Chapter 145: Chapter 141: This Is My Private Time
’The hearing is on Friday. For him to ask me to dinner at such a crucial time... it feels like I’m walking into a trap.’
"Where are we eating?" Georgia Thorne took a deep breath. This lawsuit was very important to Lynn Thorne.
’It’s just one meal,’ she thought. ’Byron Shaw is a lawyer. He should know the boundaries of the law—what’s illegal and what isn’t.’
Byron Shaw gave her the address. Georgia said, "I’ll be there on time."
She then hung up and called Lynn Thorne to ask how her discussion with Byron Shaw had gone.
Over the phone, Lynn Thorne’s voice was full of confidence, as if she was certain she could get Leah back.
After work, Georgia Thorne went directly to the restaurant Byron Shaw had mentioned.
It was a century-old establishment that specialized in home-style cooking.
When Georgia arrived, Byron Shaw was already seated in a private room.
Incense was burning in the private room. Georgia couldn’t identify the fragrance, but it was pleasant and soothing.
"Attorney Shaw, hello."
Georgia sat down stiffly. Across from her, Byron Shaw smiled, picked up a white jade teapot, and poured her a cup of tea. "This is my personal time. You can just call me by my name."
"I think I’ll stick with Attorney Shaw!" Georgia said, a little awkwardly. She lowered her gaze, looking at the vibrant green tea in the white cup.
"Then may I call you by your name? Georgia."
"You can."
Neither of them spoke, and the atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
The gaze of the man across from her was too direct, too naked. Georgia kept her eyes downcast and finished the tea in her cup.
Fortunately, the silence didn’t last long. A knock sounded at the door, and a waiter came in to serve the dishes.
There were four sets of bowls and chopsticks, which the waiter arranged neatly on the table.
Byron Shaw poured himself a cup of tea. "I have a friend coming, and she’s bringing her boyfriend. You don’t mind, do you?"
"Of course not." Georgia suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.
’Having dinner with just the two of us is what I would have minded!’
Byron Shaw glanced at her. "You seem very nervous around me. A little on guard, perhaps?"
"Am I? Attorney Shaw, being a lawyer, you wouldn’t be bringing your work mindset into your personal time, would you?" Georgia’s eyes curved into a smile, and she looked at him brightly.
"Perhaps."
He placed the white cup in his hand on the table, and then another knock was heard.
’Byron Shaw’s friends must be here.’
"I made a bet with my friend, Georgia. You’ve got to back me up!"
"What?"
Before Georgia could react, the door was pushed open from the outside.
Nathan Rhodes stood at the door in a stylish black baseball uniform, her baseball cap pulled low, revealing the lower half of a delicate face.
"Elliot Sheridan, you promised you’d come! Get over here!"
Nathan Rhodes hadn’t yet noticed the situation inside the room. She turned halfway and looked back outside.
Just the name "Elliot Sheridan" was enough to send a jolt through Georgia, her mind buzzing.
’Just last night, the rumors about them were flying everywhere, and Elliot even denied their relationship in front of the media. Now they’re having dinner together.’
The color instantly drained from her rosy face. Her eyes widened as she stared at the doorway.
Elliot Sheridan stood in the doorway, dressed in a black suit with a black tie and white shirt, exuding an air of cold indifference.
Basically, no one dared to get close to an Elliot like this—except for the Nathan Rhodes standing before him.
Georgia watched as Elliot’s expression shifted several times. Across the table, Byron Shaw took in her every reaction.
He toyed with the empty cup in his hand, a meaningful smile playing on his lips.
Nathan Rhodes grabbed Elliot’s arm, ignoring the cold expression on his face, and pulled him inside.
"Sorry, we’re late!" Nathan said to Byron Shaw with a brilliant smile.
"Have a seat. We just got here ourselves."
Nathan felt the arm in her grip slowly stiffen, as if gathering strength. She glanced up at his emotionless face, let go, and sat down next to Georgia.
The moment Nathan came in with Elliot on her arm, Georgia immediately averted her gaze and lowered her head.
Nathan had only met Georgia once. She had been deeply impressed by her work, but she couldn’t recognize her just from the back of her head.
She huffed, her gaze flicking toward Byron Shaw across the table. "Is she really your girlfriend? You’re not lying to me?"
Byron Shaw took a sip of tea. "And what about you two? The stories about you going in and out of a hotel last night—are they true?"
"Hmph!" Nathan shot him a look but didn’t answer.
"Hi, I’m Nathan Rhodes!"
Nathan held out her hand, offering a generous greeting.
’I can’t believe Byron Shaw’s friend is Nathan Rhodes, and that she brought Elliot Sheridan with her.’
’It looks like there’s no escaping now!’
’No, wait. Why should I be the one to hide?’
’I’ve already broken up with Elliot. We have nothing to do with each other anymore.’
With that thought, Georgia mustered her courage and looked up. "Hello, Miss Rhodes."
"It’s you?"
Nathan looked at Georgia with pleasant surprise, as if she’d found a treasure. Georgia smiled. "It’s me!"
