Ch. 1071..1080
Chapter 1071 I’ll Handle the Celebration Party
“This is nothing. This little bit of work on my part is nothing when I see how much you’ve achieved.”
Despite what Sofia had said, she still felt touched by Tessa’s care. After what happened with Eunice, she had even more appreciation for Tessa’s gracious and grateful traits.
While they were chatting, Sofia suddenly changed the topic and advised, “Although everyone outside is singing your praises, for now, I hope you won’t become arrogant and complacent because of this. You still have a long way to go. To put it bluntly, in addition to your superior skills, this special concert is so successful mainly because everyone is showing me some respect.”
From Tessa’s point of view, she didn’t feel belittled as she felt that not a single word from Sofia’s statement was false. At the same time, she wasn’t blinded by the overwhelming praise from outside. In contrast, she knew better than anyone else of her own capability.
Even though it was true that she improved a lot during this period, she couldn’t even begin to surpass her seniors with how she was now.
Those top musicians only complimented her because they could tell that Sofia was prepping her for her future. They didn’t mind being courteous toward Sofia’s student, especially when said student had the talent for it.
“Don’t worry, Miss Sofia. I won’t rest on my laurels. But, on the other hand, I’ll work even harder because of it so I can live up to those compliments.”
As Sofia regarded the young lady’s clear eyes, she knew that Tessa was sincere and wasn’t about to fall into the pitfall of conceit because of her sudden rise in fame, and she nodded in satisfaction.
“I’m assured knowing that’s how you think.”
Then she patted Tessa softly on the shoulder in gratification. Suffice to say, after those words, she held Tessa in higher regard because her other students back then didn’t even come close to displaying such composure when they encountered the same situation as Tessa.
They chatted for a while until the topic of the celebration party came up.
“By right, a celebration party should be held after the special concert, but considering your physical condition, I decided to hold it two days later.” After she laid out her plans, she explained, “Before this, everyone was swamped, trying to ensure that they could carry out the special concert smoothly. So, it’s a good time to make this an opportunity for them to rest well now.”
Tessa strongly agreed with her arrangement. “That’s for sure, especially true for you, Miss Sofia. You deserve a good rest more than anyone else.” Finally, she gave it a thought and held Sofia’s arm intimately. “Miss Sofia, you’re the one who organized the special concert for me this time, and I already made you tired once, so let me take care of the celebration party.”
“You?” Sofia looked her over with knitted brows, focused her gaze on Tessa’s swollen belly, and declined firmly. “You shouldn’t trouble yourself. Your belly is already so huge. This will only make you tired.”
When Tessa heard the concern in Sofia’s voice, she felt warmed by her teacher’s genuine care for her wellbeing. Nevertheless, that only cemented her decision to shoulder that burden, so she swayed Sofia’s arms as she said in a spoiled tone, “No, it won’t. Furthermore, I’m only giving orders during the planning stage because I’ll delegate the heavy lifting to others who will be actually doing the job. If this doesn’t work out, I still have my husband to help me.”
“I almost forgot about your husband if you didn’t mention him.” A chuckle escaped Sofia’s lips, and she stopped arguing with Tessa and agreed to her suggestion, “Okay. I’ll let you take care of the celebration party, then.”
After all, organizing this would be a piece of cake with Nicholas’ position, and Tessa left the place after discussing the details of the party with Sofia.
When she reached home, she was just in time to have dinner with her family.
While enjoying the meal, Nicholas couldn’t help but voice his concern, “Did the interview go well?”
Everyone else turned to Tessa with concern when hearing his inquiry.
“It went quite well, and with Miss Sofia next to me, nobody deliberately made things difficult for me,” she explained vaguely.
Upon hearing that, Nicholas and Timothy were relieved that she wasn’t stressed out.
However, Stefania was a little dissatisfied. “Since the interview is over, don’t go anywhere for the next few days and just rest at home.”
Although her tone was far from friendly, Tessa knew that her mother-in-law was merely worried about her condition. So, she didn’t utter a peep of protest and instead nodded obediently.
For the next few days, she truly stayed home without complaints.
Chapter 1072 Attending the Celebration Party
In the morning, she would either arrange flowers or accompany Stefania as they watched a TV series together. Then, in the afternoon, she would have some tea with Remus.
The days were uneventful but blissful. After they loafed about for two days, Remus suddenly announced, “I’m planning to return tomorrow. What about everyone else?”
When he asked this question, he directed his primary focus at Stefania and Tobias.
He didn’t ask Nicholas because he knew that it would be just a waste of his time to ask the impossible. But, of course, that was because it was impossible to demand that Nicholas leave Tessa.
Stefania exchanged a look with Tobias and came to a decision.
“We would like to return later. So why don’t you stay a few more days as well, Dad?”
It wasn’t easy for them to finally meet their beloved grandson again, and they would like to spend more time here, so they asked Remus to do the same. But, unfortunately, Remus had already made up his mind, and nobody could talk him around.
Hence, early the following day, everyone went to the gates to send Remus off.
