Chapter 61: Chapter 61

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After her fiancé excused himself to take a call, Jenson thought Mykaela would just say goodbye and walk out of the room with Lorenzio and their bodyguards.

She probably wanted to enjoy her day off with her fiancé rather than spend another awkward few minutes with a stranger. But she stayed put in her seat, watching Jenson with her inquisitive eyes. Eyes that had seen too much already for someone her age.

Jenson didn't need to hear her entire life story. He could just tell.

Her eyes were just that expressive. Her mask still concealed what he imagined was a friendly smile that etched curved lines above her high cheekbones. "I'm sorry. He's just havin' a bad week."

"No need to apologize." Jenson shook his head and glanced at the door where Lorenzio stood by, talking quite loudly on the phone in his native tongue.

"Can't just step out of the house without him or escorts." Mykaela chuckled after glimpsing her fiancé. "He can be a bit overprotective, and moody sometimes, but...he's actually a softie."

"I understand why he's protective of you," Jenson replied, unsure why she felt the need to apologize for Lorenzio's demeanor earlier. "Been together a long time?"

"Not really. I first met him, um...three years ago. In Umbria. Ever been?"

Jenson shook his head. "Nah. Born and bred in Corvinus. Near Rome." He glanced down at her diamond engagement ring. "Wedding plans soon?"

"Next topic," she murmured with a stifled laugh. "Sorry. It's complicated. Really."

"No problem." Jenson mildly shook his head. "How's residency?"

"Brutal. Little to no sleep. Tight schedules. Then add a worldwide health crisis to the equation..." She rolled her eyes and blew a noisy sigh. "But, we're managing. Our hospital's not that big but we're hangin' in there. And Enzo no longer travels for work as often as he did, so, I'm quite happy with our set-up."

"It shows."

"So, you're goin' back to LA tonight?"

"Yeah. Gonna call your brother right after this. Now that you finally said yes to his invitation, I'm hopping on a flight back to Cali."

"Wait. You mean, after you get tested," Mykaela said while her chin rested on her palm.

"Yeah."

"Did you really test positive once? A couple months ago?"

"Yep. Rapid test. Company policy. I doubt the result was accurate, though. Didn't feel anything during quarantine. Three days later, I tested negative. Twice." He looked away to stare at his quiet phone beside his forearm.

Those memorable three days of quarantine with Jessiah in his office were still fresh in his mind. Like it happened yesterday. Not more than half a year ago.

"You and Jess still talk often?"

After his hushed question, Mykaela itched her temple and dropped her gaze, seeming uneasy all of a sudden. "Not as often as before."

Meaning: she probably knew where exactly Jessi was staying.

Jenson held his breath. The anticipation gripped his thoughts now, but he tried not to react. He had to play it cool. "Keep calm. No desperate or creepy questions," he repeatedly reminded his own brain.

"Why?" Kel asked when he kept his mouth shut.

"Nothing. Just...haven't heard from her in a while."

A loud sigh was Kel's delayed response, as if bothered that they were now talking about their friend. "I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but...she's moved on, man."

Moved on? With a new guy? Or just, in general?

"Ship's sailed. And I don't blame her, that she's keeping her distance now.  I'm really not surprised that she hasn't been talking to you."

"But she still calls you every once in a while? Is she still in Minnesota? With her parents?"

"Listen..." Mykaela murmured with a sigh, her skinny forearms still resting on the table. "After all that she went through, right now she just wants a quiet life, really. A simpler life with her family. No gossips. No drama. No complications. And I don't blame her for making that choice. Living with anxiety's a real bitch," she said in a speaking-from-experience kind of tone.

Well, okay, then. Basically she was telling him to stop bothering Jessi because she's moved on (maybe with a new guy?) and was now enjoying a much simpler life in the countryside with her beloved family.

Although relieved to hear that Jessiah was healthy and doing fine, Jenson couldn't just ignore the ever-familiar hurt-and-abandoned feeling that pinched his heart, crushing his ego bit by bit. Apparently she had moved on in no time. He, on the other hand, was still stuck thinking about her every single day, wondering where she was and what she was doing, and with no easy remedy for his worsening lovesickness.

"She just...doesn't wanna be found. Okay?"

"Yeah. I get it." He held back a frustrated sigh while Mykaela stared at him with her pale green eyes, as if measuring the sincerity behind his words.

"Do you really?"

He pulled a face. What was she trying to say now?

"'Cause if you really understood her, then you should've known better." Mykaela looked away and sat back, her tone filled with disappointment now.

"Sorry?"

"I know you know about her past with Armand."

"Yes," he replied after a moment of hesitation.

"Trauma doesn't just go away with time, y'know..."

Shit. Jenson gripped the edge of the table till his fingers hurt. Did she mean...  What happened between him and Jessiah before she left California traumatized her, too?

"You get what I'm tryna say?" Mykaela then said in a softer voice, all eyes on him again.

"I didn't⁠—  Kel, I didn't manipulate her, or take advantage of her, if that's what you're thinking," was his only reply. He didn't force or seduce Jessi into sleeping with him, although at times, he did feel terribly guilty for how things ended between them.

She probably thought he betrayed her trust, especially after everything she did for him. It could be the main reason she decided to just quit her job to go back to her old life. Everything about Los Angeles, and then getting involved with him...  It overwhelmed her, clearly.

"I'm not saying that's what you did," Mykaela said while raising her palms. "But you can't blame her for walking away from all that. Alright?" Her voice loudened a tad now.

"I don't."

"She's got a can-do attitude and acts like she can handle anything, but, she's really not invincible. And after Armand, LA, and, everything else..." Mykaela droned on with furrowed brows. "Highly doubt a year of therapy would be enough."

"Mykaela." Lorenzio walked back into the room before Jenson could even come up with a proper response.

"Oh. Um..." Mykaela shifted in her seat to stare back at her fiancé. "We're leaving now?"

"They're already waiting for us, love." The guy approached the dining table until he was able to touch her upper back. Lorenzio murmured something in Italian to her, then directed his gaze to Jenson amid a straight face. "Excuse us. We need to go. Nice meeting you." Lorenzio briefly waved at him, the guy's voice unsurprisingly flat and emotionless.

"Of course." Jenson pasted another smile on his lips and hurriedly got up from his seat. What he really wanted to do was ask Mykaela a dozen more questions about Jessi, but, clearly the couple had more important things to do. Places to be. People to meet.  "Good to see you. Thanks for your time."

"Likewise." Mykaela was back on her feet while Lorenzio's arm stayed on her shoulders. Before she walked away, she removed her mask for a second to give Jenson a smile. "Be safe."

"Bye. Take care."

Then the couple walked out of the private dining room with their overdressed bodyguards.

The next second, he was all alone again, sitting in front of a birthday cake, enjoying the utter privacy he had for the meantime. Jenson glanced at the corners of the room.

No obvious spy cameras on the ceiling. Maybe the restaurant management was serious about giving their VIP customers "total privacy".

While he tried to lull his thoughts with his itinerary, he sat back and blankly stared at the chocolate-covered dessert with melting candles on the top.

Fuck. He was getting old. So old. Privileged and a few millions richer with a nice, big house to boot, but...still growing older and just damn lonely.

Considering his current trajectory and complete failure of a love life, he might end up growing old alone in this world. No wife. No kids. No one else to live for but himself.

Pathetic. Just sad, really.

Sure, he liked solitude but he didn't want that kind of life. He didn't want to live and die alone.

Was this his well-deserved, inescapable punishment for all the things he'd done?

Did the universe hate him or something? Did he have to do penance now?

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