The Devil's Good Girl
Chapter 81: Signs

Chapter 81: Signs

Days later...

Fil and Marcus’s communication grew frequent in no time. He would message her whenever he got the time and she would respond if she felt like it. It amused her how Marcus seemed desperate, but not desperate enough to show her he liked to keep in contact.

He hid his intention perfectly well behind the guise of sending her help for her project. Not that Fil was in a hurry. According to Jackson, the gradual progress leaves a satisfying end. Giving enough mixed signals to the man would keep him hooked.

"So? Have you decided?"

"Huh?" Vincent’s voice snapped her back to the current lapse, making her look up at the man across from her.

Vincent frowned, resting his arms against the edge of the table, his cutleries still in his hands. "You’re zoning out, Fil. What? Do I bore you now that your mind isn’t here?"

"Sorry. I’m just thinking of the project." She smiled meekly. "I didn’t mean to ignore you."

"Fil, I know you love your job, but being a workaholic is not fine."

Her lips stretched. "So, what were you talking about again?"

"You’re making me worried now. It’s been a while since we had dinner together, but here you are, distracted," he remarked with a sigh. "I’m talking about Grandpa’s birthday. Can you make it or not? I already got you a dress."

"Did Marianne choose it?"

"No."

Fil furrowed her brows, tilting her head to the side. "Why not? Didn’t you say she has a great fashion sense?"

"Well, I met a designer friend." Vincent scratched his temple with his index. "And Marianne’s a little busy. With the rumors circulating, it’s not good if we’re spotted together."

"Oh..." Fil nodded in understanding. "Really?"

"But if you still need her help, you can always ask her."

"You said she’s busy," she pointed out. "You know I don’t like bothering people. Even if she’s my best friend, I can’t just bother her. She’s a busy and very important person. Moreover, I am still undecided because of the loads of work on my hands. Kenzo was in the hospital, so that means more work for the team."

"I see. I understand." Vincent sighed and then forced a smile. "Anyway, you should eat. You barely touched your food."

"Mhm."

"Do you have plans tonight?" he asked after chewing down his food.

"Hmm." Fil hummed, chewing her food slowly as she pondered. "Nothing."

"You want to come with me?"

Her brows rose, blinking innocently. "Where?"

"I’m going to hang out with the guys," he said. "You might want to come. It’s not a party, but a simple chill with drinks, billiards, and nonsense talks. The normal stuff to unwind."

"Oh..." Fil rocked her head in understanding. "Are you and Marcus okay now?"

"Huh?" Vincent furrowed his brows. "What do you mean?"

"I mean the last time... during his party, I think you guys parted on a bad note."

"Ah, don’t mind him." Vincent waved dismissively. "He and I argue all the time, but we make up when we see each other. Men stuff. We don’t need heartfelt apologies and things like women need."

"Really?"

"So? Are you coming?"

"Well." Fil thought about it. She already finished her work for the day and although she brought some work home, she wasn’t mandated to review it. She only brought them in case she couldn’t fall asleep. Also, she wanted to show Jackson the progress of the project, even though he could just wait until the next client meeting.

"Sure." She smiled. "It’s been a while since I hung out with your guys."

Vincent studied her and nodded in satisfaction. "Great. We’ll leave once we finish."

With that being said, Fil and Vincent resumed their meal as usual. Fil was usually a big talker whenever Vincent was around, always so excited to share everything with him. But right now, the roles were reversed. Fil mostly listened to him, speaking just so she could say she contributed to the conversation.

When they finished their meal, Fil cleared her throat after wiping her lips.

"I’ll go to the washroom first," she said meekly. "I’ll be back."

"Sure." Vincent nodded while wiping the corner of his mouth, watching her walk away from their table. His eyes swirled with curiosity as he kept his eyes fixed on her figure.

’At first, I thought it was just me,’ he thought as he put down the cloth. ’But she... isn’t as excited as she used to be.’

Vincent might’ve acted as if he didn’t notice her lack of enthusiasm during the entire dinner. She might’ve listened, but anyone could tell it barely interested her. This wasn’t like her.

’Is she... cheating?’ he wondered, but then immediately shook his head. ’There’s no way she would cheat. She’s probably just tired. Considering the project she was working on, I should try to be more understanding.’

Just then, Vincent felt his phone vibrate against his chest. He took out his phone from his suit pocket, checking the person who was calling him.

Marianne.

Vincent stared at the screen for a moment before he rejected the call.

"I told her not to contact me for now," he clicked his tongue in irritation. "She’s becoming annoying now."

Ever since the rumors about him and Marianne circulated in the media, Vincent planned to lie low. That was what he told Marianne after he drove his fiancee home after Marcus’s party. Even though there wasn’t any bad press about the rumors because of their good careers, he knew it would be bad if the public knew about his engagement. Not to mention, he got an earful from his father. His grandfather even came down to his office just to beat him with his cane.

Vincent needed to be careful, but Marianne wouldn’t stop calling him, even though he made it clear to her.

"We’re going to announce our engagement soon," he muttered to himself, staring at the call logs that had 9 missed calls from Marianne. "I won’t need her just as much once I get married."

Maybe once in a while they could have fun together, he thought, but not in a full-blown relationship. Once he and Fil got married, he didn’t think he would crave another woman’s attention and warmth. His wife could give him everything he wanted and needed.

He waited for this for many years.

Just as Vincent was slipping his phone into his suit pocket, he noticed that Fil left her phone on the table. He arched a brow, remembering that she placed it face down earlier.

"She usually doesn’t carry her phone when we’re together," he noticed, remembering that she was on her phone during the first five minutes after their arrival at the restaurant.

Vincent stared at the phone, curious about what she was doing on her phone earlier.

He could convince himself it was work, just as what she said. But something within him was bothering him. And his curiosity wouldn’t go away unless he confirmed it with his own eyes.

’It’s not like I am invading her privacy,’ he told himself, stretching his arm to reach for her phone. When he got it, he instinctively looked in the direction she went. As soon as he was sure she wasn’t going out, he gazed down at the phone.

He pressed a button, making the phone light up. His lips curled up subtly, seeing that her wallpaper was a picture of them together on the beach, taken years ago.

"Now that I think about it, we haven’t taken any photos together recently," he chuckled. "What am I doing, checking her phone? She wouldn’t leave it behind if she’s hiding something from me."

Seeing her wallpaper was enough proof that his fiancee still loved him. She was just probably tired, and yet, she still went to have dinner with him. All the suspicion he initially felt disappeared without a trace, almost felt guilty to even have the thought that a good girl like Fil would ever betray him.

’She’s not like that...’

Just when he was about to put her phone back to where he got it, the subtle smile on his face slowly faded. A message suddenly appeared on the screen. It didn’t show him the content of the message because her phone was locked, but he saw the name of the sender.

Marcus.

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