Along with Remus was Kieran. On the one hand, he could take care of Remus. But, on the other hand, he couldn’t leave the company.
After the rest of the Sawyer family departed from the airport, Stefania and Tobias brought Gregory out to play while Nicholas went home with Tessa.
The moment they entered the living room, they saw Timothy on the couch. So, they went to greet him.
While they were chatting, Tessa asked out of the blue, “By the way, how long are you planning to stay this time, Tim?”
“I plan to hang around for a few more days,” he answered and told her about his plans. “Now that your career is setting off here, I would like to set up a branch office here so that I can allocate more time to come over and spend time with you when my nephew is born in the future.”
Tessa would be lying if she said his words didn’t make her heart warm with fondness.
Despite that, she didn’t understand anything about business, so she didn’t interrupt when Timothy started talking shop with Nicholas.
Left with nothing to do, she rose to her feet, went to the kitchen, sliced some fruits, placed them on the table, and headed upstairs to rest.
Nicholas didn’t have anything against Timothy setting up a branch office in Vienna and even gave him some practical advice for his market research.
While they were discussing matters, Edward walked in to report on work. Nevertheless, when he saw that Nicholas was occupied, he didn’t interrupt but waited quietly in a corner.
A little while later, when Timothy was finished picking Nicholas’ brain regarding having a branch office here in Vienna, he saw Edward standing in the corner.
“Since you have work to do, I won’t interrupt you, then,” he said and stood up to leave.
Nicholas immediately beckoned for Edward and asked, “What’s the matter?”
“The celebration party is organized according to your instructions. The guests who attended the special concert are also invited, including some important media representatives.”
As it turned out, Nicholas had passed this assignment to Edward right after Tessa had decided to take the load off Sofia’s shoulders. So now that two days had passed, the celebration party was all prepared.
The celebration party was held that night in the renowned Palace Hotel of Vienna.
Tessa appeared elegant and graceful in her tailored dress and light yet exquisite makeup. Next to her, Nicholas was standing regally in a black suit.
They showed up at the party hand in hand; one dressed in silver while the other in black, like a couple’s outfit.
In addition, their gorgeous faces made any golden boy and girl appear ordinary.
The delicious pastries and wine around also put everyone in a good mood, and several people were discussing this well-matched couple.
Sofia’s friends were the ones who gave Tessa the highest praise.
“Your student will achieve great heights if she continues with determination.”
“Teach her well, and we’ll have another genius musician in our circle in the future.”
“The special concert this time was a success since the first step is a success. All she lacks is time and experience. So, we’ll be anticipating her future achievements.”
As she listened to the compliments her friends were showering her latest student, Sofia graciously thanked them. Meanwhile, Mona came over with Gregory when she saw Tessa finally arriving at the party.
“Tessa, you’re absolutely stunning tonight, and you’re dashing as well, President Sawyer.”
Tessa couldn’t help but laugh as she took notice of her friend’s excellent mood. At the same time, Nicholas gave Mona a soft nod as a greeting to her.
Gregory stared at Tessa with sparkling eyes as he stood right next to them.
Chapter 1073 Jealous
“Mommy, you’re so beautiful tonight.” Gregory deliberately ignored Nicholas because Nicholas did not allow him to attend the banquet with Tessa. He prayed that he could grow up quickly so that he could snatch his mommy away from his bad daddy.
The little guy could not be bothered to hide his thoughts, so it was easy for the adults to see right through him, and they were all amused.
When Scott came, he saw the adults laughing and asked, “What are you talking about? Everyone seems to be quite happy.”
“Hi, Mr. Brooks.” Mona and Tessa greeted Scott politely when they saw him approaching. Nicholas also nodded at Scott. They all had small talks for a while, and others also came to congratulate Tessa.
Scott and Mona knew that Nicholas and Tessa needed some time alone, so they gave each other the eye and left. Although Gregory wanted to follow Tessa, he did not want her to be distracted from taking care of him. So, he followed Scott and Mona.
Nicholas was concerned for Tessa. As soon as no one was around, he put his arms around her and asked, “Are you tired? Do you want to rest for a while?”
“I’m not tired yet. I’ll tell you when I do.” Tessa knew he was worried, so she shook her head with a smile to ease his worries.
Soon, the media came over to ask for their pictures. While the banquet was not broadcasted live, their pictures were being uploaded on the internet, which attracted a lot of netizens.
“My God, this banquet is luxurious.”
“I’m really jealous. Not only Tessa has fame and fortune, but she also has such a handsome partner.”
“Even if I want to feel jealous, I don’t think I’m qualified for it.”
The netizens were all expressing their envious feelings toward Tessa online.
On the other hand, Susan was a mess. She had been watching the news for several days in a row, and they were all about Tessa—she hated it.
Everyone was touting that slut Tessa, and no one remembered Kathleen anymore.
“Tessa, what qualifications do you have to get to today’s position? You don’t deserve to live better than me!” She gnashed her teeth as she was speaking. She became angrier when she thought about how she had suffered a broken arm and could only recuperate at home.
