Chapter 863: Forgiving little bitch.

Even though Nina and Jonathan weren’t in a business setting, Nina couldn’t just be rude to him. So, after a brief introduction between Jonathan and Yuri, Nina couldn’t refuse Jonathan’s offer to give them a ride.

They were all headed to the school gymnasium, after all.

With that, Nina reluctantly sat in the front passenger seat while Yuri sat in the backseat.

"This school... is big," Jonathan mused, driving slowly even though it was Saturday, and no students were around the campus. "I’ve always heard about the Summit School of Excellence, the school for the rich. However, I never thought it would be this big."

Nina hid her discomfort with a smile. "It is big, considering one department is almost like an entire school at other places."

"Right?" Jonathan nodded, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. "If I had gone here, I would’ve been lost in my first month. I was a late bloomer, so I was pretty small during my freshman year."

"Ahh..."

"We’ll need to take this turn to the gymnasium, right?"

"Yes."

"Alright."

Nina pursed her lips, looking back at Yuri in the backseat. The latter raised her brows, blinking twice, her eyes silently asking Nina what was going on. Nina gave a brief expression, silently conveying, ’Be nice. He’s my client.’

The two women didn’t exchange words, but they understood each other’s message with just a look.

"And then, another turn?" Suddenly, Jonathan asked again, and Nina immediately answered. "Alright."

There was a brief silence between his questions, with no conversation as if he were focusing on the road. Nina was thankful for that because she wasn’t entirely comfortable sitting in the front seat with her client driving the car.

It just didn’t feel right.

Thankfully, the car ride was only a five-minute drive before they reached the gymnasium.

"We’re here," Jonathan announced, turning to Nina with a smile. "I’ll look for a parking space around here."

Nina maintained a smile and nodded. "Thank you."

"The nearest parking around here is if you take this route and then take a left turn." Before getting out of the backseat, Yuri gave him instructions on where he could park.

Jonathan gazed at the rearview mirror and nodded. "Thank you."

"You’re welcome."

Having said that, the two women stepped out of the car while Jonathan drove in the direction Yuri had indicated.

"Nina, what’s that about?" Yuri asked as the car slowly drove away, facing Nina curiously.

"Hmm?"

Yuri tilted her head toward the car. "Him," she emphasized. "What’s wrong with him?"

"Yuri, what do you mean?"

"Earlier, you seemed very uncomfortable with his presence. So, I thought something wasn’t right. Am I wrong?"

"Yuri, like I said, Mr. Russel is my client. He’s attending the reunion because his girlfriend was a member of the fan club," Nina sighed heavily. "Of course, I’m a little uncomfortable because he is my client. It didn’t feel right for me to let my client give me a ride, especially when it’s not work-related."

Yuri narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but in the end, she gave Nina the benefit of the doubt. "But Nina, I’m going to believe what you said because it’s you. Still, you have to tell me if he’s harassing you or making a move on you while he’s in a relationship, okay?"

"Yuri..." Nina smiled helplessly before she chuckled, nodding in understanding. "Mr. Russel is a kind person. Nothing like that has happened — and even if it did, do you think I’d just let it slide? Even if he were the king of the world, I wouldn’t work with someone who would harass me or anything like that."

"Haha. Right." Yuri chuckled, brushing aside the bad feeling she had the second she saw Jonathan and how Nina’s smile faltered at the sight of him. "You even broke up with the man you were about to marry just because he lied about his whereabouts."

"He lied," Nina corrected. "Please don’t bring up Finn. I already feel sorry for him."

"Right, right. Don’t talk about someone who almost died and is barely hanging on to life."

"Yuri...!"

"I’m kidding, I’m kidding! Just trying to make you laugh!"

Nina frowned because, obviously, Yuri was just trying to make herself laugh. Surely, Yuri’s humor wasn’t just dry, but at the same time, it could be dark. However, she didn’t take it personally.

"Why are we still here?" Yuri asked when she noticed Nina wasn’t heading inside. "Shouldn’t we go in and greet everyone?"

"Yuri, are you attending the party?"

"I am now." Yuri grinned. "I was here to do some extra work, and of course, I heard about the reunion party. I’ve always heard about the fan club when we were kids, so I was curious. Then I saw Lily, and she told me to come. Of course, I helped out a bit. I was actually running an errand when I saw you."

"Oh."

"What about you? Why are you standing here?"

"I’m waiting for Mr. Russel."

"Huh?"

"Yuri, it’s not polite to just go in when he drove us here, right?" Nina explained in a knowing tone. "Moreover, he’s his girlfriend’s plus-one, but he arrived earlier than she did. In other words, he doesn’t know anyone inside."

"Oh."

Nina furrowed her brows when she saw the look on Yuri’s face. "Why are you making that face?"

"Uh... because... I thought he had done something bad to you?" Yuri replied, leaving Nina even more confused. "The parking space is on the opposite side of what I told him. Oops...?"

******

Meanwhile, Jonathan slowed down as he drove to the opposite side from what Yuri had just told him. His expression carried sharpness and irritation, unlike the friendly mask he wore with Nina and Yuri.

"Yuri Cortez," he whispered, stretching his neck from one side to the other. "I don’t like her already. I thought her brother was the only problematic one, having trained under Penelope Bennet. It seems the little sister is a bit sharp and difficult."

Jonathan raised his brows and laughed. "Penelope surely amused me. Not only did she change her life, but she changed the people who contributed to her downfall. What a forgiving little bitch."