Dumped My Cheating Ex. Now I'm Sleeping Next to a Billionaire CEO novel Chapter 1396

Too lazy to bicker about trivial things anymore, James, having chatted with his friend for a while, only wanted to get back to his wife. So, he stated the purpose of his visit. "Next up, I need to use your intelligence network. Open up the clearance for me on your end."

Although they both had their own information channels, James's sources were mostly tied to the military and high-level officials. While precise, obtaining information from the gray areas was often inconvenient for him. On the other hand, Steve's detective agency mingled with all sorts of people from every walk of life. Their methods were unorthodox, making it much faster to acquire certain rumors and back-alley intel. Because of this, James often borrowed Steve's network.

Steve was straightforward about it. Picking up his phone, he tapped away. "I have to rest and recover for a while anyway, and I don't have the energy to manage it. I'll temporarily dump the intel network on you to handle for me." He showed the phone screen to James, indicating that the access had been granted, and it was the highest level of clearance. "As a trade," Steve said, putting his phone away. His eyes darted mischievously as he gave a wicked smile. "Have your wife contact Sylvia and pass a message on my behalf. Just say that my palate is extremely picky right now, and I can't stomach a single bite of the hospital food. I just want to eat the beef noodle soup she makes herself. If she doesn't come..." Steve gritted his teeth, intentionally threatening, "Then I'll terminate all commercial cooperation between the Michell family and the Moore family!"

...

Early the next morning.

Emmy woke up in a warm, familiar embrace. The reassuring, crisp scent belonging to James lingered at the tip of her nose. Slowly opening her eyes, the first things she saw were the man's sexy Adam's apple and the distinct lines of his collarbones beneath his open pajama collar. James was still sleeping soundly. Emmy didn't move, just quietly gazing at him.

At this moment, his sleeping face was exceptionally serene. Yet, Emmy sharply noticed the faint dark circles under his eyes that had yet to fade. Those were the marks of long-term sleep deprivation and extreme overwork. Clearly, for the past two days, he hadn't rested well at all because of her.

Emmy's heart clenched fiercely, a dense, pervasive ache spreading through her. Her gaze slowly, greedily traced his features, from the sharp peaks of his eyebrows to the high bridge of his nose, down to his perfectly shaped, thin lips. She couldn't help but remember the James from three years ago. Back then, in her eyes, he was just an ordinary fire captain. Even though he was constantly braving danger and bearing heavy burdens on the line of life and death, his life felt relaxed and joyful. He wasn't like this now, with so much worry and heaviness hidden in his brow, carrying an exhaustion that couldn't be concealed.

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