“No one celebrates anything without my permission!” She then left the house without waiting for another second.
Soon, Susan appeared at Tessa’s banquet uninvited. She pretended to be there to congratulate Tessa, but in fact, she came so that everyone could notice her.
She wanted everyone to see that she was initially a member of the orchestra and that she should have also led a life like Tessa’s. But because of Eunice’s scheme, she broke her arm and was ignored by the orchestra.
When she finally saw how luxurious the banquet was in real life, her eyes turned red because of jealousy. That slut Tessa did not deserve this kind of banquet. Therefore, she made up her mind to stir things up.
However, just before she could act, she encountered obstacles. It turned out that Kellen discovered her and the unkind look on her face and stopped her with a frown.
“Why are you here?” Kellen questioned Susan. He knew that Susan was not on the invitation list.
It was not difficult to spot Kellen’s unwelcoming tone, but Susan was not bothered. She answered with a fake smile, “I’m here to congratulate Miss Reinhart.”
Without waiting for Kellen’s reply, Susan walked toward the charming Tessa, who was chatting and laughing in the crowd. As Susan got closer, she heard the group praising Tessa, which made her drown in her own jealousy.
At the same time, it was as if Tessa noticed a malicious gaze behind her back that she turned subconsciously, and coincidentally, her eyes collided with Susan’s dark eyes.
“What are you doing here?” Tessa asked with a frown while others cast inquiring glances at Susan.
Susan ignored the curious gazes and put on an artificial smile. “Aww, why? I came here to congratulate you.”
“Kind of you to come and congratulate me on purpose. Though, I have a lot of people congratulating me tonight.”
Chapter 1074 You Should Leave Now
Tessa looked at Susan indifferently, and her words implied that she did not need Susan’s congratulations anyways. Susan’s face instantly turned ugly.
The media sensed something was off and stared at Susan eagerly, hoping that the woman would make a drama. Susan did not let them down as she replied to Tessa sarcastically, “Do you really think I’d come just to congratulate you? In fact, I don’t want to come at all, but I must be here. After all, I can’t just let things go.”
As she was speaking, she raised her arm sling. “You must not forget that you bear some responsibility for breaking my arm. I don’t understand, though. You ruined my future. How can you still have the face to hold a celebration party here?”
As soon as these words were uttered, the crowd went into an uproar.
“What’s going on?”
“Hey, isn’t she the girl who fell off the stage during Group Six’s first performance? The concertmaster?”
Someone recognized Susan’s identity and got puzzled at her action.
“Shouldn’t Eunice be responsible for her broken arm? Why did she come to Miss Reinhart?”
“Was there some sort of cover-up here?”
Susan snorted coldly when she heard the commotions. “Of course there was a cover-up. When Eunice asked someone to tamper with the stage, it was Tessa whom Eunice wanted to scheme against. But I replaced Tessa for her performance and was unfortunately hurt.”
Tessa instantly became angry at what Susan said, but at the same time, she found it so laughable that Susan was trying so hard to mislead everyone deliberately. “Since Miss Susan wants to claim justice for herself, it is better that you let everyone know what really happened.”
Tessa paused for a while before continuing with her cold voice, “If you hadn’t schemed against me in the first place, how could you end up scheming yourself? The biter is sometimes bit, and you have the audacity to blame me. If you were totally innocent as you said you were, you would not have ended up like this!”
Susan was shaking with anger upon hearing that. However, Tessa had enough of Susan and without wanting to hear any words from Susan anymore, she said unapologetically, “You are not welcome here. Please leave immediately!”
Of course, Susan would not leave that easily. She had made up her mind to stir things up before she came here. “Although I was not totally innocent, it is an indisputable fact that my arm is broken, and you must give me an explanation.”
Tessa became agitated seeing how Susan tried to provoke her.
Kellen was no less angry than Tessa; he regretted it immensely for recruiting Susan to the orchestra. So, he said sternly to Susan, “Even if your arm is broken, it has nothing to do with Tessa. It is Group Six’s business. Don’t go around blaming everyone!”
“Well, seems like you want to shield Tessa. Okay then, give me an explanation now.” Susan confronted him with a sneer.
Tessa wanted to retort back, but she was stopped by Kellen, who replied, “This matter is originally a matter of Group Six. Tessa, don’t intervene.” Kellen then stared at Susan coldly and, without any hesitation, announced the decision he had made in his heart.
“Since you’re asking for an explanation, let me inform you of my decision now. I am officially terminating the contract with you on behalf of Group Six because you have a scheming heart. You’re no longer a part of Sofia Symphony. As for your broken arm, even though the police found out that it was all Eunice’s doing, Sofia Symphony is still willing to give you some compensation. But that’s all.”
Susan’s face darkened immediately, and she was obviously very dissatisfied, thinking that Kellen was trying to get rid of her with money. Did she look like she needed the money?
However, just before she could start yapping, Kellen reprimanded Susan again, “Don’t try to deny. If you had a good heart, you wouldn’t have turned out like this. I know what you’re thinking. You’re trying to make a scene hoping that the media will believe what you say. Do you think the media will still listen to you?”
