Chapter 124 Stairwell Encounter
After breakfast, the three of them left the house together.
Matthew drove Madison and Willow Nelson. He left Madison at the studio and then took Willow somewhere. Willow felt anxious and regretted involving her sister in whatever happened last night. She didn't want to be alone with Matthew.
In the car earlier, she had messaged her boss on Facebook asking for a day off, but her request was turned down. There was a morning meeting scheduled, and she not only couldn't take the day off but was also told to come to the office for breakfast. Quietly, she cried, wishing her sister could be with her at work.
In truth, Matthew hadn't paid much attention to Willow. His eyes were reserved only for his wife. Giving Willow a lift was merely a matter of convenience.
As the car settled in the garage, Willow quickly swung the door open, ready to escape. Matthew stopped her, "Hold up, what's the hurry?"
"Bro, the manager said there's a meeting. I need to be there early," she replied.
"I know."
Approaching her, Matthew offered only a short piece of advice, "Don't go out drinking alone again."
Willow had braced for a lecture but was surprised when Matthew said those words and headed toward the elevator. Holding her bag, she stood there, moved by his concern. Over the years, she knew Matthew had faced many struggles, but now, with her sisters Quentin and Hannah, two little bundles of joy, her sister had become Matthew's source of solace.
"Didn't you say there's a meeting? Get in here," he called out from the elevator.
"Oh, right, coming!" She quickly snapped out of her daze and hurried into the elevator.
Upon arriving at the office, Willow's manager immediately summoned her to the conference room. She finally emerged at noon, which left her no time to check her phone. When she finally glanced at it, several messages and missed calls awaited her.
Daniel had tried to reach her and even sent her a message on Facebook:
Daniel: [Willow, why aren't you answering your phone? Can you believe it? Mom actually convinced my brother to go on a blind date, and I only found out when I got home tonight.]
Daniel: [Willow, what are you up to? This is serious.]
Reading Daniel's messages, Willow wondered how dire the situation could be. After all, she had already seen the two of them sharing a meal and browsing stores together just the day before.
She ventured to the stairwell, a place rarely visited by others—an ideal spot for a private phone call. With a hint of reluctance, she dialed Daniel back.
"Willow, we've got a problem. My brother went on a blind date yesterday, and when Mom asked him about it, he said it went well enough to see the girl again. What am I going to do?"
Willow Nelson's response was eerily composed. "Oh, really?"
Daniel sensed something was amiss. Typically, Willow would be all over any snippet of news about his brother, bouncing around in excitement. But here she was, unfazed by the news of her crush possibly hitting it off with someone else. Something was decidedly off.
"Willow, what's wrong? Are you okay?"
Willow inhaled deeply before saying, "I saw them yesterday."
"What? Where did you see them, and did my brother see you?"
"No, they didn't see me. I spotted them at the mall near my office, just hanging out together."
Daniel was at a loss for words, fully aware of just how much his friend Willow had been into his brother. Despite her typically laid-back demeanor, she had to be hurting.
"Willow."
"Don't worry about it. I'm the girl everybody loves, the kind that makes flowers bloom wherever she goes. It's no big deal. I'll go find myself a handsome man to hang out with."
"Okay, I'll take one for the team and wingwoman you tonight to find that guy," Daniel declared, opting for sisterhood over blood. He abandoned his brother without hesitation, having hoped for so long that Willow would end up his sister-in-law. His mother's parade of pretentious socialites for his brother hadn't impressed him—they were all arrogance and airs. And now, of all things, his brother was out dining and shopping with someone, and poor Willow had witnessed it.
When Willow finds a new guy, his brother will surely regret his actions.
"I'm not allowed to drink alone," Willow recalled Matthew warning her that morning with a stern face. She hesitated, partly because she still hadn't recovered fully from the previous night's overindulgence.
"Why not? You won't be alone. Don't I count?"
Internally, Willow mused that he definitely counted, but another round of drinking might turn her less than human, and Matthew would probably ship her back to her folks.
"Let's just go for some barbecue instead. I'll skip the booze," she suggested. She hadn't even had a chance to enjoy the grill last night, so she figured today was an opportunity to truly savor it sans alcohol—sparing her any trouble should Matthew find out.
"All right, I'm all ears for today's plans. Do we have a spot in mind?" Daniel wasn't really trying to drag Willow Nelson out for drinks—he was concerned about her well-being—so when she suggested getting barbecue instead, he was more than relieved. After all, it was healthier than boozing, right?
"How about we hit the barbecue joint behind our old college? The food there is out of this world. It used to be my go-to spot. Man, just thinking about it is making me drool. Let's lock it down. I'll text you the address later."
Willow was getting more excited as she spoke, itching to clock out and dash over there right away.
"Great, I'll see you at the back entrance of the school then."
"Deal, the back entrance it is." Willow finished making plans with Daniel, brimming with enthusiasm, only to turn around and drop her phone in shock.
She hurried to grab her favorite device, thankful that only the screen protector was cracked. If the screen itself had been damaged, it would have been a double blow—emotionally and financially.
Pocketing her phone, she nonchalantly greeted the person leaning against the wall, watching her without a hint of performance.
"Hey, Mitch," she chirped.
Mitchell had been there for a while, standing since she started the call. Originally planning to sneak a smoke, he found Willow on the phone, probably chatting with Daniel. He paused and stayed to listen to her excited conversation about barbecue plans, behaving like a child.
Caught off guard as she turned around, they bumped into each other.
"Mhm."
It took Willow a second to hear his response. She was about to leave, baffled by his silent presence behind her. Who knew when he had arrived or how much he had heard?
She was about to excuse herself when Mitchell's phone rang.
"Hello?"
Willow was close enough to overhear the other line, and She distinctly heard a sweet female voice, "I'm downstairs at your office. Do you want to grab lunch together, Mitch?"
Willow didn't wait for his reply. Quietly mouthing, "I've got to head out, Mitch." she opened the door and left.
Mitchell watched her leave, contemplatively silent, until the voice on the phone broke through again, "Are you listening?"
"Yeah, lunch sounds great."
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
