?Chapter 1449:


    Once the door shut, Lawrence turned to Jacob with genuine curiosity. “So, tell me—who does Jessica have her eye on?”


    “Melvin Swain.” Jacob didn’t beat around the bush.


    “Who?” A brief pause hung in the air as Lawrence blinked, caught off guard.


    Jacob’s look said it all. He knew Lawrence had heard him perfectly.<fnda1f> Th? link to the orig?n of this information r?sts ?n F?ndNovel</fnda1f>


    “You mean Melvin Swain—the one from Anita International Group?” Lawrence had never officially met the man but was well aware of his reputation. “The same Melvin that Freya always puts her trust in?”


    A single nod from Jacob confirmed it.


    With a heavy sigh, Lawrence dropped onto the couch. It really was a tiny world—somehow, it always circled back to Freya.


    Curiosity got the better of him. “By the way, how’s Freya these days?”


    Jacob replied without much thought, “She’s doing just fine.”


    With a sudden change in mood, Lawrence confessed, “I’m not, though. There’s nowhere for me to crash. Mind letting me stay here for a while?”


    Jacob gave no answer. Instead, he acted like Lawrence hadn’t said a word.


    Meanwhile, Jessica rode off with the driver Jacob had arranged for her. When she got to the café, she noticed Melvin hadn’t shown up yet.


    Rather than worry, she settled into a window seat, perfectly content to wait since she’d arrived ahead of schedule.


    Minutes dragged on. It took nearly half an hour before Melvin finally walked in, runningte.


    Not missing a beat, Jessicamented, “Showing upte? You must have your hands full.”


    “I came as fast as I could.” Melvin looked apologetic. “Myst stop was about an hour away from here.”


    Jessica fell silent. Really, she realized, this was on her—she hadn’t checked the distance ahead of time.


    Keeping her expression neutral, she said only, “Alright then.”


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    “Let me buy you dinner to make up for it.” Melvin tried to make amends.


    “That won’t be necessary.” She brushed off his offer. Jessica met his eyes—her tone clear and unyielding. “Let’s cut to the chase. I have other things I need to do after this.”


    “What’s on your agenda?” Melvin didn’t hide his curiosity.


    Jessica answered smoothly, “It’s personal. Not something you need to worry about.”


    “If you’re pressed for time, we can always reschedule. I’ve got a lot on my mind, and it’s not something I can say in a few minutes,” Melvin said, noticing how distant she seemed. He couldn’t me her, not after the way he had handled things before.


    Jessica could only wonder how he managed to be so clueless. Didn’t he know when it was time to stand up for himself?


    When all she did was stare at him in silence, Melvin asked, “Is something bothering you?”


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