After Jean mediated them, Tom and Vivi shook hands to show that they had made peace. Jean reminded Tom again that he needed to arrange another blind date for Vivi.
The blind date that Tom arranged would one day bring another, no less violent, commotion. Neither Tom nor Vivi knew that their destinies were inseparable from each other. Whether it's a good thing or a bad thing, only time could tell.
*****
It was 3 o'clock in the afternoon when Lilia left the cafe with Jean.
Before leaving with Rachel, Vivi tried to explain the incident to Nicholas via chat and asked him to meet again. But the man's response was ambiguous, indicating that there was no hope of mending her relationship with Nicholas.
Alex and Tom continued the hunt for Sasha's birthday gift which was interrupted earlier. They offered Jean to join them, but the man coldly refused.
Lilia followed Jean and Kenny to the underground car park. Before she got into the car, Lilia saw the assistant whisper something in Jean's ear. In an instant, Jean's expression turned sharp.
Lilia got into the car before asking Jean, "What's wrong? Did something go wrong?"
Jean sat beside Lilia and closed the door before shaking his head, "There's nothing you need to worry about." He answered.
The man grasped Lilia's hand and rubbed it.
"Where are you going? Kenny will take you first." Jean asked softly.
Lilia studied the man's expression carefully. His face had returned to normal, so Lilia couldn't guess what Kenny was saying.
"Lilia?" Jean called out to her when she didn't respond.
"Um…" Lilia bit her lip as she thought about what she wanted to do.
She had no work schedule for the rest of the day. Even so, Lilia didn't want to return to the Lakeside Villa. Without Jean or Sister Mei, she would die of boredom in that villa. However, Lilia had nowhere else to go. Then a brilliant idea came to Lilia's mind.
"Jean, are you very busy?" Lilia asked suddenly.
"There are three meetings I need to attend this afternoon, but I'm not too busy." Jean answered without hesitation.
The man did not look arrogant when he said his last sentence. Although other people would collapse if they had to attend 3 meetings in a row a day, Jean thought it was something normal.
Jean observed Lilia's expression while smiling faintly. Then, he leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Your face says that you just had a brilliant idea. What do you want to do?"
Lilia's body trembled when she felt Jean's breath touch her ear. She hurriedly moved away and covered those ears. Lilia's trembling appearance while looking at him warily made Jean chuckle.
Lilia cleared her throat and tried to look serious again, "I-If I don't interfere… I want to go to the office with you. Do you mind…?" Lilia asked while looking at Jean worriedly.
Jean paused for a moment with a surprised face. Then, a big smile crossed his face. He reached out and pulled Lilia into his arms.
"Of course I don't mind. It makes me very, very happy." Jean whispered before kissing the woman.
Lilia was about to let herself get carried away when she suddenly realized something.
"J-Jean, wait!" Lilia covered Jean's mouth with both hands.
The man gave Lilia a dissatisfied gaze.
"I still have the flu! You will catch it if you kiss me!" She exclaimed.
Meanwhile, Kenny started the engine while listening to their interactions. He lamented the fact that this car did not have a glass divider between the front and rear seats. Why did he have to listen to the conversation of this husband and wife in love?!
*****
They arrived at the Genesis Company office in half an hour.
Lilia followed Jean into the room. She surveyed the interior of the room with great interest. This wasn't the first time Lilia had set foot into Jean's office, but she always felt a different atmosphere every time she walked in.
Shelves filled with various kinds of books and documents neatly covered the walls. The furniture in the office was mostly pastel colored, creating a calm and conducive atmosphere for work. The style of the room really reflected Jean's calm and reliable personality.
Lilia sat on one of the sofas while watching Jean work hard. The man would read a document in his hand in a few seconds, then immediately exchange it for another document and read it quickly too. He kept repeating it without looking confused or tired.
While doing so, Jean also shared his attention with his computer screen. The sound of keyboard typing and e-mail notification sounds that regularly filled the room showed just how busy Jean was. Lilia was amazed at the fact that this was considered something that was normal for Jean. No wonder Kenny suffered every time his boss left his job.
The sound of knocking on the door brought Lilia to her senses. She had no idea how much time she had spent watching Jean work. Lilia turned to the door when she heard Kenny's voice.
"President, your meeting with the client will begin in 5 minutes." His assistant reminded Jean.
"Okay." Jean replied without looking up from the document.
When he put down the final document, Jean met Lilia's eyes. The woman's eyes lit up, as if Lilia had just watched a very interesting show.
"Are you bored?" Jean asked, putting down his pen and interlocking his fingers.
Jean's gesture reminded Lilia of the first time she met Jean in this office room.
Lilia smiled when she heard Jean's question and shook her head. She got up from his chair, then stepped towards the man.
