جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 350

They finally got home. By this time of day, the housekeeper would be in the kitchen prepping dinner, and since both of them had keys, there was no need to ring the bell.Aria opened the door, and as soon as she stepped inside, Archer followed right behind her—and immediately wrapped his arms around her from behind.She hadn’t even taken her shoes off when he scooped her right up.*Ahem.*A dry cough suddenly broke the moment. It didn’t sound like something they’d normally hear in a quiet house.Startled, Aria pushed against his chest in a panic. He set her down just as she turned around—and froze.The living room was full of people.Ethan, Aaron, and Ronald were all there. Even Anson, who was supposed to be filming, had shown up. Aaron had a sleepy little boy—about five or six years old—in his arms. Aria didn’t recognize the kid, who still looked half-asleep.Her eye twitched. Did Anson really have this much free time for a top-tier celebrity?“What are you all doing here?” Ar

The next morning, Archer and Aria planned to head straight to the elementary school to meet up with Aaron and Melvin. On the way, Aria couldn’t hide her nerves. She kept worrying that her presence would upset the rest of the Duncan family and end up ruining what should’ve been a fun family day.By the time they arrived, the parking lot outside the school was already packed.The school’s international division was well-known, attracting children of politicians, business leaders, and celebrities alike. Most of the kids here could speak eloquently, and the crowd stepping out of the luxury cars reflected just how elite the student body was.As they made their way toward the entrance, they suddenly heard a familiar little voice shout, “Archer! Aria!”They looked over to see Melvin waving excitedly at them. He was wearing a tracksuit with a light jacket thrown on top and was eagerly bouncing in place.Not far behind him stood Richard and his wife, as well as Robert and Grace. None of

Just then, a voice came over the loudspeaker, calling for the kindergarten relay team to gather at the track. Melvin’s eyes lit up with excitement. He immediately peeled off his jacket and pants, revealing a sporty T-shirt and shorts underneath, and started doing exaggerated warm-up stretches right next to the picnic mat like a little pro.The group that had been chatting with the Duncans took the cue to say goodbye and politely moved on.But as they were walking away, they could still hear the daughter-in-law whisper to her husband, “Wait… wasn’t son of the Spencer family recently divorced? And wasn’t his ex-wife also named Aria?”Robert’s expression froze. He shot a glare at Archer and Aria and let out a heavy, disapproving huff.“Mr. Duncan, enough with the glares,” Archer said mildly. “You better get used to this. There’ll be plenty more events like this in the future. And when we hold a wedding and invite a full guest list—most of whom already know Aria—what then? You gonna sh

When Yvonne invited her over, Kandice didn’t hesitate. She smiled politely and took the empty seat—right next to Archer.She set down the lunchbox she was carrying and began to open it as she spoke. “Mrs. Chancer, I noticed you’ve got quite a few people here today, so I was worried there might not be enough food. I brought plenty. We can all share.”Then she turned to Melvin with a sweet smile, clearly trying to endear herself. “Melvin, I brought lots of food kids your age usually love.”She had done her homework. Everyone knew Melvin was the youngest in the Duncan family—and absolutely doted on.But before Melvin could even respond, Amanda quietly opened her own lunchbox. She gave Kandice a polite but distant smile.“We actually planned this yesterday,” Amanda said smoothly. “We had dinner with Archer and Aria and decided we’d all come support Melvin today. So I brought a bunch of food too. There’s definitely enough to go around. And even if there wasn’t, we could always order fr

Aria lowered her gaze and noticed Archer’s clean, elegant hand resting lightly on hers. His skin was smooth, his fingers long and slender, and the tips gently pressed against the soft spot between her thumb and forefinger—the very spot he had pinched earlier.It was only then that she realized that pinch had been his subtle way of scolding her for taking too long to respond.But this whole “push and pull” act of his was seriously getting on her nerves. She let out a soft huff, pouted slightly, and pulled her hand out of his. She wasn’t in the mood to let him hold it anymore.Archer glanced at her. Her cheeks were flushed, but she kept her eyes fixed straight ahead with a prim and proper expression, folding her hands neatly on her lap.A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. Quietly amused, he reached over and took her hand again.Earlier, her hand had been by her side, and when he held it, it went mostly unnoticed. But now that it was resting on her lap, his action was mu