Chapter 1600

As evening fell, Eleanor was reviewing documents in the upstairs lounge when she heard her daughter's laughter, followed by the excited barking of Princess welcoming her home. Eleanor's mood instantly brightened, and she headed downstairs.

"Mom, I'm home!" Evelyn called out. She was wearing a cute, preppy school uniform and carrying her backpack, looking absolutely adorable.

Eleanor walked over to take her bag. Just as she turned around, lan strode through the door. His eyes were crinkled in a smile, but there was an unmistakable, lingering heat in his gaze.

Eleanor avoided eye contact. Thinking about what had just happened on his sofa made her way too flustered to look at him straight on.

It wasn't that she couldn't handle it, but after three years of divorce, their physical intimacy had completely reset to zero. Building it back up was going to take some adjusting to the little things.

"Did you check your email? There's a conference in Kingston next week, and we're both on the guest list."

Eleanor shook her head. "I haven't seen it yet. What's it about?"

"The Youth Science and Technology Leaders Forum. It's co-hosted by the Ministry of Science and Technology and a few top-tier universities. It's all about the future intersection of tech and medicine," lan explained.

Eleanor walked over to the sofa, pulled out her phone, and found the invitation waiting in her inbox.

"They've invited top talent from across the board. It's definitely worth attending," lan said, watching her with open anticipation, clearly hoping they could go together.

Intrigued, Eleanor nodded. "Sounds good. We can fly out together."

"It runs Tuesday to Friday next week. Three days total," lan added. "I'll take the private jet."

Hearing this, Evelyn immediately latched onto her dad's leg. "Dad, I wanna go too!"

"Be good, sweetie. Mom and Dad are going for work, not vacation," Ian crouched down to coax her. "When you're all grown up, you'll get to attend cool conferences like this too."

"Really?" Evelyn asked, eyes wide.

"Really." lan stroked her cheek, then glanced up at Eleanor with a smile. "You're going to grow up to be just as incredible as your mom."

Evelyn grinned, throwing her arms around his neck, looking incredibly proud. "I'm gonna study super hard so I can be awesome just like you guys!"

Eleanor couldn't help but smile. Joslyn walked out of the kitchen with a plate of sliced fruit. "Evelyn, go wash your hands and have a snack!"

Evelyn ran off to the sink, with Princess trotting happily right on her heels.

Remembering she still had one last email to send, Eleanor turned to lan. "I need to run upstairs and send something off. Keep an eye on Ellie."

"Go ahead," lan said softly.

Ten minutes later, having finished her snack, Evelyn headed up to the second-floor playroom. lan hung out with her for a bit before making his way toward Eleanor's study.

Hearing footsteps, Eleanor paused her typing. She glanced up at the man walking in

just as she hit send. Stretching, she rubbed her stiff neck.

lan stepped behind her chair and rested his warm, large hands on her tense shoulders.

"Tired?" he murmured, pressing a soft kiss into her hair.

"I'm alright," she replied quietly, her body involuntarily relaxing into his touch.

"Let me help with that," lan said gently. His thumbs dug into her shoulder muscles with the perfect amount of pressure. The familiar warmth and strength of his hands felt incredible Eleanor closed her eyes, completely melting into the massage.

The study was quiet, bathed in the soft, golden light of the setting sun spilling across the floor. The atmosphere was incredibly peaceful.

lan focused entirely on working out the knots in her shoulders, and Eleanor felt the tension bleed away.

"Better?"

"Yeah. Thanks," she hummed, her voice dripping with lazy contentment.

lan let out a low chuckle. He leaned down, his jaw practically resting against her forehead, his warm breath grazing her ear. "Still being so polite with me?"

het

Eleanor's ears flushed. She didn't pull away. The clean, intoxicating scent of cedar radiating from him wrapped around her, making her feel completely and utterly safe content