Chapter 602: Marriage scares me

[Crimson Bar]

"You are... Nina?" Grace leaned over, cupping her face, her eyes on the meek Nina seated beside her.

Nina pressed her lips together and glanced at her. "You must be Grace."

"Penny told me about you."

"She talks about you as if I’ve known you well," Nina smiled. "She told me about you?"

"Just like what you said," Grace smirked. "She talks about you as if I also know you."

"Well... it’s nice to finally meet!"

"The feeling is mutual." Grace winked at Nina, making both of them smile. Grace then pulled away, glancing at the private room Penny had booked for all of them to meet. "So Penny only has two friends?"

"Yuri will come." Nina smacked her lips, smiling at Grace as the latter looked back. "She just had a few things to do, but she will come. Exams week is hectic... is what she said."

"I thought exam week is the most relaxed time for teachers."

"Not sure." Nina shrugged. "I think Penny also invited Ginnie and Lily. They’re her best friends."

"Ahh... those two, huh?"

"You know them?"

"I’ve heard about Ginnie and I’ve already met Lily." Grace grinned. "She’s a client of mine."

"Oh."

"Oh, well. This will be fun." Grace leaned back and enjoyed her drink, but she couldn’t help glancing at the door and then at Nina from time to time.

Nina hadn’t touched her drink and only looked at it as if she didn’t plan to even touch the glass. Grace observed her for a while, as she had heard many things—good things—about her.

"We arrived early, didn’t we?" Grace broke the silence after a while, making Nina sigh.

"I don’t think we did," said Nina. "We arrived on time."

"And Penny is always on time."

"Why is she late, though?" Nina frowned, her eyes swirling with worry.

Seeing the concern in Nina’s eyes, Grace couldn’t help but chuckle. "She probably went somewhere else. Don’t worry. Penny’s gonna be fine."

"Mhm."

"You’re a worrywart, aren’t you?" Grace chuckled, seeing that the worry in Nina’s eyes didn’t change in the slightest despite her reassurance.

"I’m sorry." Nina let out a shallow breath. "It’s just that Penny is never late, so I was worried."

"It’s alright. She’s probably dolling up because this is basically her welcome home party, plus her late bachelorette party."

"You know she’s married?"

"I’m her lawyer," Grace laughed. "Of course, I know what’s going on with her."

"Oh, right...?" Nina let out an awkward laugh, rocking her head. "I’m sorry. It’s just that I thought she hadn’t told anyone else except for family."

"And her lawyer, who gets her out of trouble and out of jail," Grace corrected. "So, since it’s just the two of us, how about you? When are you getting married?"

"Huh?"

Grace grinned. "Penny told me you’re engaged and I’m quite the busybody."

"Oh."

"Was it supposed to be a secret?"

"No." Nina waved mildly. "The wedding date isn’t set yet, and I prefer a long engagement."

"And why is that?"

"Well." Nina massaged her nape, looking at Grace with a bit of reluctance. "You’d find it stupid."

"Oh, honey, I’ve met a lot of people who got themselves in trouble for the stupidest things. Besides, Penny told me that you’re a smart woman and that she trusts you with her life."

Nina’s brows rose. "She said that?"

"Haha. I’m surprised you didn’t know this."

"Well." Nina lowered her eyes, her face softening. "I’m just surprised she’d say something like that."

"Penny trusts you a lot, that I’m very certain of," Grace reassured her. "So now, tell me, why do you prefer a long engagement?"

"Because... I am not as established yet?"

"Huh?"

"My fiancé’s family is established and successful," Nina explained. "Although I have a career that I am so proud of, I don’t want them to look down on my husband because I’m still struggling. Moreover... for some reason, I have this feeling that I want to get to know him first."

Grace furrowed her brows as she tilted her head to the side. No one could blame her for the sudden confusion, because what Nina said was a little puzzling. After all, Nina was engaged to a man. Nina wouldn’t have said yes if she didn’t know about the man she was marrying.

"I mean, I know Finn, but I want to get to know him more," explained Nina, seeing the confusion in Grace’s eyes. "But... I don’t know. It’s a weird feeling I’ve had ever since I got into a relationship with Finn. It feels like... it feels..."

Nina slowly cast her eyes back to her untouched drink, pausing as she tried to find the right words for the feeling she had. However, all she could describe it as was "odd."

"I love him with all of my heart, but I don’t know?" She shrugged and sighed helplessly. "Maybe I’m just scared of marriage. Although I was raised in two households that had a lovely and unshakable marriage, it scares me a bit."

"Ahh." Grace nodded, taking her explanation as something natural. Well, if Nina was marrying into a rich family with expectations so high that they were unrealistic, Grace understood that. After all, even though Grace was a business lawyer, she had handled a few divorce cases before.

"You’ll be fine," she said reassuringly. "I mean, if he loves you, I’m sure he’ll understand and would rather support you for it."

"So far, Finn is very understanding of me," said Nina, but she left out the part that she hadn’t told Finn about her real worries. "And he always respects my decisions."

"I see." Grace nodded. "I guess you found yourself a good man."

Nina smiled from ear to ear, thinking of her fiancé. She couldn’t disagree with Grace. She had found a good man, indeed.

Bzzt!

"Ah, someone’s calling." Nina quickly checked her purse where her phone was. As soon as she saw the caller, she faced Grace with a smile. "It’s a client. I’ll just take this one."

Grace nodded and waved. "Sure. I’ll be right here once you come back."

"Mhm."

Having said that, Nina quickly grabbed her phone and rushed outside. She could’ve taken the call in the VIP lounge, as it was already quiet, but out of courtesy, she went out and found a quiet spot to answer the call.

Standing in the corner, Nina talked with her client on the phone in a meek voice.

"Yes..." she smiled. "Thank you. Yes, I will."

After saying that, all she heard was the beep indicating the line was disconnected. A deep exhale slipped past her lips as she gazed at her phone.

"Finally, she approved the design," she murmured before deciding to send Yuri a text. While typing, she turned on her heel to walk back to where Grace was, only to stop when she saw a group of men making a turn at the other end of the hall.

"Huh?" Nina furrowed her brows, squinting as she saw a familiar back. "Is that... Finn?"