Chapter 119: Chapter 119: Love Rival

Jessie Sterling raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise in her eyes.

And she also noticed Nina Walsh, who was standing to the side. A flicker of discomfort crossed Nina’s face when she heard Victor Morgan introduce Jessie.

Xavier Warren might be loud and boisterous, but that didn’t mean he was completely oblivious.

Although he felt what Nina had just said was a bit out of line, Nina had indeed grown up with all of them.

So he was willing to play peacemaker. “Hahaha, she’s just like a little sister to us. See, we didn’t know you’d also be bringing Eldest Miss Jennings! We just wanted to bring someone else along to keep you company.”

Jessie Sterling just smiled, pursing her lips, but didn’t take the bait.

She was here to accept Xavier Warren’s apology, not to be slighted.

Seeing that Jessie wasn’t playing along, Xavier gave an awkward chuckle. ’Looks like this seemingly gentle southern girl has a temper tougher than a woman from the Northeast.’

Roman Lynch walked over then, pulling Nina Walsh behind him. “Call her Sister-in-law.”

Nina pouted and reluctantly called out to Jessie, “Sister-in-law.”

“Oh, you’re all here!”

Just then, the doors to the reception hall were pulled open, and a bundle of a person, radiating a wintery chill but wrapped in a warm-looking, cream-colored fur coat, rushed in.

“You must be my sister-in-law, right?!” The newcomer walked up to Jessie Sterling and greeted her cheerfully. Before Jessie could even figure out who this was, the person’s gaze landed on Lynn Jennings. “Whoa,” she exclaimed, “who’s this pretty lady? I haven’t seen you before.”

“Serena Lynch!” Roman Lynch, who had just reprimanded Nina, couldn’t help but speak up again. He then turned to Jessie and Lynn with a helpless expression and explained, “This is my sister, Serena Lynch. When you got married, she was still test-driving cars at our R&D base in the southwest, so she couldn’t make it to the banquet. This should be your first time meeting her.”

The Lynch family was in the automotive industry. In recent years, with China and the rest of the world moving towards new-energy vehicles, the Lynch family’s electric cars were at the forefront of the field.

Facing the boisterous Serena Lynch, Jessie was quite direct. “Hello, I’m Jessie Sterling. This is my childhood friend, Lynn Jennings.”

“Wow! It’s true that beautiful girls always stick together!” Serena Lynch said with a wide grin.

Her warmth and straightforwardness quickly earned Jessie’s goodwill.

Lynn Jennings also started chatting with Serena Lynch. Though their professional fields were different, neither was just a pure R&D researcher, and they found they were kindred spirits.

“Alright, how about we go find a pool and soak for a bit? What do you all want for lunch? Go ahead and name some dishes! I’ll have the kitchen staff start preparing. This afternoon, we can play mahjong or something,” Xavier Warren called out, getting things organized.

Everyone was given a room key.

Although the private villas at The Caldera Resort were all built around individual hot springs, the area had plenty of them. In addition to the private pools in each villa, there were also large public baths.

In the past, whenever Xavier and his friends came out to have fun, they always used the large public pools.

But with a newlywed couple among them today, Xavier wasn’t so clueless as to drag everyone to the public baths.

Victor Morgan held his key card and gestured with his eyes for Jessie to go to their room first.

But after catching his glance, Jessie smiled sweetly and said, “Hey, can you have a bellhop send my things to Lynn’s room later? I haven’t seen Lynn in so long, I want to soak in the hot spring with her today.”

Victor Morgan: “…”

Lynn Jennings then chimed in, “It’s no trouble. I have pretty much everything you’ll need. You can just use mine, right?”

Jessie: “Oh! That’s right.” After saying that to Lynn, she waved at Victor Morgan. “You go have fun. I’m going to the springs with Lynn.”

Victor Morgan: “…”

’I’ve been completely sidelined, haven’t I?’

Standing to the side, Xavier Warren had just witnessed the now-classic scene of his buddy being rejected. He recalled how, last Christmas, it seemed Victor had also been ditched by his wife, which was the only reason he got to hang out with the guys. He couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

He threw an arm around Victor Morgan’s shoulder, his tone laced with mock sympathy. “Vic, my man, just come with us to the big pools upstairs. Let’s go, let’s go!”

Meanwhile, Serena Lynch glanced between Jessie and Lynn. ’There’s no way I’m going to the hot springs with my brother and his pack of boring guys. All they do is talk about work or other topics I have zero interest in. It’s so dull. But soaking by myself sounds pretty boring, too.’

“Sister-in-law!” Serena wasn’t one to hesitate. Having made her decision, she immediately acted on it. “Can I join you guys? It’s so boring soaking by myself.”

Jessie let out a small “Ah” and glanced at Lynn Jennings.

Serena immediately turned her head as well. “Miss, the one wearing the Cvuilj ’Little Cocklebur’ perfume, may I join you?”

Perfume is a very personal thing. And unless it’s a well-known, almost overused classic from a major brand, it’s rare for someone to guess the brand of a person’s scent right off the bat.

But Serena Lynch had just pinpointed both the scent and brand of Lynn Jennings’s perfume. In a way, this meant their very personal tastes were identical.

Lynn Jennings chuckled, not that she had intended to refuse anyway. “Of course. The more, the merrier.”

Serena Lynch hadn’t even greeted Nina Walsh since she’d walked in, but now that things had come to this, her gaze swept over to her.

Nina smiled, looking very well-behaved and sensible. “Then I won’t tag along with you, Selene. I’m not used to waking up so early. I’m sleepy and want to go back for a nap.”

Serena grunted an “Mm,” her voice sounding a bit cold. “Suit yourself.”

Once they had decided to go to the springs together, they went straight outside and got into a mountain buggy that was normally driven by staff.

Serena Lynch hopped right into the driver’s seat and, with a wave of her hand, struck a commanding pose. “Hop in! Big sis is about to take you on the ride of your life!”

Her antics made both Lynn Jennings and Jessie Sterling burst out laughing.

Jessie had just gotten into the buggy when she heard Serena muttering, “You guys better buckle up!”

Serena wasn’t even finished speaking when Jessie heard the voice of Nina Walsh, who had followed them out, from not far behind—

“Brother, can you take me back to my room first? I’m a little scared to go alone.”

She didn’t turn her head, but in her peripheral vision, she could see Nina tugging on Roman Lynch’s sleeve, whining like a small child.

Roman Lynch grunted in acknowledgment, then turned to inform Xavier Warren and the others before leading Nina to a buggy behind them.

Jessie pursed her lips. ’Seeing Nina act like that, you’d think she was Roman’s real sister, even more so than Serena, his actual flesh and blood.’

But when she looked at Serena beside her, the latter seemed completely used to it, not even sparing the buggy next to them a single glance.

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