"Josephine!" They both called out at the same time, and she turned to look at them.
But she quickly looked away and followed Claudia over to Jair.
Claudia had Jair's coat draped over her arm. "Jair, thanks for earlier. I'll get your coat dry-cleaned and return it."
Jair reached out his hand. "No need to clean it, it's not dirty. Just give it back."
"That won't do," Claudia insisted, "The drink in my hair got all over your coat."
"It doesn't matter," Jair said, "I'll have someone clean it when I get home..."
"Claudia said she'll clean it, so just let her," Laura cut in, "Otherwise, she'll just buy you a new one."
"Really, it's not necessary," Jair said, giving in, "Alright then."
Laura turned to Josephine, "You have Jair's contact, right? Pass it to Claudia so they can sort it out."
Josephine nodded. "Sure."
Claudia glanced at Laura, then quickly looked away and lowered her head.
Laura raised an eyebrow and smiled.
The little drama ended there, and everyone went their separate ways.
Laura naturally left with Steven, and she also offered to take Claudia back to the hotel.
Josephine had rushed over earlier, worried that Jeffery might be concerned at home, so she wanted to get back quickly.
Stuart and Rex both didn't want to miss the chance to take her home.
In the end, Josephine just said goodbye to Jair and Steven, hailed a cab outside the hotel, and left.
Even though they couldn't take Josephine home, both guys were satisfied, thinking, 'If I can't take her, neither can he.'
Josephine was halfway home when she got a call from Laura.
She was puzzled. "What's up? Are you there already?"
Laura replied, "No, I just dropped Claudia off."
Josephine suggested, "Tomorrow I'll talk to Claudia. If she doesn't go back to Hustalia, I'll have her stay at my hotel."
Laura said, "Alright. But I wanted to talk to you about something else."
Josephine asked, "What is it?"
Laura said, "Claudia might have a crush on Jair."
Josephine was startled. "What?"
"You didn't notice?"
Josephine was confused. "They barely spoke a few words. How can I tell?"
"That's why you're so clueless," Laura said, "I asked her a couple of questions when we got out of the car, and her expression gave it away. What do you think we should do?"
Josephine asked. "Are you sure?"
"Of course!" Laura said, "That's why I'm discussing it with you. Should we nip Claudia's budding romance in the bud?"
Among the three, Claudia was the youngest, but she was already twenty-seven.
Her last boyfriend had met both families, but he turned out to be a bad guy.
Since then, Claudia hadn't dated anyone.
Josephine couldn't understand. "She knew Jair before, so why the sudden crush?"
"Didn't you notice? Today, Claudia was standing there all disheveled, and only Jair gave her his coat," Laura said, "Stuart probably avoided it, and others weren't convenient, but Jair's gesture moved Claudia."
"Because of that?" Josephine was troubled. "What should we do? If Claudia's family hadn't gone bankrupt, maybe there'd be a chance. But now, would the Cook Family let Jair date a girl from an ordinary family?"
"You're overthinking it," Laura said, "It's not at that stage yet. Right now, Claudia likes Jair, but Jair doesn't feel the same."
Josephine was immediately displeased. "Claudia is wonderful! She's beautiful, gentle, and sensible. Where can he find such a girlfriend?"
"That's true," Laura said, "But Jair's seen all kinds of people. He may not be as handsome as Stuart, but he's got those broad shoulders, a narrow waist, long legs, and a pretty handsome face. Plus, he's a soldier. He's got good qualities too."
Josephine asked, "So what do we do?"
"Tomorrow I'll take Claudia to your hotel, and we'll talk then," Laura said, "Are you almost at the hotel?"
"Almost," Josephine replied.
"Don't hang up," Laura said, "Wait until you're inside the hotel."
Knowing Laura was concerned for her safety, Josephine agreed and asked, "Why did Rex come, too?"
Laura glanced at Steven.
Steven looked at the car roof, then outside, looking innocent.
Laura looked back and said, "Cats always smell fish. You're the fish, and Rex has a keen nose."
Josephine couldn't help but laugh. "Do you have to put it that way?"
"That's what it means," Laura said, "I'm telling you, tomorrow we need to be on the same page. Don't let Claudia do something foolish. Jair isn't right for her."
Josephine felt down. "Should I call Jair and ask?"
Laura replied, "In matters like this, what would he say? If Jair were a bad guy just looking to play with Claudia, he wouldn't hesitate."
Josephine retorted, "Jair isn't like that. He's a good person."
Laura added, "He's probably also filial. If his family doesn't want him to date just anyone and wants him to find someone with similar family conditions, would he listen?"
Josephine fell silent.
Laura said, "I also want Claudia to find a good man, but clearly, Jair isn't suitable."
Josephine used cash from her bag to pay, then got out of the car and said, "I'm here."
"Alright, go check on Jeffery. I'll come find you tomorrow morning."
Josephine returned to the hotel, and Jeffery had just woken up.
Without his colored contacts, Jeffery's eyes were back to their natural brown, which were very beautiful.
Jeffery called, "Mommy."
He was a bit grumpy from just waking up and snuggled into Josephine's arms, acting spoiled.
Roy watched from the side, feeling very envious.
He also wanted Josephine to hold him.
But Josephine said to him, "Roy, when are you planning to go back to your country?"
Roy was shocked. "I have no plans to go back! Besides, I'm your boyfriend now. How can I go back?"
"We can have a long-distance relationship," Josephine said, "Your family business needs you. Staying here all the time isn't a solution."
"I can handle things via email," Roy said, "Long-distance relationships are unreliable. It's easy for other men to take advantage."
Josephine sighed. "We're not really a couple."
"Then I have even less of a chance," Roy said, "Anyway, I'm not leaving."
Josephine said, "You can't stay here forever."
"Why not?" Roy said, "I've been thinking about something these past few days, and I've almost made up my mind."
Josephine asked, "What is it?"
Roy replied, "Opening a branch of our company here and expanding our business."
Josephine said helplessly, "Roy."
"Don't try to persuade me. I've already decided," Roy said, "I'm going to work now!"
Josephine had no way to deal with him.
"Mommy, are you going to find me a daddy?" After Roy left, Jeffery asked this question.
Josephine had always avoided discussing this topic with Jeffery.
But now, she knew she couldn't avoid it anymore.
She asked, "Jeffery, do you want a daddy?"