When he heard what Matthew said, Harmon was confused. He looked at the sky. It was an overcast autumn day, and the wind was chilly. How could it be hot?
Owen thought for a bit and asked, "Mr. Huo, would you like to go for a walk?"
"I just got off work. I'm beat," Matthew replied indifferently.
It meant that he didn't want to take a walk now.
Owen rolled his eyes secretly and thought to himself, 'Mr. Huo, that's your wife. You can go inside and check on her if you want! Why do you have to pretend?' "Look, Mr. Huo! There's a cafe nearby! And they're running a special. Buy one cup of coffee, and get a second one free. How about you and Mr. Lu get something to drink there?" Owen suggested, knowing what was on his boss' mind.
Harmon sneered when he heard that. 'You gotta be kidding me. You think Matthew cares about a free cup of coffee? Try harder, man!'
Out of the blue, Matthew answered, "Good idea!"
Harmon was shocked and couldn't believe his ears. His smile froze on his face. Since when did Matthew care so much about the price of a cup of coffee? Had marriage changed him so much?
Harmon and Matthew entered the cafe together. And Harmon quickly figured out why Matthew was so interested in this cafe. It had everything to do with certain patrons, sitting at the table in front of the French window. 'I knew it! Why would he care about a free cup of coffee? He doesn't. It looks like his wife is here, drinking coffee with another guy.'
He smiled and followed Matthew to a table next to Erica's.
With her back to them, Erica didn't see Matthew enter the cafe.
Watkins didn't seem to notice Matthew either. He was asking Erica what she wanted to drink.
Harmon had just concluded his business with Matthew, and decided to take a break. And what better way to spend his free time than having a cup of coffee with the jealous man? All he had to do now was sit back and watch the show.
Erica was here to hammer things out with Watkins, so she didn't really care what she had to drink. She finally decided on a latte, just so they could get to the things she really wanted to talk about.
After the waitress left, she cut right to the chase. "What did Mr. Wang do when he was young?"
"I don't know much about that. I didn't have anyone look into him. If I'd thought about it more, I would have. If we knew more, we'd be able to figure out how to deal with him. But here we are, without a plan." Watkins fixed his eyes on Erica.
But she didn't know he was staring at her. She just looked at the table and nodded thoughtfully.
She was about to say something when her phone vibrated. Matthew had texted her. "Where are you?" he asked.
Erica looked at her phone in distress. Should she tell the truth? She didn't think that would go over well. After all, Matthew had warned her several times to stay away from Watkins.
She dodged his question and texted him back. "What's up?"
But Matthew was insistent. "Where are you?" he repeated.
"Outside," she answered. Simple, short, to the point.
"You with someone?"
Erica didn't want to lie to Matthew, but she was afraid that he would get angry. She decided to lie to him. "I'm alone."
'It's just a white lie. It doesn't matter, right? What he doesn't know won't hurt him, ' she thought to herself.
She lied to him because she didn't want him to get upset.
When Matthew saw her reply, his face darkened.
Erica was seeing Watkins behind his back. And now, she even lied to him. He was livid.
Matthew called a waitress over, ordered a glass of lemonade and had it sent to Erica's table.
Seeing this, Harmon leaned in close and asked in a quiet voice, "Hey, all this sneaking around isn't your style. Why don't you just let them know you're here?"
Matthew didn't say anything.
Presently, the lemonade arrived. Both Erica and Watkins were surprised. So when she asked the waitress, she replied, "Courtesy of the man at that table," and pointed at the table where Harmon and Matthew sat. Erica turned her head. There were two men sitting there, and one of them had his back to her. Harmon smiled and simply said, "Hi!"
Erica was sure that she didn't know this guy. She thought he was hitting on her, so she asked the waitress to return the lemonade. "Thank him for me, but I already have something to drink. Thank you!"
Then, she got another message from Matthew. "Someone saw you in a cafe. What's going on?"
'What? Oh man! What do I do now?' Erica cried inwardly. She was on the verge of breaking down. She took a look at Harmon again. He was talking to the waitress. 'Does he know Matthew?
Wait! Who's that guy with his back to me? Why does he look so familiar?'
Sensing her gaze, Matthew didn't bother pretending anymore. He stood up, scooted his chair away, and straightened his clothes.
Then he turned and walked towards Erica.
Without any hesitation, he grabbed her wrist, and took her into his arms. He moved his head close to hers, and whispered, "You need to be reminded who's the boss."
Erica felt guilty and her heart beat faster. She opened her mouth and explained quickly, "Watkins and I had something to talk about…"
She just said she was alone, and now, she was caught with Watkins. It was like a slap in the face.
"And you felt you had to do this behind my back? How could you lie to me?" How Matthew wished he could strangle the woman in his arms right now! She'd lied to him over another guy.
"What? I didn't do it behind your back!" Erica finally came to her senses and denied any responsibility. She wouldn't be bullied! She held Matthew's arm and said, "This is important. I had something to discuss with him!"
Matthew didn't want to hear her for the time being. He looked at Watkins indifferently and said, "Mr. Chai, don't you like playing with the Shiba Inu? How about I send you a cat too?"
With a stiff smile on his face, Watkins stood up from the chair and explained calmly, "Mr. Huo, Erica and I came out to ferret out the truth behind Phoebe Su's miscarriage. You don't believe her, so I—"
"Who told you I don't believe my wife?" Matthew interrupted him.
Erica was stunned by his words. She raised her head and looked at the stony-faced man. 'Does that mean he does believe me?
But if he really believes I did nothing wrong, why did he ask me to give him a child as compensation? If he believes me, then I don't have to get pregnant so soon.'
Watkins smiled helplessly and smoothed his short hair. After a tense moment, he replied, "Mr. Huo, I'm happy that you trust Erica." He looked at Erica, and said, "You should finish your coffee. Don't let it go to waste!"
The waitress had already brought the two cups of coffee they ordered, but they hadn't had a sip yet.
"The bill's on me. Mr. Chai, you can leave now," Matthew said in a cold voice.
If it were possible, things got even more intense. Erica tugged at the man's sleeve and said in a small voice, "Matthew, don't be like that. We're just having coffee." He was so jealous and possessive that sometimes she felt she couldn't breathe.
When he saw Erica with Hyatt, he had no problem. But every time he saw her with Watkins, he would get jealous.
She didn't know why Matthew hated Watkins so much.
Matthew didn't give in. He tightened his arm around Erica's waist. "You want coffee? I can do that! Hell, I'll buy the cafe for you!" 'But you can't have coffee with another guy! Especially Watkins!' He didn't say that part out loud.
"Coffee is not the point. The point is that Watkins and I are just friends. Don't friends usually go out for coffee?" Erica asked in frustration.
'Doesn't he have any female friends? Wouldn't he go out to dinner with them?' She wouldn't believe it if he said he had no female friends.
After all, every rich man was surrounded by women of all shapes and sizes.