"I'm not bored. Instead, I'm worried that my presence will interfere with your work. You seem very busy." Lilia said as she walked around Jean's desk, "There are only a few minutes before your meeting starts. Here, let me massage your shoulder."
The woman stopped behind Jean's chair, then she began massaging the man's shoulders. Lilia was shocked when she felt how stiff Jean's nape and shoulders were.
"Your body must feel sore all the way after sitting in the chair for too long. You should call the masseuse regularly to keep your body healthy." Lilia scolded him.
Jean was always worried about Lilia's health, but that man didn't pay attention to his own health at all.
Jean stretched out his hand and grabbed Lilia's arm, "That's enough, you don't need to massage me anymore."
Jean didn't stop Lilia because of her poor massage technique, but because he wouldn't be able to concentrate in the next meeting. The touch of Lilia's soft hands and her fragrant scent made Jean almost lose control.
"But…" Lilia protested with a frown.
"How about you make tea for me?" Jean suggested another alternative that was safer for his heart, "There is a small kitchen connected to this room. You can make tea there."
"Alright." Lilia nodded. But a few moments later she realized something, "Wait, aren't you going to the meeting after this? I won't finish making tea in just a few minutes!" Lilia protested.
Jean just laughed and didn't answer. But Jean's message was clear. Lilia didn't have to do anything for him.
Lilia sighed, "Okay, fine, I won't interfere with your work any longer. Don't you have to attend an important meeting right away?" She asked with faint irritation.
Jean stopped laughing and turned his chair so that they were now facing each other.
"Lilia, you don't bother me. I just don't want you to push yourself while you're still sick." Jean explained in a persuasive tone, "But if you really want to do it, I'll drink that tea after I'm done with the meeting. Okay?"
Lilia nodded, "Okay. You always help me, so I want to do something for you." She said while lowering her head, "Please let me help you too."
Jean's eyes widened for a moment. Warmth filled his chest and spread through his body. Jean just wanted to forget about the meeting and spoil Lilia, but unfortunately he couldn't do that. The man made a compromise by stroking Lilia's head.
"Alright. I'm looking forward to your tea." Jean said softly.
Before he went to the meeting, Jean raised the air conditioner temperature in the room to 28 degrees. His office now felt like a room without air conditioning, but Jean didn't want Lilia's flu to get worse because of the cold temperature.
*****
Lilia turned anxiously at the clock. It'd been almost an hour since Jean left for the meeting, but the man hadn't come back yet.
It started raining outside the window. The drops made the windows blurry and the room felt gloomy than usual.
Lilia stared at her cell phone screen with a bored look. Almost all mass media that covered the entertainment world report the same thing. They all discussed Aphrodite Agency's lawsuit against Hartanto Entertainment. In addition, Lilia also learned that many people on the internet still bashed Sara and Rina through their comments on social media.
Another piece of news that caught Lilia's attention was about William. Many people became suspicious of the photo posted by the man. Lilia herself didn't know what William was trying to do either. But it stirred a great debate among netizens and many of them guessed that the man in Lilia's photo was William.
Fortunately, Lilia's fans immediately cleared up the ridiculous idea.
[User8723]: "I think the man in that photo is William Anggara!"
[User7759]: "@ User8723, William Anggara is not that tall. I'll bet my life that it will NOT be William Anggara!"
[User8723]: "Oh, that's right!"
Lilia closed her cell phone and put it on the table. She got up from her chair, then walked around the room. Lilia was trying to find something that would help pass her time, but she couldn't find anything interesting. The woman then stopped near Jean's desk.
A pile of documents covered the surface of the table, but Lilia still remembered the photo frames that had been displayed there. Her gaze shifted to the desk drawer. If Lilia remembered correctly, Jean put the picture frame in the drawer on the right.
Lilia approached the desk drawer with a racing heart. She felt a dejavu, as if she was repeating her actions when she first set foot in this office.
What photo was so important to Jean that the man displayed it on his desk? And why didn't Jean let Lilia see it? Could it be a photo of someone Jean wanted to hide from her?
Lilia's steps suddenly stopped. She stared closely at the desk drawer. Lilia was very, very tempted to open the drawer and look for the photo frame. But on the other hand, Lilia wanted to respect her husband's privacy. Maybe Jean would show her the photo when he was ready.
Finally Lilia's trust in Jean won her over her overwhelming curiosity. She let out a long sigh before heading to the small kitchen that Jean had mentioned. Lilia intended to divert her mind by making tea, even though she didn't know when Jean's meeting would end.
Just as Lilia walked into the kitchen, Jean and Kenny walked into the office.
Kenny looked around the room, but he didn't see Lilia's figure. He assumed that the woman happened to be going to the toilet or something. Kenny took this opportunity to talk about sensitive issues.
"President, regarding the project with the Pangestu Family… there is a problem with the plan they submitted.." Kenny said.
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om