Sebastian followed Zora into the restaurant and called out to her, “Miss Harris!”
Zora turned around when she heard someone calling her name. Upon seeing Sebastian, her heart started racing.
“Mr. Vanderbilt?”
“What a coincidence, are you here to eat too?” Sebastian asked nonchalantly.
“Yes! Such a coincidence, are you here for dinner as well?”
“I’m here to treat some friends,” Sebastian replied. His eyes naturally fell on the little girl Zora was holding by the hand. He deliberately asked, “Is this… your daughter?”
Zora quickly explained, “Oh, no, no, she’s not my daughter, she’s my niece.”
“I think I saw her at a fashion show, closing the show. She’s quite impressive for her age, very charismatic. What’s her name?”
Sebastian struggled to suppress his excitement, wanting to get a clear look at the girl’s face. The mask covered most of it, but even the exposed part of her mouth made the contours seem familiar. Her lips resembled his, and his sons’ as well.
“She’s called Patricia.”
Zora urged Patricia to greet Sebastian. “Patricia, say hi to Mr. Vanderbilt.”
Patricia obediently called out, “Mr. Vanderbilt.”
“Ah, Patricia! You’re very polite, such a good child!” Sebastian’s heart fluttered as he heard her sweet voice. This was the first time he had ever spoken to his own daughter!
If this was truly his daughter, how could he bring her back?
Patricia looked at Sebastian curiously and tilted her head. “Aunt, I’ve seen Mr. Vanderbilt before.”
“Oh? You’ve seen me? Where did you see me?” Sebastian asked, his heart racing.
“Aunt’s computer,” the little girl innocently replied.
Zora immediately became embarrassed, “Hehe, maybe it was in the news. She must’ve seen news about Mr. Vanderbilt. Please don’t take it to heart.”
“It’s fine, Patricia is really lovable. Are you both alone? Why don’t you join us?”
This was the first time Sebastian extended an invitation. Zora, overjoyed, but hesitant, said, “Never mind, we don’t want to disturb Mr. Vanderbilt. We’ve got quite a few people ourselves.”
“Alright, but what about tomorrow? Are you free?” Sebastian asked with a hint of expectation.
“Me? I’m free!” Zora’s heart was pounding. Was the man asking her out?
“Tomorrow, I’ll treat you to a basketball game. What do you think? You can bring Patricia along, she’s adorable, I’d love for her to come too.”
Zora could barely contain her excitement. She’d always wanted to find an opportunity to get closer to Sebastian, and now he was the one initiating it. She couldn’t let this chance slip by.
“Sure! What time tomorrow?”
“Let’s exchange contact info, and I’ll send you the details later,” Sebastian suggested.
The two exchanged their contact information, and Zora walked away feeling giddy with excitement. She couldn’t believe her luck – she finally had a way to contact Sebastian!
After Zora and Patricia left, Sebastian went back to his private room.
Benjamin and the others immediately bombarded him with questions.
“Boss, what were you talking to Miss Harris about?”
“You’re not falling for her, are you?” Benjamin asked.
“You guys wouldn’t understand! Don’t ask!” Sebastian replied with a knowing smile, a plan forming in his mind. Tomorrow would bring him closer to knowing if that child really was his daughter.
Halfway through the meal, Nolan returned from outside after receiving a call and quickly relayed some news to Sebastian.
“Boss, guess who I just saw?”
“Who?”
“Caitlin, with a man. He looks pretty good too. They’re having dinner here.”
“Oh~~ Could it be a rival?” Sebastian immediately guessed it was Caitlin with Zeke. His mood darkened just thinking about Zeke.
Without saying anything further, he stood up and walked toward the door.
“Hey, hey, hey, you’re not going to fight him, are you?”
His friends tried to stop him, but Sebastian wasn’t listening.
Caitlin and Zeke were sitting at a private booth in the restaurant. When Sebastian stepped out, he immediately spotted her, and Zeke noticed him too. His face hardened in response to Sebastian’s approach.
“What’s going on?” Zeke asked, his expression turning cold.
Caitlin, noticing the tension in the air, followed Zeke’s gaze and saw Sebastian. She was a little surprised.
“Caitlin, you’re eating here too?” Sebastian walked toward her.
Zeke immediately stood up, slamming the table. “Sebastian! I’m having dinner with Caitlin. Are you here to cause trouble?”
“I’m here to see Caitlin. What’s it to you?” Sebastian shot back without hesitation, showing no respect.
Zeke, irritated by Sebastian’s attitude, snapped, “Caitlin, look! This man’s pretending to be blind. Now that his sight’s back, he’s still a troublemaker. Don’t let him fool you!”
Zeke, who was usually calm and composed, lost his temper completely at the sight of Sebastian.
“Don’t disturb Caitlin,” he said, grabbing Sebastian’s collar and warning him coldly.
Caitlin, seeing Zeke getting worked up, quickly intervened, “Zeke! Don’t do this!”
“Bang!”
Without another word, Sebastian landed a heavy punch on Zeke, knocking him back into his seat.
“When I couldn’t see, you ran wild. Now you still dare to act up? Don’t say I didn’t warn you!”
Sebastian raised his fist again, ready to teach Zeke a lesson, but Caitlin quickly stepped in to stop him. “Enough, Sebastian! Don’t fight here!”
She pulled him outside, away from the restaurant. “This is a public place. Don’t you want to make headlines tomorrow?”
“Let him act tough in front of me,” Sebastian muttered under his breath, still furious.
Zeke followed them outside. “Sebastian! Let go of Caitlin! Don’t keep harassing her!”
Sebastian, not letting go, retorted, “That’s what I should be saying! Caitlin is my woman, the mother of my children. Don’t you dare covet her!”
As the two men faced off, the tension between them was palpable.
The situation was about to escalate when Caitlin intervened. “Alright, Zeke, enough. Sebastian, stop. I just want a peaceful dinner tonight!”
She pushed Zeke back toward the restaurant, trying to separate the two.
Sebastian kept his eyes locked on Zeke, his anger simmering. He couldn’t let this go easily. Zeke was clearly provoking him!
“Caitlin, come here! I need to talk to you!” he shouted, refusing to back down.
Zeke tried to stop her. “Caitlin! Don’t go! Don’t listen to anything he says!”
Sebastian tossed out one last line before turning away, “Caitlin, check your phone.”
Caitlin opened her phone, and her face immediately turned to one of surprise. “Sorry, Zeke, you eat first. I have to go for a moment.”
“Caitlin!” Zeke called out, but she didn’t stop.
Whatever Sebastian had sent her, it made her act immediately without a second thought. Why? What had he shown her?