Kellen’s words completely rendered Susan speechless. Her beautiful face was gloomy and scary.
He saw her expression but did not give a damn. “I don’t want to make a scene at Tessa’s banquet, so you should leave now!”
Chapter 1075 Kick Her Out!
However, Susan wasn’t prepared to give up just yet—she refused to leave. The air around them was tense as they both remained in their spots. Right then, an icy voice came from the back of the crowd.
“What happened?” Nicholas made his way through the crowd before walking over and stopping beside Tessa. He stood tall and proud as he shot Susan a dangerous glare. He had only been gone for a while—he hadn’t expected someone to mess with his wife within such a short period of time.
Tessa didn’t hold back from telling him the gist of what had happened. Upon hearing her words, Nicholas’ expression hardened as he shouted for his bodyguards. “I want you guys to kick her out,” he ordered. The bodyguards nodded before they grabbed Susan’s arms and dragged her out. “What are you guys doing?! Let go of me!” Susan thrashed her limbs but to no avail. Soon enough, the strong and muscular bodyguards brought her out of the event hall.
The other bosses in the hall didn’t question Nicholas’ orders even after they saw what had happened. In fact, they secretly held some judgments against Susan. She’s way too manipulative for someone her age. I guess it explains why she’s not popular at all, they thought.
In the meantime, Susan stumbled and fell onto the ground after the bodyguards threw her out of the building. She was boiling with rage, but her cheeks also felt hot with embarrassment as there were a number of passersby who were casting looks at her. “I’m not going to let this go so easily, Tessa!” Susan fixed her deadly glare on the front door of the hotel as she swore to herself, I’m going to make Tessa pay for this! I’m going to make her suffer! I want to crush that b*tch’s hands so that she’ll never be able to play the violin again.
Tessa didn’t let herself feel bothered by the minor disruption that Susan caused at the party. The rest of the celebration went smoothly, and the guests forgot all about what happened with Susan. In consideration of Tessa’s health, the party didn’t last for too long, and they wrapped things up around 10.00PM. Sofia led Tessa’s seniors around the hall to send the guests off, and they were the last few people left in the hall after that.
They went over to bid goodbye to Tessa. “The rest of the guests have left, so we’ll make a move now,” Sofia uttered. Tessa was extremely grateful for their help, and she personally walked them to the exit of the hotel. After everyone left, Tessa headed home with Nicholas. By then, Stefania, Tobias, and Timothy had already brought Gregory home.
Nicholas gazed at Tessa worriedly after they got home. “Are you tired?” he asked.
“A little.” Tessa didn’t bother to put on a strong front—instead, she gave the man a puppy-eyed look. Her belly was too large for her to stand around at the party for such long hours, and her back had been aching since a while ago.
Nicholas felt his heart aching when he saw the look on the woman’s face. Timothy, who happened to walk past them, overheard what Tessa said. “You should get some rest since you’re tired,” he urged.
Both Stefania and Tobias nodded in agreement before they urged Nicholas to bring Tessa upstairs to get some rest. After heading upstairs, Tessa cleaned herself up and fell asleep soon after she got into bed. Nicholas gave his wife a loving kiss on the forehead before he tiptoed his way out of the room.
Before this, the housekeeper had passed him a message telling him that his parents wanted to have a talk with him. When Nicholas got down, he saw that Timothy had returned to his room, probably because he didn’t want to get himself involved. Stefania, Tobias, and Gregory were the only three in the living hall. Nicholas walked over to sit on the couch opposite his parents. “What is it?” he asked.
“Your mom and I are planning to head back to the country tomorrow.” Tobias got straight to the point. “We wanted you to come down for a talk because we wanted to remind you of a few things. After we leave, you’ll have to take good care of Tessa. You need to make sure that she doesn’t overexert herself,” Tobias uttered.
“I know. Don’t worry about us.” To Nicholas’ surprise, Stefania began lecturing him right after he finished his sentence. “How do you expect us to feel assured when you’re so compliant toward your wife? I don’t want to hear your empty promises—I want to see you take action!”
She shot him a stern glare as she continued grumbling. “Even though it’s good for her to achieve her dreams, she still has to prioritize her health. Even a regular person would feel exhausted with the amount of strain that she’s putting on herself, let alone a pregnant woman like her! You can’t let her have things her way anymore.”
Chapter 1076 Mommy’s Sick
Nicholas knew that his parents were just concerned about Tessa, so he nodded to show them that he understood. Stefania didn’t seem reassured by his actions—she continued talking after that. “We’re not trying to stop her from chasing after her dreams, you know. You guys can work as hard as you guys want after the baby’s born, and your dad and I won’t stop you guys at all.”
Nicholas patiently listened to her for a while before he interrupted her. “It’s getting late. You guys should go to bed since you guys are waking up early to head to the airport tomorrow,” he uttered before glancing in Gregory’s direction. The child was smart enough to get his father’s message, and he quickly clung to Stefania’s knee. “Grandma, I’m going to miss you and Grandpa after you guys leave tomorrow. Can I sleep with you guys tonight?”
