Mutual friends?
How on earth could those two have mutual friends?
âNo need, Ms. Sophia. Please go entertain the other guests. Iâm fine on my own.â
But Sophia insisted. âNo can do. Ellinor, youâre pregnant; you canât be on your feet for too long! Come, let me find you a seat and get you some food and drinks.â Sophiaâs enthusiasm was so overwhelming that Ellinor couldnât refuse; even though she wasnât particularly fond of Sophia, she had no choice but to follow her.
Sophia led her to the VIP area, where there were sofas, but it was far from quiet, as three men were occupying the sofas.
Jonah was holding a glass of wine and having a grand old time chatting with Kemp and Bartlett. Upon seeing Sophia bring someone over, he stopped his joke mid-sentence and squinted his eyes. âOh! I was wondering who that was. Itâs the Ellinor who ran away from Theo with the baby.â
Ellinor shot Jonah a glance and ignored him.
Kemp was somewhat surprised to see Ellinor, as a courtesy, he nodded at her as a greeting.
As for Bartlett, the smile on his face never faded after seeing Ellinor.
Sophia brought Ellinor in front of them. âEllinor, you know these guys, right? Sit here for a bit; Iâll get someone to bring you some food.â
Ellinor didnât bother being polite and just sat down on an empty sofa.
Sophia then spoke to Jonah and the others, still all smiles. âI need to go attend to my friends whoâve come to celebrate my birthday. Iâm counting on you guys to look after Ellinor!â
Jonah, with a smirk on his face, raised his glass. âSure! No problem! We can catch up; itâs been a while. Right, Ellinor?â
Ellinor still ignored him.
âGreat! I can rest easy knowing you guys are watching Ellinor. Iâll be over there then.â Sophia gave Ellinor a deep look, then turned and left with a smile. The moment Sophia walked away, Jonah moved to the seat next to Ellinor, looking at her. âYouâre pretty far along; whenâs the baby due?â
Bartlett was about to move over as well, but Jonah beat him to it, so he silently returned to his original seat. âJonah, donât provoke her!â Jonah looked at Bartlett. âIâm just asking when the babyâs due; I didnât say anything else Bartlett, why are you so protective of her?â
Bartlett didnât explain; he just smiled and said, âItâs everyoneâs responsibility to protect pregnant women.â
Jonah chuckled. âYou can stop pretending! I can see youâre having some inappropriate thoughts again;
be careful or Theo might get upset.â
Bartlettâs smile remained, but his eyes dimmed slightly.
Jonah didnât notice anything wrong with his joke. He turned back to Ellinor and continued talking to her with a wicked grin on his face. âEllinor, youâre really something. You actually had the guts to abandon Theo twice!â
Ellinor took a sip of the juice the waiter handed her, stirred the ice cubes with the straw, raised an eyebrow, and said, âJonah, watch your tone. I didnât abandon him.â Jonah asked with interest. âYou didnât abandon him? Then, what do you call sneaking off?â
Ellinor replied. âI didnât sneak off; I left openly.â
âAlright, Iâll give you that you left openly, but why? Isnât it nice to be with Theo, to be Mrs. Blanchet?â
Ellinor gave him a small smile. âDo you think being Mrs. Blanchet is nice?â
Jonah laughed. âOf course! There are so many who want to be Mrs. Blanchet but canât.â
Ellinor scoffed. âThen why donât you go for it? You and Theo have known each other for many years, and since youâre close, I bet heâd be happy to grant your wish.â Jonahâs smile froze, and then he made a gesture like he was protecting his chest. âWhat a joke! I like women! Even if Theo was willing, I wouldnât be!â