At the Turner Corporation, Joseph and Christina had just stepped into the private elevator when Joseph's phone rang. The elevator door closed, and the signal was lost, the ringing stopping almost immediately.
Christina held Joseph's wrist and tidied his curly hair as she stood next to him in her high heels. Christina looked up and said, "Call back later."
She didn't even ask who had called.
Joseph smiled warmly and beautifully at Christina's trust in him. "You didn't even ask who called me, and you're not worried at all."
Christina smiled back and said confidently, "You won't like anyone other than me, right?"
"Ms. Yamin, I like your confidence." Joseph couldn't help but lower his head and peck the corner of Christina's mouth carefully.
After they kissed, the elevator doors opened. The two of them straightened their clothes and came out seriously as if the flirtation in the elevator just now was nothing. Joseph followed Christina to the office.
Christina took off her jacket and helped Joseph take his jacket off as well. She hung both their jackets on the coat hanger and sat down. Joseph sat on the edge of the table and played with Christina's hair with one hand.
He returned the call, and the person on the other end of the line said something. The corners of Joseph's mouth curled up, and he simply instructed, "Protect her well."
The call ended, and Christina guessed, "The call was from the bodyguard protecting Leia."
Joseph's lips curled into a smile. His fingers were still curled around Christina's curly hair as he asked gently, "Guess what he said."
Christina had no answer to this question and honestly shook her head. "I don't know."
"Chris and Leia are already dating. The two of them kissed last night and did the same this morning." Joseph smiled as he watched Christina's reaction.
Hearing this, Christina's calm face revealed a trace of surprise. A few seconds later, Christina asked, "The two of them are in a secret relationship?"
If it wasn't a secret relationship, Christina couldn't think of a good reason why she wasn't aware of this. She was sure that her mother didn't know. Otherwise, her mother would have called to give her the good news.
Both Joseph and Christina had the same thoughts. Joseph had always felt that Christina was brilliant and could always analyze and make judgments quickly. "I think so. Leia probably wanted to try things out with Chris first, so she suggested they keep it a secret. There's nothing wrong with that. Don't worry, Leia will like Chris' kindness, straightforwardness, and innocence.
Christina nodded in agreement and respected Leia's idea. "Then we'll pretend that we don't know. We won't ask or disturb them. It's indeed inappropriate for my mother to know about it since they've just gotten together. My mother will directly charge over there. If we're too enthusiastic, it will backfire. I'm not sure if Leia would like this kind of enthusiasm. Let's wait for a while.
"I'll tell Mom another day. There's no hurry. Chris has to learn to maintain his relationship on his own."
'Marriage would last a lifetime, so no one else could help. Even if others helped at the beginning, Chris would still have to figure out how to maintain his relationship on his own.' Joseph thought. They could help with some things, but not others.
That night, after working overtime, Chris went straight to Yamin Group. Many employees had already left, and there were only a few people in the main lobby. Chris did not get out of the car, afraid he would be too conspicuous.
The car was parked in a parking lot. Chris sent a message to Leia, telling her which parking space he was in and what color his car was.
Little did he know Leia had already memorized his car's license plate number.
About ten minutes later, the door of the front passenger seat was opened. Leia was not wearing a mask and openly got into Chris' car.
Chris turned around, looking into his rearview mirror like someone with a guilty conscience. Chris asked, "Aren't you afraid?"
Leia lowered her head and fastened her seatbelt with a gentle smile. When She was with Chris, she could easily put down the usual front she put on at the company. "Afraid of what? Being found out? We don't have to hide it deliberately."
Leia felt that otherwise, this would be too unfair to Chris. This was the decision Leia had made after speaking with Quinn this afternoon. They were not doing anything shameful and just wanted to try it out for some time and understand each other better.
Hearing this, Chris was delighted. "Can we make it official now?"
Leia smiled. "Let's go with the flow."
Chris understood what Leia meant. They wouldn't announce it but they wouldn't intentionally hide it either. If their relationship happened to be found out, they wouldn't deny it. Chris wasn't stupid. When Chris was studying, he read quite a lot of books and understood things quite well.
Chris started the car before he turned around and asked, "What do you want to eat?"
Leia answered, "This is your area. You decide and I'll go with you."
Chris liked Leia's way of speaking more and more. Leia was speaking very seriously, but it always tugged at his heartstrings. "Alright, then I'll bring you to eat some specialty dishes," Chris said.
As soon as the car started, Leia remembered the incident where Chris had cut off other cars to enter the lane. Leia turned and reminded Chris, "There are a lot of cars at night. Don't cut into other lanes."
"What?" Chris asked, wondering how his girlfriend had known about this.
Leia turned around and saw the confusion in Chris' eyes. Leia smiled and explained, "Last year, you cut into my lane, right in front of my car. I remembered your license plate. You overtook me and cut in."
This was a little awkward. Chris rubbed his nose with one hand to ease the awkwardness. Chris did not expect his bad habit to be known by the woman beside him. "I only have this bad habit. As well as maybe smoking a few cigarettes occasionally. I don't even smoke a pack a month. Can I call you Leia?"
Leia answered, "Sure, you can call me whatever you want. It's not safe to cut into other lanes. Safety first when driving."
Chris nodded and listened. "Okay, I'll listen to you. I'll take note of this in the future."
Since Leia had made this suggestion, Chris had been driving obediently. Even if there was a truck in front of him driving at a snail's pace, he would still foolishly follow behind at a speed of 12 mph.
The half-hour drive to the hotel took them an hour and fifteen minutes. This was the most regulated drive Chris had ever taken, but he was in a good mood since he enjoyed being in Leia's company.
Over more than an hour, Leia watched Chris multiple times. Chris could not help but laugh a few times, and Leia felt she had not chosen the wrong person or made the wrong decision. Leia even felt she did not need to worry about how things would turn out, and it was enough if they were happy.
When he got out of the car, Chris stood at the side and waited for Leia. He did not help her to open her door. After Leia got out of the car, she walked around the back of the car and to Chris' side. Leia held Chris' hand, and the two of them interlocked their fingers as they walked inside and arrived at a private room.
As Leia held his hand, Chris' heart was racing and he was extremely happy.
Without closing the door properly, Chris gave the menu to Leia. Leia ordered several dishes and asked Chris what he wanted to eat. Chris added a few more dishes, and after they finished ordering, Leia handed the menu to the waiter.
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