Chapter 296: Asking Me Out?
The night view at the resort was exceptionally beautiful. The moon hung high in the sky, and the countless twinkling stars looked like a painting.
After dinner, they headed back together.
Quentin Blackwood suddenly walked in front of Ivy Sherwood and knelt on one knee.
"Hop on. I’ll carry you."
’An offer this good?’
Ivy Sherwood readily jumped onto Quentin Blackwood’s back, her arms hooking around his neck.
’A back that felt this secure... it would be a shame not to take the offer.’
An idea occurred to Ivy Sherwood. She took out her phone and typed out a message.
She hit send and immediately heard the DING of Quentin Blackwood’s phone.
"Uncle, your phone went off." Since she was on Quentin Blackwood’s back, she spoke right into his ear.
He hadn’t heard her call him ’Uncle’ in a long time, and Ivy Sherwood saying it now made Quentin Blackwood’s breath hitch.
"Ignore it." ’It was just a notification, not important enough to pull out his phone for.’
"Go on, take a look. What if it’s something important?"
Only after Ivy said that did Quentin reach for his phone.
His phone was in his pants pocket. Since he was holding Ivy with both hands, he had to free one up.
He was very strong; even with one hand, he could still hold her securely.
With Ivy on his back, Quentin unlocked his phone and saw the message from her.
"Uncle, the stars are especially beautiful tonight. Want to go see them at Jaspen Pavilion?"
’Why do these words seem so familiar?’
"Asking me out?" There was an upward lilt in Quentin Blackwood’s voice.
Ivy said, "So, will Mr. Blackwood grace me with his presence? Last time, Cheryl Yates took my phone. I didn’t even know. You must have thought I invited you to Jaspen Pavilion and then gotten angry when I didn’t show. Is that why you were so mad? Let this be my way of making it up to you. What do you say?"
Ivy had even imitated Cheryl Yates’s tone from the original message.
’Besides, the night is so beautiful. It would be a real shame not to enjoy the night sky.’
Ahead was a fork in the road. One path led to their villa, the other to Jaspen Pavilion.
Seeing that Quentin Blackwood was silent, Ivy asked again, "What do you say?"
"Too late!"
Quentin Blackwood turned and started walking toward the villa.
When Ivy saw Quentin heading back to their villa, a flicker of disappointment crossed her eyes.
’If he doesn’t want to, then that’s fine. He’s probably tired from the day, or maybe he has important work to do.’
"Next time, then." Ivy wasn’t angry. ’There will be plenty of other chances, after all.’
They soon reached the villa. Ivy had some work to handle, too. Edie had messaged her earlier, and she still hadn’t replied.
’If we’re not going stargazing, I might as well get some work done.’
Just as Ivy was about to open her laptop, she heard Quentin say, "Come here."
He seemed to be holding something. Ivy walked over. "What is it?"
Only then did Ivy see that Quentin was holding a tube of ointment.
He had her sit down, then began applying the ointment to her legs.
"What’s this?" The ointment felt cool on her skin, but her legs weren’t injured.
"Weren’t we going stargazing? If you don’t put on repellent, are you planning to go feed the mosquitoes?"
Ivy’s excitement flared, and her eyes shone brighter than any star in the sky. "You’ll go stargazing with me?"
’Just a moment ago, I thought him coming back here meant he wasn’t going to go stargazing with me. Turns out he just wanted to put repellent on me first.’
’This man... he was more thoughtful than she was.’
"Why wouldn’t I go? You owe me this."
Quentin applied the repellent to Ivy’s legs and arms. Even though the resort had some mosquito control measures in place, the mountains were still swarming with them.
’Her fair, smooth skin... if there were to be any marks on it, they should be left by him, Quentin Blackwood, not by mosquitoes.’
"You should put some on, too." After Ivy put some of the repellent on Quentin, they set off together for Jaspen Pavilion.
Jaspen Pavilion was situated on the mountainside. The view from there was stunning. The high moon and clusters of stars blanketed the sky, their twinkling reflections dancing on the surface of the sea. The whole scene was utterly picturesque.
Ivy hadn’t stargazed like this in a very long time. The beauty of it was breathtaking.
A smile played on Ivy’s lips, her eyes reflecting the star-filled sky. But Quentin’s eyes reflected only her—a beauty beyond compare.
"Mr. Blackwood, you’re so knowledgeable. Do you know the constellations, too?" Ivy asked, turning to look at him.
The light was dim, shrouding half of Quentin’s face in shadow.
"I charge a tuition fee for my lessons."
"And what’s the fee?"
Quentin didn’t answer right away, his gaze dark and inscrutable.
As for what that tuition fee was... Ivy would find out when they returned to their room late that night...
...
「The next day, they left the resort.」
Ivy spent two straight days buried in work at the office before she finally caught up on everything.
Thea Sherwood arrived at Iris, a box in her arms. "Ivy, here’s the stuff you wanted."
’It had taken a lot of effort to get Charlie Rhodes to pry this out of Timothy Sherwood’s hands.’
Ivy looked at the box and eagerly opened it. Inside were familiar items—they were indeed her mother’s posthumous belongings.
"All your mom’s things are here," Thea said. "Now, when do I get the perfume formula and the sample?"
Ivy rummaged through the contents but didn’t see the half of a Jade Pendant she remembered her mother having.
"Are you sure everything’s here?"
"What’s that supposed to mean? You’re not trying to back out of our deal, are you?" Thea snapped. "Timothy Sherwood said this is everything. If you have a problem, take it up with him!" She assumed Ivy was just trying to cause trouble to get out of handing over the formula.
Ivy was satisfied just to have gotten this much back.
"The workshop’s over there," Ivy said, gesturing inside. "Go pick one out for yourself."
That was her perfumery lab. It was filled with fragrances she had developed—finished and semi-finished products, some that had been released and others that hadn’t.
Thea went inside and was met with the sight of countless perfumes, each with a unique and captivating scent.
A flicker of jealousy crossed her eyes. ’That Ivy really is a genius when it comes to this.’
’If she entered a perfumery competition, she’d definitely win.’
"Ivy, you haven’t patented these already, have you?" Thea asked suspiciously. "You’re not going to suddenly change your mind and claim they’re your intellectual property, are you?" She’d been tricked before and wasn’t about to be so stupid this time.
"You can pick a formula yourself and go apply for the patent right now."
"Can I pick two, then?" Thea asked, pushing her luck.
Ivy was in a good mood and didn’t mind. "Sure."
’If I’d known she’d agree so easily, I would’ve asked for more.’
’Those in the fragrance industry have a keen sense of smell. Sherwood Company had many perfumes, but they just didn’t smell as good as the ones Ivy created. It felt like they were missing something, like they weren’t as natural.’
After Thea made her selections, she left Ivy’s studio.
She had just stepped outside when she got a call.
"Sis?" Thea looked at the international number on her screen. The call was from Claire Sherwood.
"What? You’re coming home in a few months? That’s fantastic!" Thea’s voice was laced with excitement.
’When my sister gets back, we’ll see how that damn Ivy can keep acting so smug!’