Chapter 298 Very Jealous
But, man, it was easier said than done. Just thinking about talking to Gerald freaked Alfonso out.
He suggested, "Why don't we just have Mom call Mrs. Clarence directly? Let her talk to Gerald. That might work better."
"But you still gotta give Gerald a heads-up," Enrique said. "This can't get any worse. So many people are calling me, asking what's going on. It's so embarrassing!"
Enrique was kind of a big deal in the art world, but now his reputation was trashed.
He was super concerned about his image and usually acted all high and mighty. Now, with this scandal out in the open, he was totally humiliated. But what really ticked him off was the scandal getting exposed, not why Alfonso did it. So, yeah, the Campbell Family was pretty messed up. They even blamed everything on Josephine. If it weren't for her, Alfonso wouldn't have done something so stupid.
Long story short, the Campbell Family was in a tough spot. Meanwhile, Josephine was chilling these past few days.
The research institute was still busy, but Josephine pulled two all-nighters to finish her data early, so she could take a three-day break. Her break started just two days before the Starlight Festival.
It was Jeffery's first time celebrating the Starlight Festival, and she wanted to spend it with him.
Stuart was probably busy too, only messaging her in the morning and evening, not bothering her otherwise.
On the 28th, Laura informed Josephine of her plan to take Jeffery to a farm with hot springs on the 29th. Consequently, early the next day, Laura arrived to pick them up.
As they came downstairs, they saw a guy standing by Laura's car from a distance. Josephine immediately smiled, "Liam?"
Liam looked over at her, "Surprised?"
Josephine laughed, "Of course, I'm surprised. You found the time?"
Liam said, "You guys came back, and I haven't had a chance to hang out with Jeffery. I had to make time. Come here, Jeffery, let me give you a hug!"
During Josephine's time abroad, Liam would occasionally visit her and engage in video calls, making Jeffery quite accustomed to Liam's presence.
Jeffery called out cheerfully, "Godfather!"
Liam pinched his little cheek and asked, "Are these contact lenses uncomfortable?"
"No," Jeffery said. "Mommy says they're the best!"
Josephine explained, "When I was at the research institute abroad, the people there were incredibly talented. They specialized in this. Wearing these contact lenses doesn't feel like anything and doesn't harm the eyes. It's just too expensive to be widely used."
"That's good," Liam said.
The four of them got into the car, with Josephine sitting in the front passenger seat. She asked Laura, "Did you tell Steven you were coming out with us?"
Laura laughed, "Why would I need to tell him?"
Liam and Jeffery were in the back seat talking about Legos, completely ignoring the two in the front.
Josephine sighed and said, "I've told you so many times, you should be serious with Steven."
"We're doing great," Laura said. "We're so close, it's like we're joined at the hip."
Josephine said, "You always joke around. The Starlight Festival is coming up. Isn't it time you two met each other's parents?"
Laura raised a hand, "Stop! My parents finally stopped nagging me, and now you start? If you keep this up, I won't be your driver anymore."
Josephine laughed, "Alright, I won't say anything. As long as you know in your heart."
Laura wanted to say something more but saw Jeffery in the rearview mirror and kept quiet.
It took almost two hours to get there. The place was a hot spring hotel that not only had hot springs but also grew a lot of fruits and vegetables for picking. It was perfect for bringing kids.
Liam took Jeffery to pick strawberries while Laura pulled Josephine aside to talk.
Josephine asked her, "What do you want to say? Why so secretive?"
"How would you explain it if Jeffery heard?" Laura questioned. "How's it been with Stuart lately?"
"Not much," Josephine said. "I told you, I'm not considering any romantic relationships right now."
"You can say that to others, but don't brush me off."
"I'm not brushing you off," Josephine said. "He's changed a lot recently, but because of that, I'm uneasy. How long can someone change for another person? When he gets tired or annoyed, will I have to go through the same pain again?"
