Chapter 140 - The Qins Are A Bunch Of Jerks

"My surname is Qin, Qin Dion. I'm sure that gives you enough answer why we shouldn't be sitting at the same table, Miss De Luca."

There was nothing but silence between them. Devon raised her brows, a bit taken aback by the sudden shift of Dion's mood. She had never seen him like that; now he truly had some sort of resemblance to Lewis' aura.

Gabriella pressed her lips together. "You hate me because your brother and my brother are pressing each other's nerves?"

"How I wish they were just simply pressing each other's nerves." Dion scoffed, clicking his tongue as he leaned forward, arms against the edge of the table. "You people came in here thinking it's your territory."

"But your brother is at fault here." Gabriella frowned as her expression slowly grew cold. "It's not like we're here uninvited. You people want us here and to show courtesy and sincerity and respect, we're here. But your Qin Empire lacks ethics and cut us midway. If the situation is reversed, the Qin Empire would do so much worse."

"Blame your brother."

"No, blame your brother." Gabriella's tone was firm, staring at Dion straight in the eye. "My brother had done nothing wrong but work hard for that project. But your brother just went off and practiced his authority."

A sharp exhale escaped Gabriella's nose as she faced Devon. She sported a forced smile as she took out something from her purse.

"My best friend, I'm sorry for ruining the mood. Your friend and I can't be at the same table, but I will be pleased if you keep in touch." She handed Devon her calling card, still smiling. "Let's eat some other time, alright?"

"Gab..."

"It's fine." Gabriella waved as she stood from her seat. "I don't think I can last in this kind of treatment from a stranger."

"Tch." Dion clicked his tongue as he watched Gabriella speak to Devon. When the former walked three steps away, she took a deep breath and walked back towards Dion.

"You're such a jerk, you know that? After meeting you, I'm now convinced my brother did nothing wrong. It's good that the negotiation is canceled. The Qin's are a bunch of jerks." Gabriella huffed before walking away with her head held high.

Bella and Mike pursed their lips together as they looked at each other. They knew Dion for a long time, but they had never seen this unyielding side of him. Meanwhile, Devon gazed at the calling card before raising her gaze to Dion.

She had questions in mind, but Devon thought she would rather ask Lewis about it. If Gabriella was Quentin's sister, that only meant Lewis and Quentin were having a fight she didn't know about. 

"Must you be so harsh on her?" asked Devon, catching Dion's attention. 

"Of course!" he asserted, letting out a sharp exhale. "My brother will not mess with them if they didn't do something wrong. If only I know, she must've approached you knowing your relationship with my brother. I hate people like her."

"But I'm the one who approached her."

Dion let out a sigh. "Sis, just because you started a conversation, doesn't mean it's not planned."

"Dion, whatever problem their company had with your company, you shouldn't have treated her like that." Devon frowned, as it seemed Dion's mind wouldn't change. Not that she was siding with Gabriella, but she felt sorry for her.

"Anyway, let's not talk about it and continue eating." She proposed, but to no avail. The mood was already ruined, so after half an hour, they bid farewell to each other. 

Dion drove Devon back to their place while Bella and Mike went to drive themselves. As the two drove back home, Devon could not help but glance at Dion in the driver's seat.

"She was kind, you know?" she broke the silence, but Dion kept his eyes on the road.

"Even if she is nice, their family kept messing with my brother. I can't be nice to people who are threatening my brother."

"Threatening?" her brows furrowed, gazing at his side.

Dion bit his tongue, clenching his teeth as he sucked air through his gritted teeth. He didn't mean to tell her about it, as Lewis didn't want to worry her. Also, it was not like it was the first time Lewis received such threats.

"It's nothing, sis. Just some messy feud between companies, blocking each other's paths, dropping standard prices, snatching business partners, buying stocks, and so on — it's normal." He explained, keeping it vague.

"Are people trying to kill Lu?"

