“Gabrielle.” Stephen said in a flat tone as he nodded at his ex.
He could see in her eyes that she wasn’t happy to be there with Angel and that the way Stephen regarded her infuriated her.
“Edward, let’s swap!” Amalia whined as she walked over to Stephen’s friend. “I don’t want to be my brother’s date. He is no fun.”
Edward and Robert both chuckled at the young woman as Stephen walked ahead of their group, into the venue.
It was clear that he was not interested in anything other than supporting his friend and keeping his sister company.
“Stephen, have you met my companion?&r
“Is it working?” Amalia whispered as she looked behind them.She had seen Robert’s smile turn into anger as he suddenly dragged Gabrielle Ong out of the room.“She probably threatened him with you. So I assume it’s working.” Angel pointed out as they sat down around their table.Angel then turned to Stephen and observed him.“What?” Stephen asked as he looked down at the much smaller woman.“You’re different.” She suddenly said, confusing everyone around their table.“Of course I’m different, it’s been over ei
Stephen was resting when John arrived in his house with Andew in tow.“Why are you both here?” He grumbled as he sat up on his couch and buzzed for the housekeeper to bring out food and refreshments for his guests.“We thought you would appreciate an update.” Andrew shrugged as he took a seat.Stephen nodded as he leaned forward to listen to what his friends had to say.“You were right, Gabrielle was too focused on you that she didn’t notice when our men took her phone from her before your talk.” Andrew said with a grin.“And how did you manage to get the phone back to her without her n
“You’re supposed to be the one in the photos with him!” Stephen and his companion’s heard an angry Master Ong shout over the line.They were listening to one of the recordings that the bug on Gabrielle’s phone had transmitted.“You are just as worthless as your father and mother!” The old man continued to insult. “The man loved you in the past for crying out loud, he adored you. How worthless are you compared to this Angel Clarke, she doesn’t even have a strong family backing her!”“I never wanted this grandpa!” Gabrielle shouted back, sobbing though the phone. “After mom and dad left I just wanted to live life on my own terms, but you had to keep me trapped!”
Stephen paced across the room as Robert’s phone simply continued to ring.“Why the fuck isn’t he picking up!” Stephen shouted, frustrated at the fact that he couldn’t get a hold of his friend.“He might be asleep?” Andrew shrugged as he looked at the time.It was already three in the morning. The event had ended at midnight and even if Robert had stayed to say goodbye to the guests, he would already be in bed by that time.Stephen glared at Andrew, making the assistant shut up as he looked down at his hands.“I want you to go to Robert if he does not-”
Stephen and Robert sat in his car as they watched Angel part outside the cafe where she and Gabrielle Ong were meeting.“Relax.” Robert chuckled. “Angel can perfectly deal with someone like Gabrielle Ong.”“Test, test, checking if this thing works.” Angel’s voice came through the laptop’s speaker.They had placed a wireless microphone and camera on her so that they could listen in on the conversation.“We can hear you fine, Angel.” Robert told his cousin as she entered the restaurant.“Reservation under Gabrielle Ong.” Angel said as she looked around the restaurant.
“Is your family aware of Angel’s secret?” Stephen asked as he and Robert arrived back in his office at Philip Tower.Robert chuckled and shook his head.“She doesn’t have an obligation to inform them. The only one that knows is me.” Robert explained to his friend.“Stephen, Robert.” Andrew greeted as he entered the office with his laptop.Despite everything that was happening with his personal life, Stephen still had to do a lot of work when it came to Cho Industries.Without a vice president filtering all the products before reaching him, he needed to do double the work his grandfather was doing
“Hola, quién eres?” (Hello, who is this?) Asked the man at the other end of the line. His voice was rough and mature, showing his age.“Hola, Don Villanueva, this is John of the Essen Mafia.” John said as he introduced himself.The man on the other end of the line was not able to hide his shock as he gasped and cursed.“Puta!” Antonio Villanueva cursed. “How did you get this number?” He asked in a thick accent.“Don Villanueva, it is not good for you to underestimate the Essen Mafia.” John laughed, mocking the man at the other end of the call.Stephen could see how nervous
With everything in place, Stephen sat across Angel as if he were on a date with her. He knew that there were spies watching them, he was well aware that Gabrielle Ong and her grandfather would want Angel to keep her side of the bargain. “You seem distracted.” Angel said as a waiter arrived with their meal. She was playing her part quite well as it truly did seem like they were on a romantic night out. “Just work.” Stephen answered. He knew that even the waiter was a spy sent to listen in on their conversation when they could. “Can we talk about something more serious?” Angel asked as she reached out and placed a hand on Stephen’s. She gently caressed it and noted that the waiter was keeping a close watch over their body language. “What is more serious than work, Angel?” Stephen asked, the tone of his voice was kinder than when he spoke to Gabrielle, but there was no love in it. “I want to talk about us.” Angel said as she watched the waiter, she gave him a look as if to send