Patricia gently stepped away from Isaac, her heart pounding as Jonathan strode towards them. She could feel the heat of his gaze, sharp and scrutinizing, as he stopped in front of them. His eyes darted between her and Isaac, narrowing as he took in the scene.
Clearing her throat, Patricia broke the silence. "Jonathan, what are you doing here?" she asked, keeping her tone light despite the knot forming in her stomach.
Jonathan's gaze lingered on Isaac for a moment before he finally replied, his voice steady but tinged with something unspoken. "I came to visit you. I wanted to surprise you." He paused, his eyes shifting back to Patricia. "I know I've been away a lot lately because of business, and I've missed you so much. So, I thought I'd make it up to you, by taking you out to dinner tonight." He held up the bouquet of flowers in his hand. "But I didn't expect… to walk into this kind of scene the moment I arrived."
Then he turned his gaze back to Isaac his eyes boring into him, his tone sharpening as he asked, "Who is this?"
Patricia felt her thoughts race, the delicate situation threatening to spiral out of control. If only she'd known that this bastard would show up unannounced, whilst she was being lovey-dubby with Isaac, she could have avoided this dilemma. Nevertheless, she took a deep breath to steady herself and stepped between the two men, who were silently staring intently at each other as if preparing for battle.
"Oh, are these for me?" she said quickly, reaching for the bouquet in Jonathan's hand. She forced a bright smile as she took the flowers, hoping to soften the tension. "Oh Tulips… my favorite. Thank you, babe. I truly love them." She squeezed his hand gently, guiding the conversation back toward calmer waters.
Then, turning to Isaac, she introduced him with a practiced ease. "Jonathan, this is Isaac. He's the horses' trainer I hired to help keep all the horses in shape."
Isaac tipped his hat respectfully, his expression calm and professional but with a seething intent to punch the scumbag in front of him. "Good morning, sir. It's a pleasure to meet you. I assure you, I'm here strictly as a professional. My job is to work with the horses and ensure they're in top condition for Miss Milton."
Jonathan's eyes flickered with doubt as he studied Isaac's composed demeanor. "Is that so?" he asked, his tone still edged with suspicion.
Isaac met his gaze without faltering. "That is so, sir. Miss Milton has been very kind in welcoming me to the ranch. I take my responsibilities seriously and would never cross any boundaries. I hope I've made myself clear."
Patricia took a step closer to Jonathan, placing a hand on his arm. "Jonathan," she said softly, drawing his attention back to her. "There's nothing going on here. Isaac is just an employee, nothing more, nothing less. You have nothing to worry about."
Jonathan's expression softened slightly, though the tension in his shoulders hadn't fully eased. "It just… caught me off guard," he admitted, his voice quieter now. " I mean, seeing you two acting all lovey-dubby like that… I didn't know what to think."
Patricia offered him a reassuring smile, her hand sliding down to entwine her fingers with his. "I understand. And I am sorry that you had to see that. But there's no reason to feel that way. You're the one I care about, Jonathan. Isaac is just my employee and I had been showing him around the ranch to make him comfortable and I didn't realize that our proximity was that close. Which made you to misunderstand the situation. But I can assure you, Babe, that what you saw was nothing but a friendly stroll. I promise." She then looked at him with puppy eyes.
Jonathan looked at her and then at Isaac for a moment then finally exhaled, the tension visibly leaving his body. He glanced at Isaac one last time before nodding. "Alright," he said. "I'll take your word for it."
Patricia smiled, relieved that the situation was finally diffusing. "Why don't we go inside?" she suggested gently. "We can talk more and spend some time together."
Jonathan nodded again, his focus now fully on her. "Yeah. Let's do that."
As Patricia and Jonathan turned toward the house, she couldn't help but glance back at Isaac. He gave her a subtle nod of understanding before walking away back to the stables.
....
Patricia led Jonathan into the house, her hand still entwined with his as they entered the cozy living room. The late morning sun streamed through the windows, casting a soft glow over the space. She placed the bouquet of tulips on the coffee table, arranging them delicately in a vase as Jonathan sat down on the couch. His posture was tense, his hands resting on his knees as he gazed at her thoughtfully.
