Chapter 735

"To be honest, I never thought I'd see your father under these circumstances," Adriaan said gloomily as he looked at the scenery outside the car window.

"Then under what circumstances do you want to see my father? When Mary starts school, or when she graduates from university? "Jessica, who was sitting beside him, asked. Adrian was immediately stumped.

"I knew it, Eide. You never thought about it." Jessica sighed. "If you could, you'd want my father to never find out … that his daughter has become the mother of the child."

"Okay, I admit, I did forget about it." Adrian grabbed one of her hands and raised his other hand. "But I never thought of hiding this from your father forever. This kind of thing can't be hidden forever. The sooner we tell them, the higher the chance we have of getting their forgiveness. Okay, what I want to say is, Joshua spilling the beans might be a good thing for us. "

"Really?" Jessica blinked. "You won't vent your anger on Joshua, right?"

"I won't, I promise." Adriaan said seriously. He then looked at the scenery outside the car window and coughed. He pretended to be nonchalant and asked, "By the way, you said that after your father found out that you even had a child, he almost went back to his room to get a gun. Is that true?"

Jessica suddenly smiled. Her eyes were curved like crescent moons, and she looked a little proud. She was very cute.

"Don't worry, Eide." She dragged her voice as if she had found his weakness. "My father is usually very kind, but he's a little more serious. Remember not to look away when you meet his eyes, or else he'll think you're guilty."

Her smile was so wide that even her pearly white teeth were exposed. Normally, Adriaan would have moved closer to tease her, but now he just raised his eyebrows. "Okay."

Soon, the car arrived at their destination. After giving the driver some instructions, Adriaan took out the gift — an expensive bottle of red wine from Dichen Winery. He then took Jessica to the door and rang the doorbell. Soon, they heard footsteps on the other side of the door, and then Joshua appeared in front of them. At the same time, he let out a sigh of relief.

"Hi, Eide, welcome to our house." Joshua greeted them warmly, then winked at them and mouthed, "Be careful."

"Hello, Joshua, it's nice to see you." Adriaan nodded and entered the room with Jessica.

The living room wasn't big. They could see Jessica's mother, Katherine Alba, who was playing with Mary on the sofa. Jessica's father, Mark Alba, was sitting on the chair next to them and looking at them with a smile.

"Dad." Mary was the first to discover the figures of her parents. She immediately called out, then threw down the toy in her hand, raised her arms, and ran over shakily.

"Hey, Mary." Adriaan smiled and squatted down to pick her up. Then, he took a bite on her chubby little face. The three-year-old little girl was chubby and cute. "Did you have fun at Grandpa and Grandma's house?"

"Yes, Grandma is very good at telling stories. She's not inferior to Dad at all, but Grandpa doesn't like to laugh." The little girl said in a childish voice and looked at the Alba couple.

Mark, who had already stood up, changed his smile and looked at Adriaan with a very unfriendly gaze. He seemed to hate him very much, and he didn't even try to hide it. Catherine maintained a polite smile, but the look in her eyes was rather complicated. There was worry and helplessness.

Just as Adriaan was about to say something, he vigilantly tilted his head back, and the little girl who wanted to sneak attack him missed.

"Mary, what did I say? That's not a good habit. " Adriaan glared at his daughter. He didn't bite Mary, but he wasn't angry at all. He just kept giggling.

"Are Dad's ears so … delicious?" Adriaan asked angrily. She liked to bite his face when she was a few months old. Now she was more than three years old, but she still couldn't change it. It was really depressing.

"Yes." Mary immediately nodded her head vigorously, as if it was clockwork. Her naughty and cute look made the people around her laugh, except for Mark Alba. Well, he still curled up the corner of his mouth, but he still looked at Adriaan with disgust.

"Jessie, are you sure Mary's hobby isn't inherited from you?" Adriaan looked at Jessica.

"Why not you?" Jessica asked with a smile. "We don't have this kind of hobby in our family, but —"

She reached out and took her daughter from his arms. "I still think that Mary is standing up for me. She knows that Mom has been wronged, and she wants to get justice for Mom."

Adriaan rolled his eyes and glanced at Joshua, who was snickering. He then extended his hand to Jessica's mother. "Hello, Katherine. I'm sorry that I only came to see you today. Please call me Adriaan or Eide."

"Hello, Adriaan." Katherine still maintained a complicated but polite smile as she shook hands with him.

"Hello, Mark …" Adriaan then turned to Mark, who snorted. "I don't think our relationship has reached that stage yet."

But then Katherine gently pushed her husband, and Mark reluctantly held his hand. "Up to you."

