King of Hollywood
Chapter 290 - Chapter 290 Chapter 17 I Want to Be Your Woman

Chapter 290: Chapter 17 I Want to Be Your Woman Chapter 290: Chapter 17 I Want to Be Your Woman “That one! I want that one! Ed, go for that one!” Emma, her face full of excitement, tugged ceaselessly at Adrian’s sleeve while she eagerly stared at the huge Winnie the Pooh hanging on the wall, completely disregarding the teddy bear she was already holding in her hand.

“Alright, alright, don’t rush,” Adrian said placatingly. He glanced at the shopkeeper, whose laughter was bursting at the seams, and let out a helpless sigh. A sudden chuckle erupted from behind him, but by the time Adrian turned around, Kate had already looked away, pretending to know nothing.

Shrugging his shoulders, he decided to take out a 5 British Pound bill and exchange it for fifty 10-pence coins from the shopkeeper. Then he started aiming at a far square. With a ting, the coin struck the upper right corner of a white square–miles away from his intended target. Adrian shook his head, sighed deeply, took careful aim at the target’s yellow center, and threw again.

Ting! Still a miss; another throw, still a miss; continued, a miss; and again, a miss… In the blink of an eye, the 50 coins were spent, and Winnie the Pooh still hung on the wall, its mouth curled into a smirk, as if laughing at his poor skills.

“Your skill is really poor,” Emma pouted unhappily.

“Don’t complain to me,” a downcast Adrian pinched her cheek in response.

The little girl retaliated with a punch, though she probably knew it lacked any real force, so she immediately made a face. After looking at the hanging Winnie Bear, she waved her hand like a little adult: “Let’s just forget it, I can’t bear to watch anymore. Let’s go play another game.”

Despite her words, her lingering glance at the plush toy didn’t escape Adrian’s notice, so he immediately took out another 5 British Pounds and handed it to the beaming shopkeeper: “How about we try once more, Emma?”

“Try once more?” Emma blinked, “I think even ten more tries might not work.”

Talk about a demoralizing comment. Adrian felt a bit irritated while looking at this tiny person with a grown-up attitude, only four years old yet already much smarter than her peers, no doubt a result of her own experiences.

“It seems so,” Adrian sighed, glancing at Kate who had just chuckled softly again at the little girl’s comment. “So, I think, we need some outside help.”

Emma also looked towards Kate, her lips involuntarily pursed high. Although she had grown a bit and had come to understand many things, she still instinctively felt some aversion towards Kate, not knowing why.

Once again, Adrian gently pinched the little one’s cheek and, straightening up, he bowed slightly to Kate: “Would you mind helping out, beautiful miss? To fulfill a little girl’s small wish.”

Kate snorted lightly and, without a word, took the coins and started throwing–once, twice, three times, four times, she won! The shopkeeper’s smile instantly froze on his face, though he swiftly recovered, shrugged, and handed Winnie Bear to Adrian, casually offering his congratulations. The coins Adrian had spent there were enough for him to buy two more Winnie Bear plush toys.

“Thank you.” As he watched Emma wave the Winnie Bear with glee, Adrian said this to Kate beside him, then sighed softly. She had won in just four attempts compared to his countless failures–a real blow to his ego, but it confirmed one thing: he really had no talent for this.

“I did it for Emma,” Kate said lightly, her gaze fixed on the little girl.

Adrian just smiled and said nothing more; he felt the same way. The Rodlin couple had a daughter but still treated Emma well, not showing the bias that many families display towards adopted children after having their own–though favoritism was inevitable. For the sensitive Emma, even a slight difference was perceptible. Despite being very intelligent, she tended to keep these feelings buried within herself, and while it might not matter much occasionally, over time it surely would not be good.

Adrian still remembered stopping Rodlin from calling her because he wanted to surprise her, then quietly approaching her bedroom door to see what was inside. Emma sat at her desk, diligently drawing with a faint look of melancholy between her brows. Her room had a wall exclusively decorated with her paintings; some depicted a man and a woman holding a girl’s hand, walking under the bright sunlight in a meadow, but more were of a round-headed, round-bodied character–Adrian would never admit this bizarrely represented figure was himself.

Because of this, Adrian took Emma to the amusement park to have fun, tirelessly trying to win the Winnie the Pooh bear. There were plenty of Winnie the Pooh teddy bears sold on the street, and each one looked better than this one. If he wanted, he could easily fill the little girl’s bedroom with stuffed animals, but that wasn’t what Emma really wanted.

Kate knew this too, so even though Emma was always not very friendly towards her, she still helped win the Winnie the Pooh bear. Therefore, when Adrian reached out and wrapped his arms around her waist, she struggled lightly, almost imperceptibly.

