Chapter 29
Anathea’s face darkened. When Natalie spotted her, she stopped fixing Gregory’s tie and greeted her with mild amusement. “Ms.
Jacobson.”
Gregory turned around when he heard her and clenched his jaw. “What are you doing here?”
He sounded displeased that Anathea had come and ruined things for him and Natalie.
Snorting, Anathea handed him the folder and said expressionlessly, “You forgot your documents. Grandma had me bring them to
you.”
Gregory made no reply and reached for the folder, waiting for Anathea to shove it into his hand. However, she turned and handed the folder to Martin instead. She smiled and said, “Thanks for your hard work, Martin.”
Martin blinked in bewilderment, though he took the folder without question. “All in a day’s work, Mrs. Sinclair. Would you like a
ride back to the city?”
“No, thank you. I can drive myself,” Anathea answered. She then spun on her heels and returned to the house without sparing Gregory another glance.
Martin was puzzled as he watched Anathea leave.
He didn’t think she’d been particularly enthusiastic or chatty with Gregory in the past, but at least she’d been warm and gentle. Martin recalled how her eyes used to sparkle when she looked at Gregory. But now, she looked at him with little to no emotion and spoke to him with matching indifference.
“Martin,” Gregory said irritably.
Only then did Martin snap out of his daze. He waited until Natalie had gotten into the car before handing the folder to Gregory.
Gregory took the folder and asked, “Something on your mind?”
“Nothing.” Martin shook his head and peered at Gregory’s expression warily. After some thought, he pointed out quietly, “I just
think Mrs. Sinclair’s behaving a little differently…”
However, Martin couldn’t quite put it into words. He threw a curious look in the direction Anathea had left, but the next second,
Gregory threw the folder back at him.
Martin quickly turned back and scrambled to catch the folder, fumbling as he straightened the papers falling out of the docket.
He was relieved he’d caught them all. If any of them had fallen out, Gregory would’ve punished him for it.
“Mr. Sinclair, the papers-” Martin said, staring at the scattered paperwork in despair. Unfortunately for him, Gregory got into
the car without sparing him a second glance.
1/2
It was a reply from the manager of a renowned floral studio in Castenea regarding the résumé and job application she’d sent. The manager, Evangeline Holstrom, was quite pleased with Anathea’s résumé and invited her to a job interview.
Evangeline Holstrom.
For some reason, the name rang a bell. Anathea searched her memories to find a face that matched the name but to no avail. Nonetheless, she changed into more formal attire and met with Evangeline at the agreed location.
Evangeline had decided to hold the interview at a café instead of the studio. From the looks of it, the interview would be a casual affair. Anathea was starting to wonder if Evangeline was only humoring her application and hoping she’d give up.
However, when Anathea saw the woman waving at her from one of the tables, she froze. “A–Angeline?”
Angeline Holstrom was Anathea’s senior by a year. They’d been close before, but while Anathea had chosen to settle down with Gregory, Angeline had decided to take her career abroad.
Anathea had never thought Angeline had been appointed as the manager of Eden Studio.
“I didn’t like my old name; it didn’t seem fabulous enough, so I had it changed to Evangeline,” Angeline explained with a smile as she ordered a cup of coffee for Anathea. “But I didn’t expect my new name to leave such a strong impression that I’d go from being an unknown floral designer to a studio manager.”
“Congratulations,” Anathea said wholeheartedly. After all, she knew Evangeline had always dreamed of setting up and running her own floral design studio. She was happy the latter’s dream had come true.
It made her recall her old dream of becoming a renowned floral designer like the great Aspen Langley. That dream seemed so far
away now.
A wistful look flashed in her eyes, but she quickly regained composure and asked, “May I ask the real reason you wanted to see
me, Evangeline?”
“To propose a collaboration, of course,” Evangeline said matter–of–factly. “Do you remember how I’d dreamed of opening my own floral studio so I could cultivate talented floral designers such as yourself and launch our local floristry into international
stardom?”
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