Chapter 525 Make Clothes For Francis
Harper couldn't catch a word from inside the car, but Jessica's face said it all—something was definitely off. Jessica and Jasper? When did that become a thing? How did she miss all the signs?
But once she started doubting, even the tiniest details began to make sense, like puzzle pieces falling into place. If it's true, though, with Jasper's personality and Clayton's attitude, Jessica's in for a rough ride.
Harper sighed, thinking about Molly. Why did their love lives have to be such a mess?
Harper figured she should find a chance to chat with Jessica and see what's up. If Jessica'd really thought it through, Harper would totally have her back.
Inside the car, when Jessica knew Jasper at her place, she bit her lip, wanting to blow up but held it in, "Did you break into my place?"
Jasper lounged on the sofa, legs stretched out, all casual, "Do I look like I need to break in?"
"Then how'd you get in?"
"A drunk chick gave me the password last night."
Jessica's ears burned; she was the drunk chick. She wanted to slap herself. How could she spill everything after a few drinks? She needed to change that password ASAP.
Jessica took a deep breath, "You can't just waltz into my house."
Jasper, all serious, replied, "I came to get my clothes."
Jessica felt helpless at his tone, "You only got one set of clothes?"
"Yeah. And Jessica, why aren't you calling me Mr. Murphy anymore?"
Jessica went quiet, thinking about her wild behavior last night, her face turning beet red.
"Last night in bed, you called me Mr. Murphy 58 times. Started loud, ended up crying." Jasper raised an eyebrow, his voice dripping with innuendo, "The way you said it at the end was pretty sweet."
Jessica was so flustered she almost stuttered, "Enough!"
Even though she was drunk last night, she wasn't totally out of it. Now, with Jasper's reminder, images of him above her, looking down, sweat dripping on her body, flooded her mind.
Jessica shivered, her ears burning, and quickly said, "Didn't I text you this morning? Last night was a mistake."
"I didn't see it. Why don't you come back and explain?"
Jessica wished she could erase all memories of last night. She said dismissively, "I'm having dinner out."
"With who?"
"With Harper." Jessica finally admitted.
Jasper felt a bit relieved hearing it was Harper, "Alright, enjoy your meal."
Seeing that mentioning Harper worked, Jessica didn't forget to remind him, "Please lock up when you leave."
Hearing Jessica's distant tone again, Jasper frowned and hung up. Jessica looked at the disconnected phone, silent for a moment.
Sure enough, he still had that big temper. Only with Jasper, she could never shake off the label of being the housekeeper's daughter.
After Harper walked in, a waiter led her upstairs. The restaurant was a fancy one in Northfield, all private rooms, no main hall.
Harper followed the waiter upstairs. Suddenly, the waiter in front said, "Good evening, sir."
Harper looked up and saw Francis's handsome face. Her heart stopped!
Francis spotted her too, his eyes cold as ice. Their eyes locked, and Harper almost blurted out the burning question in her mind.
Was Audrey's baby his?
This was a game-changer for her. It could totally wreck the image she had of Francis.
But Francis just gave her a cold glance and looked away, like she was nobody. Then, he turned to leave.
Harper's hand froze until the waiter called her, "Ma'am?"
She snapped back to reality and followed. The waiter led the way, and it seemed like Francis was heading in the same direction.
The restaurant had this unique vibe, with private rooms spaced out for privacy. Harper watched Francis's tall frame, his suit fitting perfectly, showing off his sexy silhouette, but he looked thinner, adding a touch of lonely desolation to his already cold demeanor.
Suddenly, Harper laughed. Why was she even worried about this? Francis didn't even want to say hi. Maybe some things were better left unasked. Being strangers was fine too.
"Francis." Audrey, coming out from a private room, hooked her slender arm around him, "The food's ready. Let's eat."
The air felt like it froze. Harper's steps halted. Francis hated eating at this place, yet here he was with Audrey. Tomorrow's headlines would be all about their "loving relationship."
Audrey felt the coldness radiating from Francis, but she still clung to him. She didn't think Francis would push her away in front of Harper.
Sure enough, Francis didn't push her away. He just said calmly, "Okay."
He turned to enter the room. But Audrey wasn't letting go, stopping as if she had just noticed Harper.
"Ms. Murphy?" Audrey's voice was all surprised as she stepped forward, "Here for dinner too? Want to join us?"
Audrey's tone was all friendly, but Harper saw right through it. When Audrey grabbed Francis's arm, she had already spotted Harper. Now, calling her over was just to show off.
But Audrey's face really threw Harper off. The old Audrey wasn't drop-dead gorgeous but not bad either. With all the designer stuff, she at least looked like a classy socialite.
But now, maybe because of the pregnancy, her skin looked terrible. The makeup was so thick it looked like it was about to crack, and it still didn't cover the bad skin. She looked nothing like the person in the news.
The photos on the news must've been photoshopped. Considering the media outlet was under the Getty Group, of course, they'd make Audrey look good.
Harper wasn't interested in watching their PDA, so she said calmly, "No thanks, I'm meeting a friend."
The surprise in Harper's eyes didn't escape Audrey. Audrey tightened her grip on Francis's hand. Her eyes were like venomous scorpions, filled with poison. Especially when seeing Harper's delicate and beautiful face, the jealousy and hatred in her eyes were palpable.
Why did pregnancy make her so ugly? It was all because of that freakish thing in her belly, sucking away her beauty. And then there was Harper, with those eyes that seemed to scream "come hither," clearly out to mess with people.
