At the same moment as the chaotic fight was happening in Roland side, a peaceful conversation was also getting initiated inside the Sparkling Buds' building.
The night was deep and silent. The employees of Sparkling Buds had already gone home, including head chef Estela.
At this moment, Stacey and Janine were sitting opposite each other inside Stacey's office. Outside the office were the two battle guards that Roland left behind to protect them.
There was a pin drop silence from earlier. Not only because they have nothing to talk about, but also because they were both tense and worried for Roland's safety.
"You should not worry about him too much, Roland is actually very strong and a very good fighter too!" Stacey said, initiating the first word after the deafening silence.
She had witnessed Roland fighting those gangs first hand, she was vaguely aware that Roland was not as simple and as weak as he looks. Of course, she liked this aspect of him, being mysterious and all. Not only was her secret desires getting fulfilled by him one after the other, she was also becoming more and more obsessed with his entire person.
Janine heard what she said loud and clear. She nodded her head slightly, as an affirmation to her claims. Not only Stacey, she herself also saw in person how well Roland could fight, especially in a tight situation like when that convenience store was getting robbed.
However, she could still not help but worry about him. Stacey was acting tough, but Janine knew that she was the most worried person now, especially because it was the safety of her boyfriend that they were talking about.
'Yeah, it's her boyfriend, not mine...' she thought dejectedly as she looked at Stacey in envy.
Stacey noticed her actions and saw through her thoughts, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Nothing," Janine replied meekly.
Another reason why they were silent since earlier was actually because Janine felt pretty awkward around Stacey. Especially because she was fantasizing being with Roland even though he and Stacey were already together in a relationship.
She could not help but think of herself as a bad person for thinking in such a way. However, she would also not stop just because of that. This was the first time she felt something like this, she was bound to be unwilling to let go of such feelings easily. There was a reason why there was a saying that said 'first love never dies'.
Hearing her answer, Stacey merely smiled as she leaned back on the reclining office chair.
"Actually, you don't have to hide it from me. I know exactly what you feel about Roland," she said with a confident smile.
From the way that Janine was looking at Roland from afar, and from the way that she was getting worried about him, Stacey knew that it was no longer as simple as getting worried about her boss. It was apparent that she had some feelings for him.
"Y-you... How?" Janine looked at Stacey in surprise.
She immediately looked down after seeing her penetrating gaze, as she felt ashamed of herself all of a sudden.
'Was it that obvious?' she thought.
The moment she realized her feelings, Janine decided to hide it immediately. Although her parents might be vaguely aware of it, she did not expect that other than them, there was actually another someone who knew of her real feelings.
"You don't have to feel that way actually," Stacey laughed in an amused manner.
"With how Roland looks, something like this is bound to happen. I'm not angry or anything. In fact, I'm even glad about it," she continued.
Roland was both handsome and rich. He was even charming and was great at treating women fairly. It was not surprising that other girls would fall for him because of these traits.
Knowing this beforehand, Stacey decided to be mature about it. And instead of feeling angry, she was even happy that her boyfriend was getting liked by other girls as this just proves that her choice was the best one and that other girls could only envy her because of it. She regarded this as something that she should be proud of.
Janine looked down, even after hearing Stacey mention that, she still didn't feel any better. She felt her heart ache for some reason.
'Is she that confident that Roland would not replace her? Is that why she could act this way even after knowing my feelings?' She thought.
"In fact, not only me. I think even Roland knows of your feelings too," Stacey smiled as she dropped a huge bomb in front of her.
"W-what?"
This time, Janine was not able to keep calm anymore. If it was still a little fine if Stacey and her parents knew of her feelings. Now, even Roland was aware of it?
'Am I that obvious and easy to read? Or did she tell him?' She thought as she felt like crying.
"If you're wondering how he found out, I can tell you one thing. Roland is not dense towards his surroundings. He is aware of many things but just decides to ignore it as he thinks that it's for the best," this was Stacey's genuine opinion about him after observing him these past few days of being together with him.
What she could also tell was that Roland doesn't like troublesome things. If he could avoid something, he would surely avoid it no doubt.
Janine slumped to the chair weakly. All this while, she thought that she had hidden it pretty well from Roland. She would even take a glance at him from time to time everytime when he was not looking. She would also act as if she did not care, so that Roland would not notice.
However, it turned out that Roland was already aware from the start. She couldn't help but feel embarrassed about it.
'Wait, if he knows already. Then... Sigh, I guess not,' she thought optimistically for a second before she saw Stacey at the corner of her eyes.
"Do you know? I have been greatly influenced by online web novels since I was a kid. Even before high school, I had already started reading a lot of works, harem, and reverse-harem novels included, as well as erotic works that others felt ashamed of reading about," Stacey suddenly stated.
"You can say that my current mindset and the way I look at others were also greatly influenced by novels as well. My worldview has been opened by reading a lot of works. In truth, I actually did not fall in love with Roland the moment we met. I have not experienced the butterfly in my stomach the first time we met that I frequently read in novels, which was quite disappointing."
"It was only later that I gradually fell in love with him and his qualities-" Stacey said as she forcefully stopped herself from saying something out of hand.
"Before we met, Roland had been cheated on by his girlfriend of two years. That thing left a trauma on him, but I think he is now gradually healing from it with my help, of course."
"W-why are you telling me this?" Janine asked curiously. She was also absorbed by her story, it was as if she was expecting something that she was not aware of.
Stacey did not answer and continued talking, "In the few weeks that I have been with Roland. I vaguely discovered, and am vaguely aware of, a lot of extraordinary qualities about him, literally."
She looked at Janine seriously and said, "Janine, I am a very open minded person."
"If you ask if I wouldn't feel jealous if he started approaching other girls, of course, I would. However, as I said, I am an open minded person. You could also say that my love for Roland has already transcended the normal kind of love. You could say that I'm obsessed with him or anything. His happiness is my priority."
"I am an open-minded person," she repeated once again.
"If you could gain Roland's approval, I would not mind him having another girl beside me. And with how things are going on, I know that you won't be the first, and you won't be the last."
"I know it will be hard to form a polygamous relationship. However, this is your only chance and choice, as I would absolutely not let go of Roland, no matter what." She said domineeringly.
She pointed at the silent Janine and said, "Janine, convince him. Convince his heart. I am open to it, and he has my permission."
"However, don't think that it would be as easy as that as well. Roland came from a toxic relationship where his girlfriend cheated on him. It would be hard to convince him to have a polygamous relationship."
"I know your love for him is genuine so I am giving you this chance. This will be hard for you, so consider this your trial. Think hard about it before making a decision. There won't be turning back once you embark on this path." Stacey said, as she equally hardened her heart as she said those things.
This was a hard decision for her, but it was made after a lot of inner considerations.
Janine was silent the whole time. What she was thinking, only she herself knows.
However, it could be said that in this heart-to-heart talk between two women who love the same man, something big was about to change.
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Daily Chapter!
P.S.: As someone who doesn't agree to polygamous relationship, I must admit that this chapter is very hard to write. However, I have done my very best not to rush things regarding the harem and make the characters reactions as natural as possible. I won't say that it's the best, but as a lowly author, I'm already satisfied. I hope you guys feel the same as well.
Read 𝓁at𝙚st chapters at (f)re𝒆we(b)novel.com Only