Joshua was dumbfounded. Sheffield was making the best of the situation to make him look bad. 'Come on, man! I can be very mature...sometimes, ' he thought to himself while glaring at his friend.
Dollie came back to their table from the bathroom, but Sheffield ignored her and continued to talk to Evelyn. "You're just making lame excuses to reject me. I must have done something to piss you off. If you don't want to tell me, that's fine. I'll find the answer myself, but please don't push me away. Okay?"
Sheffield felt like his heart was being crushed; he felt heavy from the pain and sadness.
They stared at each other and the genuine affection in his eyes shocked Evelyn. She wanted to tell him the truth, that he had almost killed her, even if it was unintentional. There had been a baby in her, but it was gone now.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she remembered the baby. But she couldn't let it spill because this was not the place or time for that conversation.
Seeing the tears, Sheffield was taken aback. He grabbed her hands quickly and asked anxiously, "Evelyn, what happened? Why are you crying? Was I being too forward? Am I hurting you? If you really don't want to see me anymore, I'll leave. Please don't be upset. Don't cry." He had tried to get close to her because he wanted to bring her happiness. If she was unhappy in his presence, then he'd rather let her go.
Dollie couldn't help but suspect Sheffield's love for Evelyn. He was looking at her in such an affectionate way. It didn't look like he was putting on an act. If Sheffield was really acting, then he really had excellent acting skills.
At that moment, Evelyn's phone rang, breaking the silence between them. She shook away his hands and took out her phone. It was Terilynn. "Hello?" It was then that Evelyn remembered that she had texted Terilynn earlier, asking her to lunch.
"Evelyn, I'm downstairs. Which floor are you on?"
"I'm on the second floor, in section A, close to the riverside."
"Okay, I'm coming."
"Hmm."
After Evelyn hung up, Joshua asked casually, "Did you invite someone else?"
"Oh, it's my younger sister. She... She happened to be nearby, so I asked her to join us for lunch. I hope you don't mind." Her original plan was to let Terilynn destroy their date. She didn't think that Sheffield would come.
"No problem. I see. So, you have a sister." Joshua waved to the waiter.
He came over. "What can I do for you, sir?"
"Could we have a new set of tableware, please? We have another guest."
"Of course, sir."
Soon, Terilynn showed up on the second floor of the restaurant. Evelyn stood up from her seat and walked over to her.
They walked back to the table very slowly. Evelyn explained on the way, "I originally wanted you to come and destroy this date, but you don't have to do that now. Just pretend like you were in the area and joined us for lunch."
"Oh, does that mean you like the guy?" Terilynn's eyes brightened when she saw the two men at the table. "Wow! Evelyn, they are both very handsome! Who is your date?" she asked excitedly.
Evelyn rolled her eyes. "I'll introduce him to you later."
When the girls approached the table, Joshua's eyes widened. 'It's her! The girl from the bar. So, she's Evelyn's sister!' Joshua thought. He stood up from his seat and greeted Terilynn, pretending not to know her, "Hello."
She replied with a smile, "Hello! Are you my sister's date?"
Joshua stole a glance at Sheffield, who had a depressed expression on his face, and nodded, "Yes."
Terilynn held on to her sister's arm. "He's so handsome! Are you two wearing matching clothes? That's so cute!"
Joshua chuckled under his breath.
Evelyn explained, "No, we're not! It was just a coincidence."
Sheffield stood up and put on his usual playful smile. "Hello. I'm Sheffield Tang. I'm friends with Evelyn. Nice to meet you."
She sized Sheffield up and smiled broadly. "Hello! Nice to meet you, too. Evelyn, how come you've never told me that you have such a handsome friend? Introduce me to him!"
Evelyn grunted under her breath. "You haven't eaten yet, have you? Sit down."
"All right. Wait. Who's this? Your girlfriend?" Terilynn asked Sheffield when she noticed Dollie's existence.
Sheffield cast a casual glance at Dollie and denied naturally, "No, she's the hospital dean's daughter."
Dollie angrily bit her lower lip and then smiled slightly at their new guest.
Terilynn ordered her food and sat in between Evelyn and Joshua.
The girl continued to chat with Joshua. "So, what do you think of my sister?"
He replied, "She's nice."
"Please, you don't have to be so careful with your words. Everyone knows about her. She is the exact copy of our grandmother and father. Grandma brought her up, but I was brought up by my mother. That's why I am more like my mother." The atmosphere at the table was more cheerful now because of the talkative Terilynn.
While eating his steak, Joshua asked, "How many siblings are there in your family?"
"We are two sisters and a brother," Terilynn responded quickly.
"Wow. So, your sister was brought up by your grandmother, and you were brought up by your mother. So, I'm guessing that your brother was brought up by your father. Am I right?" he asked playfully.
She took a sip of her juice and said, "Oh no, our father has never taken care of him. When our grandfather was still alive, he took care of my brother."
"Why didn't your father take care of him?" Joshua asked curiously.
"Dad just loves us girls more. And our brother is just as cold as Evelyn. He doesn't know how to make our old man happy, so Dad never treats him kindly." Terilynn laughed out loud.
Evelyn put a slice of lobster onto her sister's plate. "Eat your food," she said softly.
With a sweet smile on her face, Terilynn whispered to Joshua, "If you want to be my brother-in-law, you should get used to her cold personality. She is actually a nice person. You will only see that when you get close to her."
Listening to his future sister-in-law and his best friend talking about his own woman, Sheffield felt more depressed and left out than ever.
If he had known that Evelyn's younger sister would be joining, he wouldn't have said those words earlier. Now, he was in a horrible mood.
"I can see that," Joshua replied, returning her smile.
The siblings of the Huo family definitely had different personalities. The older one was indifferent and cold, while the younger one was more passionate.
Joshua found himself more fond of... well... the passionate younger one.
"She takes after our father and is a high-flier. She is completely devoted to her work and hardly has time to date. So, if you decide to be with her, you should be more understanding of her."
Taking a look at Sheffield, who was listening to their conversation carefully, Joshua nodded and said, "Of course, I will."
"Terilynn, didn't you say that you have something important to deal with after this? Finish your meal. I'll drive you there," Evelyn interrupted them.
"My business is not as important as your happiness, Evelyn. I want to have a few more words with my future brother-in-law. I am in no hurry." The atmosphere in the booth was getting super weird. But Terilynn didn't notice the tension. She chatted away happily with Joshua.
Evelyn sighed.