CHAPTER 247: CHAPTER 247: MY MOM DOESN’T LIKE YOUR UNCLE

Tanya didn’t expect Julian Poole to come by so early in the morning.

She originally planned not to answer the door and to pretend no one was home, but the next second Julian called her phone, and it just happened to be in her hand. The ringtone was loud enough for him to hear clearly from outside the door.

He already guessed she was standing behind the door and smiled at the camera.

Tanya: "..."

Helplessly, she opened the door.

"What’s up?"

Julian raised the breakfast he had specifically packed, "Bought too much, and since Caden is here, I thought I’d bring it over for you both."

Tanya furrowed her brows in confusion, "How do you know Caden..."

She didn’t finish because Caden, having finished washing up, heard the commotion and came over. Upon seeing Julian, he greeted him politely.

"Hello, Uncle Poole."

There wasn’t a hint of surprise.

Tanya already guessed that Caden and Julian’s nephew, Kaj, had communicated, which is why Julian knew Caden slept over the night before.

"Hello, Caden." Julian bent down to meet Caden’s gaze and smiled, "This shop’s soup dumplings are delicious. Uncle queued up specifically to buy them. Want to try?"

Caden was indeed a bit hungry, but he looked to his mom for her reaction.

Tanya couldn’t resist her son’s puppy eyes, and she stepped aside to let Julian in.

Tanya went to the kitchen to get some plates while Julian placed the steaming hot buns onto them. He’d bought other items too—corn, eggs, even porridge—so full the table almost couldn’t fit it all.

Tanya: "Are you moving the breakfast shop here?"

Julian replied calmly, "Not knowing Caden’s taste, I bought a bit of everything."

He knew Tanya cared most about her child, so he aimed to impress through Caden, ensuring he wouldn’t go wrong.

Julian wasn’t off the mark; Tanya saw her son eating happily and did not say anything further.

Caden was very captivated by computers, and Julian happened to be the CEO of a tech company. The two started chatting, and the more Caden talked, the more excited he became, his eyes shining with the lively innocence typical of his age.

Julian smiled, "If you’re free, I can take you to visit my company and check out the latest system."

Caden seemed visibly tempted and looked at Tanya to get her approval, "Mom, can I?"

Tanya could see Caden really liked Julian.

She pushed the milk towards Caden, "We’ll see. Drink your milk first, then go change clothes and get ready for school."

"Alright." Caden jumped off the chair and ran back to his room to change into his school uniform.

At the dining table, only Tanya and Julian were left, and the atmosphere noticeably cooled.

Tanya stood up, planning to bring the plates into the kitchen, but Julian took the initiative and carried two plates away.

"Let me help you."

The two went into the kitchen, which wasn’t very spacious.

"You can just leave them," Tanya said.

Julian didn’t respond and simply rolled up his sleeves, quickly and neatly washing the plates.

He dried his hands and looked at Tanya.

"Tanya, have you been avoiding me because of Cindy Lynn?" Julian pursed his lips slightly, with a touch of guilt, "That night, leaving you to see Cindy, and lying to you was my fault. It’s just that things happened suddenly on Cindy’s side, and it was urgent. Plus, I know things have been awkward between you two because of Vincent Hawthorne, and I didn’t want you to overthink..."

Tanya interrupted him.

"You don’t need to explain to me; whoever you see is your personal matter." Tanya said, "But you need to explain to the military and Professor Carter about the confidential data you gave Cindy Lynn."

Julian chuckled bitterly, "You already knew. Rest assured, Tanya, I won’t evade responsibility. I’ve already withdrawn from the project collaboration... And Cindy Lynn, I won’t have any contact with her anymore."

"Who you contact is your business." Tanya reiterated, "Julian, you don’t need to report to me."

Julian lowered his head, chuckling slightly, "Alright, as long as you don’t dislike me."

Tanya: "..."

She felt a headache, "Julian, I don’t dislike you, but I don’t like you either."

"I never hoped that you’d like me in a short time." Julian looked at her, gently and seriously, "I can wait. No matter how long."

Tanya took a light breath and was about to speak when Caden was already dressed, carrying his little backpack.

"Mom, I’m ready." Caden was a bit curious, "What were you two talking about?"

Tanya composed her expression and gently smiled at her son, "Talking about grown-up stuff, come on. Mom will take you to school. Uncle Poole still has work to do, say bye to Uncle Poole."

"Bye, Uncle Poole."

Julian knew Tanya was indirectly asking him to leave. If he shamelessly stayed, she’d end up disliking him. He wasn’t in a rush; he had the patience and time to wait for her.

"Bye, Caden."

After Julian left, Tanya took Caden downstairs directly to the underground garage, drove to take him to school.

Caden sat in the back seat, holding a small notebook, writing something.

Tanya glimpsed her son through the rearview mirror, "Caden, do you like Uncle Poole?"

It couldn’t be called ’like’; it was just okay.

Caden thought for a moment and then replied very carefully, "On a scale of ten, he currently scores 8.5."

Analyzing from various dimensions, Julian turned out quite nice...

Tanya couldn’t help but laugh, "Why did you even rate him?"

When mom married dad, he wasn’t born yet, so he couldn’t help mom make decisions.

But now, he wasn’t a mere three or four-year-old child; he was going to seriously guard mom’s happiness! Evaluate every man who wants to be his stepdad!

Caden tilted his little head and asked, "Mom, do you like Uncle Poole?"

Tanya didn’t treat Caden like a kid to be fooled. She answered seriously, "If we’re talking romance or marriage, mom can tell you right now, not at all."

"..."

Mom doesn’t like him, so that’s three points deducted!

Caden put away his notebook and messaged Kaj: [My mom doesn’t like your uncle; he’s down three points. He needs to try harder.]