Chapter 139
After a long moment, Alexander's hand finally settled on Sabrina's back He gave her a light, restrained pat. "No need to thank me,” he said quietly.
Sabrina gently pulled out of Alexander's embrace with a flushed face, but looked up at him with hopeful eyes: "Alexander, can I invite Charlotte to the exhibition?"
Alexander's expression darkened slightly. A flicker of displeasure crossed his features, but when he met Sabrina’s expectant gaze, he restrained it. After a brief pause, he gave a small nod. "It's your exhibition,” he said evenly. you decide."
After a brief pause, Alexander added in a flat tone, almost as an afterthought: “Though with her temper, she probably won't go."
Sabrina's eyes were as clear as a spring, sparkling brightly: "It's fine,” she said softly. if I sincerely invite her, Charlotte will definitely agree to come."
Alexander watched Sabrina’s cheerful figure as she walked away, and he shook his head almost imperceptibly.
Sabrina was still too naive,she had no idea how cold and indifferent Charlotte could truly be.
Outside the office, the moment Sabrina closed the CEO's door behind her, her bright, cheerful expression disappeared without a trace. In its place, a cold, calculating smile slowly formed.
The exhibition was a perfect opportunity.
That day, Charlotte went to pick up Philip. She hadn’t even reached the kindergarten gate when the sky suddenly darkened. Within moments, heavy rain came crashing down.
She was about to dash forward when, suddenly, the rain stopped.
No, not the rain itself. Just the downpour above her head.
Startled, she looked up and realized an umbrella had somehow appeared above her.
She turned and found a handsome man beside her, holding the umbrella over her head, a faint smile playing on his lips.
Charlotte froze for a beat before recognition set in."Jordan? We've run into each other again."
Jordan nodded, a small smile forming as he angled the umbrella slightly more toward her. "Yes, ” he said. “We meet again.”
In truth, there was nothing coincidental about it every “chance” encounter had been carefully arranged.
Before leaving the hospital, Jordan had already checked the weather forecast. Knowing a thunderstorms was expected, he made a point of buying a new umbrella.
As expected, it proved useful.
By the time they reached the kindergarten entrance together under the umbrella, the rain had already stopped.
Even so, Charlotte still thanked Jordan politely.
Jordan simply waved it off with a light, dismissive gesture. “No need to thank me,” he said.
Charlotte gave a faint smile. “You really are a good person,” she said.
Back in school, Jordan had always been rather reserved and aloof. Even so, unlike some of the other boys, he never bullied girls or took part in childish, aggressive behavior.
However, Jordan didn't seem satisfied with her response. A faint, disappointed look crossed his face. “So after all that,” he said quietly, “I still don’t even qualify to be your friend."
Charlotte quickly shook her head, waving her hands in denial. “Of course not,” she said. “Having you as a friend would already be more than I could ask for.”
Jordan’s expression turned almost deliberately pitiful: "Really? But I don't even have your phone number."
Charlotte hesitated only a moment before relenting. She quickly took out her phone and gave him her number.
But Jordan still didn’t seem satisfied. Seizing the moment, he continued asking for her other contact details as well.
After they added each other as contacts, Charlotte was slightly surprised to see that Jordan's profile picture was actually a piece of chocolate candy!
Although she found it slightly amusing, Charlotte didn't comment on it.
After a while, Philip and Lily came out.
Seeing Lily holding Jordan's hand while also reaching out toward her, Charlotte felt her heart soften completely.
For a moment, she almost melted quietly wishing she could have a daughter just like that: gentle, soft, and adorably affectionate.
But Philip, standing beside her, wore an unusually serious expression like a battlefield general who had just encountered a worthy rival.
How did Lily learn all the tactics he initially used to get close to Charlotte?
No way, if this went on, Charlotte might really be “taken away” by Lily and Jordan before he even realized what was happening.
What would happen to him and Landon then?
Philip's internal alarm bells were already ringing loudly. His small face tightened with rare seriousness as he weighed the situation far more intensely than any child should have to.
At the same time, from somewhere in the nearby shadows , a pair of eyes fixed themselves on Charlotte cold, sharp, and filled with barely concealed jealousy and resentment.
'Charlotte, you shameless woman! Coaxing Landon to help you on one hand, while eagerly seducing Jordan on the other. How disgusting!' she thought.
After being hugged and kissed several times by Lily, Charlotte finally relented. At Philip’s urging, she said her goodbyes to Jordan and his daughter and turned to leave, a hint of reluctance still lingering in her expression.
Unexpectedly, not long after parting ways with Jordan, someone suddenly stepped in front of them and blocked their path.
"Charlotte."
The moment she heard the voice, Charlotte felt nauseated: "Sabrina? What are you doing here?"
Seeing Charlotte's guarded expression, Sabrina quickly adopted an innocent, almost wounded look. "Charlotte, ” she said softly, “can’t we at least have a proper conversation?"
"You know I've always treated you like my own sister,” Sabrina continued gently, as if trying to soothe her. She even reached out, attempting to take Charlotte's hand.
