Chapter 147

Winnie didn't respond to him. Seeing her weak uncle, her heart couldn't help but feel pity, and she took out her needle kit.

"Uncle, I'm proficient in Dry Needling like Mom. I can't do much for scars like yours, but I can alleviate your phantom pain with Dry Needling. Shall I give it a try?"

Elliott's hand rubbing his right leg paused, and he nodded through the pain.

After Winnie performed Dry Needling, there was indeed a miraculous improvement.

Elliott looked at her and smiled bitterly, "Your mother was skilled in medicine; she didn't teach you everything, but what you've inherited is amazing. If only she were still here."

Winnie's face stiffened, and with every sentence her uncle said, she was reminded of her hatred.

The next day, Winnie stepped into the Kingdom Estates building.

She hadn't slept all night, and her complexion was very poor.

Unfortunately, she arrived just in time for the morning meeting.

The elevator was crowded, and she couldn't tell if it was shortness of breath or recent depression, but the baby in her belly was moving vigorously.

Lately, she had been feeling the baby's movements frequently, but this time it was painful.

She had to pause, leaning against the wall, and gently caressed her belly, trying to calm the little one inside.

Taking deep breaths and patting her belly, she suddenly felt a deep, ink-like gaze sweeping over her intensely.

She turned her head stiffly and felt as if she had collided with the man's emotionally charged gaze.

Those eyes, like a pitch-black net, ensnared her.

In an instant, it seemed as though countless emotions were directed towards her belly.

Winnie stared at him.

The deep, handsome profile, the jawline covered by a mask, and her body seemed to be scalded by his gaze.

Deep in her heart, there was a melancholic, painful emotion interwoven with mixed feelings that she could not express in silence.

He was looking at her belly.

As a father, not having seen her for one or two weeks, he was probably thinking about the child. This was his child.

She didn't know the outcome for this child. All she could do was to protect it to the best of her abilities. Her inner turmoil and anxiety made tears well up in her eyes, but she could only bear it desperately.

He didn't seem to be doing well either, his mood was not good, and his brows were furrowed.

Winnie's heart ached, but why did he have to be the one responsible for harming the Granger family in the pursuit of his business empire?

She turned her eyes away resolutely, and suddenly, she doubled over in pain. The sound of expensive leather shoes approached, and the man's cold breath grew nearer.

Suddenly, Winnie felt weightless as Lawrence lifted her sideways, paying no mind to the fact that they were on the office floor with people coming and going.

Winnie stiffened abruptly, feeling the warmth of the man in his arms burning her. Her cold skin trembled, and she was momentarily at a loss for words, stunned.

After walking through a corridor, Winnie lowered her eyes quickly from his Adam's apple and spoke calmly, "I'm not in pain anymore, and you can put me down."

With all eyes on them, it would be inappropriate for him to continue holding her forcibly.

He looked displeased, carefully placing her down. The slender woman stood in place, and Lawrence couldn't help but fixate his gloomy gaze on her protruding belly.

Winnie followed his gaze and looked down. It had been over five months, and she hadn't gone for her prenatal check-up yet, but her belly had grown rapidly like an inflated balloon.

He must remember the dates too, his eyebrows furrowing.

When his hand reached out to touch her belly, Winnie instinctively avoided his touch by turning to the side.

She pursed her lips and distanced herself. This distant action made Lawrence's large hand freeze!

His face immediately became covered in a layer of cold frost. He was angry, thinking that after meeting at the cafe yesterday, she would come home at night.

But she didn't return to the mansion.

She didn't even give him a phone call or a simple thank you!

How long did she plan to give him the cold shoulder? Just because she saw him holding Darcy at the hospital, she couldn't let it go?

Lawrence's stern chest agitated, and he cast a harsh look at the pale-faced woman. The entire floor was filled with his employees, and he didn't bother to lower himself to say anything.

With a long stride, he walked past her coldly and entered the CEO's office.

Winnie knew he was angry again, but now, she really couldn't summon the courage to pretend with that "acting" face in front of him.

Her fingers trembled. Her uncle had asked her to stay as a mole, but every second of deceiving him tortured her.

She wanted to leave him!

She couldn't take it anymore. Even if they were separated, she and her uncle would be openly against him and seek revenge from scratch.

Rather than using sweet words and a hidden knife to hurt him.

So today, Winnie declined the Vice President's work tasks, especially the projects related to the hotel group.

This way, her uncle couldn't use her to harm Lawrence.

As Winnie pondered, she was about to step into the Vice President's office when...

The President's office instructed Milly and Winnie to submit their vacation requests.

Suddenly, the CEO's office door swung open and Bryan shouted in front of everyone, "Ms. Anderson, the CEO wants you to attend the morning meeting."

Winnie froze in her tracks, knowing her position and obligations, and reluctantly entered the CEO's office.

Inside the spacious office, several shareholders and top executives were already standing. Behind the desk sat a particularly stern man, emitting an icy aura.

No one dared to make a sound, and it was evident that the CEO was in a very bad mood.

Winnie stood at the back of the crowd, just near the sofas in the guest area.

With a sweep of her eyes, images involuntarily surfaced in her mind from half a month ago when he sat here, elegantly dining, while she shyly and angrily read documents to him.

They were so good back then. Who would have thought that everything would change in just a few days when her uncle returned?

Everything was unrecognizable now.

Taking a deep breath, Winnie suppressed the pain caused by those sweet memories.

All of a sudden, the man's cold gaze also turned towards her, and she realized that he must have remembered too.

Their gazes met in the air, she felt heartbroken, and he seemed puzzled.

Lawrence pursed his thin lips coldly and slowly withdrew his complex gaze, sternly shaking hands.

"Let's discuss the distribution of the upcoming tasks."

He began discussing with the senior executives.

Winnie was absent-minded, floating like a wandering soul. Her pale face couldn't even be warmed by the gentle lamp light.

Suddenly, Bryan read the work schedule, "Ms. Anderson doesn't have any projects at the moment and can currently take over..."

Winnie snapped back to reality, she had wanted to quietly decline the work, but now, she had to face him and spoke up, "CEO, I haven't been feeling well recently and would like to hand over the work on the Kingdom Estates and take a long leave of absence."

As her words fell, a brief and eerie silence fell upon the room, and everyone cast astonished gazes at her.

"Ms. Anderson, you're taking a week's leave. We thought you were returning to work today?"

"Yes, the CEO's major project is starting, which is when we need manpower. Are you suggesting resignation?"

Several senior executives subtly chuckled.

Winnie raised her head and glimpsed the man's gaze behind the desk, which was particularly icy. The cold air emanating from him encroached upon her.

Bryan, seeing the CEO's terrible complexion, quickly intervened, "Ms. Anderson, taking leave at this moment is really not ideal."

"But I..."

"Without my permission, you are not allowed to take leave. Bryan, hand over the bidding matters for the five-star hotel project to Ms. Anderson!" Lawrence coldly interrupted.