You're Just My Ex-Husband,My Lord-Chapter 165- heart beginning to waver?

Villas.

What was originally supposed to be a dinner for four adults became much warmer and livelier with Emma Washington’s presence. The little girl was sweet and adorable, and the Brown couple absolutely adored her.

The Browns also had a daughter, born when Mrs. Brown was around forty. Mr. Brown had never been particularly eager to have children, but Mrs. Brown insisted.

She had said, *"We love each other so much. If there’s no one to carry on our love, to tell our story to future generations, wouldn’t that be a pity?"* And so, she was determined to have a daughter for him.

Dave and Emma Washington stayed in the living room with the Browns. However, Dave soon realized he was merely an accessory—after his daughter arrived, the Browns were completely focused on entertaining the little girl, paying no attention to him.

He had originally planned to stay in the living room to help translate, but he quickly discovered that children had a natural ability to communicate. Even without a common language, gestures and expressions were enough to convey meaning—if not perfectly, then at least close enough.

So, he got up and went to the kitchen to help Laurent with dinner.

Laurent didn’t actually need his help, but since he kept hovering around her and wouldn’t leave, she had no choice but to assign him a few simple tasks.

But Dave was no ordinary man—his ability to learn and adapt was exceptional. In no time, he had finished everything she asked him to do. Feeling confident, he proposed a challenge:

Let me chop the vegetables.

Laurent scoffed at him without hesitation.

"You’d better not. I can’t take responsibility if you injure yourself just from cutting vegetables."

A man who had never cooked before, never even stepped into a kitchen, and he thought he could handle chopping?

She wasn’t sure if he’d be cutting vegetables or his own fingers.

Dave, however, was unimpressed by her skepticism and insisted. The truth was, he wanted to learn more about cooking so he could help her in the future.

Yes, the future.

In his mind, they *had* a future together. There was no question about it. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Seeing his determination—and since she needed to plate a dish—Laurent finally relented. She asked him to chop some **parsley** to sprinkle over the **roast beef** she was about to prepare.

After giving her instructions, Laurent focused on plating the dish. But when she turned back, she was stunned to see a row of **perfectly thin and evenly cut strips of parsley** on the cutting board. Even as a professional chef, she was impressed.

"You actually cut this so well?"

Dave smirked proudly.

"Of course."

He had put his full effort into chopping carefully—just so she wouldn’t look down on him, just so he could earn a compliment from her. The only downside? He was a bit slow.

"Is there a reward?"

He stepped closer to her, eyes filled with unmistakable teasing and intent.

Laurent glanced at his mischievous expression and suddenly felt like playing a prank. A playful smile spread across her lips.

"Of course."

Then, she beckoned him closer with a finger.

"Come closer. Close your eyes."

Laurent’s bright, innocent smile was something Dave had absolutely no resistance to. He leaned in closer and even bent down slightly—just enough to make it easier for her to kiss him.

After all, there was a height difference between them. If she wanted to kiss him, she’d have to stand on her tiptoes. It had always been that way before. If he didn’t cooperate, she wouldn’t be able to reach him.

So this time, he took the initiative to lower himself. *See? How thoughtful of me.*

Laurent watched as he moved closer, then casually picked up a small red chili pepper from the counter. She pinched off the tip, grinning mischievously, and before he could react—she rubbed it right onto his lips.

Dave’s face instantly twisted in agony as the fiery heat hit him.

"Ha—haha!"

Laurent burst into uncontrollable laughter, her eyes brimming with tears.

"You—!"

Dave was absolutely livid. The way she had spoken just now, so teasing and suggestive—he had obviously thought she was finally going to give him the kiss he wanted. But instead, she had smeared chili pepper all over his lips!

Even though it had just been a quick swipe, the burning sensation was unbearable.

Only she would come up with something so absurd!

What kind of woman was he even pursuing? This was practically attempted murder on her future husband!

Laurent finally managed to catch her breath and, realizing he was truly suffering, hurried over to the fridge. She grabbed a bottle of ice-cold soda and handed it to him.

Dave, his face still dark with frustration, took the drink without a word and chugged several gulps, the cool liquid helping to ease the burning pain on his lips.

