Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Chapter 158: It’s Been a While

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

As if knowing that Timothy was not going to refuse, Harmony continued without waiting for his answer. “I have something else to attend to, so I’ll see you tonight, Tim.”

After saying that, she ended the call before he did.

Timothy set his phone down as the light in his eyes started to dim. There was no trace of emotion at all. A few seconds later, he looked up at Ronald once more and said, “Go on.”

Ronald knew that Timothy was waiting for him to continue giving the report, so he could only pick up from where he left off and said, “Ms. Johnson did return home some time ago. The Harmony Johnson you saw on the name list the other day was her.”

Timothy kept quiet. After about ten seconds, he said, “You may leave.”

Ronald nodded, turned around, and left the office.

After closing the door behind him gently, a crack appeared on his calm face.

‘Why did Ms. Johnson come back at such a time...?

‘Why would she return when Mr. Barker and Ms. Larsson were about to start afresh?’

An inexplicable feeling of unease crept up to him. Was there about to be turbulence just as things were starting to get better?

…

At the villa, Samantha was learning how to make sauerkraut fish from Old Madam Barker in the kitchen.

Although Samantha knew how to make sauerkraut fish, Old Madam Barker possessed some unique skills which she said she wanted to pass down. That way, Samantha could cook it for Timothy in the future.

Samantha went along with the suggestion of course. Old Madam Barker’s sauerkraut fish had always been Timothy’s favorite dish.

Old Madam Barker taught Samantha everything she knew, and Samantha paid full attention to her teachings. The dish was done more than an hour later. Samantha smelled the aroma and wondered whether Timothy could tell it was her cooking just by taste alone.

She prepared a few more dishes and it was already seven o’clock when everything was ready.

Timothy would have returned at around that time, but his figure was nowhere to be seen that day.

Samantha took off her apron, washed her hands, then walked out of the kitchen and grabbed her cell phone from the living room sofa. She wanted to send a WeTalk to ask where Timothy was, but instead saw an unread WeTalk message from Timothy.

Timothy: [Something came up tonight. I’ll be back a little late, so just go ahead and eat without me.]

Samantha looked at the time that she received the message and saw that it was half an hour ago.

It was difficult for Samantha to contain her frown because he had already promised to come back home for dinner. She even cooked an entire table of food, only for him to end up not making it...

She nevertheless knew that Timothy had a lot of work, and last-minute issues were not at all unusual. The urgency of work matters was understandable.

Old Madam Barker came over and asked, “What time is Tim coming back?”

Samantha put down the phone and did her best to put on a smile. “Something came up tonight and he won’t be back for dinner. Come on, Grandma, let’s eat.”

“That little brat!” Old Madam Barker scolded, “He should’ve told us earlier if he wasn’t going to come back. You cooked all this food for nothing.

“Forget about it. It’s his loss to not be able to eat all this food. Don’t you worry, Sammy. I’ll finish it all and I won’t leave a single portion for him!”

Old Madam Barker’s statements amused Samantha, cheering up her initially dejected mood. She nodded, “Okay! We’ll finish all the food!”

Samantha took Old Madam Barker’s arm and walked toward the dining hall.

…

Inside the VIP room of a clubhouse.

Timothy opened the door and strode in.

Zachary was someone who loved enjoying himself, so whenever he organized a party, he usually called every single of his friends over—the more the merrier. However, there was no one else in the VIP room that day, aside from him, Jonathan, and Harmony.

The three of them looked over when they saw Timothy coming in.

Zachary was the first to call out to him. “Here comes Timmy! We were all waiting for you!”

Timothy narrowed his eyes at Zachary and gazed down at Harmony when he approached them. The woman was sitting elegantly on the sofa, and she raised her eyes to smile at him. “It’s been a while, Tim.”

“Yeah,” he responded curtly, then sat down.

“Alright, now that everyone’s here, it’s been too long since the four of us met up! Tonight’s the night we drink till we drop!”

Zachary spoke while picking up the opened bottle of red wine, which he poured into each person’s glass. He was the first to raise his glass and say to the other three, “Cheers! Welcome back, Bunny.”

Harmony’s name rhymed with the word bunny, so those who were close with her usually called her ‘Bunny’.

She smiled, reached out to pick up a glass of red wine, then held it up. “Cheers.”

Jonathan glanced lazily at Timothy and raised the wine glass without saying anything else.

Timothy looked askance at Harmony, but instead of raising a toast, he said to the waiter beside him, “Change her drink to juice.”

Everyone knew that ‘her’ referred to Harmony.

Zachary said unhappily, “Come on, Timmy! We haven’t seen each other for so long! A little wine isn’t going to hurt. Do you really have to be so protective that you have to change it to juice?”

Harmony smiled and turned around to look at Timothy, saying, “I can take my alcohol, Tim.”

Timothy did not respond to that.

The waiter quickly brought the glass of juice over. Timothy picked it up and placed it directly in front of Harmony.

Harmony lowered her gaze and chuckled. “You’re still the same as ever, Tim. Okay, I’ll drink juice instead of wine.”

She put down the wine glass, then picked up the one with juice and took a sip from it. “Is this okay, now?”

Zachary clicked his tongue and shook his head, as if he could not bring himself to look at it. “Forget it. Come on, Jon, let’s drink!”

He clinked glasses with Jonathan, raised his head, and drank it all in one shot.

…

Rochelle made an appointment with an investor to discuss a couple of things that night, but after waiting three hours in the private room, the investor was still nowhere to be seen. She unconsciously curled her lips in a cold smile.

That was the third investor who failed to show up that month.

It might have been a coincidence if it happened once or twice, but she would rather believe in the supernatural than buy the excuse that the third time was a coincidence too.

She did not need to be a genius to know who was responsible.

Rochelle got up unhesitatingly and walked out of the room.

Her bodyguard immediately emerged from the darkness and followed some distance behind her.

Rochelle asked aloud, “Where’s your boss?”

The bodyguard said nothing.

Rochelle stopped, turned around to look at him, and remarked coldly, “And don’t tell me that you don’t know his whereabouts. He wouldn’t’ve sent you to watch me twenty-four hours a day if you weren’t his most loyal dog.”

The bodyguard lowered his gaze and spoke in a rather monotonous voice. “The boss just wants to protect you.”

“Pfft.” Rochelle had no intention of talking nonsense with him. “Where’s Jonathan? Don’t let me ask you a third time!”

The bodyguard was silent for a few seconds before saying softly. “He’s here. In the VIP room.”

Rochelle pushed him away as soon as he said that and immediately walked toward the VIP room.

As she passed by a fire extinguisher, she paused for a moment to pick it up before continuing to walk in an aggressive stride.

Her fury could only be quelled if she drew Jonathan’s blood!

The waiter had just pushed the door open and walked out when Rochelle walked up to the VIP room entrance. He trembled in fear when he saw a beautiful woman carrying a fire extinguisher while sporting a murderous look on her face.

Rochelle ignored the waiter and was about to barge in, but she suddenly caught sight of Timothy placing a glass of juice in front of a woman.