CHAPTER 37: CHAPTER 37: OVERWHELMING JEALOUSY: HE USED TO HAVE A CRUSH ON YOU!

Vera Sheridan saw Ian Kane and paused, gradually clenching her hands, trying to suppress the sourness rising in her heart.

The man quickly approached her, gripping her wrist, and with a slight force, pulled her into his broad chest, "Wife, I’ve come to pick you up."

"Barrister Grant, you’re here too." Ian Kane’s lips curled into a smile as he greeted Noah Grant.

Noah Grant’s attention was still on Vera’s ankle, and he asked her, "Did you twist it?"

Vera smiled lightly, "No."

Ian Kane squinted slightly, let go of Vera, and then knelt on one knee in front of her. His cold white fingers gently stroked her slightly swollen ankle, and with a face that could captivate anyone, he asked, "Did you bring the spray?"

Vera nodded and took it out from her bag to hand it to him.

Ian Kane, with skilled movements, shook the bottle, pressed the spray, and applied it to her ankle.

Noah Grant watched this with an expressionless face, while the veins on the back of his hand gradually bulged with a wild sense of strength.

Raising his head, he noticed Vera looking down at Ian Kane. The always cool and indifferent girl had lips curled into a smile, appearing sweet and happy.

Noah Grant clenched his hands slightly, speaking in a calm tone, "Vera, shall we reschedule our dinner?"

Vera snapped back to reality and was about to nod.

Ian Kane stood up, his eyes deep with a hint of a smile, "Did you two have a dinner arranged?"

Noah Grant didn’t respond to him.

Vera nodded to Ian Kane, "Senior Grant lost a game to me, and he has to treat me."

She guessed Noah Grant deliberately let her win to maintain her undefeated image in front of those retired officials.

Ian Kane gently rubbed the wedding ring on his ring finger, his gaze shifting, "We as a couple also owe you a few meals, and there’s no time like the present, let’s do it tonight!"

Noah Grant, "You don’t owe me anything."

Ian Kane was momentarily speechless and grit his teeth.

Vera noticed his emotion, "Senior, it’s really our turn to treat you."

Noah Grant looked at her but didn’t refuse further.

...

Inside the private room, both men handed the menu to Vera, allowing her to order as she pleased.

Vera picked dishes with the server, and at the end, didn’t forget to remind, "No cilantro in any of the dishes."

As soon as she finished speaking, Noah Grant and Ian Kane, who were drinking tea, both looked up at her.

Vera openly said, "I remember Senior Grant doesn’t eat cilantro. Have your preferences changed over the years?"

Back in college when they ate at the cafeteria together, she remembered he used to pick out the cilantro garnishes on braised beef brisket and throw them away.

Noah Grant’s mouth curled slightly, "Hasn’t changed."

Ian Kane’s jaw tightened, and he glanced sidelong at Vera.

Noticing his meaningful gaze, Vera understood and reminded the server, "No mango in the fruit platter."

Ian Kane is allergic to mangoes.

The man swallowed hard, still feeling unhappy inside, but said, "Wife, you’re really thoughtful."

Vera smiled.

As the three of them chatted while eating.

When the Western-style grilled lamb chops were served, Ian Kane cut a portion with a knife and fork and placed it in front of Vera.

The lamb ribs, with alternating layers of fat and meat, glistened with a gem-like oily sheen, looking very appetizing, but Vera frowned, as Ian Kane knew she didn’t eat lamb.

He ordered it for them.

"Vera doesn’t eat lamb?" Noah Grant spoke up.

Ian Kane was obviously taken aback, his eyes darkened as he met Vera’s gaze.

The air grew tense for a moment.

Suddenly, Vera recalled that Nina Sullivan loved eating lamb.

Her hometown’s county is famous for its young goats.

Ian Kane looked at Noah Grant, "Vera, under my influence, has changed her taste and can now eat lamb."

Vera was stunned, her brow furrowing even deeper.

Ian Kane turned to look at her with a warm and deep voice, "Wife, eat it while it’s hot, this place’s lamb isn’t gamey."