But Charlotte recoiled instantly, as though she had just seen a venomous snake. She pulled her hand back without hesitation, her expression cold. “Just say what you want,” she said flatly.
“Sabrina,” Charlotte replied, her voice firm and indifferent.
At the sound of Charlotte’s tone, Sabrina’s gaze darkened with suppressed resentment. When she saw that Charlotte showed no intention of yielding, her expression shifted abruptly.
Her expression turned openly provocative, laced with contempt.
"Charlotte, Alexander organized this exhibition just for me,” Sabrina said, her tone edged with deliberate provocation. “Why don’t you come and see it for yourself see how well he treats me?”
Sabrina stressed each word on purpose, letting the implication linger.
She held out the invitation, its bold lettering impossible to miss.
Charlotte barely glanced at it, her expression unmoved, making no move to take it.
"What? Don't you even have the nerve?” Sabrina let out a short, scornful laugh. “I really don’t understand how someone like Lynn could have raised a daughter like you.”
Before she could finish, the invitation slipped from her grasp.
Sabrina froze, startled, only to realize Charlotte had already taken it.
Did she really dare to go?
Charlotte flicked the invitation lightly between her fingers, her gaze steady as she spoke with deliberate emphasis. "Don't worry, I'll definitely be there."
Sabrina quickly composed herself, her expression softening into a sweet, practiced smile."Good,” she said lightly.I'll be waiting for you."
Watching Sabrina's arrogant departing figure, Charlotte's fingers gripping the invitation turned white at the knuckles.
That evening, while Charlotte was busy in the kitchen, Philip quietly slipped out onto the balcony and made a call.
"Dad, we’ve got a situation."
Landon had just wrapped up two consecutive video conferences and was feeling slightly fatigued. But the moment he heard Philip’s voice, his focus sharpened instantly.
"Speak."
On the other end of the line,Philip quickly and methodically explained the situation. As he listened, Landon's expression gradually darkened.
"Alright, I understand."
Afterending the call, he lowered his phone and raised a hand, pressing his fingers to his temples in a slow, controlled motion as he rubbed away the fatigue and tension.
'Jordan, you really are up to no good. But if you want to compete with me, you're still too inexperienced,' he thought.
"Isn't this dress a bit too youthful?"
The next day was the opening day of Sabrina's exhibition, and Charlotte had specifically asked Jenna to help her choose a suitable gown for the occasion.
After all, no matter what, she couldn't lose face in front of Sabrina.
She originally wanted to choose a stable and elegant gown, but Jenna wouldn't let her, constantly pulling her to try styles that were obviously only suitable for young twenty-year-old girls.
She wanted to refuse but received a warning from Jenna: "You're a designer yourself, how can you be so conservative?"
In the end, Jenna even deliberately provoked her: "You don't want to wear wrinkled pajamas all the time like before, do you?"
Even knowing Jenna said it on purpose, Charlotte was indeed stung for a moment.
So she looked at the several gowns in front of her and pointed to the one in the middle: "This one, I want to try it."
At the same time, Sabrina was also trying on the haute couture gown she would wear to tomorrow's exhibition.
When she appeared in the gown, her assistant couldn't help but gasp: "So beautiful!"
Nearby, subordinates from the design department were also mesmerized.
The women looked envious, while the men sneaked glances again and again.
An Aurora College graduate, backed by Mr. Forbes, and so beautiful too!
Sabrina was satisfied as she took in everyone's reactions.
She gently twirled around, looking at her graceful figure in the full-length mirror, revealing a confident smile.
'Charlotte, you stole the spotlight at the parent-child competition last time. This time, I'll make you lose completely!' she thought.
Hopewell Hospital.
"Dr. Howard, this is your surgery schedule." The head nurse handed Jordan a form.
Jordan glanced at it briefly, then pointed to a surgery scheduled for 4:30 PM: "How is this patient doing? Can we do the surgery an hour earlier?"
"Yes, but don't you want to rest after just finishing a surgery?"
After receiving confirmation, Jordan waved his hand: "It's fine, I'm young, I can handle it."
"Also, I'm going to rest now. Come wake me in my office in an hour."
"Okay." The head nurse nodded.
An hour later, after being woken up, Jordan quickly washed his face and dove into pre-surgery preparations.
5:00 PM sharp.
As soon as the operating room doors slowly opened, Jordan stepped out.
While removing his surgical gown, he instructed his assistant, "Keep a close eye on the patient. Call me immediately if there's any situation."
The assistant had just agreed when Jordan quickly disappeared from view.
The assistant touched his head in confusion and asked a nearby nurse: "What's been going on with Dr. Howard these past few days? He leaves at exactly 5:00 PM almost every day."
The nurse nodded in agreement. "Right, I've been wondering about it too."
Suddenly, the young nurse showed a gossipy smile: "Do you think he might have a girlfriend?"
The assistant thought about it and couldn't come up with any other reason, so his curiosity was also piqued, "Then what kind of girl do you think would be worthy of such an excellent man as Dr. Howard?"
Soon, gossip about Jordan spread throughout Hopewell Hospital.
At the elite kindergarten entrance.
Alexander looked at the two men before him, his expression dark.