The actor suppressed a smile and tried to look unfazed. “You bought this villa,” he said, feigning calm.
Gong Jie snorted at that. “The real estate consultant didn’t mention this backyard where people could lose their way.”
He’d thought he’d hit a wall. He was walking in circles. If the actor hadn’t turned on the lights, he would have spent the entire night fumbling around.
Hua Jin sighed. “Why are you home so late?”
“It takes more than 10 hours to fly from the Hurricane Group, and it involves a transfer to a helicopter.”
“Why?”
“My plane can’t land here. I didn’t manage to get landing rights.” Then Gong Jie asked, “Where’s Natalia? Is she asleep?”
“Yeah, she’s asleep. It’s late. She went to sleep long ago.”
“Oh.” Gong Jie said, “I’ll go upstairs and take a look.”
“Okay. Are you able to find your way to her room?”
The question caught Gong Jie off guard. He indeed didn’t seem to remember. He had to admit that the villa he had bought for Hua Jin and Natalia was huge. Not only did it cover a large area and a backyard, the villa itself was huge, like a century-old manor.
It was said that this villa was the biggest in the villa district. It was even much more impressive than the Yun Shan Shi Yi belonging to Mu Yazhe.
The first time Yun Shishi had come to visit, she’d been envious. She’d never seen such a huge villa. Only someone as wealthy as her brother would buy it without even batting an eyelid.
Gong Jie was used to living in a big space. The area of the Gong family’s residence could no longer be calculated by per square area. Instead, it was a magnificent castle and a unique super mansion in the world.
They climbed the stairs together, and Hua Jin led the way to Natalia’s room. Upon entering, he switched on the wall lamp. As Gong Jie stepped inside, he caught a whiff of a light fragrance.
It was Natalia’s natural scent. There was a faint scent of her body which was hard to describe, but the fragrance was particularly refreshing.
Gong Jie walked slowly into the room, keeping his footsteps light for fear of waking her. When he reached the bed and saw her sleeping soundly, his sharp brows relaxed a little.
He sat down gently on the side of the bed, but as he did so, Natalia’s eyelids flickered for some reason, and she woke up. She opened her eyes, her gaze focusing until she saw Gong Jie sitting on the edge of the bed. Recognizing him, she was overjoyed.
“Daddy!”
Gong Jie was distracted by the fact that she was awake. “Did I wake you?”
“No.” Natalia pressed her lips together as she sat up in bed and opened her arms. She threw herself against him and snuggled into his embrace .
As Gong Jie wrapped his arms around her, he heard the girl’s muffled voice. “What took you so long?”
Hua Jin had told her that Gong Jie would be back soon, and Natalia had been looking forward to it. She had waited day after day, but he had not returned. She could not help but feel disheartened. This night, she also gone to bed feeling distracted, worried that if she were to fall asleep, she would not be able to greet Gong Jie immediately if he should return.
For children, there was something ritualistic about welcoming their family members back. And this sense of ritual was above all else.
