Glancing at the two children sitting across from him, Stephen immediately realized what Lester had done. He had used the kids as an excuse to ask Tessa out again.
"It's alright, Tessa. I understand you're feeling shy about it. Stephen, let's just go," Marissa said as she reached out to tug Stephen's sleeve.
Stephen quickly moved to the side, avoiding her touch. Then, he said coldly, "Since Ms. Yates and Mr. Cooper aren't on a date, then I suppose you two won't mind if we join you, right?
"We're all friends here, and it's been a while since I last saw Ms. Yates. This is a good opportunity for us to catch up on those cases we've delegated to your firm."
Marissa's expression stiffened.
Lester chuckled softly and said, "Mr. Jacobson, I don't think this is a good time. After all, Ms. Yates and I have the two kids with us."
Stephen immediately turned to Seline and offered her a warm smile. "Seline, would you mind if I sit here and join you all?"
Seline recognized Stephen as she used to see him as her brother-in-law. Besides, he had always treated her well. He would buy her a lot of toys, so of course she didn't mind him joining them.
She said frankly, "I don't mind."
A smile spread across Stephen's lips before he turned to Lester. "Seline doesn't mind, so why do you, Mr. Cooper?"
Lester refused to back down as he met Stephen's gaze and smiled gently. "Mr. Jacobson, aren't you on a date with this beautiful lady? What is Ms. Scott supposed to do if you join us?"
Without missing a beat, Stephen turned to Marissa and said, "I'm sorry, something came up at the last minute. You should head back first. We can talk about the project some other day."
He had purposely mentioned the project as a means to explain to Tessa that he wasn't on a date. He was just here to discuss business, and that his relationship with Marissa was strictly professional.
As Stephen spoke, his gaze remained fixed on Tessa's face. However, Tessa did not look at him, and she remained impassive. It was as if she did not care, and a pang of disappointment filled Stephen's heart.
Lester smiled and said, "Mr. Jacobson, that's a bit rude of you, isn't it? How can you just leave Ms. Scott on her own?"
Once Tessa sat down, Seline and Cassandra obediently followed her to the bigger table.
Stephen smiled and sat beside Tessa.
Seeing the extra space beside Stephen, Marissa quickly sat beside him.
Although Lester was feeling exasperated, he had no choice but to follow along.
What was supposed to be a pleasant and romantic date had been completely messed up thanks to Stephen's interference. Hence, Lester could not help but glare at Stephen.
Stephen smirked and gave him a smug smile in return.
Noticing the subtle tension between the two men, Marissa could not help but tighten her grip around her coffee cup.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: His Unveiled Passion
I know this isn’t Stephen’s fault but I still hated how he was so careless around this bitch even after Tessa already told him it’s obvious that this bitch likes him and she looked at Tessa with hostility. If Tessa breaks up with him again, I’ll even support her. Ugh. Good luck on winning Tessa back again, Stephen. Tss. I so hate these updates....
Nooooo! Not again! We don't need a twist like this. Is it too hard for the writer to conclude with..."and they live happily ever after"?...
Finally getting Stephen and Tess back together then to tear them apart with foolishness. This is craziness...
Yuhohoooo!!! Finally!!!...
Aaand~ Tessa and Stephen are finally back together! Yaaaaay!...
Why make an uninteresting, irrelevant twist when readers are waiting for Tess and Stephen to be together?...
Gosh just let Tessa and Stephen get back together already! Ugh...
Oh my god, when is this book finishing... they're not even back together yet and more nonsense side plots.....
Whoa! Hahahahahaha! Go, Sophia! Burn, stupid Rowena! Lol...
Sooo~ Chapters 310-318 were just a repeat of Jacqueline’s punishment, official expulsion from the Jacobson family, and arrest. With few changes since Tessa and Stephen are not together this time. So Tessa didn’t witness how Jacqueline was tortured at Stephen’s base, though at least Tessa was still called over and witnessed how Stephen officially expelled Jacqueline from the Jacobson family and how Stephen’s subordinate made Jacqueline grovel in front of Tessa. Lol. I hope Jacqueline’s really out of the story now....