The little girl, who had been happily running ahead, realized something and turned her head to look back at them, then she promptly ran back and unceremoniously squeezed in between the two, puffing her chest and gripping Adrian’s arm tightly, with a face that said, “I’m just a kid, who cares?”

Adrian couldn’t help but laugh, while Kate rolled her eyes. Then Adrian lifted the little girl up, “Alright, little one, we’ve been playing for so long, how about we find a place to rest? Maybe the restaurant up ahead?”

With a spoon in hand, Emma poked at the ice cream in her cup–it had a layer of liquid chocolate poured over the silvery mound topped with a few cherries, making it particularly appetizing. After taking a bite, she stuck her little tongue into the ice cream to lap it up and accidentally got a white mark on the tip of her nose, then giggled.

However, despite seeming to enjoy herself, she was actually all ears to the conversation between Adrian and Kate who were sitting in front of her.

“Why should I go with you? Isn’t it enough to have a secretary by your side?” Kate asked with a displeased tone.

“Because you are in London,” Adrian replied cheerfully, “If you weren’t here, I naturally wouldn’t go back to Los Angeles just to bring you along, but since you are here, why not go take a look together? Besides, this isn’t completely a business activity; the main reason is that we’re going to Prague.”

“Even if I were in Los Angeles, even if you came back to Los Angeles, you wouldn’t necessarily come looking specifically for me,” Kate murmured, then cut him off before he could speak, “Give me some time to think about it.”

“That won’t work, Kate, in two or three days we have to visit the first family, so you don’t have much time to think, I need an answer now,” Adrian said somewhat mischievously.

“Don’t you plan to spend more time with Emma?” Kate asked in surprise.

“I will spend more time with her after we wrap these things up,” Adrian said, then winked, making Kate realize the situation. She glanced at the little girl pretending to busy herself with her ice cream and got up to go to the restroom.

“Have you heard enough?” Adrian asked Emma with a smile.

“I…” The little girl pursed her lips, only then realizing that her every move had been noticed by them.

“Where are you going? Can I come with you?” she asked with a pitiful look in her eyes.

“Don’t worry, dear, I’m just going around Britain to help those in need,” Adrian explained, “I’ll be back very soon.”

“But… I want to go,” Emma said softly, biting her lip, her big eyes shimmering with a hurt expression, “Kate gets to go with you, why can’t I?”

“See, the thing is…” Adrian scratched his head, at a loss for words at that moment.

“That’s because… Kate is my woman,” he blurted out, trying to brush it off simply.

“What does that mean?” the little guy blinked in confusion.

“Hmm…” Adrian soon realized he had trapped himself with his own words and quickly changed the subject, “By the way, why are you always a bit unfriendly towards Kate, Emma? What about her bothers you?”

“I don’t know, it’s just…” The little girl mimicked an adult and shrugged her shoulders, then looked thoughtfully at Adrian, just when she was about to say something else, Kate, who had gone to the restroom, came back.

“Well, I agreed, are you happy now?” she said as she sat back down next to him.

“I’m really delighted, Kate, I knew you wouldn’t disappoint me.” Adrian immediately hugged Kate and kissed her cheek, although she slightly turned her body, she didn’t avoid it.

Then turning his head, he saw Emma staring intently at him, unaware of a large dollop of cream on her lips. Adrian couldn’t help but chuckle, took out a napkin to wipe off the trace on the girl’s cheek, and patted her head before speaking, “All finished eating? Then how about we continue playing?”

Saying this, he signaled to a nearby waiter, then placed his credit card on the table.

“I’ve decided!” the little girl suddenly slammed her hands on the table, then jumped off the chair, but this only left her barely peeking over the table, lacking any imposing effect. Realizing this, Emma also tried tiptoeing a few times, then resignedly sat back down. This amusing sight made both Adrian and Kate laugh, and even the approaching waiter couldn’t help but smile.

“I’ve decided!” Despite that, Emma continued pounding the table, looking sternly at Adrian.

“I want to be your woman!” she declared, puffing out her little chest and lifting her chin high, completely oblivious to how shocking her words were.

Pfft, Adrian, who was drinking his last sip of coffee, sprayed it out. Luckily, he quickly covered his face with the cup, preventing the coffee from spraying outward, but it did splash all over his face; Kate, who had been casually looking outside, almost slammed her chin on the table as her elbow slipped; the waiter, ready to leave, simply dropped the credit card on the floor.

“I want to be your woman, Ed!” The little one, seemingly fearing the shock wasn’t big enough, shouted again.

“You… do you know what you’re saying, Emma?” Adrian wiped his face, stammering.

“Damn, Ed, what have you been teaching her?” Kate looked at him angrily.

