Chosen By My Mate's Father-in-law
Chapter 39: Subliminal Messages

Chapter 39: Chapter 39: Subliminal Messages

“That’s kind of you guys to offer, but I don’t want to intrude on your dinner as a family,” I said, my eyes still on Gareth.

Isabella spun around and faced her dad, her hands on her hips. “Dad, tell her she won’t be intruding.”

Gareth cleared his throat. “You won’t be. I will tell Butler Jones to make sure there is an extra place set for you.”

His tone was terse. Was he only agreeing to this because his daughters wanted him to?

And the bigger question was, why did I care so much?

“Dinner is in an hour,” Gareth added, his voice still clipped. But his eyes were traveling slowly down my body, making me shiver under his heated gaze.

“I won’t be late,” I promised.

Gareth nodded once and turned. He strode down the long hallway, and I watched him for much longer than I should.

I had to get a grip. I still had a job to do.

I turned to Michelle. “We have an hour. Don’t you have a test in math coming up that you need to study for?”

“No...” But she looked up and to the left—something I’ve noticed she did when she was lying.

I crossed my arms and cocked my hip to the side.

“Michelle, if you want me to stay for dinner, then we are going to spend the next hour studying.”

The younger girl sighed dramatically. “Fine,” she huffed, but I saw a small smile playing on the corners of her lips.

“You’re the best tutor ever.” Isabella squeezed my shoulder gently.

I wasn’t so sure about that. The fact that I couldn’t stop thinking about the father of the girl I was tutoring might suggest otherwise.

***

“I’m so glad that you’re staying for dinner,” Isabella mused as we walked down the grand staircase an hour later. “It will be nice to have a girl my age to talk to for once.”

“Hey!” Michelle protested from behind us.

I was happy with the progress she had made with her practice problem sets. Michelle was a smart girl, and when she applied herself, there was nothing to stop her from being one of the top students in her school.

“I said my age, Michelle,” Isabella pointed out patiently. “It’s just nice to have someone to hang out with besides my family or Elliot. That’s all.” She shrugged, trying to downplay her comment.

I looked at her sideways as the three of us made our way across the marbled floor of the entrance hall. My theory that Isabella didn’t have any friends her age might be right. Just like Michelle needed company, her sister probably did too. Even though they were privileged because they were the daughters of the Lycan King, it couldn’t be easy making friends when you always had to question someone’s intentions.

I paused as we entered the formal dining room.

A crystal chandelier hung over a beautifully arranged white clothed table. Porcelain plates and crystal glasses were set in front of four places. A warm fire was crackling merrily in the grate, and soft light from the large windows was pouring into the room, creating a calming atmosphere.

But the only thing I could focus on was Gareth, who was sitting at the head of the table. His gray eyes were on mine, and he had changed into a white buttoned-down shirt that clung to his muscular frame.

My heart slammed against my chest. Gareth looked away as he greeted his daughters.

Butler Jones pulled out Michelle and Isabella’s chairs. My head tilted to the side when Isabella didn’t sit next to her father.

“Isabella, I can sit there.” I nodded to the chair she was about to sit in.

“Don’t be silly,” she said. “You’re our guest.”

“Miss Lowett.” Butler Jones gestured to the chair beside Gareth’s.

With no other choice, I sat next to Gareth, my skin tingling from his proximity.

A member of their kitchen staff walked up to the table and bowed his head slightly. “Good evening, Miss Lowett. May I offer you a glass of red wine?”

“No, thank you,” I answered. “I’ll take juice, please.”

I couldn’t allow myself even one drink around Gareth. I needed to be able to maintain my composure around him.

“Certainly.” He whisked away my crystal glass to fill it.

When everyone had their drinks, Gareth asked Isabella about the wedding jewelry, but I had a hard time paying attention to her answer. His cedarwood scent enveloped me, making my head dizzy as if I had accepted that glass of wine. His scent was similar to him—subtly warm, but with an edge of spice that made my pulse quicken.

When the staff set our plates before us, I let out a quiet gasp. For dinner, we were having perfectly cooked steak, mashed potatoes with a pad of butter melting on top, and broccoli. Along with the red wine Gareth’s staff had offered me, this was exactly the meal we’d eaten when Gareth and I had lunch together.

I couldn’t help but look at him. But he was already cutting into his steak.

At once, I lowered my gaze and picked up my silverware. I was definitely overthinking this. Tonight’s meal couldn’t be a subliminal message from Gareth to show that he’d been thinking about me. That was just ridiculous. I cut my steak and concentrated on eating this delicious dinner.

But as I ate, I swore I felt Gareth’s gaze on me.

“So, Michelle, how do you think your tutoring is going?” Isabella asked, then took a sip of wine.

“Jasmine’s the best,” she replied. “She makes learning fun, so it doesn’t feel like a chore. With her help, I’ve managed to shut up my classmates who always made fun of me for my grades.” Michelle grinned. “You should have seen their faces when my English teacher praised the latest essay I turned in.”

“Was that the creative short story you wrote about time traveling?” I asked. “I loved that story.”

Michelle nodded. “I really enjoyed writing it. My teacher thinks it’s good enough to enter into a local writing contest.”

“I’d love to read it, Michelle,” Gareth chimed in, staring at his younger daughter.

Michelle hesitated, but then a small grin crossed her face. “Okay...you can read it.”

“I’d love to read it too,” Isabella said. “Great job on all your hard work, Michelle. And thank you for helping her.” She turned to me. Her expression was so sincere that my breath caught in my throat. “You know, Dad. You should put me in charge of hiring the staff from now on.” Her tone had turned teasing. “Since I was the one to hire Jasmine, and she’s the only tutor who worked out. Maybe I should even be in charge of hiring people at your work.”

“I agree,” Michelle added with a smirk.

Gareth grinned. “Don’t push your luck.”

It was nice to see their familiar banter as a family.

The rest of the dinner went by quickly as the four of us chatted. Eventually, I relaxed into the conversation and began to feel comfortable. After a delicious lemon tart as our final course, it was time for me to leave.

“Jasmine, I’ll have one of my drivers take you home,” Gareth said.

When our eyes met, a blush crept up my neck. Frustrated, I tried to look away, but his gaze was like trying to escape from a spider’s web. The more I looked into those gray eyes, the more trapped I became.

“Thank you,” I replied, internally cursing myself when I noticed my voice was shaking slightly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Michelle and Isabella share a superior look.

What were those girls up to?

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