Reborn, Reawakened, Rekindled novel Chapter 419

Ariana was just average-looking and appeared significantly older than Mitch, but she had a gentle aura about her.

A man accompanied her, who was probably a colleague.

Upon seeing me, Ariana paused, "Oh, is this a new colleague?"

Mitch's face turned awkward.

I had no fondness for the woman. The way she looked at Mitch was far from an ordinary colleague's gaze. It was tender and affectionate.

"I'm not." I responded coldly, "I can't be that kind of colleague."

My words made Mitch's face drop. Even if I didn't say it, he knew what I was implying.

Whether Ariana could comprehend my words or not was another question.

Apparently, she either didn't understand or chose to ignore it. Without a hint of embarrassment, she smilingly approached the stroller where Serena was.

"Oh, Mitch, you've got two little angels?" Ariana reached out to play with Serena.

"They're a friend's children." Mitch hurriedly explained.

Then he quickly introduced, "This is my wife and our child. You’ve only seen pictures of them. Now you're meeting them in person."

Stella, who had initially looked upset, immediately brightened up when Ariana arrived, putting on a big, welcoming smile, "You must be Ariana. My husband occasionally talks about you."

Ariana looked surprised at Mitch, "Mitch, is that so? Do you talk about me at home? I guess we truly are friends."

I couldn’t stand her insinuations, subtly trying to emphasize her close relationship with Mitch.

"Only occasionally." Mitch quickly clarified, "Sometimes when talking about work, I mention you. My wife doesn't really enjoy hearing about work, so I try not to bring it up."

Ariana nodded with an enlightened look and approached Stella, reaching out to hold her baby, "Mr. Mitch's little one is so adorable. May I hold her?"

But Stella avoided her. Her tone was frosty as she said, “My baby is shy. She doesn’t like being held by strangers.”

Ariana’s hand froze mid-air, obviously embarrassed by the rejection.

Mitch didn’t dare to say more. Even if he felt Ariana was being wronged, he had to hold his tongue.

Otherwise, the tension between him and Stella would have only escalated, and with me present, he couldn't have afforded to speak recklessly.

"All right. Some babies are indeed shy. But I didn't expect her to be so discerning at such a young age. Maybe if I visit more often, she'll get used to me." Ariana brushed off the awkwardness with a laugh.

Seeing the situation deteriorating, Mitch intervened, "Everyone, please take a seat. I'll get some food."

Ariana sat down without further ado. The other man sat beside her while Neil took the seat across from her.

I wished I hadn’t been there today. Just seeing that woman was enough to irritate me.

Stella took her baby to the bedroom, and I followed, unwilling to stay in the living room with them.

"Stella, why don't we go out for lunch?" I asked Stella, presuming she would have been even more annoyed staying here.