When Sasha came out into the garden behind the restaurant, she was still rubbing her mouth hard. Nausea filled her chest and she had to resist the urge to vomit. Sasha frowned as she rubbed her mouth even harder.
Disgusting! Absolutely disgusting! Tom had no right to kiss her like that! If Tom really liked her, then why didn't that guy want to help her?!
'You useless man!'
Sasha kept walking until she came across a small pavilion. The woman went inside and gripped the wooden fence tightly. The yellow garden light fell on Sasha's face, making her appearance look even more pale.
The woman tried to calm herself down and relieve her nausea by taking a deep breath. The night wind blew softly, but brought a chill that pierced the bones. Sasha slowly began to regain her composure.
She wiped her mouth again twice before starting to look around. The pavilion was far enough from the lights set across the garden and it was hidden from the view. But as a result, Sasha had a hard time looking around her. She was about to pull out her cell phone when the sound of footsteps reached her ears.
Sasha instantly ducked and peeked through the pavilion's wooden fence. She saw a group of Widjaya Family guests walking past nearby. It looked like they'd be back inside the restaurant. Sasha hurriedly took out her cell phone and checked her makeup using the front camera.
After Sasha confirmed that there was no problem with her makeup, she took a deep breath and controlled her expression. Then she stood back up before approaching the group. She walked in an arrogant manner, as if nothing had happened.
Sasha was still the daughter of the Hiroshi Family, a young lady from a respectable family! There were lots of people desperately trying to build a connection with the Hiroshi Family, even without Sasha needing to do anything. As if proving this, someone from among the group immediately approached her.
"Sis Sasha, I am honored to meet you here." The woman who greeted her with a fake smile was Sara, the third grandchild of the Hartanto family.
This woman had lost her position and influence in the Hartanto family. She had nothing left. Even Sasha knew that Jefferson had taken back the position of director of Hartanto Entertainment from Sara. Since then, Sara had attended parties and banquets organized by the elite. She tried to make connections with all kinds of people, but they all avoided her. Who wanted to be friends with a person who had nothing like her?
But Sasha didn't avoid the woman. In her eyes, Sara still had something that she could use. After all, Sara was dating Lilia's ex-boyfriend! Sasha greeted Sara with a warm smile, but she didn't bother to hide the condescending look in her eyes.
*****
Meanwhile, Lilia and Jean were walking down the garden path behind the restaurant in silence. They didn't meet anyone, maybe because the dinner was about to start. Lilia still wanted to enjoy this peace with Jean a little longer, but as the hosts, they had to attend the banquet.
"Jean, I'll be back in Magetan tomorrow morning." Lilia broke the silence with those words. "I've asked Clifford to drive me by car."
Jean's steps stopped for a moment when he heard that. But he immediately resumed his steps. The man tightened his grip on Lilia's, conveying his reluctance to part.
"... I can't accompany you tomorrow morning," said Jean with a bitter expression.
"You haven't finished your piles of work in Surabaya, right? I know you are busy, so you don't need to accompany me." Lilia lightly said, trying to make Jean not worry. "Mr. Louis has sent me a message asking when I'll be back."
Jean didn't reply, but Lilia could see from his expression that the man still objected.
"Besides, my filming there will be finished in five days. I need to go back and finish my shooting so I can get back here quickly." Lilia continued.
Louis didn't explicitly send her back, but she could detect the impatience of the director's message. Lilia herself didn't want to slow down the filming process because of her private matters. She had postponed her job to accompany Jean to see Uncle Hans one last time, to attend his funeral ceremony, and the dinner party. Lilia hoped that the Widjaya Family would not blame her for leaving without attending Uncle Hans's funeral.
Jean glanced at Lilia's face creasing at the thought of all this. He smiled a little and flicked Lilia's forehead. The woman told him not to worry, but Lilia herself worried about many things without ever telling him.
"What are you worried about?" Jean asked as Lilia turned her head towards him. "Are you afraid that Brother James will blame you for leaving without attending Uncle Hans's funeral?"
Lilia's eyes widened in shock. "How do you know?!" she asked in surprise.
Jean chuckled and rubbed the woman's head. "I know all about you. Don't worry, you have accompanied me from the start. I won't let Brother James protest. I'm sure Sister Irene and Sister Claire also agree with me."
Lilia imagined the two women scolding James and burst out laughing.
"I hope you won't be too hard on Brother James. He might be cold to me, but I feel sorry for him for always losing votes." Lilia said between laughter.
Jean looked at Lilia with a proud look. "My wife is such an angel." he said seriously.
Lilia's cheeks flushed at the compliment. She let go of Jean's hand and accelerated her pace, then turned to face the man. The woman walked backwards while smiling mischievously. "Don't you know that I was a good person from a long time ago? As proof, I used to help you… ahh!"
Before Lilia could finish her sentence, her feet tripped over an uneven paving stone. She lost her footing and fell backwards. Lilia closed her eyes and prepared herself to hit the ground hard. In fact, she started thinking about what to say to Louis if she couldn't return to Magetan.
But all that worries were in vain. The man stretched out an arm and swiftly caught his wife before she fell. Jean's hands wrapped around Lilia's waist, then pulled her into his arms.
"Are you deliberately looking for an excuse so you don't have to go shoot tomorrow?" Jean whispered in Lilia's ear.
"Ahaha…" Lilia laughed dryly. "So you already know, Jean."
Jean helped Lilia to her feet, then the woman stood on tiptoe and kissed her husband on the cheek.
"Thank you for helping me, Jean!" Lilia broke away from Jean, then walked backwards with a big smile.
Jean raised his eyebrows and stepped forward, closing the gap between them. He pulled his wife back into his arms. "Why don't you learn from your mistakes? Aren't you afraid to fall again?"
Lilia put her arm around Jean's neck and rested her head on the man's shoulder. "No, I'm not afraid." she replied cheerfully. "Because you are by my side."
Jean chuckled and lifted Lilia's face, then kissed the woman. Their figures were hidden in the dark night, where only the moon and the stars became their witness.
After a while, Lilia reluctantly pushed Jean away. "Jean, we have to go back to the restaurant…" She whispered.
"... yes." Jean pulled away, his face was painted with regret.
They continued their steps towards the restaurant with hands tightly knit together.
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