A Touch of Sweetness novel (Finnick and Vivian) novel Chapter 1465

He made his way to Joan's office casually, Larry pushed opened the door and parked his butt on a chair before staring at the woman who had her head buried in her work.

“You're here, Mr. Norton?” Joan greeted without even lifting her head as though she had known about his arrival in advance.

“Yeah. Anyhow, just carry on with your work. I'm just here to check on your progress,” Larry answered. He was still a tad perturbed by her addressing him as Mr. Norton, but he couldn't do anything about that.

“Okay, please make yourself at home, then. I'll entertain you in a moment.” Joan maintained a businesslike attitude.

Sensing the distance in her tone, a wave of

irritation assailed Larry. He took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. That was a bad habit he had developed after she left, and it had now become an addiction.

At the sight of him smoking, a flash of desolation flittered across Joan's eyes. He never smoked in the past, so it might be because of me as well. At the thought of that, her guilt multiplied.

Larry was sitting very close to her, so Joan inevitably inhaled the lingering cigarette smoke. She had an inherent dislike of cigarette smoke, so despite having tried her best to suppress her distaste, a few light coughs still escaped her in the end.

Upon hearing her coughing, Larry's brows furrowed. All of a sudden, he remembered that she loathed the reek of cigarette smoke in the past. After hesitating for a long while, he snubbed out the cigarette in his hand and threw it into the trash can at the side.

“I'm hungry, Joan Watts. Accompany me to lunch.” Larry sounded as though he was issuing an order, his tone brooking no argument.

“Thanks, Mr. Norton. I'm not hungry at the moment, so I'd like to continue with my work for a while,” Joan declined tactfully. She had been doing her best to avoid having too much interaction with him although her efforts had been futile.

“This is just business, what with me having a meal with a collaborator. So, don't read too much into it. Also, I've got some business matters to discuss with you.” Larry gave her no room to turn him down. “Let's go.”

At that, Joan inwardly heaved a sigh. Good grief, why am I still so obedient to him, just like I did in the past?

Subsequently, the two of them went to a western restaurant and took their seats at the table.

“Just order whatever you want to eat.” Larry handed the menu to Joan.

“Thank you.” After thanking him politely, Joan ordered a steak. Likewise, Larry also ordered something at random.