Chapter 263 Inviting the Whole Office
Aurelia was all serious and said, "Delete them!"
Nathaniel scratched the back of his neck, looking all kinds of reluctant. "Aurelia, this is my computer."
What he was really saying was, "Hey, this stuff's mine. I can't just delete it 'cause you said so."
Some of those pics were from her old phone, and some were sneaky shots he took over the years. During the four years she was gone, those photos were his only company, and they meant a lot to him.
Aurelia kept her stern face, not even cracking a smile. "Mr. Heilbronn, you’ve violated my privacy."
Nathaniel went quiet for a bit, realizing she was genuinely pissed.
He couldn't afford to tick her off now; she was a nightmare to calm down when mad. Sighing inwardly, he put his finger on the touchpad and started deleting. After a few moments, he looked up, feeling all kinds of wronged, and saw Aurelia still watching him like a hawk. "Aurelia, they're deleted."
Aurelia didn't quite buy it and gave him the stink eye.
Nathaniel felt all kinds of nervous under her gaze, looking guilty as hell. "Aurelia, seriously, they're gone. If you don't believe me, come check."
Aurelia put down what she was holding and walked behind him. She didn't see the folder on his desktop, but she wasn't easily fooled and started checking each hard drive one by one.
As her arm reached over, Nathaniel's back stiffened, feeling like he was frozen, not daring to move. The faint scent from her body wafted into his nose, and he felt that even a slight movement would make them touch.
Aurelia moved her fingers over his computer, unable to find the suspicious folder after a long search, and her anger subsided.
At this moment, Nova, sleeping on the desk, sensed something was off and suddenly woke up. She saw Nathaniel sitting still, not moving an inch, while Aurelia leaned forward, both staring at the computer.
From this angle, they looked intimate, like a couple.
Nova instantly lost all sleepiness, and the alarm bells in her head started ringing loudly. If she didn't act now, the final payment Caleb promised her would be gone.
She said, "Mr. Heilbronn, how can you disturb Anne's work? Do you know how much one of her works is worth? You've already cost her tens of thousands of dollars. Do you know what that mean? It could buy you dozens of office desks!"Nova's shout made Aurelia immediately move away from him and return to her desk. Not finding the folder with her photos on his computer, she felt relieved.
Nathaniel came to his senses, feeling frustrated but unable to vent. Caleb and Nova seemed to exist just to make his life difficult. "Aurelia, what do you want for lunch? I recently found a hotel with great seafood. How about we go there for lunch?"
Aurelia buried her head in her drawings and took a while to respond, saying, "I'm not hungry, Mr. Heilbronn. You go ahead."
Nova saw that Aurelia didn't want to engage with him and smugly rolled her eyes at Nathaniel.
Nathaniel felt a headache coming on. It was the first time he had to share a desk with three people. He glanced sideways at Nova and opened a Facebook chat with Chris: [Bro, come here and let Nova leave. If you don't, I won't be polite anymore!]
A few seconds later, Chris sent a string of question marks: [What did she do to you?]
Nathaniel: [She's affecting my pursuit of my wife, our marital harmony, and my plans to have a daughter!]
Chris: [Try being impolite to her, and I'll hack your system!]
Nathaniel was dead serious. He was calling in the cavalry, not expecting Chris, the love-struck fool, to back Nova no matter what, even threatening to hack his system.
Nathaniel: [Our friendship is over.]
He looked up and saw Aurelia deep in her work, totally ignoring his lunch invite. He had to come up with another plan.
As lunchtime rolled around, Aurelia saw a message from Aurora in the company group chat. [Attention! Everyone's meeting at The Velvet Palate for lunch today. Mr. Heilbronn's reserved a whole floor as a thank you for using Anne's office. Finish up, lock your computers, and be there at noon. No excuses!]
Aurelia felt a headache coming on. Nathaniel, sitting across from her, acted like nothing was up and kept working.
Nathaniel was chatting with Zack when he felt a bit hot. He looked up and saw Aurelia's annoyed face, knowing she saw the message.
He felt a sense of victory. Getting her to the restaurant was a win. Otherwise, she might dodge lunch to avoid him.
Nathaniel checked his watch and closed his laptop, saying, "Aurelia, it's lunchtime. You can finish your drawing later."
Aurelia noticed the office buzz through the glass door. Everyone was packing up for the feast. Not wanting to kill her colleagues' vibe, she reluctantly packed up her drawings.
The Velvet Palate was just across the street, making it an easy walk.
Nathaniel, holding Aurelia's sunshade umbrella, patiently waited for her to pack up.
Nova saw the group activity and quickly followed Aurelia. She couldn't let Nathaniel get close to her future sister-in-law. "Anne, can I come with you? I don't have money for lunch."
Nathaniel raised an eyebrow and pulled out a card from his bag. "Buy whatever you want. I'll get Chris to pay me back later."
He didn't care if Nova had money for lunch; he just didn't want her tagging along and didn't want to see her face.
Nova linked arms with Aurelia. She wasn't really short of money, and even if she was, she wouldn't use Caleb's rival's money. She wasn't that foolish. "Thanks, Mr. Heilbronn, but my brother doesn't let me take money from strangers. He's afraid I'll run into a scammer."
Nathaniel snorted, his eyes sweeping over her hand linked with Aurelia's arm, "You are indeed easily fooled."
Nathaniel's sharp tongue spared no one but Aurelia. He could drive anyone crazy with a few words.
Nova, who was fuming, switched positions, squeezing between him and Aurelia to keep them apart. If not for her brother's happiness, she wouldn't tolerate this. She would definitely complain to Chris about Nathaniel later.
Outside The Velvet Palate, all the employees had arrived. Zack led them to the top floor, which Nathaniel had reserved, enough to accommodate everyone.
The best table was left for Aurelia and her group when they arrived.
Zack had already ordered the food, and as everyone sat down, the waiters began serving.
The table was filled with Imperick cuisine, including seafood that Aurelia loved and her favorite sandwiches. She wondered if The Velvet Palate had changed chefs today because everything tasted familiar, like something she had eaten before, especially the sandwich, which tasted exactly like the one she used to eat in America.
She glanced out the window, reminding herself she was in Coral Bay, and dismissed her doubts.
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