"After Joanne Donovan’s birthday party, I was going to look for you, but you disappeared in a flash. Right, how come you never called me? I’ve been waiting for your call every day!"
Nathan was thrilled, her eyes shining with excitement. It was rare to find a diamond in the rough as brilliant as Georgia.
"Sorry, I accidentally lost that business card."
’The card was lost in the hotel room. With how rough Elliot was that night, I have no idea which corner it got tossed into.’
"Oh, I see!" Nathan took her phone out of her bag. "Just give me your number, and I’ll save it now!"
Georgia recited her phone number. Nathan dialed it, and when Georgia’s phone rang, she hung up.
"There. Now you save my number, too."
"Okay."
After the two women had exchanged numbers, Byron Shaw spoke up casually. "You two know each other?"
"Yep, we’ve met once before!" Nathan patted Georgia’s shoulder. "I’m telling you, Byron Shaw, where’d you get so lucky to find such a great girlfriend!"
"Well, some things are just meant to be, right, Georgia?"
Byron Shaw smiled at Georgia, who was sitting opposite him, and shot her a look.
It was only then that Georgia slowly realized what kind of "favor" he had asked for earlier.
’Nathan thinks I’m Byron Shaw’s girlfriend... so what does that mean for Elliot?’
Georgia didn’t look at Elliot, but she could feel a pair of dark eyes from above, staring daggers at her.
Her intuition told her they were Elliot’s.
Elliot had recognized Georgia the moment he stepped into the room.
He had once said that no matter how she disguised herself, he would always be able to recognize her.
A tidal wave of anger churned violently in his chest. He wanted nothing more than to drag Georgia out and interrogate her.
’It’s only been a few days since we broke up, and she’s already found another man so quickly—and it’s not even Zane Lennox or Justin Sullivan.’
The usually oblivious Nathan seemed completely unaware of Elliot’s emotional turmoil, her eyes practically sparkling as she looked at Georgia.
She had no idea that the two of them knew each other, let alone that they had such a complicated history.
She excitedly pulled Georgia into the conversation. "Georgia, this is my friend, Elliot Sheridan. Elliot, this is the person I told you about, the really talented one."
Georgia took a deep breath, finally lifting her head to look at Elliot bravely.
She wanted to greet him like a stranger, but she found she couldn’t bring herself to do it.
A hoarse, feminine voice came from her dry throat. "Mr. Sheridan, hello."
’Once so intimate, and now, in front of his new flame, all I can do is call him a stranger’s ’Mr. Sheridan’.’
His cold, chilling gaze bore into her, but he didn’t respond.
It was as if he hadn’t heard her greeting at all. He was deliberately giving Georgia the cold shoulder.
The already awkward atmosphere instantly turned icy. Nathan affectionately put her arm around Georgia. "Don’t mind him. That’s just how he is—loves to act all high and mighty and ignore people."
Georgia pulled back her gaze and gave an awkward laugh.
Byron Shaw spoke up. "Nathan, aren’t you going to introduce me?"
"What’s there to introduce? Didn’t you already meet Elliot last time when you had dinner with Quincy Rhodes?"
Nathan looked at Byron Shaw with exasperation. She really disliked men like him who were always putting on a show.
’Lawyers are the worst.’
Byron Shaw let out a soft laugh, his gaze shifting to Elliot. "President Sheridan, it’s been a while."
"And you, Attorney Shaw."
Elliot narrowed his eyes, looking at him coldly as he sized up Byron Shaw.
Byron Shaw was very famous in the legal world. He had been back in the country for about a year and was now making a name for himself in Portmire.
Many people were very respectful when they met him.
Owen Sawyer had once suggested inviting Byron Shaw to be the Sheridan Group’s legal counsel, but Byron had flatly refused.
’The last time I had dinner with Quincy Rhodes, I was surprised to see Byron Shaw at the table.’
’Why would Quincy Rhodes be sitting at the same dinner table with a lawyer, and why would I be invited?’
’What was Quincy Rhodes’s intention?’
The two men were talking—politics, business, and so on. It seemed they could chat about anything within the typical male sphere of interest.
Only when Elliot wasn’t looking at her would Georgia dare to sneak a peek at him out of the corner of her eye.
’It’s been over a week since I last saw him. He seems even colder and more handsome.’
Georgia pressed her lips together. Just as she was about to look away, the man across from her suddenly met her gaze.
Their eyes clashed in midair. She could clearly see a flicker of fire in his dark pupils; he seemed furious.
Georgia’s heart trembled. She didn’t understand why he was so angry.
Nathan’s voice was ringing in her ears, but she could no longer make out the words.
Her mind went blank. ’Is he mad because he thinks I’m Byron Shaw’s girlfriend, or because I showed up in front of him and his new flame?’
"Watch out!"
Nathan’s sharp voice pierced her eardrums. Georgia finally snapped back to reality, realizing she had knocked over the teacup in front of her, spilling its contents onto her long skirt.
The skirt immediately clung, wet, to her skin. Nathan’s voice sounded in her ear, "I even warned you. How did you still manage to knock it over?"
"Sorry!" Georgia shot to her feet, the chair scraping loudly against the floor.
