His Unveiled Passion

Glancing at the two children sitting across from him, Stephen immediately realized what Lester had done. He had used the kids as an excuse to ask Tessa out again.

"It's alright, Tessa. I understand you're feeling shy about it. Stephen, let's just go," Marissa said as she reached out to tug Stephen's sleeve.

Stephen quickly moved to the side, avoiding her touch. Then, he said coldly, "Since Ms. Yates and Mr. Cooper aren't on a date, then I suppose you two won't mind if we join you, right?

"We're all friends here, and it's been a while since I last saw Ms. Yates. This is a good opportunity for us to catch up on those cases we've delegated to your firm."

Marissa's expression stiffened.

Lester chuckled softly and said, "Mr. Jacobson, I don't think this is a good time. After all, Ms. Yates and I have the two kids with us."

Stephen immediately turned to Seline and offered her a warm smile. "Seline, would you mind if I sit here and join you all?"

Seline recognized Stephen as she used to see him as her brother-in-law. Besides, he had always treated her well. He would buy her a lot of toys, so of course she didn't mind him joining them.

She said frankly, "I don't mind."

A smile spread across Stephen's lips before he turned to Lester. "Seline doesn't mind, so why do you, Mr. Cooper?"

Lester refused to back down as he met Stephen's gaze and smiled gently. "Mr. Jacobson, aren't you on a date with this beautiful lady? What is Ms. Scott supposed to do if you join us?"noveldrama

Without missing a beat, Stephen turned to Marissa and said, "I'm sorry, something came up at the last minute. You should head back first. We can talk about the project some other day."

He had purposely mentioned the project as a means to explain to Tessa that he wasn't on a date. He was just here to discuss business, and that his relationship with Marissa was strictly professional.

As Stephen spoke, his gaze remained fixed on Tessa's face. However, Tessa did not look at him, and she remained impassive. It was as if she did not care, and a pang of disappointment filled Stephen's heart.

Lester smiled and said, "Mr. Jacobson, that's a bit rude of you, isn't it? How can you just leave Ms. Scott on her own?"

Eyes turning cold, Stephen replied, "That's none of your concern."

With that, he picked up the menu and ordered two more dishes for himself. He looked completely at ease as if he was the one who had come with Tessa in the first place.

Tessa pursed her lips and glanced at Marissa, jealousy burning in her heart.

"Then, she said, "Mr. Jacobson, you shouldn't just leave Ms. Scott hanging if you came with her. Let's talk about the cases some other day. It's not work time now, and don't want to discuss work during my time off."

Stephen raised an eyebrow and asked, "You don't want to discuss work during your off time? That doesn't sound like you, Ms. Yates. I clearly remember you and Mr. Cooper chatting animatedly about work in your living room."

His expression turned cold, and his tone was tinged with jealousy. "So why do you not want to discuss work with me now?"

Tessa glared at him, her gaze seemingly warning him to stop being unreasonable.

Seeing Marissa's awkward

expression, Tessa sighed and got up to look for a bigger table. "Since Mr. Jacobson would like to join us, then we might as well switch to a bigger table."

Stephen raised his eyebrow.

Once Tessa sat down, Seline and Cassandra obediently followed her to the bigger table.

Stephen smiled and sat beside Tessa.

Seeing the extra space beside Stephen, Marissa quickly sat beside him.

Although Lester was feeling exasperated, he had no choice but to follow along.

What was supposed to be a pleasant and romantic date had been completely messed up thanks to Stephen's interference. Hence, Lester could not help but glare at Stephen.

Stephen smirked and gave him a smug smile in return.

Noticing the subtle tension between the two men, Marissa could not help but tighten her grip around her coffee cup.