As she trembled, Yuliana quickly retracted her gaze, not daring to face him.
She had Margaret’s backing. Plus, this was not entirely her idea. Matthew might not like it, but he should not take it out on her.
Yuliana smiled at Sienna before she turned around to leave. She was not worried about whether or not Matthew would give Sienna a lift home, for she was sure he would do the gentlemanly thing and not abandon the lady.
Sure enough, he started the car and slowly left the Tyson residence.
For a while, silence fell between the two. The atmosphere in the car had gone stagnant.
The journey to drop off Sienna would only take ten minutes, more or less. If the woman did not use this chance to confess, she would have lost her advantage and wasted the arrangement the Tysons had made for her tonight.
“Matt, I’m sorry for disappointing you tonight. It may not be entirely my fault, but I’m one of them who ruined your birthday, so I can’t shirk the responsibility.”
Sienna tilted her head and glanced at Matthew, whose stern and stony profile sparked fear within her.
This man is too cold, too stoic, and beyond intimidating.
While they were alone in the car, Sienna recalled the exact moment she decided she wanted to make Matthew hers. She had to admit, the determination and perseverance she used to have in the face of adversity were far from enough to capture his heart. She had severely underestimated him.
Obviously, what the Tysons did today was not to Matthew’s liking. In extension, she was not to his liking too.
Tonight was not a good time to strike.
However, such an opportunity was hard to come by. She rarely had the chance to show her face in front of Matthew or interact with him.
In fact, it would take a lot more to conquer someone like Matthew.
Matthew did not respond to Sienna’s apology. She had expected that would be the case, and thus she could not help but let loose a sigh.
“Matt, I believe you may have started to hate me, am I right? “But I can’t change my mind about you. It’s your birthday today and, while it’s true we came as per your mother’s invitation, the other ladies and I… we’d like to get to know you. We all want a chance to be with you. Even though we may fail, we have to try. “To be frank, they say men have a desire for conquest. Well, women have it too. A good man like you, Matt, naturally attracts many women who want to gain your favor. I am no exception.
“You may not believe it even if I say so, but I got to know you a long time ago. “Not from the mouths of others. I met you once at a business forum held in D City. I was instantly captivated by your charm. You were so outspoken and well-mannered. At that time, I believed you were even better than those other seniors in the business world. I’ve begun to admire you since then. “After that, many more people mentioned you to me. Then, I met Yuliana and, through her, I got a chance to meet you in person.”
Sienna paused. She had said so much. She had been so straightforward and bold as to confess her feelings in front of Matthew.
Unfortunately, her courage failed to gain Matthew’s affection.
The car came to a halt.
“Ms. Grande, this is your stop.”
Matthew reminded Sienna to get down from his car. Only then did Sienna realized they had reached her destination. She glanced at Matthew as her heart froze.
Nevertheless, Matthew did not waver one bit.
“Matt, I hope you can take me into consideration.”
Matthew finally gave his reply, but he did so facing the windscreen and the road ahead, with no plans to look Sienna in the face.
“Ms. Grande, I cannot accept your admiration, and I don’t intend to. Goodbye.”
Sienna had never received such a direct refusal. The man in front of her had no intention of reciprocating or accepting, any bit of affection.
Sienna’s face gradually paled. She tugged at her seat belt, which instantly loosened, and then she got out of the car. Soon after that, Matthew’s car drove away at top speed.
At that moment, Matthew thought of no one but the woman waiting for him at Zen Highlands. He imagined her charming smile as she served him dinner and celebrated his birthday with him.
Gentle warmth finally arrived to replace the impassive thoughts.
Because of his eagerness, Matthew reached Zen Highlands within twenty minutes.
Clarissa heard the sounds of his engine. She had everything in place. Together with Mrs. Lawson, they switched off the lights in the house. Outside, Matthew smirked when he saw the lights go out.
Is she planning to sing me a birthday song?
Matthew was very much looking forward to it. He opened the door and stepped into the foyer. Amid the darkness, Clarissa walked out holding a cake with several candles lit. Behind her, the staff of Zen Highlands followed, singing a birthday song.
When the song ended, Clarissa was already in front of him with the celebratory cake.
“Happy birthday, Uncle Matthew. Come on, make a wish, and blow out the candles!”
Matthew arched his eyebrows. He did not make a wish. Instead, his burning eyes landed on Clarissa’s delicate face.
“Clare, only you can make my wish come true.”
In an instant, Clarissa felt her face burn as she blushed a furious red.
Cheekily, she beamed at Matthew. Since there were people around, she did not say anything to him. Instead, she blew out the candles on his behalf.
If I blow the candles, does that mean I’m the one who’ll make Uncle Matt’s wish come true?
Only Clarissa herself knew the answer to that.
After the lights came on, everyone presented Matthew with their gifts. Regardless of the costs, they were all equally precious because a lot of thought was put into getting them.
