Chapter 138 You Are So Impatient with Women
Leopold picked a restaurant close to home for the meeting.
He had just settled into the private room when Allegra arrived, right on his heels.
Leopold asked the waiter to give the menu to Allegra, saying, "The dishes here are all delicious."
Allegra ordered four dishes. The waiter hesitated. "Ma'am, our portions are quite generous. That might be too much for two people."
Allegra's gaze flickered to Leopold. "If you like it, get it," he said smoothly.
She slid the menu back to him. Leopold waved it away. "I've already eaten. I'll just have a coffee. Oh, and could you have a pasta ready in about half an hour?"
After the waiter left, Allegra's voice was low. "Is that for Caroline?"
She noticed it then—the way Leopold's entire face softened, blooming into a genuine smile whenever Caroline's name was mentioned.
"Yeah. It's her favorite pasta from this place."
"And you didn't recommend it to me?"
A brilliant, almost sharp smile flashed across Leopold's face. "Everyone has different tastes. Just because she loves it doesn't mean you will."
"How would you know I wouldn't like it?" Allegra countered. "You have to try something to know if it's good."
"There's a difference between good and like," Leopold said, his words a double-edged sword. "Some things you might find good, but you don't necessarily like them. And some things she might like, but they aren't necessarily good."
Allegra's eyes dropped, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Is that a little jab at me?"
"Just a random thought," Leopold said dismissively. "Don't read into it."
"I'd love not to, but your words have a certain sting," she said, her tone shifting, getting straight to the point. "How are things for you at Celestial Waters Hotel?"
The waiter returned with a pot of coffee and left them once more. Leopold poured her a cup. "Why the sudden interest in my career?"
Allegra's expression turned serious. "My opinion hasn't changed. You're a talented man who needs the right platform and better resources. It's a waste to see that talent buried."
Her fingertips traced the curve of the cup as steam rose in a delicate, slow-moving wisp, like a long-held memory finally being released.
Leopold wasn't in the mood for a trip down memory lane. "I'm doing fine, thanks for your concern. Now, I'd like to know what this matter concerning my future is."
"Are you this impatient with all women? With her?" Allegra shot back.
"Of course not," Leopold replied coolly. "My patience is reserved almost exclusively for my wife. It's in very short supply for everyone else."
Allegra nodded slowly. "I see. You're just biased against me. Because I was the one who broke up with you? You think I betrayed you, abandoned you."
She might have expected him to argue, to get defensive, but Leopold's expression remained impassive. "That was a lifetime ago. I barely remember it, so why bring it up?"
The jab didn't seem to faze her. "So I'm the only one who couldn't move on. No wonder they say that in the end, it's always the woman who gets hurt."
Leopold took a sip of his coffee and glanced at his watch. "The pasta should be ready soon."
He was telling her their time was almost up. Allegra unlocked her phone and hit play on an audio file.
In the privacy of the room, every word of the recording was crystal clear.
By the time Leopold left the restaurant, a steady rain had begun to fall. After seeing Allegra off, he drove home, the takeaway container with the pasta sitting on the passenger seat.
Caroline heard the front door open and turned off the faucet. "You're home early today."
Leopold walked straight into the kitchen. "Look what I brought you."
The aroma hit her, and Caroline laughed. "I already ate. You're a little late."
"Come on, have a little more. It's fresh," Leopold said, gently pulling the dishwashing gloves from her hands. "Leave these. I'll get them later."
He took her hand and led her to the dining table, opening the container and fanning the steam towards her with his hand. "Smell that? Isn't it amazing?"
Caroline accepted the fork he offered. "I'm stuffed. If I eat any more, I'll gain five pounds overnight."
"You're not fat. Eat," he insisted, then went back to the kitchen to grab another fork for himself, sitting across from her.
Caroline's eyes widened. "You didn't have dinner?"
"Nope," he said with a grin.
"Wait, didn't you say you had a work dinner?" She asked, confused.
"What's so great about a stuffy work dinner?" He said, twirling some pasta onto his fork. "Nothing beats coming home to eat pasta with you."
