Chapter 176: Chapter 176: His Heart Is Smaller Than a Needle’s Eye
Who exactly is the strange man that Leon Keane’s mother is talking about? What kind of relationship does Ivana Monroe have with him?
Leon Keane was angry, not because he didn’t trust Ivana, but because he couldn’t accept any man approaching Ivana with an agenda. To his surprise, he realized that his heart, when it came to someone he loved, could become so small, even smaller than the eye of a needle.
With a darkened handsome face, Leon Keane sneered coldly at Kiki Jennings: "What a coincidence? You invite my mom to dinner and also happen to end up near Ivana’s company?"
Kiki thought she was clever, thinking those words could successfully mislead Leon Keane, causing a rift and conflict between Leon and Ivana. Leon’s gloomy expression told her she was almost successful.
But why? Why didn’t Leon get angry and cause trouble for Ivana, insisting on getting to the bottom of it?
Kiki felt uncomfortable, jealousy driving her nearly crazy. Has Leon already defended Ivana to the point of no limits?
Leon’s mother stepped forward, blocking Leon’s path, glaring at him: "What are you doing? What do you intend to do? You’ve almost scared Kiki to tears. This has nothing to do with Kiki, there’s no need to keep picking on her because you’re defending Ivana. Kiki is a kind girl, unlike the scheming Ivana."
Kiki lowered her head, standing behind Leon’s mother. Hearing her words, tears truly fell. She felt wronged, thinking about how Leon treated her because of Ivana, she felt utterly aggrieved.
In a tearful voice, Kiki softly said: "It’s all my fault, Leon. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have invited Aunt to the Chinese restaurant here. I didn’t even know Ivana’s company was here. I should have figured it all out before inviting Aunt."
"Leon, I’ll be more careful next time. When I invite Aunt... no, when I invite anyone, I’ll make sure to stay far away from Ivana’s company."
Kiki stepped out from behind Leon’s mother, constantly bowing to apologize to Leon, like a child who had done something wrong. Her face was covered in tears, and passersby couldn’t help but think Kiki looked really pitiful.
Seeing Kiki like this, Leon’s mother felt heartbroken. She frowned, saying: "Kiki, you’re a good child, a kind girl. No one blames you. Leon is just bewitched by that vixen Ivana. He’ll see her true colors sooner or later..."
Hearing his mother start to slander Ivana again, Leon’s frown deepened, his thin lips parted slightly, ready to say something.
Kiki bowed to apologize to Leon’s mother: "Aunt, I’m sorry, it’s all my fault. Please don’t talk about Leon like that."
"Aunt, I feel a bit uncomfortable all of a sudden. I’ll go home first."
After saying this, Kiki turned around, wiping her tears as she ran away.
Leon’s mother wanted to stop her, but couldn’t. She tried to chase after her, only to have Leon grab her arm.
Worried that something might happen to Kiki, Leon’s mother stomped her foot anxiously: "Why are you holding me? Hurry and chase after Kiki, stop her! What if something happens to her while she’s running so fast?"
Leon shrugged it off, coldly saying: "She’s already an adult, she won’t have an accident just by running a bit. Mom, stop worrying. I’ll take you to the hospital to get a health check-up."
Leon took his mother into the luxury car.
Leon’s mother sat in the back, complaining all the way, sometimes scolding Leon, sometimes worrying about Kiki. No matter what, she kept blaming Leon for not listening to her and not chasing after Kiki, momentarily forgetting to scold Ivana.
The hospital check-up results showed nothing wrong, which Leon’s mother had known all along, so she didn’t really want to go to the hospital! But since Leon was driving, she had no choice but to cooperate.
Leon’s mother insisted that Leon call Kiki to see if she had reached home.
Leon was very reluctant, but after his mother urged him several times, showing signs of anxiety, he slowly took out his phone and dialed Kiki’s number.
Kiki was in a fit of anger at home, crying sadly on her bed when her phone rang. Not in the mood to respond, she didn’t even lift her head, continuing to cry loudly.
Leon put the call on speaker, and the mechanical voice from the phone said "No answer from the other side." He shrugged at his mom: "She’s not picking up, you can’t blame me."
Leon’s mother told him to call a few more times. She thought Kiki was mad at Leon, hence reluctant to answer his call, but if he called a few more times, given how much that girl liked Leon, she would definitely answer.
Leon naturally didn’t want to: "Mom, do you want your son to face humiliation from Kiki?"
Upon hearing this, Leon’s mother was certainly not pleased.
Her son was a dragon among men, the apple of her eye. If not for the Ivana issue, she wouldn’t even scold Leon a bit, let alone let him face humiliation because of Kiki? Kiki trying to show her temperament to her son? She wouldn’t stand for it.
Moreover, it was Kiki who liked Leon and was pursuing him; she shouldn’t be so fragile over such a small issue.
Leon’s mother couldn’t accept a fragile daughter-in-law who would cry or throw a tantrum at the slightest thing; it would drive Leon crazy.
Leon dropped his mother off at home, saying he still had work to finish at the company and needed to return to handle it. Today was particularly busy, so he might come home late.
When Leon said this, his mother wasn’t clueless, right? Naturally, it was because she and Kiki had delayed Leon’s work, leading to him having to work overtime tonight.
His mother didn’t say much else, just told him not to overexert himself or work too late; whatever wasn’t finished tonight could be done the next day.
Leon smiled: "Mom, I know you always care the most about your son, but today’s work really needs to be finished; we have to sign the contract tomorrow."
Leon’s mother wanted to say, if you know I care the most about you, why get me upset? But hearing how important today’s work was for Leon, she felt a bit ashamed. If she had known, she wouldn’t have taken Kiki to Ivana’s business today; that Ivana could be dealt with anytime, but if her son’s health was damaged, that would be worrying.
"Will you be working very late? What time do you plan to come back? Will it be around midnight?"
"It’s not certain, maybe one or two in the morning."
"Ah?"
"Mom, don’t worry about me. I’ll take care of myself. If it’s past midnight, I’ll rest in the office; there’s a bed in the office cubicle."
"Okay, okay, if it’s too late, don’t come back to the old house. Health comes first!"
Leon agreed repeatedly, secretly hoping not to return tonight, so he could go to Ivana’s.
~
After work, Ivana went to pick up Timmy from school, as usual, with Derrick Stern driving her to pick up Timmy and take him home.
"President Kane has a lot of work today; he originally planned to come pick you up himself," Derrick said with a smile.