Chapter 140: I’m Proud Of You

Chapter 140: I’m Proud Of You Now that Genevieve was alone in the car with Jamal, she relaxed in the backseat. She didn’t talk or try to make conversation. She just stared out the window. hands rested on her lap, her fingers playing with the phone she held. Every now and then, her eyes dropped to the screen, then back to the window. It was over almost twenty-four since Stefan left for Ludus and she knew he should have arrived by now since the flight was less than fourteen hours. Why hadn’t he called or texted her? Was he regretting the kiss? Did he not want to be friends with her anymore now that there was enough distance between them and he had enough time to think about all she had revealed about herself? She knew she had released more than she was supposed to. If he didn’t call or want to be friends again it was going to be her fault for over sharing. Jamal watched her from the mirror. He was driving slowly, following Ryan’s car. His hands stayed on the wheel, but his eyes flicked to the mirror sometimes. He saw how Genevieve looked at her phone again and again. He saw her face— quiet, far away, thinking deep thoughts. Although he wondered if she was staring at her phone that way because she was expecting another text from the blackmailer or because she was expecting a call from Stefan, but he didn’t say anything. He told himself to focus on the road and to not ask her any questions. He didn’t want to get too close to her. Not when Abigail was already upset with him and giving him the silent treatment. Silent treatment from a mute, Jamal thought with an amused smile, wondering if Abigail would find the humor in that if he mentioned it. Of course, she would. Abigail had an excellent sense of humor. It was one of the things he was coming to love about this grown up version of her. Behind him, Genevieve took a deep breath as she looked at her phone again. Still no call. She bit her lip and looked out the window once more. The sun was up now. People were walking. A boy rode past on a bike. But Genevieve didn’t really see them. Then her phone lit up before it began to ring. Her heart skipped a beat as she grabbed it quickly but her face fell when looked at the screen and saw the caller ID. Her brows pulled together with displeasure as she rejected the call and dropped the phone back in her lap. A few seconds passed. The phone rang again. This time Genevieve picked up. She held the phone to her ear. She listened for a while to what the caller said and then she let out an annoyed snort. "Do you really think I care about any of that? I’m not sending your crackhead ass money because of your cheap blackmail," she spat, her voice was low but angry. "It won’t be my first scandal. If you keep texting and threatening me, I’ll stop sending anything and just let you release them so I can cut you out of my life for good." Her voice shook just once, but she took a deep breath and kept going. "Oh, really? Why don’t you do that, and maybe he will just kill you this time. Want me to tell him you still contact me?" Genevieve asked, and then frowned. Like I said, I send you money out of duty, not fear. So, watch the way you run your mouth." Jamal’s eyes moved to the mirror again. Genevieve wasn’t looking at him. Who was the blackmailer? And why did it sound like Ryan knew the person? She sounded like it was someone she was close to. Was it her biological mother perhaps? Why would her mother blackmail her or have such pictures of her in the first place? "Why don’t you go ahead and do that? Maybe this time, I’ll give an interview. I’ll let everyone know who the person is that made a child do something like that," with that she ended the call. She closed her eyes for a moment and let out a long, slow breath. When she opened them, she looked up at the mirror, and met Jamal’s concerned gaze. "Are you okay?" he asked softly. "Is someone bothering you?" Genevieve forced a smile. It didn’t reach her eyes. "Don’t mind me, Pete," she said. "I’m okay. No need to worry." Jamal gave a slow nod. But he knew the call had been from the same person that sent those pictures the previous day. Genevieve looked out the window again, but then she turned her gaze back to the mirror. "Did you go to elementary school, Pete?" Jamal blinked, taken aback by the question. "Yes, ma’am. I did." "What was it like?" She asked, since she had not attended one. Jamal thought for a moment. "It was fun. It was hard sometimes too. But I liked it a lot because of my friends. I had good teachers too. Why do you ask?" "Do you think Josh will like it?" she asked, her voice soft. Jamal smiled a little. "I have no doubt. He’s a bright and cheerful kid. He’ll do well." Genevieve nodded slowly. "Yeah... he is bright. And cheerful." Then her phone rang again. She