Chapter 11 Lingering Longing
At noon, Madison cooked a few extra dishes and shared some with her neighbor, Audrey, taking the chance to return the borrowed sickle. After lunch, she took a nap and woke up late, thinking she had been sleeping too much lately.
She splashed her face with water and felt more alert after she did. Then, Jacob's wife, Grace came in with a small bucket.
"Madison, are you in there?" Grace's voice rang out as she entered, and Madison hurriedly came out to greet her.
"Grace, welcome. Come on in and sit down."
"Jacob caught quite a few fish today. I've brought you a few." Grace was enthusiastic and held a bucket with several fish of various sizes.
"Thank you, Grace," Madison managed to find a bucket to hold it in.
"Don't mention it. Anyway, I'll be off now; you can go on with what you were doing."
For dinner, Madison cooked some fish soup, which was particularly flavorful.
Madison found herself missing Matthew late at night while lying in bed with the quiet around her. She wondered what he was doing and whether his work was going smoothly. She checked her phone, and there was not a single message. Gathering her courage, she finally sent a message to Matthew.
"Matthew, is work going well? Take care of yourself, and don’t drink too much." She wanted to tell him more about the village, like how the neighbor had given them a bunch of vegetables, which she planned to cook for him. Still, after editing and rewording the message multiple times, it ended up just being a simple greeting.
Madison stared at her phone for twenty minutes but got no reply from Matthew. Before going to bed, she checked her phone once again hopefully. Still no response. Feeling disappointed, she lay on her side, one hand resting on her belly, and she started talking.
"Your dad must be very busy, Baby. He must not have seen the message I sent, so that’s why he didn't reply to us, right? When he comes back from his business trip, we’ll tell him together that you’re on the way, okay?"
After talking for a while, Madison felt sleepy and drifted off early.
In Horizon City, inside the CEO's office of JK Group, Patrick lay alone on a massage chair, sighing deeply.
"Ah, those guys are away, and Liam is too busy to be seen. Even Madison went back to her hometown, ah..." Patrick sighed again. Right at that moment, Matthew's secretary, Jannis, entered. Patrick had been in Matthew's office for three days straight, reporting diligently every day, so she helped arrange lunch delivery to the office. Basically, Patrick wouldn’t leave until everyone else had clocked out for the day.
Looking up at Jannis, Patrick sighed once more. "Ah..."
Jannis couldn't help but find him somewhat amusing. Among the executives, Patrick was known for being approachable and joking around with everyone. It was Patrick, who the staff felt they could talk to about things other than work. Prompted by his obvious dispiritedness, she asked, "What's the matter, Patrick? You've been sighing all morning."
"I'm bored. All those guys are gone, and Madison isn't here either. No one's around to hang out with me," Patrick said. Jannis could tell that it was their young executive's style.
"You could go see Willow, Mr. Nelson's cousin, or have fun with Quinn, Mr. Jonah's younger sister," Jannis suggested.
Matthew's cousin, Willow, was a quirky junior at Horizon University. She was innocent by nature and the kind who wouldn’t stand for any injustice.
Mitchell's little sister Quinn was a senior currently interning under Liam. She enjoyed writing novels and aspired to be a screenwriter and make films. She was starting from the bottom as a junior assistant with no special treatment, so she was busy daily as a bee.
"Ah well, it looks like I'm down to those two girls,” With that realization, he got up from the massage chair, grabbed his coat, and prepared to head out.
"Patrick, do I need to order lunch for you?"
"No need. I'll go hang out with Willow and Quinn." He left the office and, pulled out his cell phone and added both girls to a group chat while he walked.
“@Willow @Quinn, Willow, Quinn, come on, I’ll take you both out for some fun tonight.” Patrick tagged them both in the group message.
“Isn't Matthew around?” Willow immediately responded.
“Matthew's on a business trip; the return date is uncertain. You two should join me at Liam's bar tonight for some fun. Meet up outside the bar ASAP.” Patrick replied.
“What about Madison? Let's invite her too.” Quinn chimed in.
“Madison went back to her hometown. She's not in the city.” Patrick treated those two girls like his own sisters, and he usually had the time to take them out.
“I'm still at school. It'll take me an hour to get to Liam’s bar.” Willow had no classes that afternoon, and since it was Friday, she had planned to go back to her dorm to binge-watch some shows. But now that Patrick was asking to hang out, she naturally didn't want to stay in her dorm.
“I'm swamped. I have to go to set later, probably won't get there until after 7 pm.” Quinn mentioned in the group chat. After all, as a junior assistant, she was under a strict mentor and couldn't sneak away.
"Alright, I'll take Willow for lunch now and then to the bar. Should I arrange for someone to pick you up?” Patrick realized he hadn't had lunch yet, so he planned to take Willow to eat first. They could head to the bar anytime, but it didn't officially open until the evening, which would be the perfect time for Quinn to drop by.
"No need, Patrick, I'll just grab a taxi once I'm done here,” Quinn replied, as she wasn’t sure when she would finish her tasks. Taking a taxi seemed more convenient.
"Okay, Willow, I’ll come to your school to pick you up.”
After finalizing their plans, the three ended their chat, and Patrick drove toward Willow's school in his sports car.
Patrick's flashy sports car pulled up at Willow's dormitory, drawing double takes and a gathering crowd as he leaned against the car while dialing Willow's number.
Startled by Patrick's call and knowing he was right outside, Willow dashed to her window and peered down. She had anticipated this; with Patrick's flashy style, his arrival was bound to cause a stir. She quickly spoke to him on the phone.
"Patrick, please drive to the front of the school. I'll be there shortly."
"Why? I'm right below your dorm. Just come out, and we'll go. Why the hassle?" Patrick was oblivious to the spectacle he had created among the students.
"Patrick, look at the crowd you've drawn with your flashy sports car right in front of my dorm. If I get into your car now, everyone will think I'm a sugar baby. Rumors can be horrible, Patrick. I want to graduate in peace," Willow knew if she was seen getting into Patrick's car, tomorrow's news on the school's forum would be about her.
"This is my most low-key car," said Patrick, defensively.
"Just drive it out, I'll come down," Willow pressed.
"Fine, fine. I'll wait for you fifty meters from the main gate," Patrick said, then drove the car out of the school grounds. He had barely stopped when he saw Willow, fully geared up and sneaking out to get into the car.
"Isn't this a little much?" Patrick didn't understand the need for such caution.
"Better safe than sorry. Let's go, Patrick. What's for lunch?"
"I'll take you to a homestyle cuisine place. I went there with Liam last time, and it was pretty good. I want you to try it today," Patrick said as he started the car and pulled away. When it came to eating, Patrick really knew his stuff. Since he had a lot of free time, he was constantly on the lookout for delicious spots, often taking Willow and Quinn along to sample new places.
"Wow, you’re the best," Willow exclaimed. She would have hugged Patrick if he wasn’t driving. When Patrick recommended something, you could trust that it would be tasty. For snack-lover Willow, nothing made her happier than tagging along with Patrick for a drink and a feast.
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