A Vengeful Ex-Wife

Chapter 361 It's Mommy

Maria frowned, but found herself unable to protest. She wasn't able to be around Bob that much— but that was exactly why she wanted to refuse Norman's invitation. She wanted to stay in H City and be as close to the child as possible.

Norman continued calmly, "Didn't you want to get back at James? If you ask me, it's because you're too kind to him that he loses his temper with you. Listen to me. Go on vacation with me and let him know what it feels like to miss you."

Maria found herself speechless again. So this was what it meant to be James' enemy. Norman seemed determined to give James a difficult time. "How'd you know we had a scuffle?" she asked.

"I ran into him at dinner yesterday and he seemed to be in a bad mood. I figured he must've been frustrated with you." After all, very few people could anger James enough to show it.

Maria really didn't know what to say to Norman. She wondered to herself if he was a fortuneteller.

"Why did you get close to James in the first place? Do you need me to remind you again?" he pressed.

Maria swallowed a lump in her throat nervously. Why did she approach James? She just wanted to use him, and ultimately, take revenge on him.

"You should make him sad, angry and mad," Norman said. "That will make you happy, right?"

Maria thought to herself, 'Isn't he worried that James will find out about this?'

However, after giving it much thought, she found that Norman's words were reasonable. The next day, she had Bob sent back to Augustine's house. Without informing anyone, she left the country with Norman.Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

Because it was getting cold back home, they decided to go on holiday in a warm place.

Norman chose a cozy little island. It was around thirty degrees Celsius on average, and Maria found herself working up a slight sweat most of the time she was there.

But the delicious sunshine, the tantalizing sea waves, and aromatic seafood made it all worth it.

As she sat in her sun lounger, listening to the waves while eating roasted fish, she smiled to herself without a care in the world.

But whenever she thought about Bob, she couldn't help but feel bad. As a mother, it was a cardinal sin for her to leave her child at home while she went on holiday with another man.

'When Bob is old enough to walk, I will take him here to make it up to him,' she told herself.

The day after Maria left H City, James caught wind of her whereabouts. When he found out she went on a holiday with Norman, his eyes flashed with fury.

He tried his best to keep calm and decided to wait quietly for the next couple of days. However, after three whole days, the woman still didn't bother to call him.

In the villa, with his son in his arms, James stood on the balcony and drank in the cityscape night lights before him. With every minute that passed, he felt more and more resentful.

He lowered his head and looked at the little boy in his arms who was contentedly sucking his little thumb. "I'll call your mom in a while. Cooperate with me and cry hard, okay?"

Bob responded by looking at him blankly.

Then, James made up his mind right then and there and pulled out his phone. Fortunately, Maria picked up the phone. "Hello, Mr. Xi," she said briskly. It seemed she was in a good mood.

James kept silent.

Was she telling him that she was happy with Norman?

"Hello? Why aren't you saying anything? If you don't speak, I'll hang up," Maria said irritably.

Just as she was about to hang up the phone, she heard a cry from the other end of the line.

Maybe he heard his mother's voice over the phone, or maybe he felt sorry for his father. Whatever the reason, it just so happened that Bob chose that moment to burst into tears.

Maria immediately pressed the phone against her ear and said in a reassuring voice, "Bob, my dear baby, don't cry. Mommy is here."

James' eyebrows shot up indignantly. 'Why didn't she call me dear?¹ he wondered.

"James, where are you and Bob?" Maria asked.

Finally, James spoke up. "Did you forget you have a son?"

"Of course not." "How could you let him cry like this? Come back and

comfort him.'¹

"Let's video call," Maria suggested.

"No. If you want to see your son, you'd have to come back." After saying that, the man hung up the phone.

Maria stared at the phone in her hand, speechless.

Bob continued to cry pitifully. James put his phone back into his pocket and rocked him gently. "Alright, alright. Your mom heard you cry, so stop it already."

Heedless of what his father said, the baby continued to wail, even more loudly this time.

James felt helpless. In the end, he had no choice but to gently set down the baby next to a pile of toys. Fortunately, Bob took immediate interest in a toy racing car and he stopped crying the moment he grabbed it.

As Bob calmed down, the phone in James' pocket began to vibrate. Knowing who was calling, he took his sweet time stopping Bob from biting his toy before answering the phone.

Because he didn't pick up the phone right away, Maria switched to video call.

To her slight surprise, he answered it.

The woman in a long silk dress came into view on his phone screen. He stared at her and said nothing.

"Where is my son?" Maria demanded.

"Ms. Song, I'm surprised you remembered you have a son," he retorted.

Maria rolled her eyes at him impatiently. "Mr. Xi, what are you talking about? Of course I know I have a son. What is Bob up to?¹'

She had heard his cries just before James hung up seconds earlier, but now she heard nothing.

James pointed the phone camera at Bob, who was among the pile of toys. The child was holding up a toy racing car, biting at it fiercely.

Maria knew that Bob's toys were sterilized every day, so she didn't try to stop him. She just called him dotingly, "Baby Bob, it's Mommy!"

James frowned. This way this woman treated her son was extremely different from how she treated the father.

Upon hearing his mother’s voice, the little boy perked up and saw Maria on the phone screen. He chuckled in delight at the sight of his mother. He sputtered and gurgled, as though he was trying to tell Maria something.

"Bob, good boy, playing with your toys." Maria smiled affectionately. "What gift do you want, my dear? I'll bring it when I come back."

"Phew!" Bob held up the toy racing car excitedly, as though he understood what Maria said.

Then James pointed the camera back to himself and said, "Since you magically remembered you have a son, I'll send someone to pick you up tomorrow."

"No, thanks. I'm not done having fun here." Secretly, she felt relieved to see James taking good care of Bob.

James had to take a deep breath to stop himself from exploding in a fit of rage. He cast her a cold glance and ended the call abruptly.

Knowing that he was angry, Maria shrugged and left it at that. She made no attempt to call him back.

On the other end of the line, James stared at his son and said flatly, "Your mother doesn't want you anymore." But just then, he seemed to realize something. "No, that's not true. She doesn't want us. She ran away to be with a bad guy."

Bob flailed his arms and legs, ignoring whatever he said.

James wasn't a talkative man. Besides, Bob couldn't understand a word he was saying, so he said nothing more.

Instead, he unlocked his phone and checked Maria's WeChat Moments. She had just posted a picture. It showed her, wearing a diving suit, swimming amongst a school of fish at the depths of the sea.

The caption of the photo was, "If you love her, you'll take her on a holiday."

James frowned. 'Is she telling me that Norman loves her?'

But the truth was, Maria didn't give that caption much thought. Norman was on holiday with another beautiful girl. She spent most of her time on the island alone. Occasionally, she would hang out with Norman's girl when he was busy, but that was it.