Patricia turned to him, with a warm smile hiding the disgust she felt. "It's really sweet of you to come visit me like this, Jonathan. I know how busy you've been lately."
Jonathan nodded, his expression softening just slightly. "I wanted to make it up to you, Patricia. Being away has been hard, not just for me, but for us. I missed you."
Patricia sat beside him, close enough for their knees to touch. "I missed you too," she said gently, her hand reaching out to cover his and giving him a quick petty kiss on his lips. "And I understand how you must have felt when you saw me with Isaac. But please know there's nothing going on between him and me. He's here for the horses, that's all."
Jonathan sighed, running a hand through his hair as he leaned back against the couch. "I know… I mean, I hear you. But it's hard not to let my mind wander, you know? Seeing you with him, laughing, smiling and almost kissing, it's just… I don't know. It's not easy to ignore."
Patricia's grip on his hand tightened slightly, as she looked into his eyes. "Jonathan, you're the one that I care about. You're the one I want to be with. I need you to trust me, just like I trust you." She felt bile rising up her throat the moment she said those words. 'I can't believe I said such a words to this piece of garbage. Huh...but anyway as long he won't suspect anything that's fine by me. I will keep on playing him until I finally throw him in the ditch. And I can't wait for that to happen...'
Jonathan looked down at their intertwined hands, the tension slowly leaving his shoulders. "I do trust you, Patricia. I guess I just got caught up in the moment. Seeing you with him, it caught me off guard. But… I know you wouldn't do anything to hurt me."
Patricia leaned in to press a gentle kiss to his cheek with a tiny sinister smile on her lips. "Thank you for saying that. And I promise, you have nothing to worry about."
Jonathan's lips curved into a faint smile as he turned his head to look at her. "You're something else, Patricia. Always finding a way to calm me down."
Patricia chuckled softly, brushing a strand of hair away from his forehead. "That's what I'm here for."
Jonathan exhaled deeply, his smile growing. "So, about tonight…"
Patricia's eyes lit up. "Dinner, right? Where were you thinking?"
"I booked a spot at your favorite place," Jonathan said. "I wanted it to be special."
Patricia smiled and said, "That's so thoughtful. Thank you, Jonathan."
Jonathan squeezed her hand affectionately. "You deserve it. You deserve everything."
Patricia leaned her head on his shoulder, as a doting girlfriend in order for Jonathan to completely feel at ease.
Jonathan leaned back on the couch, his mood finally settling after Patricia's reassurances. He reached for his phone, intending to check his messages, but froze as a new notification popped up on the screen. The subject line alone sent a chill down his spine: 'Stay away from Patricia, or you'll regret it.'
His breath hitched as he opened the message. The words were bold, threatening, and unrelenting. Jonathan's grip on the phone tightened, his knuckles turning white. For a moment, he felt the weight of the threat pressing down on him, but then he remembered, he wasn't alone in this. He had Mr. X backing him, a force powerful enough to silence any adversary.
Jonathan's jaw clenched as he typed out a reply, his fingers moving with defiance. 'You don't scare me. If you think you can intimidate me, you're sorely mistaken. Back off, or you'll regret it.'
He hit send, his heart pounding as he waited for a response. It came almost instantly, the words chilling in their simplicity: 'You asked for it.'
Before Jonathan could process the reply, Patricia's phone buzzed on the coffee table. She picked it up, her expression shifting as she stared at the screen. Her cheeks flushed, and she quickly turned the phone away, her movements flustered.
Jonathan frowned, and asked. "Patricia? What's wrong?"
Patricia hesitated, her fingers trembling slightly as she held the phone. "It's… it's nothing," she said, her voice unconvincing. But Jonathan's piercing gaze didn't waver.
"Patricia," he said firmly, his tone leaving no room for evasion. "What's wrong? What happened?."
