A waiter came over to clear the table after a while, and the hotpot was turned off before getting taken away. Heather looked at him in confusion, since clearing the table while the guests were still there was inappropriate.
Before she could say anything, he answered, “They’ll change it into a mandarin pot later.” He could guess what she had in mind based on what she was doing.
However, that didn’t cheer her up the slightest. She didn’t want to have any more hotpots, even if it was a mandarin pot, which would have one side of the pot with soup that wasn’t spicy. By now, she couldn’t work up an appetite, and she lost all interest in hotpots after the earlier experience. The spiciness still lingered in her mouth, and her stomach was still churning.
“I have some important business to settle, so I might have to leave.” She tried to say goodbye in a roundabout manner as much as she could, but still, she was actually busy recently, for she needed to work on her company.
Matthias wasn’t surprised about it, so he wiped his hands calmly. D*mn, I ruined the date again. “I’ll send you off then,” he offered, though it was hard to say goodbye. Matthias kept failing in the pursuit of Heather, and it was slowly eating away at his confidence.
“It’s fine,” she said. “You go ahead. I can go back by myself.” She was going to see Leon, so she didn’t want Matthias to bump into him, since Matthias didn’t like Leon.
Matthias wanted to send her off, but he couldn’t come up with an excuse. Soon, she stood up, obviously trying to leave. Matthias hesitated for a moment, then he followed her.
In response, she looked at him awkwardly. “Why’d you follow me?” She had tried her best to be gentle in order to get along with him, so the atmosphere between them was getting more awkward by the minute.
They used to argue and fight, showing their worst sides to each other. However, now that they were toning down so they could show their best sides to each other, the change came as a bit of a shock. Being nice and getting a reward in return was unusual for them, so they couldn’t get used to it.
Dating was supposed to be all about honesty, not just a feel-good illusion, but the inexperienced wouldn’t know that. Should a pair of inexperienced people date each other, the result would be a disaster.
After they left the restaurant, Matthias was still following Heather. He had spent too much time on her recently, neglecting his work. Thus, Nikolai had been calling him nonstop that day, but he ignored all the calls, even powering off his phone halfway through. However, Nikolai didn’t give up, and he called Heather.
Heather received a call from an unknown number when she was waiting for her ride, while Matthias stayed behind her; even though she had refused his offer, he insisted on sending her off. When Heather picked up the call, she was surprised to hear Nikolai’s voice, then she was even more surprised to hear him sounding so panicked. “Miss Langston, I need Mr. Locke to take my call. This is urgent. He’s turned his phone off.”
Matthias didn’t know Nikolai had called Heather, so he was still looking at her silently. Then, Heather turned around before she ended the call. Once she hung up, she looked at him sternly. Instantly, Matthias felt a chill running down his spine, and he knew something bad was happening. Then, Heather questioned, “Why did you turn off your phone?”
Oh, so that’s what happened. “I don’t want to be disturbed,” he answered seriously. He never expected Nikolai to reach him through Heather.
“Go back to your company right now. I have my own matters to settle, and that seems to be the case for you too. Stop wasting our time,” she demanded. Heather disliked how frivolous Matthias was being, since she was someone who prioritized work. No matter what, their private lives shouldn’t get in the way of their work, so she was angry at Matthias. It was a sign of his immaturity, and the more she knew him, the worse her disappointment became.
At that point, she couldn’t even tell if her meeting with Matthias in Italy was real or a dream. Back then, Matthias looked like a god when he spoke on stage. His speech encouraged her, and that was when she fell for him. She respected him because she didn’t know him well, and it was then she knew she liked him.
But now, the more she knew about him, the more disappointed she was about the real him. He was a far cry from the perfect match she imagined. She didn’t like how immature and random he was, for she wanted to control everything. She wanted everything to happen like how she imagined.
Even after getting into the car, she was still thinking about her relationship with him. The more she thought about it, the more she realized it was impossible for her to accept the real Matthias. Everyone was telling her to date Matthias, so she wondered if they were actually a perfect match in their eyes. The more she thought about it that way, the more she couldn’t understand how she felt about Matthais. At the same time, Bradfort City was undergoing an overhaul, so the plan was thrown out the window.
Matthias resumed his cold persona once he came back to the company. Just like what Heather said, it was Matthias’ fault for not prioritizing work, and he knew he couldn’t blame Nikolai for his actions.
On the other hand, Nikolai wanted to disappear right away when he saw Matthias. He wanted to be as insignificant as possible, but Matthias never shifted his gaze away. Nikolai was terrified, even though Matthias wasn’t angry at all.
“Give me the file.” Finally, Matthias shifted his gaze away, since he knew how Nikolai must feel.
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