GBP Chapter 321: At the beach
Chapter 321: At the beach
After a long silence, Nina grew increasingly puzzled when Lex still did not respond.
"You... don’t want to?" she asked carefully.
Lex immediately shook his head.
Of course he wanted to. How could he possibly not want to?
The problem was that he did not know what he should do.
After yearning for this chance for so long, Nina had finally decided to give him an opportunity. Yet now...
And still, he could not bring himself to let it go.
He had dreamed of this moment for far too long.
"Then do you want to try?" Nina asked again.
Lex gazed at her quietly.
In the end, the temptation proved impossible to resist.
He nodded.
There was simply no way he could refuse.
Just this once, let him be selfish.
Even if he was destined to leave, he wanted to leave with one beautiful memory he could treasure forever.
"Then let’s start today," Nina said with a smile. "We’ll take the little ones to the beach and spend the day together."
Lex nodded.
A smile curved his lips, but deep within his eyes lingered a sadness he could not hide.
After hesitating briefly, he finally gathered the courage to extend his hand toward her.
Nina smiled softly and slipped her hand into his.
The moment their fingers intertwined, Lex’s heart trembled violently.
This was the first time he had ever held Nina’s hand.
So this was what it felt like...
Her hand was soft. Warm. Comforting.
A sudden ache rose in his chest, so intense it nearly brought tears to his eyes.
At long last, he was holding her hand.
Yet... What was he supposed to do?
They had only just begun, and already he could not bear the thought of letting go.
Lex carefully led Nina toward the children.
His grip remained firm, as though releasing her hand would be the hardest thing in the world.
The other mates stared at their joined hands with varying degrees of dissatisfaction.
It looked as though another fish was about to join the family.
Nina walked over to the children and smiled.
"Little ones, how about Mother takes you to the beach today? We can build sandcastles and collect seashells."
The past few days had been filled with preparations and endless responsibilities. She had hardly had any time to properly play with them.
Now that everything was finished and they still had to wait for Dian to return, it seemed like the perfect opportunity.
The children immediately crowded around her excitedly.
"Yes! Let’s go, Mother!"
Nina instinctively tried to reach out and pick them up, but Lex still refused to release her hand.
He looked at her with such a pitiful expression that she could only laugh helplessly.
In the end, she picked up only Mimi.
"How about everyone walks by themselves today?"
The beach was not far away, and the children had more than enough energy to get there on their own.
The little ones nodded enthusiastically. That was no problem for them.
"Alright then, let’s go!"
The children immediately raced toward the door, laughing and cheering as they ran.
At that moment, Yanai walked over and stopped beside Nina.
"Nina, I won’t be joining you today. I need to make some preparations." His handsome brows lifted slightly, and his smile carried a deeper meaning. "Don’t tire yourself out too much. Save some energy."
Nina instantly understood what he meant.
The night before, she had already told him that there was no need to keep waiting for Dian. They could proceed with their mating ceremony first.
When he heard the news, he was so happy he could hardly contain himself and immediately set the ceremony for that very evening.
In truth, he had wanted it to happen the previous night.
But becoming mates with Nina was one of the most important moments of his life. He wanted everything to be perfect, so he had forced himself to wait one more day.
With such an important occasion approaching, there was much to prepare.
A faint blush spread across Nina’s cheeks.
"I know," she said, giving him a reproachful look.
Talking about something like that in front of everyone.
Yanai chuckled softly before leaning down and pressing a kiss to her cheek.
"Come back early. I’ll be waiting for you."
"Alright, alright. Go make your preparations." Nina smiled as she waved him away.
"Okay."
Yanai accompanied her all the way to the entrance before finally turning back.
Meanwhile, Nina headed toward the beach with Lex still holding her hand.
Ahead of them, the children ran across the path, bouncing and laughing as they raced toward the sea under the bright morning sun.
Just then, Rosen and Shania arrived looking for Nina, and the two women ended up joining them on their outing.
When Lani noticed Lex holding Nina’s hand, surprise flashed across his face.
What was going on? Had his son finally come to his senses?
But considering everything that had happened...
Lani found himself unable to understand Lex’s actions at all.
Rosen, on the other hand, felt nothing but relief.
