Chapter 33
Chapter 33
Chapter 33 Jealousy
The next morning, just as Michaela entered the office, she saw Lorelei Summerfield walking over to her with a smile. “Mich, was that really someone you knew last night?”
“Yes!” Michaela nodded.
“Why didn’t you tell me that you knew such a young man? Not only is he handsome, rich, and gentlemanly, but he’s also considerate. He’d rather get drenched by the rain than let you get wet. If he’s someone’s boyfriend, he’d definitely spoil his girlfriend!”
As Michaela glanced at Lorelei’s yearning look, she raised a brow. “What if everything was just an act?”
Jonathan kept a low profile and rarely showed up in public. Even after hearing the things he did, the media companies would still not rush over to step on a land mine. Therefore, it was nothing unusual for Lorelei not to recognize Jonathan.
Still, isn’t she a little hasty to assume that he’s a considerate gentleman after just one glance?
“How can that be? Everything can be faked except for the elegance and nobility he exuded. That’s something that can’t be learned in later life. Also, do you know how much that custom-made suit he was wearing was worth? It’s almost the same price as one year of our salary!”
Lorelei actually came from a well-off family as well. Her father was a famous construction material supplier. However, Lorelei had hidden that from everyone so she could court Alois.
She had expensive cars at home, but she did not drive them. Instead, she drove an inexpensive, small car to work and wore plain clothes. Indeed, she had gone to great lengths for him.
“You’ve got good tastes. Does that mean you’re planning to turn over a new leaf and come to the bright side?”
Michaela smiled and glanced at her—the look in her eyes was a teasing one.
At the mention of Alois, Lorelei quickly returned to a solemn demeanor as she shook her head and denied, “That’s impossible. How can I when I have fallen for him and gone down the path of no return? Not even the beauty of another man will be able to change my heart. In this life of mine, he will be the only one I-”
Before she could say “marry,” a figure suddenly appeared by the doorway of the office. Instantly, Lorelei recomposed herself and politely greeted, “Hi!”
Alois did not respond to her. The first thing he did was nod at Michaela before letting his eyes drift toward Lorelei. “Lorelei, can you come with me for a while?”
Without waiting for her reply, Alois went out of the office.
Lorelei was stunned by the sudden turn of events and froze. Unable to stand watching her stay rooted to her spot, Michaela waved her hands in front of her face. That snapped Lorelei back to her senses.
The delight she felt was too overwhelming to be described in words, so Lorelei ended up stuttering, “Mich, are t-the-”
“Are the darkest days finally over?”
“Yes, yes! That’s what I mean!” Lorelei nodded fervently. At that, Michaela could not help but remind, “I’ll have to say that your dear Alois is going to leave if you don’t go out now.”
“You’re so annoying!”
Lorelei shot Michaela a half-hearted glare before running out of the office.
At the sight of Lorelei’s excitement and her attempts in concealing that, Michaela shook her head and returned to her workstation.
The project “A Helping Hand” mainly focused on the donation of books to various elementary and high schools, as well as mental health education and the sponsoring of teaching equipment for special needs schools.
The project was currently in its preparation stage, and Michaela’s task was to follow up on the progress and make sure that the project went smoothly.
To read all of the information, Michaela had stayed up until early in the morning. Initially, she wanted to send Jonathan’s coat for dry cleaning, but that did not happen as she woke up late after burning the midnight oil. It seemed like she could only send it for dry cleaning after work.
Soon, Lorelei returned with a shy look on her face.
When she walked past Michaela, she whispered, “Mich, Alois invited me for a meal on Friday night. Why don’t you accompany me to buy some clothes after work?”
At Michaela’s hesitation, Lorelei quickly tried to raise her pitch and whined, “Come on! Come with me!”
“All right.”
Michaela did not have many friends aside from Lucille since young. Lorelei was an honest and upright character, so she would be a good friend.
Moreover, Michaela wanted to send the coat to dry cleaning anyway, so she accepted the invitation.
What Michaela did not know was that, at that moment, Jonathan was already in a plane, about to fly to the other side of the world.
He had returned in a rush, so there were many things in the company he had not been able to settle in time. Originally, he planned to head back in three days, but something else happened, and his schedule was delayed.
The Epean headquarters had called and urged him to return many times. After all, there were many projects that Jonathan had to approve before they could proceed. Furthermore, there were some important meetings on new collaborations he had to be present for as well.
As work was stagnant, Jonathan could not avoid his responsibility forever despite his continuous postponing.
Nevertheless, Jonathan was still concerned about what happened the night before. Thus, before he left, he sent Zack out for a business trip while instructing Gary to stay back and keep Michaela safe.
Simultaneously, he told Gary to inform him on everything about Michaela.
What Jonathan never expected was for the dense young man Gary to do exactly that. Just as he landed, feeling tired, he received Gary’s bombarding messages.
Gary: Lunch. Ms. Lingard ate with her coworker at a restaurant. There was a man who approached her.
Gary: Afterwork. Ms. Lingard went shopping with her coworker.
Gary: Ms. Lingard has bought a miniskirt and a tank top.
Gary even sent him a photo.
Gary: Ms. Lingard ate at the mall’s restaurant with her coworker. A man took some photos of her.This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org - ©.
The more he read, the more exasperated Jonathan became.
Were my instructions not clear enough?
Meanwhile, Walter was watching Jonathan stare at his phone with grim eyes. The temperature around him had dropped a few degrees.
Walter shrunk away, thinking, Who’s the idiot who crossed Mr. Xander?
In the photo, Michaela was wearing a white lace mid-riff tank top and the miniskirt that Gary mentioned. There was no extra fat on her waist at all, and with the miniskirt, her slender legs seemed even longer. The very sight of her was alluring, and he could not tear his eyes away from the photo.
D*mn it, I really want to fly back right now and keep her close to me.
Right then, Michaela, who was still accompanying Lorelei on her shopping trip, sneezed. When Michaela came out of the dressing room, she narrowed her eyes suggestively and said, “Mich, it can’t be that someone is missing you, right?”
A sudden chill shot up her body from her soles, and Michaela frowned. “Why do I think that someone’s cursing at me instead?”
What baffled Michaela most was when she returned home the next day after work—she saw dozens of bags in various sizes on her coffee table.
Although they were all luxury brands, they were brands that young women liked. After a glance at them, Michaela turned to see Hannah walking out of the kitchen. Hence, she asked, “Mom, why are you back so early today? What’s going on with these clothes?”
“Jonathan sent them here.”
“Huh?”
When Hannah saw the confusion in her daughter’s eyes. she gently smiled and praised, “Everyone says that Jonathan is ruthless, but he seems to be a pretty nice man to me. Look. When he heard that you’ve gone to work at a charity organization, he sent all these here. He said it’s a small gift from him.”
“For me?”
Michaela had no idea that the gifts were a result of that man’s shock after seeing the photos, so she only became even more puzzled by her mother’s explanation.
Are we close enough to send each other clothes now?
Hannah did not notice the strange look on her daughter’s face as she patiently said, “Jonathan’s concerned about you, and you should be grateful. Don’t forget to call him and thank him later. I’ve written his number down on the bag.”
“Got it,” Michaela obediently replied.
After going back to her room and putting away all the plain-looking clothes in her wardrobe, Michaela thought, No wonder Mr. Jonathan can’t find a girlfriend. His choice of clothes is certainly unique.