Chapter 35
Evelyn laughed. "No. Just exhausted from all the business trips lately."
"Eat up!" Monica pushed her into a seat.
"You need to eat more. Look at you—one strong wind and you'd blow away."
Evelyn looked down at the mountain of food piled in her bowl, warmth spreading through her chest.
The two chatted while they ate.
Monica complained about her editor-in-chief, talked about shows she'd been watching, gushed about some super hot actor.
Evelyn listened, chiming in occasionally, but didn't mention anything she'd been going through lately.
She'd kept the whole thing with Matthew from Monica this entire time. No point bringing it up now.
Halfway through the meal, Monica suddenly set down her utensils. "Babe~ do you have a boyfriend right now?"
Evelyn choked, coughing several times. "No, no I don't..."
Once she caught her breath, she felt a bit guilty. What even was she and Matthew? Not boyfriend material, that's for sure.
Monica's eyes lit up.
"Perfect!" She slapped her thigh. "I set you up with someone—I promise you'll like him!"
Evelyn froze.
"What?"
Monica said matter-of-factly, "You're not getting any younger. You can't spend your whole life working for some boss. Time to think about your future!"
Evelyn didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Mon, I don't need..."
"Don't refuse yet—this guy, you're gonna love him~"
Before Evelyn could refuse again, Monica's eyes brightened as she waved toward the door. "He's here!"
Evelyn followed her gaze and froze.
A man stood in the doorway, around thirty, wearing a casual button-down. Tall, good posture, kind eyes, smiling right at her.
Shawn York—her and Monica's senior from college. Also someone she'd once... had feelings for.
"Long time no see," Shawn said, sitting down across from her. "Evelyn."
Monica was practically bouncing with excitement, chattering away. "After Shawn went abroad we totally lost touch, and I was so bummed about you two..."
"But a couple days ago, guess who my interview guest was on the forum? Shawn!"
"He just got back to the States, and he's a big deal now—leading expert in data science!"
Evelyn nodded, greeting him politely but coolly. "Hi, Shawn."
Shawn looked at her, something complex in his gaze.
"It's been years," he said. "You've changed a lot."
Evelyn didn't respond.
Monica rambled on about how accomplished Shawn had become over the years—awards he'd won, papers he'd published.
Evelyn listened, but her mind drifted.
She thought back to her college self.
By then her father was already on the brink of bankruptcy, her life in shambles. Shawn had been sunny and outgoing, looking out for everyone.
She'd had a small crush on him, but later... things got messy.
It was only afterward that she realized her feelings for him weren't real affection.
Maybe it was because his smile reminded her of Ronald. Maybe it was just that in her darkest moment, someone had shown her a bit of warmth.
"Evelyn?" Shawn's voice pulled her back.
She snapped back to attention and realized both Monica and Shawn were looking at her.
"What were you thinking about?" Shawn asked.
Evelyn looked at him, suddenly feeling completely calm.
"Nothing," she said. "I just don't talk as much since I started working."
Shawn smiled. "You're still the same—quiet as ever."
He paused, his expression growing more serious.
"Evelyn, actually I've always liked..."
"Shawn." Evelyn cut him off.
Shawn froze.
Evelyn looked at him, tone gentle but crystal clear.
"The feelings I had for you in college weren't real."
Shawn's expression shifted.
Evelyn continued. "I was in a bad place back then. When someone was nice to me, it was easy to get confused."
"Later I figured it out. That wasn't real affection."
"And... I'm not looking to date anyone right now anyway."
Shawn opened his mouth like he wanted to say something.
Monica was frantically stepping on Evelyn's foot under the table, but Evelyn ignored her and looked straight at Shawn.
"Shawn, you're a catch. You'll find someone way better suited for you," she said. "No need to waste your time on me."
The air went quiet for a few seconds.
Shawn looked at her and finally gave a wry smile. "You're still as blunt as ever."
Monica rushed to smooth things over. "Hey, even if we're not talking romance, we can still be friends, right?"
"We can grab food, play games—it'll be fun!"
She nudged Evelyn. "Right?"
Evelyn nodded.
Shawn smiled too, though it seemed a bit forced. But he didn't say anything more.
The three of them started playing board games.
The atmosphere gradually relaxed, but Evelyn could clearly feel Shawn's gaze landing on her occasionally, tinged with curiosity.
She didn't pay it much mind.
---
At the same time, in a VIP room on the second floor of the party venue.
A group was drinking and playing cards, smoke curling through the air, laughter constant.
Kevin leaned back on the sofa, listlessly scrolling through his phone. He'd been to plenty of these gatherings—nothing special.
The door burst open and Trevor Hale rushed in, excited.
"Guys, guys! Guess who I just saw?"
Someone handed him a drink. "Who's got you this hyped?"
"Two total knockouts!" Trevor looked thrilled. "Having lunch downstairs! Absolutely gorgeous!"
Someone nearby laughed at him. "Trevor, who isn't gorgeous to you?"
"Yeah, remember last time? Once she took off her makeup we barely recognized her."
"This time it's for real!" Trevor protested, pulling out his phone. "I got photos! See for yourselves!"
He sent the pictures to the group chat.
The chat went quiet for a few seconds, then exploded.
"Holy shit, okay yeah, these two are legit."
"Especially the one on the left with the wavy hair—her vibe is incredible."
"Wait... she looks familiar. Isn't that Matthew's assistant, Evelyn?"
Kevin hadn't been paying attention, but hearing "Evelyn," he glanced down at his phone.
Then he sat up straight.
In the photo, Evelyn was sitting by the window with an unfamiliar man across from her.
Her head was tilted slightly as she chatted and laughed with Monica. The sunlight made her features luminous, like she was glowing.
And the man sitting across from her was clearly looking at her with more than casual interest.
Kevin's brow furrowed.
He recognized that look. That was how a guy looked at someone he was into.
"Trevor, delete that photo. Now," Kevin said.
Trevor blinked. "Huh? Why?"
"Just delete it," Kevin's tone was urgent. "That's Matthew's girl. What are you doing taking pictures?"
The chat went quiet for a beat.
"Matthew's girl?" someone asked. "You mean Miss Arden?"
"Yeah, her," Kevin said. "Delete it now. If Matthew sees that, you're screwed."
Trevor's face changed and he quickly tried to recall the message.
Then his face fell.
"Oh, crap." He said. "Too much time passed. Can't recall it anymore."
Kevin sighed.
He looked down at the photo on his phone screen, temples throbbing.
With Matthew's insane possessiveness, what would he do if he saw this picture?