“Oh.” John didn’t want William to know about those matters. So, he quickly changed the subject and said, “Sophia just called up earlier. She told me that Grandma has just invited Richard to go over for a meal. This doesn’t sound like good news to me.”
William paused, then he turned around to get behind his desk. “Why is it so? It’s an opportunity for both of them to bond, so how is that bad news?”
John then came closer and stood before the desk. “Is that really what you think? Well, I’ll level with you since you put it that way. I think you’re right. Grandma seems to like Richard a lot. Besides, Mom has also become much more easy-going than before, and she seems younger. Also, Sophia told me that Richard is into Mom, so it’s only a matter of time that they become an item after hanging around with each other a few more times.”
With a calm look on his face, William only responded with a noncommittal grunt. Meanwhile, John only stared at his father, chuckling a few seconds later as he nodded. “Alright then, I’m not going to say anything more since everything is fine by you. Anyway, I shall leave you to your work, and I’ll attend to mine. Things are piling up recently.”
Then, John left with a smiling face, while William buried himself in work and began reading the documents. It was only after the door was closed that he slowly looked up. Soon, he closed the file on his desk and thought to himself, So, my son really thinks I’m alright when I say I’m alright?
Unbeknownst to William himself, however, Matilda was not the only one who had changed.
On the other end, John thought to himself, What’s wrong with Dad? He always used to side with Mom, but he isn’t doing what he should be doing at this critical moment. John then returned to his office and proceeded to go through all his documents. Halfway through his work, he caught sight of William passing through the corridor since his door was left ajar. William was empty-handed, and he appeared to be going elsewhere in a hurry. At the sight of that, John chuckled in amusement, for he knew that his father could never stand by and pretend as if nothing ever happened.
After William left his office, he drove to the Flintstone Residence. As soon as he pulled over somewhere opposite the residence, he saw Richard’s car slowly approaching. Wait a minute. I recognize this car. Well, it’s definitely not some luxurious car. At the thought of that, William shook his head, but he didn’t know why he wasn’t happy with Richard. When Richard’s car got closer to the entrance, the front gate was opened, so he drove inside.
After that, William took a cigarette out and lit it while staring at the building. Deep down, he knew the lunch wouldn’t end so soon with Richard’s visit. Therefore, he waited until he reckoned it was about time they should be done before he gave Matilda a call.
It took Matilda a while to pick up the call, which William deemed she must have left the others to find a corner of the house where she could answer the call since he didn’t hear anything but silence in the background.
“Hey, are you busy at the moment?” William asked.
“N-Nope. Not at all,” Matilda stammered.
William sighed and asked, “Are you going to have your lunch soon?”
“Oh, I’m about to have it soon. It’s about time for your lunch break, isn’t it?” Matilda nervously asked as she didn’t know what else she could say.
“Yeah. I’m away from the office to deal with some business, but it’s taken care of,” William replied, to which Matilda only responded with an ‘oh’.
Then, William gave his suggestion. “Well, we should catch up during a meal or something. We didn’t talk about that when we bumped into each other at the restaurant yesterday.”
Matilda paused, leaving William hanging. As he didn’t receive a response from the woman, William chuckled and drew his own conclusion. “It’s okay if you’re not free.”
While William said that in a tone that sounded indifferent on the surface, Matilda could sense his disappointment. Thus, she bit her lips and asked, “Where are you now? It’ll likely take me a while to get there.”
Upon hearing that, William was taken aback, but he quickly snapped out of his momentary surprise and answered, “No worries. Just take your time to get ready, and I’ll head over to pick you up.”
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