At long last, Jonathan felt a surge of drowsiness. His arms snaked around the woman, who was already in a deep sleep beside him, holding her close in his embrace. Soon enough, he too fell asleep, surrounded by satiated bliss.Jonathan had a dream that night that he and Scarlett were about to get married. He dreamed about her pledge to stay by his side forever as Lucas stood beside her and about the way Lucas finally called him Dad. He smiled; everything had felt so unbelievably real.As for Scarlett, she didn't know how long she'd slept. She opened her eyes, blinking at the dimness of the room. The curtains were drawn, preventing the glaring sunlight from outside from entering. After rubbing her fatigued eyes, she bolted upright as last night's events came back to her in a jolt.Where was she? She wondered silently as she tried to recall what had happened. She remembered having dinner with Jonathan and the wine she drank, but after that, she couldn't remember anything else.Her head th
"Pft … Why are you on his side?" Scarlett marveled. Not only did Lucas speak up for Jonathan, but he seemed to have always been biased toward the man."I'm not on his side. I just think that if you can agree to date Uncle Jonathan, doesn't that mean you've already started liking him? Even though you told Uncle Dylan you'd marry him in the past, you never properly dated him anyway. Now that you're dating Uncle Jonathan, it's obvious you've always been partial toward him." Lucas pressed his lips together. He still didn't know that Dylan was already married, and that was the only reason why he'd compared Jonathan to Dylan."Alright, alright, I know what you mean. Wait, it's so late now. Did you have breakfast? I forgot to bring you something. Are you hungry, baby?" Scarlett glanced at the sun creeping toward noon, suddenly realizing the time. For a developing kid like Lucas, breakfast was a must for his growth.Lucas rolled his eyes. "Mommy, it's almost lunchtime. Even if you'd brought br
"Mister, you're so handsome!" Lucas complimented him as he surveyed the man's features. He thought they were unbelievably fortunate to have encountered someone willing to help them out every time. Not only that, but all those people who came forward to help them were always exceptionally attractive. His mother's charming and youthful appearance was indeed useful when it came to things like this."And you're just too adorable. What's your name, kid?" Dean had always loved being praised for his looks. Not only was he self-absorbed like this, but no one other than his older cousin could ever rival his looks, and he knew it."My name is Lucas. Can I call you Dean?" Lucas asked innocently."Of course, Lucas! You're so cute. Are you two siblings?" Dean evidently liked this child as he attempted to make conversation. Moreover, the captivating woman sitting in front of him looked exactly like his dream partner. He was suddenly thankful that he'd stopped by this restaurant instead of returning
"Scarlie, it's my pleasure and absolute honor to be able to treat such a beautiful lady like yourself for lunch." After that, the two exchanged their contact information and returned home, respectively. It wasn't until they'd parted that Scarlett suddenly realized that Dean was a Leonard too, and his appearance did resemble Jonathan in more ways than one. She was beginning to suspect that perhaps Dean and Jonathan knew each other.Still, she quickly dismissed that thought. Coincidences like these should be rare—perhaps this was nothing but a chance encounter, and she'd never bump into Dean again.Since coming back to Atville, Scarlett had found herself with a lot of free time on her hands. When she'd been in Crayton, she'd still had the flower shop to manage. But here, with her primary job on hold and her position as governor rebuked, she was left with a ton of freedom to do whatever she pleased with the time she had.In her idle moments, she couldn't help but criticize Jonathan inward
"Legal advisor? At your company?" Scarlett exclaimed in surprise. She knew that Leonard Corporations had an exceptional team of legal advisors composed of mostly world-renowned experts in law, both domestically and internationally. Even though her knowledge of the legal world was decent, her expertise lay more in the field of litigation than anything else. She had limited experience as an advisor for a company as large as Jonathan's."Yes, don't worry. I've talked about this with the company before. While you serve as our legal advisor, you can also be my assistant." He smiled."What? You want me to juggle two jobs in your company? President Leonard, you're evidently exploiting my skills for free labor," she protested. The thought that Jonathan must have some kind of ulterior motive behind his offer crossed her mind immediately. If she decided to join the company, she would have to see him every day, not to mention the frequent interactions she'd need to have with him as his personal a
Scarlett took the contract and began reading through the clauses carefully. The first one was enough to elicit a protest from her."What the fuck is this, Jonathan? Do you really expect accompanying you to be one of my responsibilities as your personal assistant?" She was exasperated to read the childish term laid forth—it shouldn't even be part of the contract in the first place."It's simple enough. You're my personal assistant, so whenever I'm bored, you'll have to come over and keep me entertained. That's the whole point of being my personal assistant," Jonathan explained. Scarlett felt like she'd made an enormous mistake by agreeing to this yesterday. She should've known that when it came to Jonathan, nothing good would come out of their arrangements, no matter how attractive they sounded in the beginning."What about this clause? What do you mean you get to decide what time I start work? I'm here to work, not be your nanny or your companion," Scarlett plowed on angrily. Based on
"Jonathan, how dare you trick me? The coffee is here in your office. You don't even need me to make it for you," Scarlett bellowed. The man's deviousness and intent to drive her to the ground enraged her the more she thought about it."Scar, we're at work now, and you should call me Mr. Leonard, as we've already agreed. If you want to be more intimate, I suppose I wouldn't object to Johnny or even ba—""Enough, enough! So, Mr. Leonard, may I know why you played me like this? Do you think it's fun?" Scarlett interrupted."Of course not. I was simply evaluating your observation skills. There's hot water and coffee on my desk—didn't you see that when you came in? You don't even need to go out and ask someone when it's right in front of you! Do you still blame me for not stating the obvious?" Jonathan peered at the coffee on his desk as he spoke. He hadn't expected Scarlett to be as clueless as she'd been when she'd walked out with his mug without even asking him beforehand."You—" Scarlet
"What else do you want? Just tell me everything now," Scarlett said irritably. She knew that Jonathan must've had something in mind for him to be giving her such a hard time now. With his calculating and manipulative personality, she doubted he'd let her go this easily."Well, make me a cup of coffee," Jonathan told her simply.Earlier, she hadn't known where to go, but now that she did, Scarlett had no choice but to make him the coffee he requested."Ouch, that's so hot!" Jonathan spat out the mouthful of coffee he just drank, clearly dissatisfied."You—if it's too hot, why don't you wait for it to cool down first before drinking?" Scarlett really was at a loss for words upon seeing his dramatic reaction. She'd taken the time to make him a cup of coffee, and yet he still had the nerve to complain."You're supposed to adjust the temperature before giving it to me, you know?" Jonathan returned soberly."You—""Make me another one," he said."What?" Her surprise was evident. Didn't she j