Patricia pretended to be hesitant, her reluctance perfectly calculated as she turned the screen toward him. Jonathan's face completely drained of color as he saw what was on the screen. They were intimate pictures of him and his lovers. Although the pictures didn't show his face the details were unmistakable. His heart sank, his face turning pale as ice and for a moment he forgot how to breath.
Patricia bit her lip, feigning distress as a small tiny smirk played on her lips as she looked at his horrified face. "Jonathan...are you okay?"
Jonathan did not hear Patricia's question as his mind raced, the implications hitting him like a freight train. His chest tightened, the threat suddenly feeling far more personal and invasive. 'Who the hell could this be? And what hell does he want from me. He has even become more bolder. What the hell are those goons doing letting this scumbag continue to threaten me like this.I thought they would have taken care of him by now. I swear that I am going to make them hear a piece of my mind!! Sons of bitches!!'
Patricia wore a satisfied smirk as she looked at Jonathan troubling with his thoughts. "Babe, what's wrong? You look so pale?" Then she slowly touched his face with her hands. "I am sorry, Babe, that you had to see that. I absolutely have no idea who would sent me such sensitive pictures. Huh...what has the world come to these days, that someone can easily send such material to other people's phone." Said Patricia whilst shaking her head to feign offense.
"I… I don't know," Jonathan stammered, his voice faltering. "This has to be some kind of mistake. Maybe someone sent those photos to you by mistake. So I am sure that it's nothing."
Patricia's eyes glistened with unshed tears, her performance flawless. "You are right, Babe, it definitely must be a mistake?" Then she turned to look at the screen of her phone intently and said, "Although this guy kinda looks like you though..." remarked Patricia stressing the words to make him feel more edgy and crumble his facade.
Jonathan felt his heart dropping into his stomach after Patricia said those words and his eyes could not help but dilate in horror with the question 'Did she recognize me?' ringing in his ears. But Patricia's laughter broke him out of his troubled thoughts. "Ha! Ha! I am joking you silly! I am just teasing you! Why do you look like what I said is true? Geez....I am only just teasing. Besides I know that my boyfriend is not someone like this. You are the most loyal and trustworthy man that I ever met. And that's what I love about you. So it's a shame that some men are like this. Urrg! It's so disgusting. But anyway it's their life, let them live however they want. If they enjoy it then, hell! I can't say anything about that." Then she took hold of her phone and deleted the pictures.
"See I have deleted them. And I hope I won't be receiving such messages again."
Jonathan's hands trembled as he ran them through his hair, and his breath heavy, " Yaa..., sure....sure, Babe." 'Andwhoever's behind this....I am going to make sure they'll regret it.'
Patricia placed a hand on his arm, her touch gentle but firm. "Aaa..I really can't wait for that dinner. I truly missed going out with you, Babe, I am sure it's going to be lovely. Just the two of us." Then she rested her head on his shoulder.
"Yaa..just the two of us.." said Jonathan nervously. Just then another message popped up on his screen saying, 'I will be there too...'
Without warning he suddenly stood up, almost pushing, Patricia to the floor. With adrenaline pumping through his veins he started darting his eyes around the living room in hope to catch a glance of his perpetrator.
"Hey!! Babe what's wrong with you!" Exclaimed Patricia after she regained her balance.
Jonathan did not reply but kept looking around.
After a while, he then said, "Babe I got to go. I...forgot that there is something I need to do." Then he moved towards the door.
"But Babe! What about our dinner? Are you still going to come and pick me up?" Asked Patricia.
"I'm sorry Babe but...we'll have dinner some other time. Right now I got to deal with this situation..." replied Jonathan. And without waiting for Patricia's reply he ran straight to his car and drove away like a maniac.
"Tsk..tsk..tsk...what a messed up guy," said Patricia whilst watching Jonathan drive away.
Just then her phone buzzed with a message.
'Good day Ms Milton. You are being cordially invited to have lunch with the honorable Congressman Saccoth tomorrow at his villa in Phillips. Lunch will be served at 12pm. We will be waiting for you.'
Patricia smiled and she placed her phone to the side. She glanced one last time at Jonathan's speeding car leaving her gate then she whispered, "Guess I am going on a date after all."