“I swear, it wasn’t me,” Adrian said with a wry smile, raising his hands and then glaring at the still-standing waiter, “Can we check out now, sir?”

“Ah? Oh! Yes!” The waiter finally snapped back to reality, gave Adrian a strange look, and hurriedly left.

“How did you come up with this, Emma?” Adrian asked, humor mixed with annoyance as he stared at the little one in front of him, not minding the stares from around them.

Probably sensing the trouble she had stirred up, Emma shrunk her neck, lowered her head and muttered, “Didn’t you say… didn’t you say it was because Kate is your woman… that she gets to go everywhere with you…”

Adrian suddenly had a choked expression, not knowing what to say, while Kate, who had been angry a moment ago, suddenly had a strange look on her face, mixing embarrassment with annoyance and… a bit of schadenfreude, eventually turning her head away, not knowing where to look.

Just like that, two adults and one child all remained silent, and the atmosphere between them became inexplicably strange.

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Edinburgh is located at the mouth of the East Coast in Scotland, dominantly situated on the extended volcanic ash and rocky cliffs. It had been the capital of Scotland for hundreds of years. Though not as large as London, it has its own culture and history. As one of the cities in Britain closest to England, Edinburgh had seen its fair share of wars.

“I’ve been here before, when I was very young,” Kate said as she looked at the passing cathedral through the car window, “Honestly, I don’t think St Giles Cathedral has much charm. It doesn’t compare to Westminster Abbey; it’s at best similar to Temple Church.”

“Really?” came Charlize’s voice from the front passenger seat as she turned to smile at Kate, “Tell me the truth, Kate–do you say that because you genuinely believe it, or because you are English?”

“Of course, it’s the former. Or do you think I’d be biased on this matter?” Kate retorted with a raised eyebrow and a cold laugh, “What about you, Charli?”

“Me? A bit of both,” Charlize shrugged, turning away and cutting off any chance for Kate to respond, leaving her grinding her teeth in frustration. Although it was just a few words, “What about you,” the meaning behind them included too much. Kate wasn’t asking “Are you doing this on purpose, or based on ignorance?” but rather “Are you targeting me unfairly, or is it because of Adrian?”

The two women had never stopped their sharp exchanges since meeting. Of course, they were both very adept at managing it, and most of the time, Charlize gained the upper hand, as she had just now.

Though Adrian witnessed all this, he ignored it and continued to talk with Emma in his arms. Getting involved in such conflicts could be risky; whether taking sides or maintaining balance, there were no good outcomes, so ignoring it was the best choice.

To be pleasing everywhere, one needed the caliber of Julia and Monica. Thinking of the night when the two women were either huddled together or crawling side by side, letting him pluck as he wished, Adrian couldn’t help feeling thrilled. If he could get Charlize and Kate to do the same, it would be even more wonderful.

“What’s that?” Suddenly, Emma’s voice by his ear pulled him back from his reverie. Regaining his composure and feeling a bit ashamed, he looked in the direction she was pointing.

“Ha, that’s the children’s museum I told you about,” he explained. “It has a collection of all kinds of toys. Want to go see?”

Emma eventually followed by his side. That day, after settling the bills, Adrian quickly left with Kate and Emma, even skipping the amusement park and directly heading to the streets up to the Thames before stopping.

Afterward, whether it was Emma feeling guilty about the mess, Adrian feeling upset, or Kate feeling awkward, none of them spoke about it. They wandered the streets of London for a while longer before going home.

Of course, Adrian found an opportunity in private to warn the little girl to never speak of the matter again–his tone very serious and solemn. Fortunately, aside from Kate, the others who heard were strangers. If the Rodlin couple had heard, who knows what kind of reaction it would have triggered.

Emma agreed very seriously and solemnly, but her condition was that he must take her along during his travels around Britain. Adrian had no choice but to agree, but it turned out to be a good decision. At least, during the verbal battles between Charlize and Kate, he had a good reason to ignore them.

However, to officially take the little one along, a formal reason was needed. This was easy; the foundation was completed with the help of her parents, and it also began on the day of the incident. Thus, there was no harm in taking her to see her parents’ hard work.

This trip to London for Adrian, aside from visiting the little one, included selecting a few families supported by the charity foundation he had set up a few years ago for single mothers. Yes, single mothers, Edinburgh, visit; there was no need to say more.

Some things changed because of his arrival, like Miramax being weakened by his entry and eventually acquired by him, or sex comedies becoming popular several years early thanks to the success of “American Pie”; but some things still followed their inertia, like JK Rowling, the future Magic Mom, who returned to Edinburgh with her nearly one-year-old daughter after divorcing her husband, living in a cramped apartment and surviving on minimal alimony. (To be continued. For more, please visit www.NovelFire.net. More chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)