“Of course.” Stefania easily fell into her grandson’s trap, and she carried Gregory back to her room without continuing what she had meant to say. Tobias had noticed the exchange of looks between Gregory and Nicholas, but Tobias didn’t expose them as he believed that Nicholas knew what he was doing.
The next morning, Tessa’s head felt rather heavy from the moment she woke up. Her headache wasn’t too bad, so she didn’t tell anyone about it. While they were washing up, Nicholas recalled the news of his parents leaving that day, so he told Tessa about it. “Mom and Dad are planning to head home today. They’ve booked their flight tickets, and they’ll leave after breakfast,” he said. Tessa was rather puzzled by this, but she didn’t say much about it.
After breakfast, the few of them prepared to head to the airport. Tessa had intended to go along with them, but Stefania stopped her from coming. “Your belly’s huge now, and there are a lot of people walking around at the airport. What if someone bumps into you?” Stefania said.
Tessa shared the same concerns and her headache was getting worse, so she quickly agreed to stay home. In the end, Nicholas drove his parents to the airport on his own. It took him nearly two hours before he returned from the airport, and he realized how quiet the house was when he stepped into the living hall. “Where’s Tessa and Gregory?” he asked the housekeeper.
“Young Master Gregory is in class in the room upstairs, and Madam Tessa went back to sleep in her room a while after you left. Perhaps she was too tired,” the housekeeper reported dutifully. Nicholas frowned as he could tell that something wasn’t right. He headed upstairs to the room, where he found Tessa fast asleep in bed. Her brows were tightly knitted together, and she looked like she was in discomfort. Nicholas could immediately tell that something was wrong when he saw the look on her face.
“Wake up, Tessa.” He stepped forward to nudge Tessa as he wanted to ask her how she was feeling. However, the moment his fingers came in contact with her face, he could feel her skin burning. She has a fever! His face fell as he hurried out of the room to shout for the housekeeper. “Tessa’s burning up with a fever. I want you to prepare some warm water and a clean towel immediately,” Nicholas ordered.
He couldn’t give Tessa any medication since she was pregnant, and the only other way for him to lower her temperature was to cool her down physically. Even though Tessa didn’t have an extremely high fever, she was still rather dazed and out of it. She could tell that there was someone beside her, and she figured that the person was probably Nicholas, yet she couldn’t seem to pry her eyelids open as they felt too heavy. Nicholas brought a damp towel over and gently wiped it across her skin to cool her down. He stayed beside her for a long time with a worried look in his eyes.
After Gregory was done with class, he jogged over to Tessa’s room. The young boy had heard that his mother was sick. “Daddy, the housekeeper said that Mommy’s sick.” Even though Gregory was speaking to Nicholas, he was on his tiptoes and staring at Tessa worriedly. “Mommy…” Gregory whispered. However, Tessa didn’t respond to him at all. The young boy was so worried that he was at a loss, so he turned to look at Nicholas. “What happened to Mommy, Daddy?” he asked.
“Your mom’s having a bit of a fever. You shouldn’t wake her up. She needs to rest,” Nicholas explained before he continued to cool Tessa down with the damp towel. Gregory clasped a hand over his mouth and stood next to them without making any noise after that—he wanted to make sure that his mother got enough rest. Later in the afternoon, Nicholas figured that it wouldn’t be good for Tessa to sleep for such long hours. So, he told the cook to prepare some porridge before he woke Tessa up.
Chapter 1077 Is He Angry?
Tessa still felt rather drowsy, so Nicholas propped her up and let her lean against his chest. He held the bowl of porridge in one hand and a spoon in the other as he coaxed her into having some food. “I know you’re not feeling well, but you need to eat something before you go back to sleep.” Nicholas wasn’t sure if Tessa heard what he said, but she only ate half a bowl of porridge with her eyes closed before she refused to have any more. Nicholas didn’t force her to eat after that. Instead, he helped her settle back into bed, and she fell asleep just moments later.
Timothy left the house early that morning to do some market surveys, and he only got home late in the afternoon. He had intended to have a meal with Tessa and Gregory, but he was greeted with an empty hall when he got home. “Where’s Tessa and Gregory?” Timothy asked the housekeeper.
The housekeeper didn’t bother to hide the truth. “Madam Tessa is sick, and both Master Nicholas and Young Master Gregory are taking care of her in her room,” he replied.
“Did you say that Tessa’s sick?” Timothy was shocked. He was so worried that he charged up to his sister’s room with his briefcase still in his hand. When he got to the room, he saw Nicholas sitting beside Tessa’s bed and Gregory sitting quietly in a corner. “You’re back, Uncle Tim.” Gregory was the first to notice Timothy, and the young boy tottered over with a frown on his face. “Mommy’s sick. Both Daddy and I are really worried.”
