Chapter 41: Chapter 41

What Fathia didn't prepare for was that, in her hurried small steps, she wasn't paying attention to the path. She bumped into someone, causing her to step back and land smoothly on her butt. Grimacing, she tried to look up.

The person she bumped into was Sebastian, right in front of her. He looked at her with a pitying expression. "Are you okay?" He reached out his hand, a gesture that Fathia still remembered to this day. Those big palms that had once protected and comforted her. Fathia wouldn't easily forget them.

Fathia blinked slowly. She quickly got up without needing to accept the hand that was still extended towards her. She just nodded slightly and looked down again.

Sebastian frowned in confusion. He withdrew his hand. Allowing the small figure to quickly disappear from his view. "Weird girl."

"What's up, Mr. Sebastian?" one of Alef Walker's lackeys, Alan, asked.

"Ah, nothing." Even though he was talking to Alan, his eyes were still focused on the outside. For some reason, he felt like he had to keep an eye on the masked girl. And sure enough, there was a small crowd in the parking lot. Sebastian could still see it from the lobby because of the building's transparent glass from many sides.

Leaving his conversation partner, Sebastian hurried to catch up. This action clearly made him feel foolish. Why did he have to approach that girl? But truly, the glimpse of fear he had caught was so clear. And she was heading out from the restroom. Did he see a ghost?

"What's going on here?" Sebastian asked, causing the small crowd to give way a bit. Sebastian could clearly see that the girl had fallen again. This time, she had the unfortunate fate of being hit by a motorcycle that seemed to be hers.

"That's it, Sir. This girl was about to start her motorbike but it toppled over," explained one of the men in the crowd. Sebastian could tell that the man was wearing a security uniform. "She refused help even though it's heavy."

Meanwhile, the girl remained seated, grimacing. Not saying much, Sebastian and the man helped her lift her motorcycle. After making sure the spot for the bike was safe from the girl's reach, Sebastian approached again. "Can you get up?"

The girl looked up. Even with those ghostly bird glasses, Sebastian felt an odd sensation hitting him.

"Sorry, Sir," the security guy approached. Speaking rather softly, which annoyed Sebastian. "This girl seems to be speech-impaired."

Sebastian blinked slowly. Ah... no wonder she didn't speak earlier, just nodded and avoided him. He extended his hand again to help her, but once more, only a small nod was given in response to his earlier action.

A hastily written message that the girl handed to Sebastian. And the security guy.

[Thank you. Sorry for the trouble.]

***

"Got something on your mind, Sebastian?" Clara asked puzzled. They had been sitting by the edge of the pool for almost half an hour, surrounded by a variety of dishes, but not a single one had been touched by him.

Sebastian turned to her. In front of him, Clara was as enchanting as always. Shrugging, he really wasn't in the mood for dinner right now. "I'm tired. Are you going to eat or what? I'm going to rest first."

Clara blinked in confusion. "Oh my God, Sebastian! You can be so annoying, you know? This is a romantic dinner, you know."

"My meeting drained me emotionally, Clara. You should know that."

Clara pouted. Every time Sebastian brought up a 'meeting,' especially with someone like Alef Walker, that was always the excuse he gave. How annoying could a meeting with the potential replacement for Group Azure be? There shouldn't be any issues. Why did Sebastian have to worry about it?

Taking a slow breath, Clara tried to contain herself. She smiled slightly, playing with her curly hair. "Okay, if you don't want to eat. I'll have the hotel staff take us to our room."

Sebastian paused briefly from his movement to distance himself. "Our room?"

"Yeah. I'll sleep in your room. Is that okay?"

He closed his eyes for a moment. "You said you booked a room at Caesar Hotel. Why do you have to come to my room?"

Clara stood up, walked slowly until she was right in front of Sebastian. She traced Sebastian's chest gently, with emotion in her touch and a gaze that was becoming flirtatious.

"Clara, this is the hotel swimming pool," Sebastian muttered as he gently moved away her fingers.

"Are you saying you don't miss me?"

"No, not if the kind of missing you're talking about leads back to the bedroom. We agreed to wait until we're married."

Clara chuckled softly. "Wow. You're so patient." Her words seemed to challenge him even more. Taming Sebastian was a difficult task. Whenever there was a chance, she tried to flirt again, but failed. Only when Sebastian said he was starting to open his heart did Clara feel how he had control over himself.

She used those fingers again, tracing Sebastian's jaw covered in fine hair. Stroking it gently. "Okay, I'll wait until that time comes."

"I should be the one unable to control myself. But why is it the opposite?"

Clara laughed. "Why don't you ask your heart?" And just as Clara's red lips were about to land on the corner of Sebastian's mouth, an interruption came in the form of Vino, Sebastian's assistant.

"Ah, sorry, Sir, Ma'am. I'm sorry," he said awkwardly.

Clara quickly put some distance between her and Sebastian, while he just shook his head. "What's up?"

"Um... that, uh... well, Sir?"

"What's clear, Vin."

"His proposal submission is done after my revisions. You said it needed a discussion?"

"Oh, okay." Sebastian gently brushed Clara's cheek as a sign of farewell. "Call your assistant, Clara. Just head back to your hotel and rest. I'll be working late."

He didn't care about Clara's grumbling at the moment. He really needed to finish what Vino had just told him. When he was walking alongside Vino, he said, "Thanks."

That statement only made Vino furrow his brow. "For what, Sir?" It was quite challenging to keep up with Sebastian's hurried pace. But even when the two of them arrived at the hotel room that was still cluttered with papers, Vino still didn't get an answer.

Maybe his boss was just rambling, Vino thought.