Chapter 83: Return to the Country
On the morning Tina returned home, Jennifer helped Francis with his tie as usual. He said casually, "My sister's coming back today, I'm picking her up. I won't be home tonight, don't wait up for me."
Jennifer smoothed his collar and replied softly, "Okay." She looked down at the tie, her long lashes fluttering gently, looking particularly obedient.
Francis lifted her chin and kissed her, rubbing her earlobe while kissing. When the kiss ended, he pressed his face against her cheek and asked, "Your injuries are almost healed, right? Too bad I won't be back tonight."
Jennifer pushed his face away in embarrassment, "Stop it, it's all your fault!" These past few days, because of her injuries, Francis could only kiss and hold her, which left him frustrated. Francis loved seeing her shy like this and teased her a bit more before leaving.
After seeing him off, Jennifer changed clothes, put on some light makeup, and rushed to the newly rented studio. She had applied for all the relevant documents and business permits, which were being processed, but the interior still needed renovation. After discussing with Sandra, they chose an interior designer with a good reputation. Since the changes weren't too major, the project was expected to take a month. After the renovation, they'd hire a few helpers and could officially open for business.
Sandra was busy with personal matters today, so only Jennifer came to supervise the construction. She looked gentle and spoke kindly, so the workers didn't take her seriously. But Jennifer didn't care. She flipped through the design drawings while carefully checking the delivered materials. Though she wasn't an expert, she could at least check if the materials' origins and brands matched. When she walked to a freshly painted wall, her color-sensitive eye immediately noticed something wrong. "This wall's color is off. The brightness is two degrees lower than the shade I chose. Who's responsible for this wall?"
The workers kept busy with their own tasks. Someone glanced up at her, but no one answered.
Jennifer frowned and asked again louder, "Who's the construction supervisor here? If the final result isn't satisfactory, I won't pay the balance!"
At this, the workers started talking noisily. Soon, a middle-aged man in a hard hat stepped forward. "Ms. Brown, I'm Paxton, the construction supervisor. Do you have any issues with our work?"
Jennifer pointed to a photo in the design plan. "I want this clear, transparent blue like lake water, but the paint mix on this wall is wrong. It's too dark."
Paxton quickly glanced at the design and explained, "Ms. Brown, you might not understand, but there's always a slight color difference between the real thing and photos. That's normal. I've been in this business for over twenty years. You should trust professional judgment. This is the same color!"
Jennifer shook her head. "I'm a designer myself. I trust my judgment. You didn't follow the design exactly. The design plans we gave you are being used as table mats."
Paxton scratched his head and laughed cheerfully. "Don't be upset. We looked at those plans carefully and memorized them. We don't need to keep looking at them."
Jennifer looked at him seriously. "Whether you memorized them or not, this wall's color is wrong and needs to be repainted."
"Is that really necessary? You're just delaying our off time." Paxton's face darkened with displeasure.
Jennifer's smile disappeared, too. She could feel Paxton's contempt for her. Even though she was the client, he still wanted to use his years of experience to fool this amateur. Jennifer took out her phone. "Do I need to contact the designer to get a different crew?" She started tapping on her phone.
Paxton quickly reached out to stop her, his tone becoming pleading. "No, no, I'll remix the color for you right away. I'll repaint this wall myself." This contract paid twenty percent more than the market rate. He didn't want to lose this job. He'd thought Jennifer seemed like a pushover, but she had a tough side too.
Jennifer watched coldly as he opened two paint cans to mix colors. When choosing colors initially, she had the designer mix actual samples for each wall and made her final choice based on how the paint looked when dry. So if mixed in the correct proportions, these colors should match perfectly. After all, she was in the business of "beauty." The studio's aesthetic would affect customers' buying decisions, so she couldn't tolerate such deviations.
Jennifer stayed at the studio for a long time, making sure the workers handled every detail properly. When she got tired and found a clean chair to sit down, she received a message from Mia: "Jennifer, Francis and this woman seem to have a history. Do you know her?" It came with a photo. The background was an airport, with a handsome man and an exceptionally beautiful woman at the center, gazing at each other across a barrier. The man was Francis in his custom suit, showing only half his profile, but his prominent nose bridge and sharp jawline were still striking. The woman was tall and slender, the hem of her trench coat and the plain scarf at her neck flowing. Her eyes were cool and distant yet tinged with affection, casting a faint melancholy over the entire scene.
This photo was clearly a candid shot, but it was beautiful like a romantic movie poster, full of aesthetic appeal and story. Jennifer's mouth turned down, and she replied expressionlessly, "Don't know her." Didn't he say he was picking up his sister Tina today? What kind of sister looks at her brother with that expression? Actually, Francis didn't need to lie to her. It would be fine if he said he was picking up his lover. She wasn't his wife.
Mia called, and from her account, Jennifer quickly understood. Someone had posted this photo on social media this afternoon with the title "Ran into a pair of long-separated lovers reuniting at the airport today. Look at those eyes, those perfect looks!" Some asked who the people in the photo were, others marveled at how some people could take such beautiful candid shots—were they new celebrities doing publicity? Anyway, the photo quickly went viral online for its storytelling quality, until Mia came across it.
Actually, Francis really was going to pick up Tina. But on his way to the airport, he received a message from Tina: "Francis, guess who I ran into on the plane. Aurora! Aurora said she has some things to handle back home and will be staying for a long time." She didn't know if this news was good or bad. On one hand, she knew Francis had never forgotten Aurora and had waited years for her to return. But on the other hand, Francis had a new girlfriend now. With Aurora back, what would he choose?
Seeing this message, Francis zoned out for a moment and nearly hit a car merging from the adjacent lane. Amid the blaring horns, he quickly turned the steering wheel to avoid it. She was back, too. Why was she coming back? But even if he might run into Aurora, he still had to pick up Tina as promised.