Timothy ruffled the young boy’s hair before he walked over to the bed. He saw Tessa fast asleep with her cheeks looking abnormally red. The sight of her made Timothy feel more worried than before. “Tessa was fine yesterday. How did she fall ill all of a sudden?” Timothy turned to question Nicholas in a rather hostile manner.
However, Nicholas knew that Timothy was just worried about Tessa, so he didn’t feel bothered by the other man’s tone. “I’m not too sure. We’ll only find out after the doctor drops by to check up on her later,” Nicholas explained as he took the towel off of Tessa’s head to dip it in water. Then, he placed it back onto her forehead to lower her temperature.
Timothy had felt rather annoyed at first, but he calmed himself down after seeing how gentle and thoughtful Nicholas was. Nicholas is probably worried about Tessa as well, Timothy thought. “I’m sorry. I was a little too anxious earlier. When is the doctor coming?” Timothy asked.
The moment he finished his sentence, the housekeeper knocked on the door to let their family doctor in. After a brief checkup, the doctor gave them his diagnosis. “Madam Tessa is fine. She’s just a little weak now, probably because she has been overworking herself. She’ll have to consume bland foods for a while after her temperature goes down, and she’ll need to get a lot of rest. She should be fine in no time.”
“What about the child? Is the child affected?” Timothy was still worried.
The doctor calmed him down. “The child is well and healthy.”
Timothy heaved a sigh of relief, and Nicholas felt a little less worried after that. Nicholas told the housekeeper to walk the doctor out while he stayed beside Tessa for the rest of the afternoon. Tessa’s temperature finally went down by nighttime, and she was more alert and awake than before. She even looked less ill than she did in the afternoon. Nicholas finally felt a sense of relief when he saw her getting better.
Tessa felt rather bad when she saw how tired Nicholas looked. “I’m sorry for making you worry,” she muttered.
“Of course I’m worried! But I don’t want this to happen again!” Nicholas shot her a stern glare. “I’ve already spoken to your teacher earlier in the afternoon. From now onward, she’ll lessen your workload, and you won’t have to go to the orchestra for now. You can stay home and focus on caring for yourself and the baby. I’ll let you do whatever you want after the child is born,” he uttered. This was the first time Tessa had heard Nicholas speaking to her in such a serious tone, and she knew that he was really angry this time.
She immediately leaned in to wrap her arms around his arm. “I’ll listen to everything you say. I’m going to stay home and be a good girl, and I won’t go anywhere until the baby’s born,” she uttered in a sweet tone. Nicholas could no longer bring himself to be mad at the woman when he saw how adorable she was. Furthermore, he wasn’t actually angry at her—if anything, he felt more sorry and guilty toward her.
Previously, Nicholas had simply watched while Tessa practiced her pieces furiously. He didn’t try to stop her at all. If I had tried to stop her then, maybe she wouldn’t fall sick at all, he thought.
Chapter 1078 Princess Tessa
Tessa thought that Nicholas was still angry when she saw how silent he was. So, she continued coaxing him in her coquettish tone. “Don’t be mad, okay? I promise I won’t do anything that you don’t agree to in the future, okay?”
Nicholas wasn’t that angry to begin with, so he couldn’t help but laugh when he saw the way Tessa was trying to make up for her mistakes. He gave her nose a fond pinch. “Don’t forget what you just said! You’ll have to obey me from now on,” he teased. Tessa couldn’t tell that he was fooling around with her at all. When she saw him smiling, she quickly nodded her head. “I’ll do everything you say,” she uttered obediently. Both of them chuckled and chatted for a while more before the housekeeper brought them their dinner.
After dinner, Nicholas told Tessa to go back to sleep. She did feel rather tired, so she dozed off and fell asleep shortly after the meal. It was the middle of the night by the time she woke up. When she turned her head sideways, she found Nicholas sitting by her bedside and going through some documents. On her other side was Gregory who was snuggled up close to her. He seemed to be far, far away in his dreamland. Tessa felt a warm sensation spreading across her chest as she looked around her.
Right then, Nicholas noticed that she was awake, so he quickly lowered the documents in his hands to help her sit up in bed. “How are you feeling now?” he asked. “I feel a lot better. Don’t worry; I’m fine now,” she comforted him. However, Nicholas still felt rather uneasy, so he reached his hand out to feel her forehead. Tessa felt a mixture of gratitude and guilt when she saw the worried look on the man’s face.
Her eyes lit up when she thought about something. Then, she placed her hands around her huge belly before giving Nicholas a puppy-eyed look. “Daddy, the baby says it’s hungry. The baby wants some food.” Nicholas froze for a moment before he realized that Tessa was referring to him. “You cheeky girl.” He gave her a light jab on the forehead, even though he secretly felt pleased by the way she had addressed him.
Tessa blinked a few times before questioning him. “Am I wrong to say you’re the baby’s dad?” she asked, even though she knew the answer. A gentle, loving look formed in Nicholas’ eyes as he gazed at his playful wife. “You’re right,” he uttered while fixing his gaze upon her. Tessa, for some reason, felt rather shy to have him stare at her like that. “Don’t look at me like that,” she protested as she tried to reach her hand out to cover his eyes.