Laurent watched him, trying *so hard* to suppress her laughter. But the whole thing was just too funny. Before she could stop herself, another giggle slipped out.

That was it.

Dave snapped.

In one swift motion, he pulled her into his arms and crushed his lips against hers in a deep, punishing kiss.

Because of the chili she had been smeared with, his lips were already fiery. When they touched Laurent’s soft lips, Laurent only felt an intense heat between them, followed by his long, warm kiss that swallowed her breath. The heat on her lips quickly spread throughout her entire body.

Dave pressed one hand firmly on her hips, pulling her toward him, while his other hand grabbed the back of her head, holding it in place as he kissed her deeply and passionately.

"Ah, yuck, yuck, yuck!"

The sudden, clear voice of a little girl interrupted the kiss between the two. Laurent hurriedly pushed Dave away and looked up to see the Brown couple, having followed their daughter’s call, now standing there. Her face instantly turned bright red.

The little girl had originally come to the kitchen to check out what her mom was cooking, but as soon as she opened the door, she saw the two of them hugging and kissing. She quickly covered her eyes and ran out, shouting "yuck, yuck, yuck" as she went.

Mr. Brown, in a "thoughtful" gesture, silently closed the door behind them, signaling for them to continue.

But how could they continue? Laurent, her face flushed with embarrassment, turned around and got back to work, while Dave wisely chose not to speak. She was clearly in an angry and embarrassed state, and if he said anything more, he might just be kicked out of the kitchen.

After putting the **roast beef** to stew, Laurent invited the Brown couple to help make scones. The little girl joined in, and soon Dave also joined, all learning from Laurent.

Mr. Brown and Mrs. Brown worked together harmoniously. Mr. Brown was in charge of kneading the dough, while Mrs. Brown handled cutting the shapes. In the beginning, they were clumsy, and the shapes didn’t look great, but they were already doing quite well.

Meanwhile, at the Burg Eltz family’s house, the little girl was mostly just causing trouble, playing with a piece of dough on her own. Laurent was in charge of preparing the ingredients, while Dave was supposed to handle the shaping. Laurent had originally planned for her to shape the dough, with Dave preparing the ingredients since it wasn’t too difficult, but who knows where he got the confidence to shape the dough himself.

As Laurent prepared the ingredients, she couldn’t help but complain about the awful-looking scones Dave had shaped. But gradually, the shapes started improving, one by one, until they were perfect, and they were almost as good as the ones she made.

Laurent, feeling a bit sour, teased him,

"Wow, you’re really something. It looks like nothing is too hard for you."

He even learned to cut vegetables so quickly. Was he going to be good at everything?

"Not at all."

Dave smiled humbly.

"Right now, there’s one thing that’s making my head hurt."

Laurent, confused, asked,

"What is it?"

He stopped his movements, his gaze deep as he looked at her, then slowly spoke,

"Chasing you."

Laurent froze for a moment, then he continued,

"How can I win you back? It’s really got me stumped. Just thinking about it keeps me up at night, makes food taste bland, and I can’t focus on my work."

Since they were speaking in English, the Browns didn’t understand what they were saying. They were focused on their tasks and didn’t pay much attention to them.

Faced with Dave’s candid confession, Laurent avoided his gaze and said,

"I’ll go check on the food."

Then she quickly turned and ran off.

Dave watched her retreating figure and sighed inwardly, reassuring himself that things couldn’t be rushed.

With everyone’s collective effort, the scones were quickly finished. Though Mrs. Brown, being a beginner, didn’t make them very well, Laurent still gave her a big compliment.

As for the other beginner, Dave, his scones turned out so perfectly that Laurent didn’t even know what to say.

After work, the dinner officially began. The Browns couldn’t stop praising Laurent’s cooking. Laurent placed some food on a small plate, planning to feed her daughter slowly.

Meanwhile, Dave quickly took the plate and placed it in front of himself,

"I’ll take care of it, you hurry up and eat. You’ve been busy all afternoon, you must be starving."

Laurent looked at his serious expression and didn’t say anything, just continued to eat.

If at first their time together was to pretend to be a loving couple to please the Browns, now Laurent felt more and more like his feelings were real.

But what about her?

Had she been moved by his genuine emotions?

Was her heart beginning to waver?