You're Just My Ex-Husband,My Lord-Chapter 181- heart broken

Dave waved Morrison’s hand away in annoyance.

"I know the way myself."

He had stayed here enough times to know which room was the guest room.

But Morrison was oddly persistent, insisting on leading him. When Dave reached the guest room he usually stayed in, Morrison quickly pushed him past it and led him to the room at the end of the hallway.

"That room’s under renovation. You can stay here," Morrison said with an awkward chuckle.

Dave found Morrison’s behavior a little strange. Also, just before he went upstairs, he had noticed a watch on the cabinet beside the staircase. It looked familiar—like Lilian’s.

He remembered it because he was the one who had gifted it to her. It was a limited-edition piece, and the back of the dial had Lilian’s initials engraved on it.

However, given his current state of mind, he didn’t have the energy to dwell on it. He simply turned, pushed the door open, and threw himself onto the bed, shutting his eyes.

Morrison leaned casually against the doorframe, watching Dave with amusement.

"Is heartbreak really this painful?"

As a lifelong playboy, Morrison had never experienced heartbreak. He truly couldn’t understand why Dave looked as if he had lost the will to live.

Morrison rolled his eyes.

"This woman leaves, another one will take her place. Isn’t that how it works?"

Why hang yourself on a single tree?

Of course, that was just Morrison’s philosophy—one of indulgence and fleeting love. Someone like Dave, who was devoted to a fault, would never understand it, just as Morrison could never comprehend Dave’s unwavering attachment.

Dave yanked the blanket over his head, clearly wanting to block out the world. Morrison assumed he wouldn’t get an answer and was about to leave when he heard a muffled voice from beneath the covers.

"...Feels like I’ve been hollowed out..."

"...Like I’ve lost both my arms..."

Morrison sighed in exasperation.

It seemed his friend had well and truly had his heart broken this time.

Tiffany stood by, watching as Alex insisted on leaving the hospital.

"You really don’t have to rush, Dad," Laurent tried to persuade him.

"I’m fine," Alex said firmly. "No need to waste time in a hospital bed when I can rest just as well at home."

Laurent sighed but didn’t argue further. He had always been stubborn, and once he made up his mind, there was no changing it.

Meanwhile, Tiffany was placing the containers of home-cooked food on a side table, her expression calm yet unreadable.

"These meals should last you through the evening," she said.

Alex glanced at her, a trace of warmth flickering in his eyes.

"Thank you, Tiffany."

She nodded slightly but didn’t say much else. Her gaze, however, lingered on him for a moment longer than necessary before she turned away to tidy up.

Laurent observed the silent exchange but chose not to comment.

Danny soon arrived to help with the discharge process, and within the hour, they were ready to leave.

As they walked out of the hospital, Laurent couldn’t shake the feeling that, despite everything, old wounds had yet to fully heal between her parents.

Tiffany called the driver from Burg Eltz and arranged for a slightly larger car, insisting that the driver take them home.

Emma hadn’t gone to school that day. After the terrifying incident, she had clung to Laurent the entire time. Now, hearing that Laurent was about to leave, the little girl buried herself in her mother’s arms, unwilling to let go.

Tiffany, watching from the side, gently suggested, "Why don’t you let Emma stay with you for a few days? After everything that’s happened, she’ll probably feel safest with her mother."

Laurent held her daughter a little tighter and nodded. "Then please help me request a leave from her kindergarten for the next few days."

She couldn’t bear to part with her daughter either, especially after what Emma had just been through.

Once everything was packed and ready, Alex and Cassy got into the car. Tiffany, however, stopped Laurent before she could get in, asking her to hand Emma over to Cassy first.

"I have something to talk to you about," Tiffany said.

Laurent gently passed her daughter to Cassy, closed the car door, and turned to Tiffany. Standing across from her, Tiffany spoke in a calm, measured tone.

"Dave asked me to relay a question—would you like to take back custody of Emma? If you want, he’s willing to give it up."

Since yesterday, Dave had not shown up. He must have known that Laurent didn’t want to see him, nor did she welcome his presence. Even when it came to something as important as their daughter’s custody, he had chosen to communicate through his mother.

Laurent had calmed down completely by now. After a brief moment of thought, she shook her head.

"No, let her stay with you. She’s still so young—I don’t want to uproot her life again."

Adapting to a new living environment is difficult even for an adult, let alone a three-year-old child.

Laurent thought it over and decided not to put Emma through unnecessary upheaval, even though she deeply longed to live with her daughter.

She turned back to Tiffany and said, "Once she’s feeling better in a few days, I’ll bring her back."

Tiffany was only there to pass along her son’s message. Since Laurent had already made her decision, she didn’t press further. Instead, she gave Laurent a small wave and said, "Got it. Now hurry up and get in the car—you should get some rest."

Laurent nodded, politely bidding Tiffany farewell before getting into the car. The driver took off, heading toward the small town.

After watching them leave, Tiffany turned and walked toward a black car parked not far away. She opened the door, got in, and spoke to the man in the driver’s seat.

"She said to leave the custody arrangement as it is—she doesn’t want to disrupt Emma’s life."

The man behind the wheel was Dave. He had been sitting there the whole time, silently watching Laurent and the others depart.

She didn’t want to see him. But he still wanted to see her. This was the only way he could.

Hearing his mother’s words, Dave let out a quiet "Mm" before starting the engine and driving off, taking Tiffany home.

Tiffany glanced sideways at her son’s exhausted face.

"Are you just going to keep watching from a distance forever?"

In her memory, her son had always been quiet but full of confidence. He had once carried himself with effortless charm, a young man in fine clothes, unburdened by hardships.