The tea spilled from the cup, soaking the carpet and leaving a damp stain.

Quentin flinched and glanced at the cup with a click of his tongue. “Hey, man, don’t worry. Tessa isn’t the type to be casual about these things.”

Stephen was lost in thought as he asked in a hoarse voice, “Did she really agree?”

Quentin hesitated before replying, “Look, you know what happened on New Year’s Eve. She saw you with that cousin of yours-and you guys were even talking about getting a room.

“I mean, I’d be pissed off too. Maybe she said yes just to get back at you… or maybe she was drunk and spouting nonsense. You can’t take it too seriously.”

“I didn’t…” Stephen’s voice caught in his throat. “I never said we were getting a room.”

“Well, your cousin did.”

Silence fell between them for a moment.

Stephen composed himself and said, “Do me a favor.”

When Tessa stepped out of the law firm after work, she immediately noticed a white McLaren parked not too far away.

Quentin stood leaning against the car with his head down, scrolling through his phone as if waiting for someone.

It was off work time and he was waiting outside the firm, so he was probably waiting for her. Tessa started walking over just as Quentin looked up, spotted her, and approached with a grin.

“Hey, Tessa! Finally off work, huh?”

“Quentin, are you looking for me?” She glanced behind him. “Where’s Naomi? Is she not with you today?”

“Nah, it’s just me this time. I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“What is it?”

“Look, about that whole New Year’s

Eve mess-that was on me. I wasn’t thinking straight when I called Stephen over and ended up ruining the night for everyone. I wanted to apologize properly. I bookeda restaurant, so how about dinner? Are you free to join me?”

Tessa frowned slightly. “No need for that, Quentin. I understand. It’s all in the past now. You don’t have to treat me to dinner. I’ve got plans tonight anyway.”

“What plans?” Quentin asked without thinking.

“Uh…” She had only made up the excuse to turn him down and hadn’t expected him to press further. After a brief pause, she casually lied, “I’m meeting up with some friends.”

“Guys or girls?”

Tessa blinked and was a little speechless. Wasn’t that a little nosy?

Still, since they’d known each other for years, she held back any blunt remarks and stuck to her story, answering evenly, “A mix of both.”

The moment Quentin heard that there were guys involved, an image of Stephen’s brooding, heartbroken face flashed through his mind. He had to get to the bottom of this for his friend’s sake.

“Wait, wait-you have other guy friends besides me and Henry? How come I’ve never heard of them? What are their names? What do they do? How old are they? How talland how much do they weigh? Are they good-looking? Got any pictures?” Cóntent belongs to

The corner of Tessa’s eye twitched. “Quentin, what’s with you today? You’re acting really weird.”

Quentin chuckled awkwardly. “I’m just looking out for you. We’re friends, right?” Tessa met his gaze with cool and steady eyes. “Did he send you?”

They both knew exactly who she meant.

Faced with Tessa’s sharp, perceptive stare, Quentin suddenly felt like all his little schemes had been laid bare. He averted his gaze, feeling a little guilty.

Lawyers were scary. Those eyes could see right through his soul.

“No, no of course not! I came here on my own to apologize. No one else is involved.”

Tessa didn’t comment, but her expression was unreadable.

Quentin took out a set of keys and held them out to her. “Here-this is a little apology gift from me. Just a small token of goodwill. Take it, okay?”