The Ex and Her Riches novel (Gwendolyn and Maverick)

Chapter 723 The Inevitable Bet

Chades thought Zendaya was crying because she fell bel about his injuries

The never imagined the young girl to throw a tantrum because she had not seen him

her were a mislealation. She’s just a checky little girl

Zendaya cried so much that she suffered a fit of hiccup

Nico hurriedly patted her back and coased. “Don’t worry, Zendy Uncle Charles will wear it eventually He’s still

injured, Hugging his cast like that will be painful for him

At the same time, he shot Charles a frantic glance.

Charles got the memo and immediately grasped his cast with his left hand He inhaled sharply and knimed his

brows, appearing to be in deep pain

His acting did the trick, and Zendaya obediently let go of his cast. She sat beside him and stared at him with puppy

dog eyes.

“Did I hurt Uncle Charles?”

Charles smiled tenderly at her and said, “It’s okay. I can handle it.”

Once again. Nico rolled his eyes at Charles’ flamboyant acting

Zendaya stared intently at Charles’ cast and asked softly, “I thought I could finally see Uncle Charles and Uncle Nico

in dresses today. I didn’t know your injuries were so bad. How long did you need to recover””

“About…” Charles looked to Nico for guidance.

Nico began an extensive pantomime behind Zendaya.

He raised three fingers, and Charles instantly understood his message.

“It takes longer to recover from broken bones. The doctor said I’ll need at least a hundred days to fully recover, so

that’ll be about three months.”

Nico nodded in satisfaction and discreetly shot Charles a thumbs-up in approval.

The answer brought a frown to Zendaya’s face. She appeared to be in deep thought before finally asking “Will it

really take that long? Daddy said Uncle Charles trained in fighting since young, so his body is very strong. He should

recover in a few days.

The two men struggled to come up with a reply.

Zendaya pouted, her scrutinizing gaze traveling between the two men. After some time, she said accusingly. “Uncle

Charles, Uncle Nico, are you lying to me because you don’t want to carry out the bes

Her question sent alarm bells ringing in their heads

Haje can we fool a shrewd little thing like you?

“Of course not” Charles was the first to speak up. He declared firmly “Once I’m fully recovered Ill carry out the bes,

I’m not the sort of man who will make empty promises Nico

This arms silently and narrowed his gaze Charles

Down? he golty about lying so her face? He must be at fooling gullible lite gire

Amat his thoughts, Zendaya suddenly turned her altregion to Nicw

She seemed to be wordlessly asking him a question with her tearful gaze and p posse

Her long eyelashes were clumped together after being het by her tears, making her adorable

Nico’s heart skipped a beat. He was no match for her poful gaze

He spunered. “That me too! Since it’s a bet and one notarized by a lawyer in a contract, leely honor

I’ll it Besides, this was Mr. Jenson’s punishment. I would ever lie to weasel my way out of r

Guess I’m not too shabby at tricking children after all it

Charles leaned against the headboard and lazily arched a brow His blue eyes shot Nico a

Nico responded with a glare

They seemed to be challenging each other through their stares. an

Zendaya looked between Charles and Nico before voicing her protest. “That’s not true Uncle Nicol

Confused. Nico asked, “Why not?”

“The bet states that you must clean a restroom while wearing a dress You have to do it eventually. If you’re not

injured, why not do it today, Uncle Nico

Nico fumbled for a way to save his pride. He muttered. Im not in a rush. Let me do it with Charles. We can book out

all the restrooms in the lab. Isn’t that better!”

Mirth danced in Charles’ eyes as he silently watched Nico’s downfall.

To Nico’s dismay, Zendaya smiled empathetically and said, “It’s okay if you don’t do it with Uncle Charles In fact,

you can show him how to do it now!”

That’s okay for you, but not for me!

Sull, Nico had run out of excuses to put off his bet. He looked to Charles for help, hoping the latter could help to

distract Zendaya from her mission.

Alas. Charles was happy to jump on the bandwagon and commented, “I think that’s a great sles. As the deputy

director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, he should show a citizen like me Besides, Mr. Nico isn’t injured and is

perfectly healthy I would be disappointed in myself if

delayed Mr Jenson’s punishment”

Zendays nodded hastily in agreement. “You’re right, Uncle Charles. I fully agree?

Then she turned around to look at Nico and suggested “Let’s go. Uncle Nico. The mail’s dress is already prepared

for you. Otc, and for a better effect. I even prepared a wig for you The camer

Now was honibed

Chills ran down his spine, though he did not dwell on his misfortune for long. He was going to drag Charles down

with him.

Nico declared. “We can’t disappoint Zendy after her careful preparations, can we? I can’t enjoy the fruns of her

labor alone!”

His wicked gaze filled Charles with a sense of foreboding

Nico announced. “Stop acting, Charles. Remove the casts. I knew you were pretending to be injured from the

beginning: I just didn’t want to expose your lies. But now, I can’t get over my guilt of tricking Zendy. It’s time to own

up.”

“Trick me!” Zendaya tilted her head in confusion and stared intently at her godfather.

Charles’ words caught in this throat.

The decision to confess was taken out of his hands by Nico, who grabbed a small rubber hammer and broke the

cast over his leg.

“Well, Charles, are you going to celebrate my misfortune? Too bad for you, we’re going down together!”

He raised the small hammer and accurately struck a nerve on Charles’ kneecap, taking care to control his strength.

Charles left leg muscles twitched involuntarily in response.

Nico said in amazement. “This leg’s doing pretty well, isn’t it? It looks nice and straight, and the muscles are still

firm. I wonder where the broken bones are?”

A glum Charles could only purse his lips in silence.

“Hmm?” Zendaya was surprised and pulled at Charles left leg. She asked curiously, “Are your broken bones all

better, Uncle Charles?“

Charles could only reply through gritted teeth. “It was quite numb, but after your Uncle Nico struck my leg, it’s

suddenly good as new. His medical skills are so extraordinary that he should be a legendary doctor!”

Nico appeared pleased as punch at how things had turned out. He even gave himself a massage on the shoulders

with the small rubber hammer.

Yes, his doom was near, but he would not be alone.

Charles made the error of betraying him first, so Nico had no qualms about digging both their graves

The twist of events cheered Zendaya up. She exclaimed, “That’s great! Now that Uncle Charles is all better you can

both wear dresses together! Let’s go! Let’s carry out the bet today!”

Charles was moodily dragged out of bed. He removed the fake cast on his right arm and silently followed Zendaya

out of the Newton residence.

On the way to the labs. Zendaya sat in the middle of the backseat with Charles on her left and Nico on her right

Sandwiched between the two men, she seemed even smaller than usual.

Zendaya skillfully used her smartwatch to call Benedict

The line connected, and she said, “Benny, we’ll be at the lab in half an hour. Is everything ready? Oh right Uncle

Nico and Uncle Charles are both coming. Uncle Charles is all better. You can’t even tell that he was injured.”

She added. “Remember to check everything. Benny. There should be two wigs, two maid dresses, two pairs of long

black socks… ah, and two pairs of black loafers! Those super cute ones!”

Charles and Nico had been watching the scenery outside the window during Zendaya’s call. Both men were close to

losing their nerves after her phone call.

Did I hear her correctly? Long black socks? Is it the type of socks I’m imagining now?

Nico had paled considerably at the thought of putting on Zendaya’s handpicked costume.

His fear was akin to the panic before a natural disaster.

Can I still escape if I jump out of the car now?