Wrong Flirt, Right Trouble: His Uncle Pulls Me Close

”No, I’m here with my mom for her check-up. What about you? Why are you at the hospital? Are you not feeling well? Are you not wearing enough?” Seth Scott asked with a concerned tone.

Ivy Sherwood shook her head. ”No, I’m just here to watch the show.”

”Watch the show?” Seth was curious about what had happened, but it seemed Ivy had no intention of explaining.

”Ivy, do you want to get lunch together later?” Seth asked.

Ivy said, ”I have to hurry back to the office, so I’ll have to pass on lunch. Is your mother okay? You should go back to her.”

Seth said, ”She’s fine, it’s just a routine check-up. Let’s have lunch together. If you think it’d be awkward with my mom there, I can send her home first, and then we... along with Nina, can all have lunch together. How about that?”

Seth knew that Ivy would definitely refuse if he asked just the two of them to eat alone, so he deliberately mentioned Nina Scott.

”We were supposed to eat together last time, but the timing was off. You can’t refuse this time, no matter what.”

”I’m really sorry, Seth, I...”

”Mr. Scott, do you really need her to spell it out for you? Can’t you see she doesn’t want to have lunch with you?” Quentin Blackwood’s voice came from behind. His words were so blunt they made both Ivy and Seth cringe.

’He’s Nina’s brother, after all. I can’t let things get too awkward. Besides, Seth is actually a nice guy. I can’t be so direct with him.’

”That’s not what I meant, it’s just...”

Before Ivy could finish, Quentin’s inscrutable gaze swept over her, seeming to say, ’Contradict me and you’re dead.’

Ivy felt an even more intense presence than before and shut her mouth.

”Didn’t you leave?”

’Why is he back again?’

Ivy didn’t say that last part out loud.

”I just came back to tell you that I need the clothes I left at your place. I have an event this afternoon and I need to wear that specific outfit.”

The request sounded fine to Ivy, though she found Quentin a bit odd. ’He has so many clothes, so why does he suddenly need to wear this specific one this afternoon?’

To Seth, however, the fact that Quentin had clothes at Ivy’s place sounded incredibly suggestive.

’When did Quentin leave clothes at Ivy’s? Could he have spent the night there?’

Besides, preparing clothes for someone sounded like something a family would do, just like how his mother always laid out his father’s clothes in advance.

”You need them this afternoon? But they haven’t been washed yet.”

”Then go home and wash them now.”

”Okay. Seth, I really do have something to take care of. Let’s talk next time. Bye!”

Ivy quickly said her goodbyes to Seth. Thank goodness Quentin had come back; it gave her a quick escape.

Quentin’s brow furrowed. ’Talk next time?’

Ivy was about to get into her own car when Quentin grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her toward his. ”Take my car. It’s faster.”

’Aren’t they all the same? How is Quentin’s car any faster?’

’But we’re over now. Wouldn’t it be inappropriate for us to ride in the same car?’

”My car...”

Before Ivy could finish, Quentin’s chilly voice cut in, ”Is your car broken?”

”My car is broken?” Ivy’s eyes widened. ’How come I didn’t know about this?’

Hearing this, Seth immediately offered, ”Ivy, is your car broken? I heard you’ve been busy lately, so you probably don’t have time to get it fixed. Why don’t you give me the keys? I’ll take it to the shop for you. You can take my car home.”

The moment he finished speaking, an annoyed expression crossed Quentin’s face. ”Mr. Scott, do you enjoy trying to curry favor, or do you just like playing mechanic? Shouldn’t you be escorting your mother home instead of playing chauffeur for someone else? If you’re so keen on being a mechanic, why don’t I just acquire the Scott Group? Then you can be one for the rest of your life.”

Ivy: ”...”

Seth: ”...”

’Quentin’s like a machine gun today,’ Ivy thought, ’just spraying bullets at everyone he sees.’

If she didn’t get him out of there, he might really end up offending Seth for good.

Ivy waved goodbye to Seth. ”Don’t trouble yourself. I’ll just get a ride back with him.”

Seth watched the two of them, feeling that something was strange between them.

Now, everything Ivy said sounded sour to Quentin’s ears.

”So you’re afraid of troubling him by taking his car, but you’re not afraid of troubling me by taking mine?”

Ivy pressed her hand to her forehead. ’So am I getting in or not?’

”Get in the car!”

Ivy had no choice but to bite the bullet and get into Quentin’s car. She glanced outside and saw Seth still watching her.

The next second, the window rolled up. The one-way glass made it impossible to see inside from the outside.

Quentin said coldly, ”What is this, some kind of dramatic goodbye scene?”

Ivy turned her head to look at him. ”With a mouth like that, why don’t you do stand-up comedy?”

Quentin snorted and looked out the window.

Ivy could sense Quentin’s anger, but why was he angry? He was the one who said they were over.

Quentin didn’t speak for the entire ride, his arms crossed over his chest as he stared icily ahead.

Ivy pressed herself against the window on her side, keeping as much distance from Quentin as possible.

Quentin’s brow twitched. ’Am I some kind of monster? Why is she sitting so far away?’

The car drove on, and soon enough, they arrived at Ivy’s apartment building. Ivy got out. ”I’ll go wash the clothes right away, but it’ll take some time to dry. You...”

”Don’t bother. Just have them washed and bring them to me next time.” After saying this coldly, Quentin immediately ordered the driver, ”Drive.”

Ivy: ”...”

’Just a moment ago he needed the clothes, and now he doesn’t. Why is this man so unpredictable?’

’Besides, bringing them to him next time means I’ll have to see Quentin again, doesn’t it?’

’It doesn’t seem like a good idea for us to meet. Maybe after I wash them, I should just send them directly to Norhaven.’

...

Seth still felt that something was very strange about those two, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

’Maybe Nina knows something?’

Seth called Nina Scott and asked her to have lunch with him, and she agreed.

Seth told his mother he had urgent business at the company and arranged for the driver to take her home later. Then, he drove to the restaurant himself.

Nina arrived shortly after. ”Bro, you ordered so much good food!”

”Mhm, eat up. Look how thin you’ve gotten.” Seth put some food on Nina’s plate.

”I’m not thin, I’ve actually gained weight! But I love the food here,” Nina said, taking a big bite.

Seth knew Nina liked this place, which was why he’d booked a table here.

”I took Mom to the hospital for a check-up today,” Seth brought up after they had chatted for a bit.

At the mention of Mrs. Scott, Nina’s expression became a little unnatural. After all, her relationship with her mother was very strained.

”Is she okay?”

”She’s fine, no problems. But I saw Ivy Sherwood at the hospital. Is she sick?”

Nina said while eating, ”No, Silas Blackwood is the one in the hospital.”

Nina had called Ivy earlier to ask how Silas was doing. Ivy’s response was: ’Unfortunately, he’s still alive.’

It really was a shame. Just goes to show that the wicked live long lives.

”I also saw Quentin Blackwood. He and Ivy didn’t look happy. Was he bullying her?”

The mention of Quentin made Nina angry. He got to just walk away without a care, but it wasn’t so easy for Ivy to move on.

’Ivy has never liked anyone like that in her entire life!’

”I don’t know. Don’t talk about him!”

Seeing Nina’s strong reaction, Seth knew something was definitely going on.

’Does this mean I have a chance again?’