Nicholas let out a deep chuckle to show how pleased he was. He didn’t forget what Tessa said about being hungry, so he gently pushed Tessa’s hand down as he stood up. “I’ve told the kitchen to keep some food warm in case you wanted supper. I’ll go down and bring it up for you now,” he uttered. Moments later, he disappeared out of the door.
Tessa, on the other hand, was left with a sweet smile on her face as she waited in bed. The kitchen didn’t usually keep any food warmed at that hour, so it was clear that Nicholas had given orders specially for her. Soon enough, Nicholas came up with supper. When he walked in, he saw his wife smiling to herself in a rather silly manner, and he couldn’t help but laugh at her. “What are you thinking about? Why are you laughing like an idiot?”
“Who’s the idiot?” Tessa gave him a playful glare.
Nicholas could tell that he used the wrong choice of words, so he quickly changed the topic. “Here’s the chicken soup that I told the kitchen to prepare. Why don’t you try it?”
Tessa was genuinely hungry, so she allowed Nicholas to feed her some soup. The soup tasted extremely good, and she finished half a bowl of it before she even realized. Then, she looked up at the man who was focused on feeding her. He has been taking such good care of me throughout the day. I feel like a princess in his care, she thought.
“Pfft…” Tessa was amused by her own thoughts. Well, I guess life would be pretty good if I got to live like this forever. This is such a great feeling!
The next morning, Tessa felt a lot better. She headed downstairs for breakfast with Nicholas and Gregory. Timothy was still asleep as he had stayed up late to finish some work the night before. When he got downstairs, he found his sister arranging some flowers in the living hall. “Are you feeling better, Tessa?” He walked over to check on her.
Tessa nodded. “I’m feeling fine now. You don’t have to worry about me.”
Chapter 1079 New Concertmaster
Since Timothy came down from upstairs, Tessa knew that he had just woken up. “Breakfast has been kept warm for you in the kitchen. You should go have breakfast now,” she urged. However, Timothy was in no rush to eat. Even though he felt relieved to see his sister feeling better, he was still rather shocked by what he had seen the day before. Furthermore, with Tessa pregnant, Timothy knew that they couldn’t afford to take any chances with her health.
So, Timothy couldn’t help but lecture her. “I support you and your dreams, Tessa, but I don’t support the idea of you neglecting your health. Furthermore, my future niece is in your belly!” When Tessa saw the serious look on her brother’s face, she felt rather guilty. She admitted to her faults, but Timothy didn’t believe her immediately. After all, he was her brother, and he knew her well. “Anyway, I don’t want you to do this again in the future. Otherwise, I’ll…” Timothy paused to think of a punishment for his sister, but he couldn’t come up with anything for a long while.
Tessa quickly put on a submissive and obedient look when she saw him struggling. “I got it. I’ll be more careful from now on, and I won’t tire myself out anymore. Your brother-in-law has already been nagging me, so you don’t have to do it anymore,” she uttered in a sweet voice. But to her surprise, Timothy had more to say after hearing the mention of Nicholas. “You’re taking advantage of the fact that Nicholas will always shower you with unconditional care and love. He was so worried when you fell ill yesterday, and he stayed beside you the whole time. He didn’t even have time for anything else.”
Timothy was well aware of how caring and loving Nicholas was toward Tessa. “You shouldn’t make him worry like that,” Timothy uttered. Even though Timothy sounded like he was feeling sorry for Nicholas, he actually felt even sorrier for his sister. After all, Timothy knew exactly why Tessa was working so hard. “I know you’re trying to prove your skills, but you have to consider the situation you’re in as well, Tessa. Furthermore, I told you that I’ll always be here for you. If everything else fails, I’ll still be here to support you. You really shouldn’t work so hard anymore,” he nagged.
Tessa felt like she had heard the same words a thousand times by then, but she couldn’t do much apart from nodding in agreement. After breakfast, Timothy headed out for work. Since Tessa had to stay home and rest, she ended up being the only person with nothing to do at home. She felt really bored, so she invited Mona over for tea. Mona happened to be free that day, so she dropped by Tessa’s house, only to find Tessa sitting alone in the living hall. “Where’s Gregory?” Mona asked.
“Gregory’s in class upstairs,” Tessa replied with a smile. Mona nodded as she recalled how Gregory was actively taking musical training as well as other courses. Mona no longer asked about Gregory after that. Both the ladies walked out to the garden, and they sat and sipped on some fresh juice outside while munching on some desserts. It was a pleasant afternoon, and they chit-chatted for a while before Mona brought up the topic of Hathaway’s situation. “The orchestra has plans to select a new violin concertmaster for Group One,” she uttered.
“Why are they doing that? Isn’t Cindy doing a good job as the concertmaster?” Tessa shot the other woman a confused look.
Mona scoffed before speaking in a rather sour tone. “What’s so great about her? Another orchestra approached her with a better offer, and her heart’s no longer with us now that she’s seeing a better future for herself,” Mona explained.