"Thank you." Adriaan maintained his gentlemanly demeanor, and only when he let go of Mark did he inwardly gasp. Mark had used a lot of strength in his hand. Although it wasn't to the extent that he screamed, it didn't feel good either. Mark was a little shorter than him, but because he had served in the army, he was quite big. In addition, his skin was relatively dark, and standing in front of him was quite oppressive. It seemed that dinner tonight wouldn't be so easy.

Although Mark Alba's attitude made the atmosphere in the living room stiff, it slowly livened up under Katherine's adjustment. Besides, Mark continued to express his disgust for Adriaan unreservedly, and basically didn't say anything rude. So, the atmosphere was relatively harmonious until dinner.

"To be honest, it won't be easy. Everyone knows that Film school doesn't like non-realistic works, but it's not like there's no chance at all. But it's not like there's no chance at all. The Film Academy has been constantly seeking for change and innovation in the past two years. They're taking in young people to make themselves less old-fashioned, so I still have some confidence. " While eating a sumptuous dinner on the dining table, Adriaan took the opportunity to explain his work to Katherine.

Since he couldn't communicate with his father for the time being, he might as well start with his mother. In fact, he had been trying to please Catherine with his words for the entire night, and it was indeed effective. But at the same time, it also caused Catherine to look at him as if … she was looking at her son-in-law.

"Sounds great." Katherine smiled and raised her glass. "Maybe we should propose a toast to you. May you break a record."

"Thank you." Adriaan also raised the glass in his hand. After taking a small sip, he picked up a napkin from the side and wiped the corners of Mary's mouth.

"Be careful of your chin. Also, why didn't you eat a single bean?" After wiping her mouth, Adriaan gently knocked on her plate.

"I don't like it." Mary pouted and shook her head coquettishly.

"That won't do. I've already given you very little. You can't not eat any." Adriaan raised his finger and shook it like a good dad.

"But my sister said that we have to fight against the big bad daddy." Mary was still pouting. Her serious look made Joshua and the others burst into laughter.

"Alright, Mary. If that's the case, you can either choose to fight and lose, or you can choose to fight and pay the price. A very big price." Adriaan 'threatened' her. The little one blinked her eyes, and after a while, she reluctantly picked up the spoon and scooped the beans on the plate, sending them into her mouth.

"That's a good girl." Adriaan praised her before turning his attention back to the dining table. He happened to see Katherine's unhappy expression.

It was not surprising. Mary had talked about her sister many times before this. He and Jessica only had one child, so it was easy to imagine who her sister was. Even if Katherine liked Adriaan because of his demeanor, she might not be too happy in the face of such a situation. But it did not matter. To settle this matter, it was useless to gain Katherine's favor alone.

"So, Adriaan." Mark spoke at this time, his eyes fixed on Adriaan. "As a Hollywood playboy, what do you think?"

"It's the truth." Adriaan shrugged, not evading the question at all. "I'm indeed a playboy."

"Still are." Mark raised an eyebrow.

"Yes!" Adriaan was still so calm, even though Jessica glanced at him. "Dating different women always gives me a lot of inspiration, and then turns it into works. For example, 'Keep the Last Dance'. At first, it was just an ordinary dance story. After I had an idea, I gave it to other screenwriters and no longer paid attention to it. But after constant contact with Jessie, some of her feelings suddenly reminded me of this idea, so there was the story you saw in the cinema. Until now, I like Jessie's dance at the end. It was very good. "

After that, he smiled at Jessica in response. Jessica lowered her head, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly. It seemed that she still missed that time.

Adriaan's words were very sincere, and at least the facts seemed to be true. But as parents, Mr. and Mrs. Alba would never accept this statement. However, it was also difficult for them to refute, because no one fit the description of this sentence better than him. There were many directors in Hollywood who claimed that women were the source of their inspiration, such as Roman Rolansky, Warren Beatty, Woody Allen, etc., but compared to Adriaan, they were insignificant.

Not to mention the inspiration about Jessica, the women who became famous because of him, and the ideas he continuously provided for the entire group, just the fact that he had won five Oscar Best Actress Awards in five years was enough to make a lot of people look at him. Even if this was different from abducting their daughter, in the face of such a powerful fact, it was not good for them to say anything. Should they make a scene without any manners? Don't forget, they were the ones who "invited" him over.

So, Mark asked another question calmly, "You don't plan to get married, do you?"

"I did before, but now, it's impossible." Adriaan was still very sincere.

