Chapter 313 - 312: Confrontation

Her WeChat showed that Howard Thorne had sent a message a few minutes ago—two voice messages.

She played the messages. The man’s voice was clear, but he seemed to be in a bad mood, making him sound a little awkward.

"Joanna, are you home?"

"I have something to tell you. I’m on Jorncross Avenue now; I’ll be at Sinclair Gardens soon."

The voice message ended. The air fell quiet. Joanna Kennedy knitted her brow.

’After we cleared the air last time, I haven’t seen Howard Thorne at all, not even at the company. What does he mean by suddenly showing up to see me?’

Joanna Kennedy was still lost in thought, a dazed look on her face, when a sharp pain in her waist brought her back to her senses. She twisted her head to glare at the man pressed against her back.

Simon Lockwood had actually pinched her, and not lightly either. It still hurt. But she had no time to dwell on that. Thinking of the open WeChat screen, she asked, "My phone, how did you unlock it?"

’Face ID, fingerprint scan, passcode... Only the passcode doesn’t require me to be present. But how would Simon Lockwood know it?’

"Your bank card PIN and your phone passcode are the same," Simon Lockwood said, his tone natural, as if he had no idea what he’d just done. "I tried it, and it opened."

Joanna Kennedy: "..."

’Just listen to that calm and collected tone, look at that handsome and noble face. So this is all my own fault, is it? For letting a wolf in the house?!’

"Simon Lockwood!" Joanna Kennedy said, angry.

A phone is such a private thing; you could say it holds all of a modern young person’s secrets. Joanna Kennedy said, "I haven’t even looked at your phone!"

She had only said it offhandedly to make Simon Lockwood understand that peeking at someone’s phone was wrong, but she never expected him to misunderstand her.

"Do you want to see?" Simon Lockwood took out his phone. It had no passcode; he swiped it open and placed it in Joanna Kennedy’s hand. "Here."

"My phone probably isn’t very interesting." Simon Lockwood pressed his lips together. "I have very few entertainment or social media apps. No friends, and no one I need to contact."

A black phone was unexpectedly thrust into her hands. The screen was simple, with only a few basic, system-default apps.

Just as its owner had said, there were very few entertainment or social media apps, aside from a red app in the bottom-left corner that she had never seen before.

Just as Joanna Kennedy was about to take a closer look, she heard the man speak again. "If you want to look, you can have my phone anytime. Or you can just keep it here with you."

’The way he said it makes it sound like I have some kind of perverse need for control.’ Joanna Kennedy was too embarrassed to look anymore. "What would I do with your phone..."

Joanna Kennedy’s voice was soft, but her words were clear. Seeing her gaze leave the phone screen, Simon Lockwood imperceptibly relaxed the hand hanging by his side.

The monitoring app required a password to open, so he really didn’t need to worry about Joanna Kennedy discovering it. This was also why he had dared to hand over the phone.

Even so, when Joanna Kennedy actually noticed that app, he still felt a subconscious unease.

Simon Lockwood said nothing. Joanna Kennedy held the phone like it was a hot potato.

Especially when she saw the man before her, his eyes downcast, blandly stating that he had no friends and no one to contact.

The hot potato seemed to burn its way to her heart, searing her until she could barely breathe.

She suddenly realized that Simon Lockwood really didn’t seem to have any friends. His daily life always revolved around her. For her, he’d even had a falling-out with his family and couldn’t go home.

So, it was understandable why Simon Lockwood’s behavior was sometimes extreme.

"..." Joanna Kennedy was stunned for a long moment before she spoke, all her anger completely gone. Her tone was a little wooden. "I, I didn’t mean it like that. Actually, I don’t have many friends either."

Simon Lockwood remained silent, his eyes lowered, his lips still pressed into a tight line.

Joanna Kennedy was at a loss. She said reassuringly, "Y-You still have me."

She said this to console Simon Lockwood, but he replied slowly, "But you were angry that I looked at your phone."

Joanna Kennedy was speechless. ’Wait, is there some necessary connection between those two things?! Besides, I’m not angry. I’m just not used to it.’

Just as she was about to explain, the doorbell rang. It had to be Howard Thorne. Joanna Kennedy instinctively glanced at Simon Lockwood. For some reason, she felt a little guilty. "I’ll get the door?"

Simon Lockwood really wanted to say "No" or "Don’t let him in," but he knew it would affect Joanna Kennedy’s work.

"Mm," Simon Lockwood replied. His lowered lashes hid the true emotion in his eyes.

When she opened the door, it was indeed Howard Thorne. He was wearing a new fall trench coat from Aethel, the linen color giving him a Korean-drama-star vibe.

"What took you so long? You didn’t just wake up, did you?" Howard Thorne’s tone was natural, as if he had suddenly forgotten the unpleasantness from a few days ago and had reverted to his old self.

Seeing Joanna Kennedy’s silence, he assumed he was right. He walked inside with an air of familiarity, talking nonstop, "It’s almost nighttime, you haven’t eaten yet, have you? We at Thorne Entertainment don’t have a tradition of forcing our actresses to lose weight, you—"

His words died in his throat when he saw the man in the living room. Howard Thorne’s expression suddenly turned ugly.

The closer it got to the end of fall, the shorter the days became, and the earlier the nights arrived. The sun was setting quickly, leaving only the last sliver of light to filter in.

The orange glow of the sunset was soft, but the atmosphere in the living room was strangely silent.

Joanna Kennedy poured a glass of water and placed it in front of Howard Thorne. He didn’t look at her, his eyes still fixed on Simon Lockwood, who sat opposite him, composed and steady.

From the first moment he saw Simon Lockwood by Joanna Kennedy’s side, Howard Thorne knew the man was trouble. Back then, he had chalked it up to simple rivalry.

Thinking back now, it was actually because he felt threatened by Simon Lockwood, which was why he had been subconsciously on guard.

"Why would Young Master Sinclair be here?" Howard Thorne said with a smile. "I heard the Sinclair and Pemberton families are arranging a marriage soon. Isn’t it a bit inappropriate for Young Master Sinclair to be here?"

He had said it deliberately for Joanna Kennedy to hear. Unfortunately for him, Joanna wasn’t shocked or angry as he’d expected. Even the man in question didn’t bat an eye.

"That’s the Sinclair Family’s decision. It has nothing to do with me." Simon Lockwood’s tone was completely flat, as if he were merely stating a fact.

Absolving himself completely in just a sentence or two. Howard Thorne felt a nameless rage flare up. Especially when he recalled what Joanna Kennedy had said, he grew even angrier, his heart twisting with pain.

Howard Thorne sneered. "That’s not a great way to put it. After all, you’re the one who’s supposed to be getting married. How can you say it has nothing to do with you?"

Simon Lockwood’s expression cooled. He looked straight at Howard Thorne, his dark eyes void of emotion, yet they inexplicably exuded an immense pressure.

A chill ran down Howard Thorne’s spine under that gaze. When he came to his senses, his face instantly darkened. He had actually been intimidated by a college student in his early twenties.