Chapter 377 - 375: He’s a Bit Carried Away

After a long moment, Saul Thorne reluctantly let go. He then cupped Cecilia Sterling’s cheeks and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. "Miss me?"

A smile graced Cecilia Sterling’s eyes as she nodded.

Saul Thorne grinned in satisfaction and took Cecilia’s hand. "Come on, let’s go get something to eat!"

After they got in the car and buckled their seatbelts, a message from Estelle came in: "Hey girl, what’s going on? Why is Charles Jennings still standing downstairs?"

Cecilia: "..."

She sent back a speechless emoji, then typed: "Die-hard romantics are invincible. Just take pity on him!"

"I made a reservation at a new Chinese place."

Hearing this, Cecilia raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I’ll leave it all up to you!"

The restaurant was close to the university. Although it was nearly noon, it wasn’t very crowded.

The two had just sat down when Saul’s phone rang. He unhurriedly passed the menu to Cecilia before picking up the call. "You order first. I need to take this."

Cecilia nodded, watching as Saul got up and walked away to take the call. Only then did she open the menu.

’This new place isn’t cheap.’

She went ahead and ordered a few dishes she wanted to try. About ten minutes later, Saul finally returned. He had been gone for a while, so before Cecilia could ask, he explained, "That was my grandpa. He wants me to come over for dinner tonight."

"Have you not been back in a long time?"

Saul nodded lightly. "It’s been about two months. You know how busy I’ve been. Whenever I get a day off, all I want to do is see you."

As he spoke, he looked at Cecilia with a mischievous grin.

Cecilia shot him an exasperated look and advised, "Then you should go see him tonight. Old people worry when they get older. You should spend more time with him."

"You don’t want me to stay with you tonight?" Saul asked, looking at her.

Cecilia smiled and shook her head. "It’s not like I need to compete with your grandpa, right? Besides, we get to see each other a few times a month. He lives all alone on that mountain, and he called you specially. You really should go back for a visit."

Two months without going back was a bit extreme.

"I knew you’d tell me to go." Saul had an ’I-knew-it’ expression on his face, his eyes filled with affection. "That’s why I already told my grandpa I’d head over later."

Hearing this, the smile on Cecilia’s face deepened.

But then she heard Saul suddenly lower his voice and ask tentatively, "How about... you come back with me?"

Cecilia’s expression froze, and the smile on her face faded.

Before she could respond, Saul quickly and tactfully surrendered. "I’m kidding."

Cecilia didn’t feel awkward at all. She had made this point clear to Saul when they started dating: this relationship was only between the two of them, and it would not involve his family.

As for Saul’s interactions with her own family, that was his choice alone. She had never forced him.

She just wanted to date—a pure and simple relationship, unbothered by any external factors.

Saul understood her, but as his love for her grew deeper, he was always eager to take their relationship to the next level.

He was getting a little carried away.

But Cecilia remained clear-headed and rational.

"Don’t be mad. I won’t bring it up again," Saul said cautiously.

Cecilia took a sip of water and let out a soft laugh. "You can bring it up whenever you want, but the answer will always be the same."

Saul wasn’t angry either, because he knew what Cecilia was concerned about.

He also knew he couldn’t force her. If he pushed too hard, he might lose her.

Just then, Saul’s brow suddenly furrowed. His gaze went past Cecilia, toward the main entrance of the restaurant.

"Babe, isn’t that your professor?"

Surprised, Cecilia turned to look and saw John Lawson walking into the restaurant. With him was a woman in a red coat with long, wavy hair.

"Huh? Director Lawson?"

’Is Director Lawson having his second spring?’ The woman looked unfamiliar. As Cecilia snapped out of her surprise, a knowing smile spread across her face.

"Cecilia, something’s not right with that woman!"

Saul said suddenly, his expression turning serious.

Cecilia looked at him, confused. "How do you know?"

"I saw her when I was outside on the phone just now. But back then, she was coming out of the Western restaurant across the street with another man, and that man wasn’t your professor!"

Saul’s tone was certain, with no hint of doubt.

"Maybe you were mistaken?"

"No way!" Saul shook his head. "Your man’s a criminal detective. You think my eyes would fail me? That red coat is incredibly eye-catching. It was definitely her!"

By now, John Lawson and the woman had sat down at a table by the window on the other side of the restaurant.

A waiter handed them a menu, and John Lawson, ever the gentleman, passed it to the woman, letting her order first.

Cecilia was a little baffled and muttered, "She just finished a meal with one guy at the Western restaurant across the street, and now she’s in a Chinese restaurant with Director Lawson. This woman sure can eat!"

"Wait, babe, isn’t your professor married?"

"He’s divorced. I was the one who helped him find a lawyer!"

As she spoke, Cecilia’s eyes lit up. "Oh, I get it! It’s a blind date. She must be out on blind dates, meeting several guys at once. It’s more efficient that way."

She had seen videos about speed-dating like this before, where people meet several potential partners in a single day, like an assembly line.

There are even more extreme cases where they get all the dates together for one meal. Talk about efficiency!

But Saul still felt something was off, though he couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was.

Just then, John Lawson made an excuse and got up to go to the restroom. Saul immediately called a waiter over. "The AC is blowing right on us, and my girlfriend’s a little uncomfortable. Can we move to that table over there?"

Cecilia blinked in confusion. ’What AC? There isn’t one above us.’

But she obediently followed Saul as they moved to the table next to John Lawson’s.

This time, they didn’t sit across from each other. Saul and Cecilia sat side-by-side, with their backs to John Lawson’s table, less than two meters away.

As soon as they sat down, they heard the woman on the phone.

"Yeah, this is the third one. But he’s just a university professor, not wearing any designer brands. I don’t think he’s got the means."

"Exactly. That’s why I picked a Chinese place this time. With the last guy at the Western restaurant, I ordered caviar and a bottle of red wine. Made a little something off that one."

"I’ll check him out first. If it’s a no-go, I’ll make an excuse and leave. I’ve still got two more to meet..."

The woman deliberately kept her voice down as she spoke. Cecilia could only make out bits and pieces, but Saul’s hearing was surprisingly sharp.

He turned his head to Cecilia and said, "Your professor has run into a ’meal scammer’!"

"A meal scammer?"

Saul chuckled. "This woman uses blind dates as a pretext to lure guys to restaurants, runs up a huge bill, and gets a kickback from the restaurant. They’re commonly known as ’meal scammers’!"

Cecilia was stunned. ’What kind of job is that?’

But Saul had clearly figured out who she was. He said in a serious tone, "The menu she was holding is probably different from ours. Restaurants that work with meal scammers usually have two different sets of menus!"

The reason he was so certain was that this kind of scheme was nothing new. It had been happening all over the country for years, and the police had busted many such operations. During his internship, he had personally participated in a raid targeting this exact type of criminal activity.