Matthew accepted them much more willingly. Compared to the party at the Tyson residence, he preferred it here.
After thanking them, Clarissa cut the cake and distributed the pieces to the lot. The food which she spent the whole day preparing was also made available to everyone. Mrs. Lawson, who managed to read the room, led the party-goers to dine at another area in the house.
Matthew and Clarissa waited until the two of them were alone. Then, the woman smiled, walked closer to him, and took the initiative to put her arms around his waist.
“Uncle Matthew, I’ve waited so long for you.”
She fawned and whined, sending a tingling sensation to his heart.
Matthew placed his hands on the woman’s waist, lowered his head, and engulfed her lips in his. He had longed for this little woman very much, but he still had to restrain himself. They stayed like that for a while before he let go of her. He patted her buttocks once while his eyes stared lovingly into hers.
“Let’s eat. I’ll have committed a terrible sin if I leave you starving, my dear Clare.”
Clarissa giggled as she blushed.
They walked to the dining area hand in hand. After they sat down, Matthew surveyed the variety of food on the table, touched by Clarissa’s sincerity.
At the Tyson residence, other than a bunch of women, the meals were prepared by the housemaids, and he had absolutely no appetite for those. No one cared about how hard he worked. No one cared whether he was tired or hungry. They were only interested in pairing him up with all sorts of women, hoping that he would fall in love with one of them at first sight, get married, and have children. Who really cared if he was exhausted and in need of a good meal?
Having returned to Zen Highlands, Matthew truly felt at home.
Clarissa had made every dish from scratch, and they all looked and smelled amazing. It might not be a romantic candlelight dinner, but it was enough to soothe his loneliness.
Matthew did not ask for much. He was not looking for a partner with high social status or the so-called ‘perfect match’. All he wanted was a woman to love, and who loved him in return, and they would spend the rest of their lives together.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Clarissa’s cheeks felt warm under Matthew’s burning gaze. She lifted her head to level her eyes at him, her own glinting with delight.
Matthew’s thin lips curled upwards as he smirked.
“I just want to look at you.”
“Quit fooling around. Eat up. Aren’t you hungry? Have you eaten?”
“No, I’ve been leaving room to taste your cooking.”
As he said that, Matthew picked up his fork and dug in.
Clarissa did not talk much, but she paid close attention to Matthew’s tastes.
Matthew ate to his heart’s content, a sense of warmth having washed over him. With a look at Clarissa’s cheerful expression, he rose from the table with her hand in his.
“Do you want to go for a stroll? Stargazing, perhaps?”
There you go again.
Clarissa twitched her lips. “Stargazing? It’s the middle of winter, Matt. I’ve spent the whole day cooking. I’m tired. I’m going upstairs for a shower. You can go for a stroll, or take a rest if you like.”
Matthew arched his eyebrows. “How about a shower… together?”
“Get out of here!”
Clarissa rejected him unceremoniously, but actually, she was extremely nervous. Her heart was racing. She wanted to go upstairs not only for a shower but also to get herself ready.
Matthew knew Clarissa would refuse. He chuckled helplessly to himself, finding the outcome rather regretful.
He softly pinched her cheek, lowered his head once more, and kissed her on the lips. In between breaths, he asked her in a raspy voice.
“Clare, I thought you said ‘soon’? How much longer do I have to wait?”
Clarissa’s eyelids began to twitch. She quickly shoved Matthew aside. “Don’t rush it,” she said.
Then she dashed up the stairs in an attempt to conceal her panic and agitation.
Matthew shook his head and laughed at her reaction. Every time this topic came up, she always seemed to be avoiding it, like she was hiding something. He feared that her promise was simply perfunctory.
Matthew thought, let her be then. If she wants to save herself for our wedding night, I’m fine with that too.
He would just have to stay abstinent in the days leading up to that, otherwise suppressing his urges would be problematic.
And so Matthew stayed downstairs. He scrolled through his phone and dealt with some work. Occasionally, he looked at photos of the woman which he had re-downloaded, his gaze darkening.
At the same time, after Clarissa was finished with her shower in the bathroom upstairs, she found herself staring at the three sets of nightwear she had laid out, all of which were equally sexy and sensual.
Racked with indecision, she was also unsure about how she should face what might happen next.
Actually, if we’re really doing it, I don’t really have to wear this kind of sexy lingerie, right? But if I don’t, would Matthew think I’m not fun? Not sexy?
Clarissa felt conflicted as she scanned her choices. She was anxious as well, afraid that Matthew would come up at any time.
Gritting her teeth, she finally picked one at random and put it on, followed by a nightgown. She quickly put the other two away, climbed into bed, and nervously waited for Matthew’s arrival.
Eventually, she heard the sound of the bedroom door creaking open, and Matthew’s steady footsteps approaching the bed.