The stubborn brat had finally gotten his chance.
Nina led the children to a beautiful stretch of beach where the golden sand sparkled beneath the sunlight and the waves rolled gently onto the shore.
Bending down, she casually picked up a seashell and held it up.
"Let’s start with a seashell collecting game. Whoever finds the most shells wins the biggest reward. But remember, no running into the water. The waves can be dangerous and might carry you away."
The children immediately grew excited.
"We know!"
In their minds, they were determined to find the prettiest shells and use them to make jewelry for their mother.
"Alright then," Nina announced with a smile. "The game starts now!"
The children scattered in every direction, eagerly searching the beach for treasures.
To keep them safe, Nina assigned each mate to watch over one child. In addition, every child was accompanied by two mermen guards in case they accidentally wandered too close to the sea.
As for herself, she carried Mimi while Lex accompanied them, and together they searched for shells.
Rosen originally wanted to stay beside Nina, but Lani gently stopped her and shook his head.
Understanding immediately, Rosen pulled Shania away as well, leaving the pair some space while the two women wandered off to entertain themselves nearby.
Nina carried Mimi as she carefully searched the sand beneath her feet.
Lex remained beside her, still holding her hand while helping them look for shells.
Mimi searched with utmost seriousness.
Suddenly, her eyes lit up.
"Mother! Over there!" she exclaimed, pointing excitedly. "There’s a really pretty shell!"
Nina followed her tiny finger and immediately spotted it.
"You found one already?" she praised warmly. "Our Mimi is amazing."
Mimi instantly covered her little face shyly.
"Mother is the amazing one."
In her eyes, no one in the world was more wonderful than her mother.
Nina walked toward the shell.
Before she could bend down, Lex crouched and picked it up first. Using his ability, he washed away the sand clinging to its surface before placing it carefully into Mimi’s hands.
The little girl hugged the shell happily.
Maybe the big bad fish was somewhat useful after all.
At least he could help collect shells with her and Mother so Mother would not get tired.
The three of them continued walking along the shore, gathering shell after shell as they went.
Soon, Mimi’s arms were overflowing with colorful treasures.
Her eyes curved into happy crescents.
"Mother, we found so many! We’re definitely going to win first place this time!"
Nina lowered her head and smiled softly.
"Of course. It’s all thanks to Mimi. We’ll definitely be first."
Since Mimi could not yet transform into her humanoid form, there were many activities she could not fully participate in. More often than not, she could only watch her siblings play.
Nina always felt a little heartache whenever she thought about it.
Watching Mimi’s radiant smile now made her especially happy.
Lex looked at the delighted child before shifting his gaze toward Nina’s smiling face.
Warmth spread through his chest.
This feeling... It was happiness. A kind of happiness he had never experienced before.
Holding Nina’s hand, watching her play with the children, spending an ordinary day together...
For the first time in his life, he felt completely content.
His fingers unconsciously tightened around her hand.
How wonderful it would be if moments like this could last forever.
After some time, the shell collecting contest finally came to an end.
As expected, Mimi won first place.
The children then moved on to building sandcastles. Before long, every single one of them was covered head to toe in sand and dirt.
They spent hours playing by the sea until the children were utterly exhausted.
Only then did Nina gather everyone together and head home.
On the way back, the mates carried the filthy little troublemakers with expressions full of disgust.
Looking at the layers of sand coating the children, they already knew tonight’s bath time would be a long battle.
Meanwhile, Yanai had been waiting at the entrance for quite some time.
The moment he spotted Nina returning, his eyes instantly brightened.
She was finally back.
As soon as they arrived home, Nina instructed the others to take the children for baths.
This time, she joined them as well.
Mimi was especially dirty, covered in sand from head to toe, and Nina wanted to wash her personally.
Rosen and Shania eagerly volunteered to help.
Both women were filled with curiosity and excitement.
Neither of them had ever bathed the little ones before.
After everyone was finally clean again, they gathered together for dinner.
The moment the meal ended, Yanai rose from his seat and swept Nina effortlessly into his arms.
"Nina," he declared without hesitation, "the rest of the evening belongs to me."
Before anyone could react, he carried her away at full speed and disappeared into their room.