Yasmin didn't see Declan coming as she hurried to her department with her head bowed.
"Yasmin, wait. Don't walk away from me."
When she heard Caleb yell, she quickened her steps.
"Ah…" she shrieked when a strong hand grabbed her arm and pulled her towards a rock-hard chest. Before she could blink, two strong arms enveloped her. When she saw Declan, her breathing caught in her throat.
'Why is he here?' She gaped at him, adjusting her glasses that slipped down a bit.
"Is he troubling you?" Declan asked his fiery eyes on Caleb.
His cold voice vibrated deep into her stomach. She felt a wave of chills run down her spine. The rage in his eyes frightened her as she assumed he would cause trouble for Caleb.
"No…" she said, her voice faltering.
Declan moved his gaze down to her, frowning. His doubt grew stronger at the sight of her pale face.
"Francis…"
Francis approached Caleb as he knew the meaning of Declan's unspoken words.
Caleb got cold perspiration, his throat drying up. He turned around and fled.
"Son of a bitch," Francis muttered, looking at his back.
"Come with me." Declan held her wrist and pulled her along with him.
"Wait. I have lectures to attend."
Declan ceased his steps and turned to her. "It is almost lunch time. I will get you back here." He turned and walked back to his car. He opened the back door and motioned for her to enter.
Yasmin gave him a sidelong glance before settling into the car. She moved to the other side to give him space.
Declan regarded her with a frown. He initially considered driving the car. When he saw her making his space, he changed his mind. He sat down beside her, closing the door.
Francis slid into the driver's seat and drove straight to the restaurant, a faint smile on his lips.
Yasmin became restless as she sat so close to him. The way he took her possessively in his arms made her believe that the rumor of his homosexuality was just a deliberate lie. It was relieving, but she couldn't stop her heart from pounding. The car seemed to be getting smaller. The space between them appeared to be getting narrower and narrower.
She glanced at him and found him staring at her. She immediately drew her eyes back and looked outside, her heart leaping to her mouth.
Declan inspected her from head to toe. Her pale complexion and the sweat on her brow made him suspect she was concealing something.
His eyes dropped to her hands, which clasped her skirt tightly. He felt a flash of irritation. He turned to the outside, rubbing his chin.
"Who is he?" he asked, his voice frigid.
"A senior," she replied, her voice just above a whisper. Her grip on the skirt became tighter.
"What does he want from you?" he hissed, turning to her.
"Nothing…" She shook her head frantically. "I just happened to run into him. There is nothing else."
"Is that so?" Declan frowned even harder. It was getting hard for him to keep his rage in check. "Why do you look so flustered? Why do I feel like you are hiding something?"
"No, no… He is just my senior. I have…"
"Listen…" Declan grabbed her arm and drew her in closer. "I don't care if you fucked with that guy," he hissed fiercely. "What matters is that you are now my wife. You are not allowed to think of another man. Got it?"
She looked at him with trepidation, her eyes wide. She didn't even take a breath. One thing she clearly understood was that he was not at all gay. At the same time, she also figured out that he was dangerously possessive.
In the meantime, she realized Francis was also in the car. She glanced at him, her face flushed with embarrassment.
Declan also moved his gaze to the rear-view mirror and found Francis peeking at them. He pressed a button, and the partition glass instantly switched from transparent to opaque.
"You didn't answer me." Declan returned his focus to her.
She nodded frantically. "I get it."
Declan pulled a handkerchief from his coat pocket and reached out to wipe the sweat away from her brow. "We are going to have a business lunch," he said, his voice gentle.
Yasmin became puzzled at the change in his tone. She wondered how he could talk so politely just a minute after scolding her.
'Is he bipolar?' She blinked, dumbfounded.
"This is an important meeting for me," he murmured.
Yasmin grew a bit worried, thinking about why he was taking her to such an important meeting. She couldn't stop herself from asking, "Is it necessary for me to accompany you?"
"Of course." He stuffed his handkerchief back into his pocket and leaned back in his seat, letting go of her arm. "You will often have to attend these meetings and parties with me."
Yasmin began to sweat even more in nervousness, her fingertips cold. She swallowed to moisten her dry throat. She had never attended any business parties before, even though she had grown up in a wealthy family. Her father always took smart and beautiful Natasha with him to those parties.
Besides, Natasha worked for her father's company. She was undoubtedly smarter than her.
Yasmin was afraid that she would make mistakes. "I have never attended such parties or meetings," she murmured, her chin down.
"You never went to the parties with your father!" Declan squinted at her with disbelief.
Yasmin shook her head. "He prefers taking Natasha with her."
"Huh…" Declan sighed deeply, wiping his face. "Don't worry. I will manage."
Yasmin wished she could refuse to go. She didn't say anything at the end, though. She stared out the window, waiting for the car to come to a stop.
Several minutes later…
The Rolls Royce pulled over in front of a luxurious restaurant.
They stepped out of the car and made their way straight to the reserved private room.
Mr. Lee had not arrived yet. Declan and Francis began to discuss something.
Yasmin had no idea what to do. She didn't get anything they were talking about. Neither did she know who they were expecting. She looked around the room.
Six chairs were set around a six-seater dining table. Yasmin glanced at the empty chairs and then at the large glass flower vase with several stalks of tuberose in the corner of the room. Her wandering gaze returned to the painting of massive ocean waves on the wall across from her. She forgot how many times she had looked at it in the past few minutes.
She got bored. She poured herself a glass of water and drank it.
A waiter came to take orders.
"We are expecting a guest." Francis signaled to him to leave with a wave of his hand.
"Okay, Sir." The waiter turned to leave.
"Wait a minute." Declan stopped him. He glanced at Yasmin and said, "Bring a glass of orange juice."
"Sure." The waiter left.
Yasmin almost choked on the water. She gave him a puzzled look. She thought he would like to have wine. Instead, he ordered juice. Not only she but Francis also shot him a quizzical look as if he was taken aback.
Unaware of their perplexed looks, Declan checked the file he brought with him.
It didn't take long for the waiter to return with a glass of juice. "Your juice, Sir." He put the glass in front of Declan.
Declan gave him a cold stare as he nodded towards Yasmin. "Give it to Madam."
"Okay." The waiter smiled awkwardly. "Madam, juice."
"Thank you." She smiled back at him, her gaze moving to Declan. It turned out that Declan kept his gaze on her even though he was busy discussing business. It touched her heart.
She took the glass and drank the juice, her eyes gleaming with joy.
'He is not that bad,' she murmured in her mind.
Francis also had a faint smile on the corner of his mouth. He was happy for him and hoped that his boss would soon begin to believe in women and love.