"What? Of course not!" Dion gasped as he nearly stepped on the brake abruptly. "The De Luca aren't fools to go to such extent, but they've been a headache. I said they were threatening my brother, but not like threatening to kill him."

"How complicated." Devon pursed her lips into a thin line, turning her head to the window. "If Lu and the De Luca were on good terms, why did Lu suddenly take his words back?" 

"Well... maybe because they're shitty people?"

"Lu is not the type of person who will miss an opportunity to expand his wealth just because of a terrible personality," she murmured. 

Devon had been very interested in Lewis' line of work. She sometimes read the documents he was reading at night or just ask him questions. Because of that, she realized Lewis had a different mindset in doing business. 

"My brother doesn't like working with people he doesn't like." Dion cleared his throat while Devon gaze at him suspiciously. 

"Do you know what makes Lu dislike the De Luca?" 

Dion cast her a brief look, shrugging. "I don't know? My brother might be a jerk to other people and a tyrant, but I know he always has reasons behind his every decision."

Her mouth parted, but no words came out. Devon wasn't a child not to notice that Dion was hiding something. Whatever it was, she figured he wouldn't tell her, even if it killed him. So, instead of probing more, she kept quiet throughout the ride back home.

******

"Thank you and be safe on the road." Devon lowered her head as she gazed at Dion, who was in the driver's seat. The latter only saluted and nodded before Devon shut the door. 

On her way to their place, Devon walked slowly while thinking about Gabriella. She knew Gabriella was still Quentin's sister. Also, back in the hotel, Quentin approached them, but Lewis sent them away. She didn't ask back then because she was so distracted.

"So Lu knows Quentin..." she murmured, sighing deeply. "... I think I know the reason Lu suddenly left them hanging."

It wasn't a hard riddle not to make logical guesses. Still, she wanted to hear Lewis' side of the story.

'What are you going to do if the reason is you?' her mind inquired, causing her to stop in her steps as she gazed at the front door. 'You met Gabriella. She's not like you. Her family loves her and seems like she lived a completely different life than you.'

"That's right." Devon sighed once again, biting her lower lip. Having this fear to Quentin, who simply shared the same face as Quentin back in her world, was sort of unfair. 

The modern Quentin did nothing wrong — at least, to the soul inside this body. Still, whenever she thought about facing Quentin, her body just uncontrollably tremble.

Instead of going inside, Devon just stood in front of the door for a long time. Her mind kept bouncing back and forth, not knowing which was right or wrong. She couldn't deny the fear etched deep into her bones, nor could she convince herself to move on. It wasn't as simple as that.

*****

Meanwhile, Lewis kept checking the time, as it was already getting late and Devon wasn't still home. At first, he thought that maybe the four of them grabbed a drink, but Dion would definitely update him if they did. 

"I should just call him," he murmured, dialing his brother's number, which was immediately answered.

"Where are you?" he asked without going in circles.

"Ge, I swear I told her nothing!" Dion expressed defensively, making Lewis furrow his brows.

"What did you tell her? And where are you?" 

"I just arrived at my place, and it's nothing."

"Where is she?"

Dion cocked his head to the side. "I already dropped her off at your place. She's still not there?" 

Lewis responded no more as he hung up. He sprung up from the couch and rushed outside, heart pounding. If Dion said he had already dropped her off, and he was already home, where did she go? Dion had to drive for an hour from their place to his. 

"Where did she..." he trailed off as soon as he opened the door. His brows furrowed as soon as his eyes landed on Devon standing outside.

"Love, why are you here outside?" he asked worriedly, opening the door as he stepped outside.

"Did you hate them because of me?" Devon queried without beating around the bush, baffling him for a moment. "Quentin. Did you do it because of me?"

"Dev." He sighed as he realized what Dion was talking about. "It's cold out here. Let's talk inside…"

"He had done nothing wrong." Devon gazed down. "The Quentin I was talking about was my brother, Giovanni Quentin Kaiden Romanov.. That's the man I abhor, but he's not in this world, Lu."