CHAPTER 196: ODD BEHAVIORS [CHRISTIAN POV]

Georgio lifted his hand, and a row of servants walked in, carrying large plates of exquisite food.

At least he wasn’t lying about the special meal.

I looked at the braised lamb in front of me and wondered what he wanted this time. I didn’t remember such treatment last time I was invited. Even the wine was exceptionally fragrant.

The room fell silent; only the occasional sounds of forks and knives could be heard.

"The food is delicious. I must admit that I am curious about the reason for today’s invitation. Is there something happening?" I asked, pretending to be ignorant.

Georgio let out a nervous laugh. "No, no. We just missed you. To be honest, it’s been a while since you’ve visited, and my poor Morgan has been a bit lonely."

"Yes, I’ve been waiting to see you for so many days!" Morgan chimed in. Her heart-struck eyes never left me since I arrived, making it feel like I was under constant surveillance.

Sigh.

I took in a deep breath and flashed a polite smile. "Forgive me. Work has been so busy recently...I’ve neglected you." I looked directly into Morgan’s eyes as I spoke.

Just as I finished speaking, I noticed something from the corner of my eye. Leslie arrived and was standing at the entrance of the dining room.

Her eyes were glued to me. I let out a small smirk, happy to see how captivated she seemed as she stood frozen in place.

"Leslie. Don’t just stand there. Hurry up and take a seat," her mother said quickly.

Leslie quickly walked over and sat down in her usual seat beside Morgan.

I couldn’t keep my eyes off of her. She was still dressed in office attire, but the soft glow of her skin was something I couldn’t get enough of.

Unlike me, she kept her eyes lowered, focusing on poking at the food on her plate.

Is she not hungry? Or did she already eat....

My eyes darkened at the thought of her sharing a candlelit dinner with Lucas.

She should be sharing those moments with me!

A surge of anger flared up inside of me, but it wasn’t directed at her. I was angry at myself for not being better, doing better so that it never would’ve come to this situation.

Still, just having her sit in front of me brought me a sense of peace. Even with my anger, I could feel my body relax.

I missed this feeling. I missed her.

"You said things at the company were going well. That’s good to hear, very good to hear," said Georgio, breaking the silence.

I nodded, "Yes, it’s been going well. The company is only growing more and more. I’m just afraid there isn’t enough of me to go around."

Georgio let out a small laugh. "Sounds like you need to start thinking about an heir sooner rather than later. If you had a son now, he’d be able to help you out in just a few years."

My fork paused mid-air. A strange feeling welled up inside of me.

Kids? Why is he bringing up kids?

My eyes flickered over to Morgan, who was squirming in her seat, looking at me with nothing but pure infatuation.

Oh, god.

Leslie finally looked up, glancing between me and Morgan. I couldn’t tell if she was angry or sad, but her brow remained permanently furrowed, like she was thinking deeply about something.

I really wanted to take her hand and ask what was on her mind, but that wasn’t a luxury I could afford right now.

"Christian. I was hoping you’d be willing to spend some time with me after dinner. I recently got this new tea and it’s super delicious, maybe we can have some out in the garden?" said Morgan. She was fluttering her eyelashes at me as if that would help entice me.

However, she was technically my fiancée, and I needed to keep up appearances. At least for now.

"Of course. I would love to," I said with a slight nod.

"I’ll go get it prepared now," she said as she stood up. She turned to look at her parents, "Please excuse me from the table."

Georgio waved his hand with a surprisingly calm expression. I was expecting him to be slightly more stern with her, but it seemed that he was okay with her antics today.

Leslie remained quiet the entire time, though she did occasionally glance over at me. This most recent time, I noticed that the tips of her ears were red.

"Christian. It’s getting late. Spend some time with my daughter this evening and spend the night here. It’s been so long," said Georgio.

I lifted my eyebrow and looked at him. He still hasn’t made mention of why he wanted me here today. Normally, he would’ve said it by now; he’s not someone who could keep it in for long.

What are you planning?

"Okay, that sounds good. Thank you for the invitation," I replied. Something in my gut was telling me there was something that I was missing. I wanted to find out what it was.

As soon as dinner ended, Leslie excused herself and vanished from the room. She didn’t even spare me a second glance as she walked out.

My chest tightened. This felt like the shortest dinner in history. I wanted to see more of her, spend more time with her. Hell, I was content just sitting in the same room as her.

"Christian. Are you coming?"

Morgan pulled me out of my thoughts. She was standing in front of me with an expectant look. "The tea is ready. I brewed it myself, so you’ll have to tell me how you like it."

I stood up from my seat and nodded. "Yes, I’m ready. I’m sure the tea you brewed is very good."

She walked over and reached out to grab my hand. "I set up the tea in the pavilion outside. The weather is very nice out," she said, pulling me out of the room.

As we arrived at the outdoor pavilion, I looked around the garden. Faint flashes of fragmented memories made their way back to me. They were mostly all of Leslie. Her smiling face, her melodic laughter, and...the warmth of her skin.

Don’t think about that. Not right now.

I forced myself to focus on the present, pushing all of the honey-dripped memories to the back of my mind.

"Here. Drink it while it’s still warm," said Morgan, handing me a beautiful teacup filled with steaming hot tea.