Tessa frowned when she heard this. “Why is she still being so greedy?” Even though Tessa hadn’t had much contact with Cindy in the past, the few times they interacted were sufficient to let Tessa get a glimpse of Cindy’s personality. Mona shook her head and smiled when she understood what Tessa meant. “Cindy used to be pretty humble, but she has been sticking her nose high up in the air ever since she became Group One’s concertmaster. That probably explains why she’s so eager for more opportunities now,” Mona uttered.
“How’s Miss Hathaway now? Is she facing any troubles?” Tessa didn’t actually care about Cindy—she was more concerned about Hathaway. Ever since Tessa found out about Hathaway Philharmonic’s drop in ranking as a top-tier orchestra, she had been quietly observing Hathaway. I know Hathaway Philharmonic was really impacted after the incident with Kathleen, and it took them a while to get back on their feet. Miss Hathaway’s probably going to feel even more disheartened if she loses another concertmaster now, Tessa thought.
Mona had no idea what was going on in Tessa’s mind.
Chapter 1080 That’s Cruel
A complicated look surfaced on Mona’s face when she thought about the orchestra’s condition. “The director is really troubled by the situation now. Furthermore, there are a lot of people in the orchestra who’re secretly laughing at her behind her back.
They’re saying that she lacked foresight for letting you go, and they’re saying that it was Kathleen who caused the downfall of the orchestra when she was supposed to be the only one impacted by her mistakes.” Mona paused for a moment before continuing in a rather angry tone. “These people are only saying this now, but they were overjoyed when the director first told you to leave.”
Tessa agreed that many of the people in the orchestra were two-faced, but she didn’t comment much on it. Mona, on the other hand, continued criticizing all the pretentious people in the orchestra. Tessa couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of her friend. “Alright. You should calm down and drink some juice.” Tessa handed Mona a glass of juice as she figured Mona was probably thirsty from all the talking.
Tessa was right—Mona gulped down the juice in a matter of seconds. Tessa took this opportunity to change the topic. “How is Miss Hathaway planning to deal with the orchestra now that things are like this?”
“Many people in the orchestra are feeling rather anxious now. They’re worried that the orchestra’s standards might fall even further or that the whole thing might be shut down in the end. So, the director is planning to host an audition to calm the others down.” Mona was transparent and honest with her answer—she knew that Tessa still missed the orchestra even after leaving it.
Tessa felt a little less worried after hearing Mona. However, Mona dropped another huge bomb on Tessa just as Tessa was starting to feel better. “Even though they’re planning to find a new concertmaster, I heard some members saying that Cindy is planning to take a few people along with her when she leaves. Many of these people are the ones who are more skilled,” Mona uttered.
“Why would she do that?” Tessa was stunned. “The person who’s snatching Cindy from us is a long-time enemy of our orchestra, which explains why they are so cruel.
The other orchestra is probably offering Cindy tons of benefits,” Mona replied. Mona gave Tessa a look as if to say, You know what I mean. Tessa frowned as she understood what Mona meant.
The other party is clearly trying every possible way to ensure that Miss Hathaway continues on a downhill slope. I have to say, this is a pretty cruel tactic.
“Does Miss Hathaway know about this?” Tessa gazed at Mona worriedly. If Cindy actually managed to take the most skilled members away, then the orchestra would practically be useless. Mona could tell that Tessa was worried, so she tried to calm Tessa down. “Miss Hathaway knows about this, but this has got nothing to do with you, Tessa. You should stop worrying and just focus on your baby.”
“But…” Tessa was still rather worried.
“No more buts. You have to trust Miss Hathaway. She’s a capable woman, and she’s not going to let things fall apart just like that,” Mona stated firmly. Tessa found Mona’s words to make a lot of sense. Mona’s right. Miss Hathaway has probably gone through all sorts of rough patches to achieve the success she has. She isn’t going to allow such a thing to defeat her. So, Tessa simply nodded and changed the topic after that.
Later that day, Mona stayed for dinner at Tessa’s house before leaving. After washing up, Tessa rested in Nicholas’ arms while chit-chatting with him. She didn’t mention anything about her conversation with Mona earlier that afternoon—she talked about something else instead. “I won’t have to go to the orchestra for now, so I want to take this opportunity to spend more time with you and Gregory. Since the weekend is coming, I thought that it’d be nice for us to go on a family trip.” She looked at Nicholas as if to ask for his permission after finishing her sentence.
Nicholas smiled as he understood the look in her eyes. “Great minds think alike. What a coincidence! I was just thinking of bringing you somewhere.” Nicholas had been contemplating this matter for the past two days. Tessa was surprised for a moment, but she quickly felt a surge of joy within her. “You’re the best, Nicholas.” Tessa planted a kiss on Nicholas’ cheek.
“Where are you planning to bring Gregory and me?” she asked curiously.
“Well… You’ll find out when we get there,” he replied in a playfully mysterious tone. Tessa froze for a moment, but she no longer continued questioning him as she knew he wanted to surprise her.