Laura said, "You're scared, aren't you? Even though I don't really support you getting back with him, I gotta admit, Stuart seems pretty hopeless now. Poor guy."
Josephine knew Laura didn't mean a word of it. She was probably enjoying Stuart's misery.
Josephine laughed, "Stop worrying about me and take care of yourself, OK?"
"Steven and I don't have any plans to get married right now."
"You mean you don't," Josephine interrupted. "Steven's not getting any younger. You two should hurry up and get married and have a kid."
"There you go again!" Laura pulled her along, "Come on, let's go pick strawberries!"
There were not only strawberries but also cherries in the greenhouse, some of which were ripe.
When Jeffery was abroad, Josephine hardly had any time to take him out to play. Liam kept him company, joining in meals and activities, and the pair had a great time together.
Meanwhile, Stuart got a call from Steven and was a bit surprised. "Mr. Bailey, what's up?"
Steven said, "Josephine and Liam went to a hot spring. Aren't you worried?"
Stuart had recently been occupied and granted himself some time off, but encountered unexpected issues with a project abroad. Consequently, he had been engrossed in resolving these matters in the past few days.
Fortunately, the issue was almost resolved. Hearing this, he immediately got anxious, "They went to a hot spring? Where?"
Steven gave him the address and then asked, "Are you going?"
Stuart immediately stood up, "Yes!"
Steven said, "Then I'll go with you."
Stuart then realized, "Laura went too and didn't take you, right? I see why you're being so kind, calling me. You're afraid of getting scolded, so you want me to cover for you?"
Steven wasn't upset about being exposed, "So, are you going or not?"
Stuart asked him, "Shouldn't you be calling Rex?"
"He doesn't have time," Steven answered honestly. "Otherwise, it wouldn't be your turn."
Stuart sneered, "I see how much Rex cares about Josephine. He pretends to be so devoted all the time."
Steven said, "You and Rex are on the same starting line now, so don't look down on him."
Stuart was furious, "He can't compare to me! Josephine would never like him!"
Steven said, "Yeah, Rex never hurt Josephine or divorced her. He really can't compare to you."
"Steven!" Stuart was about to explode, "If you can't say anything nice, just shut up!"
"Aren't you the one who wanted to talk to me?" Steven thought to himself, 'I can't bear to argue with Laura, but I can definitely argue with you. Only Laura can make me upset; no one else can.'
Despite the bickering, the two of them reached a consensus and headed to the hot spring hotel together.
However, Steven didn't expect that Stuart wouldn't come alone; he brought several subordinates with him!
"What a coincidence, Mr. Bailey." Stuart got out of the car and greeted him first, "I brought a few company directors to relax."
Steven wanted to call him "sly," but considering Stuart was several years younger than him, he couldn't help but feel a bit down.
Then he thought, Stuart might want to create a chance encounter, but Josephine would have to believe it. Stuart might end up being accused of "scheming." Unlike him, who was straightforward and open about coming to see Laura. He was willing to take the scolding.
Sure enough, when they found Josephine and the others, Josephine asked curiously, "What are you doing here?"
Laura crossed her arms and looked at Steven, "Didn't we agree? Why did you follow me?"
Before Steven could speak, Stuart said, "I happened to bring a few company directors to relax. I didn't expect to see you here."
Laura sneered, "What a coincidence. And you, Mr. Bailey, did you also bring company people?"
Seeing the situation turning bad, Steven quickly said, "Mr. Haustia invited me over. I had nothing else to do, so I came."
Stuart glanced at him but said nothing. Steven finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Laura didn't believe it, "Stuart invited you? Since when are you two so close?"
Josephine turned to look at Liam, who nodded. She said to Laura, "Laura, Liam and I are taking Jeffery to eat. You should go with Mr. Bailey."
Stuart, seeing Josephine and Liam so in sync, not needing words to understand each other, felt a surge of jealousy.
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