My Child and I Married a Billionaire novel Chapter 232

Chapter 232: Chapter 232: Do You Have Money?

Zeke Walton stormed out in a rage.

Cecelia Archer was currently preparing for the start of the international airport project. Since it was her first time dealing with real estate and she was the project lead, the pressure was immense. There was a lot she didn’t understand, so she frequently came to report her progress to Shane Grant and ask for his advice.

Today, carrying breakfast she had made herself, she had just stepped out of the elevator when she ran head-on into someone.

Zeke crashed into her with such force that it sent Cecelia staggering back a few steps, nearly making her drop the food container in her hands.

They were both skinny, so the impact of bone hitting bone was excruciating. Each clutched the sore spot, wincing for a few seconds before looking up.

"Zeke?" Cecelia sounded pleasantly surprised.

She hadn’t seen him for several days, and his phone was always turned off; she had guessed something must have happened to him.

But she didn’t know the Walton family’s address, and given her current status, she couldn’t just go asking around. She had been worried sick. ’It’s a good thing I ran into him.’

"You finally showed up! I’ve been trying to call you for days, but your phone was always off. I thought something had happened to you."

As she spoke, Cecelia took two steps toward him and realized that something truly had happened.

The red streaks on his sweater weren’t part of some bizarre design; they were bloodstains.

His complexion was terrible, and his expression was unsettlingly grim. He looked nothing like his former self.

"What happened to you? Is your face hurt? What’s going on?"

Her pleasant surprise turned to alarm. Cecelia reached out to touch his face, but Zeke felt a prickle in his nose and dodged her hand.

’She’s the first person to show me any concern since I got out. I’m terrified that if she touches me, I’ll lose control and start crying.’

Seeing that he wouldn’t let her touch him, Cecelia reached out to grab him instead.

As she pulled, she saw that his sleeve was also torn and his arm was bleeding profusely.

"What on earth happened? Did someone beat you up, or were you in a car accident? Have you seen a doctor? Did you get any medicine? Does it hurt? Are you here to see Shane? Is he awake? Why aren’t you staying a little longer? Come on, come back to the hospital room with me. I’ll have an assistant get a doctor for you."

’I never should have been so foolish about Shane Grant. If I hadn’t been, I wouldn’t have ended up like this, only for him to look at me with such disgust. There’s no way I’m going back to his room!’

The mention of Shane Grant only made Zeke angrier.

But even in his anger, he couldn’t help but think about Shane’s company.

"I’m fine. How about you? Weren’t you supposed to be helping his company with financing? Did you sort it out?"

"No. But I found another way."

Cecelia patted the bag in her hand. "I got the project, and preparations have already started. I’m just here to report the progress to Shane. It’s a long story. Come on, let’s go to his room and I’ll fill you in."

Cecelia’s spirits seemed high. Though she was as skinny as ever, she was full of vigor and looked utterly vibrant.

Looking from her to himself, Zeke was overcome with a sense of inferiority.

’She’s so capable. She just does whatever she sets her mind to, and she even managed to salvage a total wreck like this. With her around, how could Shane Grant ever see anything in me?’

Zeke averted his gaze more sharply. "I was just making small talk. Whether it works out or not has nothing to do with me. Anyway, you should get back to what you were doing. I’m leaving."

A tangle of complex emotions swirled in his heart. Zeke tried to push past Cecelia to leave, but she grabbed him.

"You still haven’t told me what happened to you. You’re not leaving. Why are you wearing so little? The temperature dropped a lot today. You’ll catch a cold if you go out like that."

’A big temperature drop?’

Looking at Cecelia’s warm coat and the charming insulated food container in her hand, Zeke felt a sudden chill, and his stomach rumbled.

After a moment’s thought, he decided there was no reason to put on an act with Cecelia. He had no quarrel with her.

"Cecelia, do you have any money on you?"

Cecelia hadn’t expected him to suddenly ask this.

’I just came to the hospital to report on work; I didn’t bring my cards.’

As soon as Cecelia returned to the hospital room, Shane asked, "Did you run into Zeke?"

"You heard us?"

"That kid... I don’t know what he’s fighting with his family about this time. He just came to see me, and I gave him a lecture. He seemed pretty angry, didn’t he?"

’No wonder Zeke looked so awful. So it was because Shane had chewed him out.’

Cecelia knew the real story and deeply sympathized with how Zeke must be feeling, but she couldn’t say anything more for fear of burdening Shane.

’After all, Shane’s preferences are clear. It’s impossible to know if he could ever accept Zeke.’

’Especially since he’s about to have surgery.’

"Let him cool off. A little hardship might do him good. Maybe he’ll come to his senses in a couple of days. Don’t worry, I’ll look out for him. Now, eat your breakfast."

Just as Cecelia had said, the temperature in Veridia had plummeted, and the winter chill had deepened.

Zeke walked down the street in his thin clothes, his pathetic appearance causing passersby to turn and stare. It made him deeply uncomfortable; he felt like a rat scurrying across the street for everyone to scorn.

’Looking back on the past twenty-odd years of my life, was there ever a day I wasn’t on top of the world, basking in the spotlight?’

Zeke couldn’t stand the stares any longer. Exhausted and sleepy, he found a random hotel near the hospital and went inside.

Hotels near a hospital are never short on customers, so it was no surprise that the receptionist’s attitude was less than welcoming.

"ID."

You need an ID to check into a hotel. Only then did Zeke remember he didn’t have his.

"Just a room by the hour. I’ll check out soon. No need to register."

"’No need?’ Just because you say so? If we get caught, our license gets revoked. Are you going to take responsibility for that?"

Zeke shot the arrogant clerk a look, then turned and walked back out of the hotel.