But Harper wasn't thinking about any of that now. She had bigger fish to fry. Especially when she saw Francis not pushing Audrey away, the two of them standing united against her, she felt nothing but disgust and nausea.
Jasper had mentioned that the investigation into Agnes and Zoey's kidnapping had hit a wall. They finally found someone connected to the criminals, but before they could grill him, a lawyer swooped in and messed everything up. After that, the guy vanished.
Following the breadcrumbs, Jasper found out the lawyer was tied to the Getty Group.
Harper had already suspected Audrey was mixed up in the kidnapping. How else would Abigail know where the kidnappers were? It had to be a deal after Abigail agreed to Audrey's terms.
Now, Harper couldn't get to Abigail, and the trail to the kidnappers was cold. But the known villain, Audrey, was standing here untouched, thanks to Francis. If Francis didn't want it, no one could touch the people he protected.
The discomfort piled up, and Harper, feeling pale, wanted to bail but was stopped by Audrey. "Ms. Murphy, I confirmed the design of the dress I ordered from you this afternoon. Did you get it?"
Harper didn't expect her to bring this up out of nowhere.
Back then, Audrey paid the deposit more to humiliate her, so after that, Audrey didn't confirm the design or respond, and the whole thing was put on ice. Now that the humiliation had become real, Audrey wasn't letting Harper off the hook.
Audrey deliberately said, "I had my wedding dress custom-made last year. You just need to make me two casual dresses for the honeymoon, and also make two suits for my husband, okay?"
Harper was stunned, her first reaction was to look at Francis. She didn't believe Francis didn't get that Audrey was asking her to make the clothes just to humiliate her.
Audrey also turned to Francis with a smile, saying, "Francis, Ms. Murphy's designs are quite good. Let her make them for you."
Francis's eyes were icy, and his words suddenly shifted, "These trivial matters, you decide."
Sure enough, Harper shouldn't have had any hope. She wondered if the store's air conditioning was broken. She felt the pores under her clothes stand up, the cold air creeping in, making her feel uncomfortable inside.
Since they could do it, why couldn't she? Not making money handed to her would be foolish.
Harper looked back at the two of them with clear eyes, without a hint of avoidance, "Okay, I'll have my assistant schedule a time with you later."
"Don't want to disturb you two. Enjoy your meal." She even smiled slightly, then walked forward without a pause.
Audrey seemed to want to say something else and reached out to stop her, but Francis grabbed her hand. Audrey instantly became obedient, showing a sweet smile, hoping Harper would look back at them.
But Harper's steps were steady and firm, with no intention of looking back. Audrey was extremely disappointed but was quickly filled with other emotions. Francis was holding her hand tightly, which was a big breakthrough.
"Francis," Audrey called out softly.
Even though Francis was holding her, he didn't look at her, his cold, deep eyes staring ahead at nothing. Just as Audrey wondered what was up, her train of thought was interrupted by the adding force on her hand. Francis's grip was getting tighter, and it felt like her bones were about to snap!
Her smug face twisted in pain, and she cried out, "Francis!"
Francis's gaze stayed calm, like he hadn't heard her, his hand like a vice, squeezing until sweat dripped from Audrey's forehead, her face contorting even more.
"Francis." Audrey almost sobbed, choking out, "It hurts, let go."
Francis finally looked down, coldly saying, "Someone's taking pictures." But his grip didn't loosen, dragging her along with quick strides.
Audrey instantly shut up, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace. But her hand hurt so much, her fingers felt like they were being crushed.
Finally, inside the private room, as the door closed, Francis let go. Audrey staggered, grabbing onto a chair, tears streaming down. Her right hand's fingers were so numb they lost feeling.
Francis stood still, the light casting on his face, still as handsome as ever. But his expression, to Audrey now, looked like he was here to end her.
Audrey felt a chill all over, just looking at Francis made her feel unsteady.
Francis lowered his eyes, his voice low and hoarse, "Audrey, do you like playing games?"
Audrey's heart skipped a beat, trying hard to suppress her guilt, her face neutral, "Francis, what are you talking about? I don't get it."
Seeing her play dumb, Francis's eyes grew colder, "Didn't I tell you not to mess with her?"
Audrey felt a surge of bitterness, feeling wronged, "I didn't. I just saw reporters waiting outside and went to find you. I really didn't know Harper was there."
And she had only talked to her for a few minutes, how was that provoking?
Francis coldly curled his lips, "If you didn't know, why couldn't you keep your mouth shut?"
"You really misunderstood. I had previously ordered a dress from her for a trip, but it was delayed due to some issues. I thought it was a good time to use it, so I... Ah!" Before Audrey could finish, she suddenly covered her face, screaming. A porcelain bowl had grazed her face, smashing hard on the glass turntable, making a shattering sound.
"Put away your little games." Francis didn't want to hear Audrey speak, a cold smile on his lips, "If you don't want to continue this deal, you can leave now."
Audrey's expression changed instantly, panicking as she tried to grab Francis's arm. But just as she was about to touch him, remembering the pain earlier, she timidly withdrew her hand.
She knew that in front of Francis, explanations and tears were useless, so she stopped pretending. "Francis, you promised me a wedding. So, before the wedding, what's wrong with me defending my territory?" Audrey's expression was self-satisfied, her face changing so quickly it was astonishing. This was the real her.
She added, "Besides, as part of the deal, I promised to get the Charles family to lift the hit on Harper and to help you find the antidote after the wedding. Aren't these terms generous enough?"
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