Sean initially thought Estella was deceiving him when she said there were important files on her laptop. After all, he felt that she was always too cunning for him to tell whether she was telling the truth or not.
“I shouldn’t have touched your laptop without your permission. I apologize for my behavior.” Sean was feeling guilty and even embarrassed. Was it too late for him to make amends?
“No worries. Didn’t you ask the technician to fix my laptop? Now we’re even.” Estella smiled brightly. She never held grudges for long.
“That’s good.” Sean was relieved. He looked out of the window at the dull sky. It was already evening. “Aren’t you going to see Mrs. Larson? I’ll take you there now.”
Estella stared at Sean, thinking of something, and suddenly smiled. “I want to continue gathering information for my novel. Can you help me?”
Sean frowned. “I’m sorry. I’ve already told you that I signed a nondisclosure agreement. It’s not in my best interests to discuss Mr. Larson’s personal affairs.”
Sean took a more serious tone this time.
“Why are you suddenly pulling a long face? Even if there is no confidentiality agreement, I believe you won’t say anything about Brandon.” Estella could tell from today’s conversation that Sean was extremely smart for knowing exactly what to say and what not to say.
“It’s good that you know it,” Sean said, unsure how to respond. “To put it bluntly, Mrs. Larson is a good and kind person, so she is usually willing to help her friends. However, you must also consider her situation. A similar heinous incident could occur in the future. If you add the plot to the novel, the readers will learn about them. It will affect Mr. and Mrs. Larson’s lives and bring them trouble.”
He paused before continuing, “They prefer to keep a low profile.”
Estella burst out laughing and exclaimed, “I’ve noticed that you enjoy nagging. Don’t worry. I’m not interested in writing a novel about a dictatorial president right now. I’m going to prepare…”
With a mysterious smile, she looked Sean in the eyes. “I’ll explain later. Anyway, I’m going to ask for your assistance.”
Sean stood still. Estella just gave him a strange look. She must be up to no good.
“You don’t have to respond to me right now. I’ll give you plenty of time to think about it. Of course you can also decline if you don’t want to do this.” Estella reached into her bag for her business card and handed it to Sean. “Think it over. You can call me any time when you decide. I will be waiting for you.”
Sean held the business card for a long time, lost in thought.
Meanwhile, in the Larson Group’s office on the top floor… Leaning against the sofa, Natalie rested her eyes on Brandon, who was having a video conference. They said that men were most charming when they were focused on their work. Now, Natalie deeply understood the meaning of this adage.
Suddenly, her phone vibrated. It was a message from Estella.
Estella informed Natalie that she would drop the idea of talking to Brandon for the time being. It was too risky for her to come close to someone like him.
Natalie was perplexed as to why Estella had abruptly changed her mind since she seemed so determined that morning.
Estella then sent another message that answered her question.
Estella said she wanted to borrow Brandon’s “male mother”, Sean.
Male mother?
Natalie was amused by Estella’s choice of words. Why did Estella shift her attention to Sean?
“Baby, what are you laughing at?” After the video conference, Brandon turned around to face Natalie and saw her smiling widely.
Brandon hugged her from behind and gently bit her shoulder.
“It’s Estella. She said she wanted to borrow Sean. She also said he was a male mother,” Natalie replied softly, grinning.
Hearing this, Brandon stared at Natalie and smiled. “Tell Estella she could borrow Sean and I have no objection. What I admire the most about Sean is his discretion. He is good at keeping secrets.”
With raised eyebrows, Natalie replied, “I’m curious to know why you’re always so ruthless to Sean.”
“All I can say is that Sean is a good actor. He has deceived you.” Brandon didn’t say anything further. Sean was his confidant, and he was sure Sean wouldn’t expose any of his or the Larson Group’s secrets, even if he was tortured for the information.
Able to tell that Brandon didn’t want to talk about it anymore, Natalie stopped her questioning. Sean must have been a capable man, since he had been able to work for Brandon as his assistant for so many years.
A meaningful smile spread across Natalie’s face. “Sean would never succumb to torture and reveal your secret, but it’s hard to know if he would tell Estella.”
With a perplexed expression, Brandon asked, “What do you mean?”
He felt that Estella had misled Natalie.
“It’s a secret. You’ll find out later.” A cryptic smile appeared across Natalie’s face.
Brandon bit her shoulder. “Okay, I’ll wait and see.”
Letting go of Natalie, he picked up the coat on the sofa. “It’s getting late. Let’s go. What do you want to have for dinner?”
“Didn’t you just have a video conference? Is it over already?” She couldn’t hide her grin as she spoke.
“Nothing else matters. I just want to spend time with you.” Brandon squeezed her hand, and they went downstairs together.
After the chaos of the afternoon, Natalie requested some time away from the studio. They would normally be working overtime now, and hadn’t been home together for a while.
The sun set was particularly beautiful this evening. The last bit of afterglow had just dissipated into the night sky. The couple drove into the villa district. Before they reached their gate, Natalie suggested they walk the rest of the way home.
New Book: Beginning with a Daring Encounter
Celsie was tired of being labeled as an introvert, workaholic, and dull virgin by her friends. Determined to prove them wrong, she made a bet that she would do something daring on her 25th birthday. Now that the day had arrived, it was time to fulfill her promise. On her daring to-do list, there was one task: a one-night stand with someone.
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