Chapter 123: Chapter 123: Naomi Kenway Really Has a Way with Kids

“Where did Jared Woods go?” Naomi Kenway frowned. She had only looked away for a moment to fix Carina Sanders’s hair, and now someone was missing from the group.

Simon Sawyer started looking around too. “That’s weird. He was standing right here just a second ago…”

“He must be nearby.” Naomi started to backtrack, telling the other children to stay close to her.

Nathan Lynch’s arm was suddenly grabbed. He tried to shake it off but couldn’t. “Simon, what are you doing?”

Simon Sawyer said calmly, “The village is big. I have to help Aunt Kenway keep a close eye on you all.”

Nathan twisted his arm. “I’m not a little kid! Let go of me!”

“My dad always says you can never be too careful.”

With cameramen all around, Naomi wasn’t too worried that Jared Woods had gotten into any real trouble. This was most likely just a childish prank.

She took a few steps forward and, sure enough, spotted Jared Woods. He was hiding behind a plane tree, but its thick trunk couldn’t quite conceal his chubby arms.

Jared Woods had his eyes squeezed shut, muttering to himself, “You can’t see me, you can’t see me…”

Naomi couldn’t help but smile. She gestured for the others behind her to be quiet.

Naomi cleared her throat and deliberately raised her voice. “Strange, I don’t see him anywhere. Where on earth did Jared Woods go? Let’s turn back and look!”

Jared’s hearing was sharp. He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Naomi say they were turning back. He slowly wriggled his round body out from behind the tree. Holding his breath, he made a mad dash to the west.

The next second, someone grabbed him by the collar. Jared Woods couldn’t move. He turned his head angrily, only to see Naomi Kenway’s beautiful, expressionless face.

“Jared Woods, are you playing hide-and-seek with us?”

Naomi chuckled. “Gotcha.”

Jared’s expression instantly turned to terror. He pressed his palms together, begging for mercy, stopping just short of dropping to his knees. “I was wrong! I won’t mess around anymore! Please don’t hit me with a belt! Dad… I mean, Aunt Kenway!”

The pain of being hit by the belt was seared into his very soul. Jared Woods was trembling slightly.

Naomi let go of him, a bit taken aback. “I’m not going to hit you. We have to go back now. You can save games like hide-and-seek for when you’re at home.”

Jared shrank back. “No! I want to go back to my own home!”

“Do you know the way home?”

A proud look appeared on Jared’s face. “I remember!”

“I want to go to my own house. I don’t want to be with you. What if you hit me?”

“I told you, I’m not going to hit you.”

“I don’t believe you! My cousin said you grown-ups are the best at lying to kids!”

[Kids like Jared Woods are such a handful. It’s all Chelsea Raines’s fault. She actually told her kid to be wary of Naomi Kenway before she left. Isn’t that just deliberately making things difficult for Naomi?]

[Taking care of one kid gives me a headache. I can’t even imagine five. Naomi’s task is no easier than fishing out at sea!]

[If nothing else works, just give him a spanking. He’s being way too much of a pain.]

[It’s better not to hit him. Why did the production team give the childcare task to Naomi of all people? She has such a bad temper. Of course she wouldn’t hit her own kid, but you can’t be so sure with other people’s children. These kids are in for it. I hope they don’t end up with any trauma.]

…

Naomi squatted down, bringing her eyes level with his. “Do you really want to go to your house? Even if you’ll be all by yourself?”

Jared huffed. “Of course! I’m a little man, I’m not afraid of that!”

“Even if you have no one to play with?”

“…Then I’ll just build a rocket out of mud by myself!”

“Even if there’s no one to cook for you, and you don’t get any lunch?”

Jared became visibly flustered and conflicted. “I… I…”

Naomi patted his shoulder and smiled. “Well, in that case, I wish little Jared Woods a happy life all by himself!”

After saying that, Naomi turned and led the other children away.

Suddenly, there was the sound of running from behind. Jared was shouting, “Wait! Wait up!!”

Naomi turned around, feigning confusion. “Why are you following us? Jared, your house is that way.”

She kindly pointed in the direction.

Jared’s face flushed with embarrassment, though it wasn’t very obvious because of his darker complexion. He clasped his little hands in front of him. “I… Aunt Kenway, Jared wants to go home with you.”

“Why the sudden change of heart?”

“I… Jared doesn’t want to go hungry.”

Jared thought to himself, ’Anything but starving to death.’

“If you want to come home with me, you can’t just run off. Do you have any idea how worried we were when you were hiding behind that tree?” Naomi said.

Carina Sanders added, “That game wasn’t fun at all! You nearly worried Aunt Kenway to death, Jared Woods!”

Jared hadn’t thought it was a big deal before, but now he felt a little ashamed. He said stiffly, “It won’t happen again.”

The group re-formed their line and set off once more.

[Hahaha, Naomi is actually pretty good with kids. She knows exactly how to get to Jared. A true foodie can never be separated from good food!]

[He’s not afraid of anything except an empty stomach. Jared is really one of a kind.]

…

She took out the key and opened the door. The children swarmed inside.

“Ian, your house is so much nicer than mine! You even have flowers here!!”

The children quickly came to a halt, their feet rooted to the spot as they all stared at a grapevine.

Drool trickled from the corner of Jared Woods’s mouth. He wiped it away with his hand. “Can… can we eat these grapes?”

Carina Sanders looked over as well, her eyes filled with longing.

Naomi put the key in her pocket and walked over. “The grapes aren’t ripe yet, so you can’t eat them.”

Jared pressed his palms together. “Just one? Please? I’m begging you.”

The translucent, shimmering grapes were indeed tempting.

“You can try one and see for yourselves,” Naomi said.

’If I don’t let them eat one now, they’ll probably sneak one later anyway. Once they’ve had a taste, their curiosity will be satisfied.’

Jared was about to pick a whole bunch but was stopped by Nathan Lynch. “You’re wasting food. Aunt Kenway said they’re very sour. Just try one first.”

With that, he picked a single grape and handed it to Jared.

“So stingy,” Jared grumbled and eagerly popped the grape into his mouth. The next second, his whole expression changed, his eyebrows practically shooting off his forehead.

Nathan asked curiously, “Is it good?”

Jared nodded frantically. When Nathan wasn’t looking, he stuffed one into his mouth too.

Before he even started chewing, the sour, astringent taste hit him, and his mouth involuntarily filled with saliva. Nathan spat the grape out, sticking his tongue out with a pained expression. “So sour! You liar!”

Jared used the same trick to coax Simon Sawyer into eating a grape, satisfied to see his expression instantly change as well.

Finally, he tried to fool Ian Shaw. Jared popped another grape into his own mouth and said through a pained grimace, “Hurry and try one! It’s so sweet!”

Carina Sanders tried to stop him. “Don’t listen to him!”

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