Chapter 82 Zachary, Put Some Clothes on And Get Lost!
They were meeting at a high-end restaurant. As soon as Winona got out of the taxi, she saw Matthew waiting outside the restaurant for her.
Matthew took her toolbox from her. "Have you been comfortable these past couple of days? Settling in?"
"Yes, thanks, it's been good."
Matthew led her inside, wanting to say something but hesitating. "By the way, I need to warn you; my grandfather... he enjoys the company of others. I hope you don't mind."
Winona was puzzled by his words, and it was only when they arrived at a private room that she understood what Matthew meant.
She had assumed it would only be Grandpa Watson, but to her surprise, the room was filled with people.
Matthew cleared his throat. "These are my grandfather's friends. Since they were playing basketball together this afternoon and are also interested in appraisals, they came along to have a look. If you mind..."
It seemed as though he too had just found out about all these people coming. Winona shook her head. "It's alright, but appraising artifacts isn't my expertise, so the result might be slanted."
Although she said that, the chances of that were very slim. Even though she held no qualification in the field, she had gained a wealth of knowledge from both her grandfather and mother, who were regarded as experts.
Grandpa Watson waved at her when he saw her. "Winona, come sit over here."
They used to have a close relationship between their families, and Grandpa Watson knew her. After the relationship between the two families faded, the Sullivan family today... couldn't possibly compare.
Winona walked over. "Grandpa Watson."
Grandpa Watson smiled and nodded in acknowledgement. "You've grown up to be even more beautiful. Matthew told me that you're working at View Studio as a skilled artifact restorer."
Winona didn't want to reveal her Windy identity for now and simply smiled. "He's exaggerating. I'm just an assistant."
"It's already impressive that you are able to work at View Studio, let alone at such a young age. Just continue to do your best."
The people nearby were listening to their conversation and joked, "Does this mean good things are coming for Matthew?"
The young and beautiful girl was picked up by Matthew personally, under the pretext to appraise antiques, but no one really believed that such a young girl would actually know anything about antiques.
The Watson family's connections were strong, so they assumed Matthew was using this as an excuse to bring his girlfriend to meet Grandpa Watson. Grandpa Watson, who had just been smiling kindly, suddenly turned serious. "Don't be ridiculous! Winona is already married." Although they hadn't had a wedding, the two families were close and would often meet up; therefore, the Watson family knew that Winona and Zachary were married. Grandpa Watson's solemn expression had the others stop their ramblings immediately.
Grandpa Watson had acquired a Victorian-era Crystal piece. Winona had seen it before when she worked at the museum. Although this one wasn't in as good condition as the others, it was still well-preserved. She opened her toolbox and took out some items, carefully examining the cup in her hand. This process took quite a while, she was still studying the base of the cup when the food was served. Matthew said, "Winona, why don't we eat first? There's no rush in appraising this."
Winona carefully placed the cup into a gift box. "Okay." Seeing how young Winona was, the others didn't hold much hope for her appraisal. They were just waiting politely out of respect for Grandpa Watson, exchanging small talk while they ate. Taking advantage of their attention being elsewhere, Matthew lowered his voice and asked her, "Do you have a result?"
"Yeah, how much did your Grandfather pay for this cup?"
Matthew gestured a jaw-dropping number with his hand. Seeing Winona's silence, he understood. "Is it fake?"
"Not exactly. It's pieced together. Judging from the material, it was probably assembled in the later period of the Victorian era. So, it can be considered an antique, just not an original piece, and it's not worth the price he paid, unfortunately."
Contrary to Winona's expectations, Grandpa Watson wasn't upset after learning the result. "Well, money can be spent however one pleases!" Winona couldn't help but sigh in relief at his calm demeanor, but she noticed how Grandpa Watson's friends' expressions began to change.
After the meal, Winona left refusing Matthew's offer to accompany her. She took a taxi back home. Matthew turned to Grandpa Watson and asked, "Grandpa, can I give you a ride?"
Everyone else had left and it was just the two of them left at the restaurant's entrance. Grandpa Watson, who had just been calm moments ago, glared fiercely at Matthew and said, "Who told you to bring someone for appraisal?! You just can't stand to see me happy, even for a few days, so you go out and find someone to appraise my treasure. Get lost! If you give me a ride, I would probably die of anger before we even reach home!" He finished speaking, then held his chest, gasping for breath.
Half an hour later, Winona arrived home and immediately began undressing to prepare for a bath. However, as soon as she began unbuttoning her collar.
Fluttering sounds came from the bedroom. As Winona approached cautiously, she picked up a defensive object as she passed through the living room, holding it in her hand ready to strike. With a click, the bedroom door opened before her.
Zachary stood in the doorway, observing the object clenched in her hand. "What? You want to repeat last night's incident?" Winona was momentarily stunned, then quickly regained her composure, gritting her teeth as she yelled at him, "Zachary, you..."
The man had just finished showering, his hair still wet, and droplets of water fell along the contour of his face. He wore nothing on his upper body with only a small towel wrapped around his waist, barely covering his thighs. Her towel! The towel she uses to wipe her face with after showering! And now Zachary had it wrapped around his waist. Unbelievable!
"Zachary, who gave you permission to use my things? Take it off!" Zachary looked at her, resting his hand on the towel, and asked with a mocking smile, "Do you really want me to take it off?" Judging by his cheeky smile, he probably wasn't wearing anything under the towel! Before he could do anything, she quickly responded, "Never mind, just hurry up, put some clothes on, and get out of my house. Take the towel with you!" The smile vanished from Zachary's eyes, which were now shrouded in a dark gloom as he coldly stared at her. "My house?"
"Although I know your mind is full of impure thoughts, don't insult me with your dirty ideas, and don't insult your friend either." Winona rolled her eyes and walked over to the couch in the living room, sitting down. "Hurry up, I'll give you five minutes." She turned on the TV and began peeling an orange.
Five minutes later, Zachary emerged from the room. He had changed into casual home clothes, his hair partially dried, and hanging messily. Winona felt a sense of foreboding and retreated, guarded. "What is this?" The sweatpants and t-shirt fit him perfectly, clearly brought by him, and she knew there were no men's clothing here. Is he... implying that he wants to stay here?
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