaty from your nap. Would you like to take a bath before we go out to eat?”

    Adam nodded eagerly. However, he was still too young to bathe himself. In the Lambert family, a servant would usually assist him, but now that they were away and no one else was around, Yosef had to bathe him himself.

    The father and son whispered in the bathroom. “Daddy, you need to be more proactive–that’s the only way you’ll have ba /bchance with Mommy,” Adam said earnestly.

    “Really?” Yosef sounded doubtful. ‘I was quite proactive at thest conference. I kept trying to talk to her and followed her around–who would have guessed it would just annoy her?‘ he wondered.

    Adam nodded vigorously, his head bobbing enthusiastically. “If neither of you makes a move, you’ll just remain like parallel blines/bb–/bbnever /bcrossing paths!”

    Yosef was utterly unaware of rtionships-/he didn’t even feel he measured up to Adamb, /bwho was a kid. Adam’s bwords /bbresonated /bbwith /bbYosef/b, helping him gain a new perspective.

    ‘If I’m worried about upsetting Skr and just revert to how bthings /bwere, I’ll remain stuck bin the /bsame spot bforever/bb. /bbIf /bbshe /bbgets /bbmad/bb, /bbI’ll /bbtry /bbto /bcheer her up–and if that doesn’t work, I’ll keep at it until she finally smilesb,’ /bYosef brealized/b.

    19:42 Wedb, /bb6 /bbAug /b1

    Yosef suddenly felt revitalized, his spirits noticeably lifted. He picked up Adam, squirted some shower gel into his handsb, /bband /bgave Adam a thorough wash from head to toe. After bathing Adam thoroughly, Yosel

    quickly rinsed himself off, got dressed, and carried the towel bwrapped /b

    Adam outside.

    Adam dressed himself, then awaited Skr’s return alongside Yosef. When Skr finished freshening up and stepped out of the bathroom, she found both of them sitting on the bed, both looking at her with eager anticipation.

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    AD

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