"You should have told me! I would have heated up the leftovers." At her own words, Caroline stood and started for the kitchen to get the food from the fridge. Leopold followed, gently pushing her back into her seat. "I'll heat them up. You eat the pasta."
A moment later, he returned with a few warmed-up dishes. "See? My wife's cooking is still the best."
Caroline gave him a fond look, spooning some vegetables onto his plate. "Next time you're coming home for dinner, call me first. I'll wait for you."
"Don't wait up for me. My schedule is too unpredictable," Leopold said, adding some food to her plate in return. He then adopted a casual tone. "Things are a little tense at the company right now. No telling what kind of storm is brewing."
He rarely talked about work. The fact that he was bringing it up meant he had a puzzle he needed an outside perspective on.
"What did you find out? Or what happened?" Caroline asked.
On the table were three main dishes and two small side dishes of chilled appetizers. Leopold began to push them around, using them as props. "Our company has five board members. There's Preston, his wife Gemma, and Xavier, who has a grudge against me. Then the other two..." He pointed to one of the appetizer dishes. "Director Victor Diaz." He tapped the other. "And Director Idris Richardson."
Caroline listened intently, nodding and committing the names to memory.
Leopold made a circling motion over the plates with his hand. "Currently, the five directors are at odds over business strategy. Guess who's teamed up with whom."
Caroline pondered, her eyes fixed on the tabletop drama. A husband and wife would stick together, obviously. And she remembered Leopold mentioning that Xavier owed Preston his life. The other two directors were unknown quantities. She decided to make a bold guess.
Using her fork, she nudged the two appetizer dishes away from the main cluster. "Those three are a team, and these two are a team?"
Leopold's eyes narrowed in a smile. "Is there anything you can't figure out?"
"So, is the problem with them," she asked, pointing to the main group, "or with these two?"
Leopold tapped the dish representing Victor. "He asked to meet with me. He said that if I run into trouble in the future, he and Mr. Richardson will stand with me."
This was like something straight out of a corporate drama series. "He's bold," Caroline mused. "Swearing allegiance so easily. Isn't he afraid you'll just report back to your father?"
Leopold chewed slowly, then nodded. "That's exactly what I was thinking. Mr. Diaz is no fool. His words seem to be in my favor, but he was probably trying to leak another piece of information."
The realization dawned on Caroline instantly. "He's warning you that the other side is plotting against you. But if he steps in to support you and solves your problem, he becomes your savior. Then he can use you to take out the other three. A classic case of 'borrowing a knife to kill'."
Leopold clicked his tongue. "You're not half bad at this whole power-play thing."
Caroline lifted her chin proudly. "I bet I could survive at least three episodes in one of those corporate dramas."
"Three episodes? You'd make it to the finale," Leopold said.
She laughed, but the smile quickly faded into a look of concern. "Do you believe him?"
Leopold was quiet for a moment. "It's half-truth, half-lie. I can't ignore it, but I can't fully trust it either."
Caroline voiced his deepest fear. "You're worried the one plotting against you is your father."
Leopold nodded.
In Caroline's world, a father could be strict, but never malicious towards his own children. She couldn't comprehend someone like Preston.
"Couldn't it be Ms. Adams and Mr. Anderson? They both have a bone to pick with you. One's worried you'll take her daughter's inheritance, and the other hates you for cutting off his cash flow."
He wanted to believe her theory. But Leopold knew his father better than anyone. Preston didn't love anyone; he loved the company he had built from the ground up, and only that.
"Leopold," Caroline said, her hand covering his. "I might not be right, but I know you'll handle this."
He squeezed her hand. "You're the one I can count on when it really matters. Here, have another bite of pasta."
"Do you have a plan?" Caroline asked.
A dismissive smirk touched Leopold's lips. "Not yet. I don't know what their move is. But once I figure out their game, it'll be easy to solve."
"If there's anything I can do to help, just say the word," Caroline said.
Leopold took a napkin and gently wiped a smudge from the corner of her mouth. "When you say that, I feel like a kid who got bullied on the playground and ran home to have his mom fight his battles."
Caroline pouted. "Only I get to bully my husband. Nobody else."