looked down and when she saw Stefan’s name this time, her heart skipped a beat and her whole face lit up. She answered quickly and tried to sound normal. "Hey." "Hey, you," Stefan greeted, his voice was a bit hoarse. "How are you doing? How was your flight?" Genevieve asked, her heart racing at the sound of his voice. Jamal heard her voice change. It was warmer now. She sounded happy. "I’m fine. The flight was alright," Stefan said. "I tried to get some work done through most of it. What about you? How are you?" "I’m okay. Just on my way to the office. When did you arrive?" She asked, adjusting into a more comfortable position. "About three hours ago. It was late when I arrived so I went straight to bed. It’s still early over here," he said and she raised a brow. "You woke up to call me?" she asked, glancing out the window, trying to hide the silly grin that had taken over her face. "I actually woke up to empty my bladder and decided to check in," he said, and she rolled her eyes. "I see," she murmured dryly and Stefan laughed, knowing why she said that. "You are disappointed I didn’t say I woke up to call you, aren’t you?" Stefan said, his tone light and teasing. "Whatever," she murmured, and he laughed. "I actually woke up to call you. I set my alarm to wake me up. I didn’t call earlier because I wanted to be sure you’d be up and about your day," he said, and Genevieve laughed softly. Her eyes were shining. "Why didn’t you just say so earlier?" She asked with a roll of her eyes. Jamal looked through the mirror again. She was smiling and her cheeks were pink. What was Stefan saying to her? Stefan was certainly taking his job of being Jamal very seriously, Jamal thought, amused. "Because it’s more fun saying it this way," Stefan said with a yawn. "I guess you’re going back to bed after we hang up?" She asked, hearing the tiredness in his voice. "Yes," he admitted. "Lazy bum. Aren’t you going to work?" "No. I plan to sleep in today and get back my strength. You didn’t exactly let me rest while I was there. You kept dragging me around Westend." Genevieve laughed softly. "I didn’t drag you. You spent time with me because you wanted to." "I didn’t exactly have a choice. I was scared the Queen of Westend would throw me out of the country if I didn’t do her bidding." Genevieve threw back her head and laughed. "I wasn’t the one who took you to an amusement park, though." "I was only trying to make the most of the time. I didn’t want to bore Your majesty to death with my endless questions." They both laughed at the same time, the kind of laughter that came from knowing someone well enough to tease them without offense. "I missed you," she said quietly. "I missed you too." There was a pause, just a second too long. Then he added, "Are you being a good girl, Viv?" Genevieve rolled her eyes but was smiling so widely now that even Jamal couldn’t miss it in the mirror. The silly part of her wanted to respond and say she was being naughty and wanted to be punished, but she knew Stefan wouldn’t tolerate such a raunchy joke. "I’m not a kid," she said instead. "I didn’t say you were." "You implied it." "No, I didn’t. I just asked if you were being good. Are you taking my advice to be kinder to Abigail?" Genevieve shrugged, "I am doing the best I can." He smiled. "Good. I’m proud of you." She was grinning now as though he had just patted her head. She looked at the mirror and caught Jamal watching her. She covered the lower part of her face with her hand like a schoolgirl caught passing notes in class, and then she leaned forward slightly and whispered, "It’s Jamal," before falling back into the seat, her voice turning soft again. Jamal gave a small, amused shake of his head. Of course, he thought. Genevieve noticed that her father’s car had slowed down and they seemed to be approaching the school now. She returned her attention back to the phone, "I have to go now. I’ll call you back when I’m settled. Or you can call me after you’re well rested. That way you won’t accuse me of depriving you of rest," she added, and Stefan laughed. "Alright, talk to you later. Tell Pete I said hi and that I made it in one piece." Genevieve smiled. "Jamal says hello. And that he made it in one piece," she said, turning her head toward the front seat. Jamal chuckled inwardly, amused that Stefan was sending a message to him through Genevieve. He had not even bothered to call him. Jamal gave a small smile, his eyes focused on the road as he turned into the school’s parking lot. "Good to know." "Don’t forget to call me," she said. "Or I’ll send you lots of passive aggressive texts about how you’ve changed." He snorted. "Bye, Viv." "Bye," she said with a laugh as she hung up. She stared at the phone for a second longer, smiling softly at the screen before getting out.