He forgot she didn’t eat lamb and was subtly competing with Noah Grant, wanting her to eat it.

Vera forced a smile, "Mr. Kane, I’ll go to the restroom first."

Ian Kane’s eyes darkened, and he murmured an "Hmm."

After she left, Noah Grant glanced at Ian Kane and coldly snorted.

"Old Man Grant, what do you mean by this?"

Noah Grant, "It’s nothing."

Ian Kane added, "Back then, before you went abroad, Vera rejected you. She loves me, so you’d better restrain yourself."

Noah Grant put the teacup down heavily, his tone pensive, "People change, don’t they?"

Ian Kane gripped the teacup tightly.

Turns out he hadn’t given up yet!

...

When Vera returned, the lamb chops were already cold, exuding the gamey smell she disliked, so she pushed them aside.

After the meal ended and the couple returned to the car, Ian Kane unbuttoned his shirt collar and spoke in a displeased tone, "In front of Old Man Grant, what’s wrong with having a bite of lamb?"

"You excused yourself to the restroom, deliberately making him see me as a liar, right?"

Vera didn’t expect him to turn the tables, "Ian Kane, you forgot I don’t eat lamb and still tried to make me eat it! And you’re mad that I didn’t? I have nothing with Senior Grant, what are you competing with him for?"

He was being excessive!

Ian Kane’s chest heaved greatly, his dark eyes fixed on a point in the dim light, his voice sinister, "You’ve forgotten how much I cared about him before?"

"Playing chess with him behind my back, not answering my calls, not letting me touch you, yet you’re not repelled by his touch, privately arranging meals with him, remembering he doesn’t eat cilantro, and he remembers you don’t eat lamb. The two of you right under my nose, exchanging looks, rekindling old flames..."

"Tell me, shouldn’t I be angry?"

Vera was exasperated, "There wasn’t anything like that between him and me, just an ordinary friendship, but you make it sound so serious?"

The neon light flashing in from outside illuminated the crimson at the corners of Ian Kane’s eyes, the man burning with jealousy, and continued, "Back then, you gave him the Go set engraved with your name, if that’s not an old romance, what is?"

The man glared at her, his jaw almost breaking free from the thin layer of skin, memories of them being together constantly replaying in his mind.

Her look of admiration for Noah Grant was deeply etched in his memory.

At that time, she always avoided him.

Without his reminder, Vera had almost forgotten about it. Back then, when she won the first prize in the Go competition, the organizer’s medal was a special piece engraved with her name.

To thank Noah Grant, the mastermind behind the scenes, she gave him the medal.

Vera calmed down a bit, "Ian Kane, Senior Grant and I were friends before, and giving gifts was something in the past, at that time I wasn’t familiar with you either."

Hearing the word "unfamiliar," Ian Kane felt a sting in his heart, his aura darkening.

"From now on, don’t see him anymore!" His tone was icy.

Vera was taken aback.

She knew his possessiveness over her and possibly due to his family background, he also lacked a sense of security, but this aggressive attitude was really too much.

Does he see her as a possession?

She didn’t want to indulge him, "Ian Kane, my relationship with Noah Grant is one of mutual respect and openness. When playing chess, there were so many elderly people watching, what right do you have to restrict my social interactions?"

This afternoon when she was evenly matched with Noah Grant in chess, she experienced a passionate and immersive feeling she hadn’t felt in a long time, a sense of joy that was no less than dancing ballet on stage.

She didn’t want to lose such a source of happiness.

Ian Kane’s brow furrowed tightly, "You still want to continue interacting with him?"

Vera’s eyes shifted, "It’s normal social interaction! Ian Kane, are you not trusting me again?"

Last time it was Milo Hale.

Ian Kane paused, his aggressiveness slightly subdued, "It’s not that I don’t trust you, I don’t trust him."

Vera retorted, "Senior Grant is a gentleman."

Ian Kane clenched his teeth, pondered for a moment, then coldly huffed, "He used to have a crush on you."

Vera was stunned, turning to look at him, thinking she had misheard.