His words immediately cooled the atmosphere in the room. Katherine did not say anything again, and Jessica was also lost in thought. Joshua rolled his eyes and wanted to say something, but in the end, he did not say anything. Dinner came to an end just like that. After clearing the table and staying in the living room for a few more minutes, Adriaan and Mark went upstairs together to … talk between men.

"I don't like it, Mr. Kewell, not at all," Mark said impolitely after entering the room. He even changed the way he addressed him.

"I can understand, Mark." Adriaan smiled carelessly. "If Mary grows up and gets involved with a playboy, or even gives birth to a child at 18 years old, I will also be very angry and want to kill him."

A simple sentence blocked what Mark wanted to say. No matter what, he was the one who "invited" him over, even if he had to do so. So even if he wanted to kill someone after finding out, he should have calmed down now. Adriaan did not need to show weakness to Mark. He was not Jessica.

"I did some research, Mr. Kewell. I believe there are many girls like Jessie who have been deceived by you." After staring at him for a while, Mark said casually.

"I think you used the wrong word." Adriaan raised his finger and shook it. "I have never deceived Jessie. She knows everything about me."

"Jessie is my daughter. I know her very well. She is not the kind of girl who is frivolous. I have reason to believe that you have hinted or threatened her so that she has no choice but to be with you," Mark said sternly.

"In the beginning, there was indeed a little. I never denied that if Jessie wanted to leave, I would not stop her. I would send my blessings." Adriaan spread his hands. "Of course, Mary is my child. I will not give her to anyone."

"You finally admit it?" Mark sneered and chased after him. "It's not that I haven't seen young rich men and playboys like you. Once you like a girl, you will chase after her. When you are tired of her, you will irresponsibly throw her aside. Don't pretend to be innocent in front of me, boy!"

Adriaan narrowed his eyes. He really didn't like Mark's attitude. What did he think he was? A criminal?

"I believe you should know, Mark, that Jessie and I are in accordance with the law." He raised his eyebrows and said, then raised his index finger before the other party could speak. "You know, Jessie came to tell me that when she accidentally got pregnant, there was actually a better solution: find a hospital for an abortion. I believe that with my ability, it is not difficult to find a hospital and a doctor who can keep her mouth shut. Besides, the pregnancy is only three weeks, so it is not troublesome. I will pay Jessie a nutrition fee and never see her again. You may never know what she has been through! "

Mark's face immediately darkened.

"But I didn't think about that." Adriaan said quickly, "Not even for a second. This has nothing to do with Catholicism and whether the fertilized egg is alive or not. From the beginning, I made my decision based on what to do after the child is born. No matter what, the child in Jessie's stomach is my child, and I will not let my child wander outside. You can accuse me of being a playboy and a jerk. You can say that I have a moral defect, but you can never say that I am irresponsible! Absolutely not! "

The swift yet sonorous words rendered Ma Ke speechless for a moment.

"With all due respect, Mark, you may care about Jessie, but in my opinion, you are only half a qualified father." Adriaan became more and more impolite. "Yes, you have educated her well. Frankly, although Jessie likes to play around, she can hold her bottom line better than most girls in Hollywood. This is the credit of you and Catherine, but you don't understand what she really wants."

"You said I don't understand what my daughter wants?" Mark frowned, but Adriaan ignored him and continued, "I still remember the first time I saw Jessie. She just stood there, in the studio, in front of the camera, eager to show her charm, eager to be recognized by people. But at the same time, she was very afraid. What if she messed up? What if everyone didn't like her? She wanted to show off so much, but she was so afraid, worried, and insecure. That kind of contradictory feeling immediately attracted me, and this is the origin of 'Keep the Last Dance'. "

At this point, he let out a long sigh. "Jessie told me stories about her childhood. She was sick, hospitalized for a long time, kept moving around, lacked friends, and so on. At the same time, her parents were too strict with her. I don't want to say that this is wrong. There is no doubt that children need to be disciplined, but at the same time, they can't feel like they are trapped in a birdcage, looking at the clouds in the sky but not daring to spread their wings and fly. This is the problem of communication, Mark. Fathers are children's role models. They may be rebellious and disobedient when they grow up, but the image of their fathers will always remain in their hearts. Therefore, whether or not they are willing to communicate with you, and whether or not they can confide in you, depends on their previous communication methods. "

Mark's expression changed.

"Maybe you think that I was fooling around with Mary today for you to see, to leave a good impression on you." Adriaan still did not stop. "But you are wrong. I have always communicated with Mary like this. I communicate with all children like this. I think I can still be a good father."

"You can't protect Jessie forever. You can't use your rules and regulations to restrain her forever, Mark, but you can be an umbrella for her when she needs it," he finally said.