Treating Mr. Billionaire

~ 26 ~

The air was filled with rich and tantalizing scents of delicious dishes Maria had never tasted before; those types of meals one could only find at five-star Italian restaurants or fancy hotels. It was still far fetching to believe the kind of people she was dining with, the number of high-class people she had met in person ever since she turned into the personal doctor of Jayden.

The thought of him made her look at him. He was focused on the dishes he was carefully adding to his plate. She watched the choices he made, looking out for any kind of meal that was not suitable for his health.

His brown eyes lifted from the table and directed them at the doctor who was not keeping the promise of minding her business. "I hope you know it's rude staring at other people's food." His voice came in low, making her blink repeatedly.

Surprised to hear a word from the man who had chosen to be nonexisting in the gathering, everyone threw gazes at him wondering who he was referring to. Jayden returned his attention back to his plate, his emotionless self deciding to ignore all of them once again.

"This is so good," Ashley voiced away her thoughts, nodding her head in accordance with the fabulous flavor blessing her taste buds. "What do you think, Jay-Jay?" She quickly added, while watching Jayden dive a fork into his mouth, and then she smiled helplessly at the adorable sight of seeing his left cheek puff up with food.

That face Ashley was making, that drown-in-love facial expression of hers always manage to make her brother nauseous. "Hey, moron, why don't you just keep on eating and stop looking like that?" Justin sneered, shaking his head with great displeasure.

And the 'moron', who promptly knew who Justin was talking to, glared at him from beneath her brows, "Who are you calling a moron, moron?!" She demanded ferociously, picking up a fork and pointing it at him as if aiming to stab him with it.

Maria couldn't help but chuckle at the quarreling two. She was still very much amazed at the fact they were related. She could remember her eyes almost popping from their sockets when Hilary revealed Ashey and Justin were siblings. Apart from the similar color of their eyes, they looked nothing alike, both in personality and resemblance.

"Do you guys remember my trip to the Netherlands last week?" Hilary asked them all with a charming smile, breaking into the siblings' little drama.

"How could I? You missed my party because of that." Ashley spoke with feigned annoyance, and Hilary smiled apologetically before continuing with her words.

"As a lover of art and fashion, I attended an auction and won a painting. It's such a breathtaking sight and I want you all to see it."

Maria swallowed deeply to herself. What were the odds of someone like Hilary losing in a bidding war? This lady was literally money herself.

"Auction? That must be quite expensive," Justin voiced thoughtfully before passing the jug of water to Maria according to her request and then nodded in response to her words of appreciation.

Hilary shrugged, "Not really, Justin. I guess I was lucky to get that gem for four hundred thousand--" Her words were interrupted by Maria who suddenly choked on her glass of water after listening to the causal way Hilary described a large amount of money.

'Four hundred thousand dollars??' Maria stared at Hilary's face in disbelief, the water still hanging out of her mouth and dripping down her chin. She was more focused on the prize of the painting to realize the mess she caused to herself and Jayden's face. But was surprised her the most was the calm countenance of others. There was not even a hint of a flinch from anyone when they heard Hilary mentioning four hundred thousand dollars for a painting.

"Are you okay?" Justin's worried tone brought her back to reality, as he grabbed the glass from her hand.

Maria slowly looked around, noticing the silent stares fixed on her before tracing her wet face with her fingers. Her blue eyes went to Jayden and she gasped to see the droplets her mouth had splashed on his face. There was no way he could have lucked out from the spill since he was sitting right in front of her. "I'm-I'm sorry," she mumbled in an embarrassed tone, her palms waving apologetically.

Jayden stared with his usual unreadable expression, but if there was an emotion closest to what Maria could sense in him, it would be annoyance. His lips held in a tight line, his brown eyes watching her intently, and his two hands were balled up into fists on the table. Maria gulped silently in response to the low-level tension building between them.

"Why don't you worry about yourself?" Justin stated, breaking the long silence that lingered in the air and making Maria turn to see the napkin in his hold. "Here," he said, holding it out for her to take, his watery smile indicating he understood why she had seemed shocked earlier. 

Maria accepted the small piece of material, gratitude elevating the corners of her lips. "Thanks," she voiced before using the napkin to dry up the water dripping down her chin.

"I think you still got some over here." Justin indicated, picking up the napkin from her hand before giving her a chance to get it done by herself. He pressed the fabric against her cheek, helping to soak the drops of water on the edge, and only handed the clothing back to her when all traces of water disappeared. "There," he announced warmly.

"Oh..." Maria murmured shyly, touching the side of her face where Justin's hand had touched. "Thank you--"

The aggressive banging on the table that caused the liquids on the table to spill out interrupted her words. Everyone immediately looked at Jayden who still had his fist balled up with fury and his gaze directed to a particular person.

"Is something wrong, Jayden?" Hilary questioned with worry as she touched his arm, but Jayden didn't even glance at her, instead staring at the lady in front of him.

Maria gulped, staring back at Jayden who continued to glare horridly at her. It made her wonder if he was still mad about the water she had spat on his face or if there were something more. She swallowed again, wondering why he was acting this way, but his glacial gaze only tightened her throat and made her unable to speak.

"My, you are damped again." Justin made Maria divert her gaze back at him. His emerald eyes showed a huge disturbance to see some of the water Jayden had violently spilled now dripping her face. Just the way he had done before, he took the handkerchief from her grip to do a proper job again.

The moment the soft fabric touched her skin, another tremendous blow broke against the table and the dreadful sound succeeded in stopping Justin's action. By this time, the ladies began to wonder if something was really wrong with Jayden, fearing he was having one of his frightful mood swings again. Maria couldn't help but think she was the cause of his bitter state since he was yet to stop glowering at her.

His brown eyes left her and slowly strolled to Justin coldly before rising from his seat. He left wordlessly with the intention of cleaning his face free from his doctor's mouth water. They all watched him go, wondering if that would be the last of him for the night.

"What's wrong with Jay-Jay? Is he perhaps hurt again?" Ashley asked Hilary who was also as clueless as she was.

Justin listened to the ladies' conversation, his eyes not leaving Jayden's retreating figure. He pondered on the unvoiced message the other guy's glare had given before leaving. When he finally got it, his lips stretched wickedly in amusement, finding the situation more interesting. "Don't worry about him, he is fine." He reassured the women, his smug expression revealing he knew something they didn't.

"Well, I honestly hope you are right." The doctor voiced out with a perturbed tone and then he faced her, watching her for a while. He smiled some more, and the look on his face made Maria wonder why he was so excited.

"I am definitely right." Justin drew slowly before concluding in his mind that the pretty doctor was about to stir up the already existing bad blood between him and his business mate.

***