Chapter 318

At night, Maria Lewis was sorting clothes. The room had a washing machine—she could do it herself or let the staff handle it. She chose to wash them herself; didn’t feel like bothering anyone. Meanwhile, James Bennett was lying on the sofa, telling Ella a bedtime story. Ella handed him a piece of chocolate. The moment he took a bite, he realized something was off—but with Ella staring at him, he didn’t want to spit it out, so he forced it down. Ella gradually drifted off to sleep. James’ cheeks started reddening, and when Maria walked over and saw him, she froze for a second. “What’s going on?” he asked. He shut his eyes for a beat and sighed, resigned. “Ella gave me a liquor-filled chocolate.” “You what?!” Maria blurted, then quickly raised her hand over her mouth so she wouldn’t wake Ella. Lowering her voice, she asked, “Did you bring your allergy meds?” James sat up, patting his head like he was trying to clear the fog. “No. I double-checked when ordering—none of the drinks had alco