Chapter 392 An Act of Jealousy Jonathan might have stepped into Rose's line of vision, but she still heard the other woman's voice loud and clear.
She had already seen the woman clinging onto Jonathan's frlike a sloth earlier, and it was an image that she would not soon forget.
A self-deprecating smile suddenly curved on Rose's lips as she buried her bitter thoughts and headed forward. Elated to see Rose coming his way, Jonathan broke into a jog to meet her in the middle. He extended an arm, ready to embrace her the moment they were close enough.
He could already smell the scent of burning candles on her. The distance between them was growing smaller with each step they took.
However, Rose suddenly sidestepped him and marched right past him. Jonathan gaped at the air before him speechlessly.
An intense roaring filled his head, and he felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over him. He stood rooted in place. He wanted to move, but his legs felt like they had been weighed down by lead. Rose had already gone up to Finley. She smiled politely at the assistant and handed him the jacket Jonathan had given her last night. "Would you mind passing this to Mr. Finch?" Finley gaped at her. What was going on? He had yet to recover from the shock of seeing Rose brush past Jonathan like the latter was invisible, and now, he was seized with despair as he registered her words. This was bad. He knew how much Jonathan had looked forward to seeing Rose. If he took the jacket from her, he had no doubt Jonathan would flay him alive.
Finley turned to Jonathan helplessly. The latter was still standing where Rose had walked past him, though he had angled his head to the side so that Finley could catch the dark look in his eyes.
"Mrs. Finch..." Finley pleaded, his heart leaping to his throat. He silently begged her to take pity on him and understand that he could not possibly take the jacket.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtFinley was about to say this when he saw Rose's brows furrow. The courteous smile she had worn seconds ago now vanished and had been replaced by a cruel smirk. He gulped instinctively. "Mr. Willis," she ground out, holding out the jacket to him once again.
This time, he heard the unspoken warning in her tone. If he didn't take the jacket out of his consideration for Jonathan's feelings, she would not hesitate to torment the latter.
Finley knew Jonathan loved Rose. A meaningful look was all it took for her to have Finley alive, and Jonathan would have happily carried out the act. At that moment, the assistant knew he could not cross her. He abandoned all reason as he reached for the jacket. But before his fingers grazed the heavy fabric, he heard Jonathan clearing his throat in the distance.
It was an outright warning. Finley's hand froze in mid-air when he heard it, and he glanced warily in Jonathan's direction.
Jonathan had turned around, and his chin was raised slightly as he pinned Finley's hand with a dangerous look, as if to say, "Take that jacket at your own risk." "Mr. Willis-" "Finley!" Rose's and Jonathan's voices overlapped. Finley thought his body might shut down from anxiety.
"Mrs. Fi-" He was cut off by the warning look in Rose's eyes. He decided to drop the address and immediately said, "Ms. Shaffer, Mr. Finch is over there. Perhaps you could pass the jacket to him yourself." The two were mere feet apart. Surely there was no need for Finley to play the messenger when she could deliver the jacket to Jonathan personally. At least Finley wouldn't have to risk his neck. Rose frowned. Jonathan, on the other hand, smirked. He was pleased with his subordinate's suggestion. As far as he was concerned, Rose ought to give him the jacket personally. He was prepared for the close encounter.
Rose had left Young Estate with the intention of handing the jacket to Jonathan personally, but she could not shake the image of the woman hanging off him.
She felt like her chest tightened whenever she thought of it, and she didn't want to see Jonathan at all.
"In that case..." Rose was never one to stoop to coercion. She respected Finley's refusal to play the messenger. She only had to find someone else who would willingly pass the jacket to Jonathan instead. A faint smile tugged on her lips. Finley mistook her smile for acceptance and heaved a sigh of relief.
He felt like a huge weight had been taken off his chest. Now that Rose had agreed to hand the jacket to Jonathan personally, the latter would be pleased.
However, the next second, Finley watched in shock as Rose turned and headed in another direction instead of Jonathan's.
Finley went still, and the smile on Jonathan's face faltered. Rose had walked right up to Yara. In other words, she wanted Yara to pass the jacket to Jonathan.
Jonathan Scowled at this. Under normal circumstances, he would have thrown the jacket away if another woman had touched it. But Rose had worn the jacket last night, and he couldn't bear to part with it.
The reluctance and dilemma had only just washed over him when he, unable to help himself, moved toward Rose.
Rose was halfway to Yara when she felt a large hand grip her wrist from behind. His grip was loose enough that she pulled away easily.
"Rose!" Jonathan growled, angry that she had evaded his touch.
He stepped forward, and she stepped back. She made it clear that she wanted sdistance between them, and he could feel it when she did not so much as meet his gaze.
She was avoiding him. Panic and confusion welled up in him. He wanted to know why she was avoiding him, but he didn't want to get too close to her and hav@her back away for good.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmAfter a long pause, he said loudly, "Finley!" There were no orders that followed, but Finley knew what Jonathan wanted him to do. He hurried toward them and grabbed the jacket from Rose.
She turned to Finley and said, "Thank you." After that, she returned to Young Estate. Even after she had disappeared through the entrance, Jonathan did not look away.
"Mr. Finch, the jacket..." Finley asked tentatively, his heart hammering away in his ribcage.
Jonathan finally tore his gaze away from Young Estate. He angrily snatched the jacket away from Finley and harrumphed once before storming toward the luxurious car. "D-Don't blme, Mr. Finch!" Finley cried, sweat breaking out over his forehead as disgruntlement filled him. He dared not say anything more as he hurried after Jonathan. Finley had only just opened the door for him when he asked, "What's wrong with her today?" The more Jonathan thought about it, the more he found Rose's behavior odd.
She had been distant with him since last night but her behavior earlier had seemed almost hostile. He couldn't for the life of him figure out what he had done to make her harbor enmity against him Finley was stunned to hear that Jonathan had yet to understand why Rose had behaved that way. As such, he gently nudged the man in the right direction.
"Do you think it's because Mrs. Finch saw something that... displeased her, Mr. Finch?" Jonathan repeated with a frown, "Something that displeased her?" He followed Finley's gaze and turned to see the woman who had accosted him earlier. At that moment, comprehension dawned on him.
Rose must have seen that infuriating im woman hanging off him earlier and grown jealous! Jonathan's lips curled in satisfaction as a chuckle escaped him. "Oh... So she was jealous, huh?"
Yara caught the warmth in Jonathan's eyes and went still. She was too far away to hear what he and Finley were saying, but his warm gaze comforted her. He had noticed her, and that was enough reason for her to ignore the clumsy moment earlier.
She gracefully rose to her feet and tossed a flirtatious smile in Jonathan's direction. She made to catch up to him. "Mr. Finch-" However, Jonathan had already gotten into the car, leaving Finley to numbly process what he had just ordered him to do. He asked when the backseat window was rolled down, "Are you sure, Mr. Finch?" "Is it not doable?" Jonathan asked nonchalantly, unbuttoning his jacket.
The corner of Finley's mouth twitched as he replied, "Of course it is, Mr. Finch. For you, everything is doable!" "Then go and do it," Jonathan said.
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