Chapter 44 Expel

The atmosphere became tense and Jonas pretended to remain ignorant.

Although Melinda and Emily were scowling at each other, Jonas remained still.

Melinda was surprised. She had always thought that Jonas was on Emily's side.

"Jonas, it's been so long since I had spent time with you at your place. Do you mind if I stay here for a
while?" Emily asked, biting her bottom lip nervously.

Melinda narrowed her eyes and stared at Emily. Jonas was a little surprised too. He didn't expect Emily
would make such a request. Emily was intimidated by Melinda's presence. She didn't want Jonas to fall
for Melinda, so she decided to stay at Jonas's place and separate them.

"Jonas, the paparazzi have found out where I live now. I... err..." she trailed off and stopped when she
caught Melinda staring at her suspiciously.

Melinda understood that Emily had come with a plan. She wondered if the paparazzi knew why she
was staying here.

Jonas thought that Melinda was annoyed by Emily's presence and he groaned in frustration. Women
were always hard to deal with.

"Jonas, she has been your best friend since childhood. She can stay with us for a few days. Ask Gavin
to arrange a room for her," Melinda said, smirking at Emily.

Emily was shocked by Melinda's response. She was annoyed that Melinda didn't react and create
problems like she had expected her to. But she couldn't refuse the offer.

Although Melinda wasn't a stunning beauty, she had an amazing personality. She could effortlessly
mesmerize people with her charm.



Gavin stood in a corner and watched them talk. Melinda instructed him to arrange a room for Emily.

Emily's decision was spontaneous and she did not bring her belongings with her. Jonas bought new
things for her, which lit a spark of hope in Emily's heart.

Melinda usually dressed casually at home. Emily was surprised to see Melinda walk down in a light
purple gauze skirt and a pair of silver high heels during dinner. Her hair was tied into a loose bun as
tendrils of hair escaped from the sides.

Jonas's breath caught in his throat when he saw Melinda. She was looking elegant and graceful.

Nelson sat in the center, while Melinda and Jonas sat at one side and Yulia and Emily sat opposite to
them, casting awkward glances at each other. Queena had gone out to have dinner with friends.

Yulia was annoyed by Emily's presence. She had been frustrated ever since Melinda told her that Emily
was going to stay with them for a couple of days.

Emily was a beautiful woman. She was social and could effortlessly captivate people's hearts. Yulia
was insecure around her.

"Grandpa, living with strangers makes me uncomfortable."

Yulia frowned. Emily's smile was wiped off in an instant.

She knew that Jonas had an annoying half-sister but she was seeing her for the first time. It had only
been five minutes since they had met and Yulia managed to get on Emily's nerves already.

"Emily, Yulia fell ill recently and is having a hard time to recover. She didn't mean to offend you. I know
that you just want to catch up with your friend. You can stay here as long as you want," Melinda said,
smiling sweetly.



She glanced at Yulia who looked at her with wide eyes.

Emily was taken aback. It would be foolish of her to stay back after all the humiliation. But she wasn't
ready to give up. She didn't want Jonas to get close to Melinda.

"Emily, I know that you and my brother have grown up together. It's normal for you to stay at your
friend's place, but my condition is..." Yulia paused and gritted her teeth. "If you want to catch up with
him, I'll move out,"

she said, glancing coldly at Emily and back at Melinda.

However, Melinda was unfazed by Yulia's taunts. She shook her head and ignored Yulia.

"Emily, Yulia is getting better. Moreover, you are always busy and hardly have the time to go out. Why
don't you and Yulia take a trip around A City? There are many new places that you might have missed,"
Nelson suggested.

Nelson knew Emily's intentions. He wouldn't let anyone destroy the relationship between Jonas and
Melinda.

"Grandpa, I have a bad appetite. I'm sorry, I'll go back to my room."

Yulia put down the chopsticks and stood up to leave. Emily's cheeks turned red with embarrassment.

"I'm sorry to bother you. I'll go on my own." Emily bit her lip and smiled awkwardly.

But Jonas stayed with Emily, which made her happy. She wanted to use her last chance to make Jonas
go out with her.

"If you want to go, leave right away. Don't stand in my way," Yulia bellowed.

Melinda dropped her food and stared at Yulia in shock.



Anger resided in the pit of Emily's stomach. She had not been insulted before and resisted the urge to
punch Yulia in the face. But she needed to control her emotions. Otherwise, the image of a good
woman that she had tried hard to build, would crumble to pieces.

Melinda apologized and politely requested Emily to leave.

Emily realized that Yulia wouldn't eat at the same table with her. She had no choice but to leave. She
put down her bowl and chopsticks and stood up as her eyes welled with tears.

Melinda rolled her eyes when she saw the triumphant look on Yulia's face.

"That's enough, Yulia," Jonas said, glaring at her.

"Emily, there are some nice restaurants here. I'll take you there. We can go to the mall or a movie after
that." Jonas smiled.

He usually never had the patience to deal with emotional dramas but he couldn't see Emily like this.
Emily sniffed loudly as tears rolled down her cheeks. Jonas hesitantly wiped the tears with his thumb.

"I'm sorry, Emily." He smiled apologetically.

Jonas didn't want anyone in the Gu family to hurt Emily. Yulia had crossed her limits, so he quickly
apologized and made it up to her.

Emily was delighted to see Jonas stand up for her. Just when she was about to say yes, Jonas's phone
rang.

Although Melinda supported Yulia in the beginning, she thought it would be inappropriate for her to
interfere in their personal affairs. Seeing the dreadful look on Jonas's face, she guessed that it was bad
news.



"What's wrong?" Nelson asked as soon as Jonas hung up the call.

The call was from William and he wondered if something had happened at the company.

Emily's curious eyes raked across Jonas's face. "Emily, I need to go to the company. I'll ask the
chauffeur to drive you home," he said, running his fingers through his hair nervously.

Emily's face turned pale in an instant. She thought that she had managed to fix a date with him but the
phone call had ruined everything. Melinda arched an eyebrow and glanced at Nelson with suspicion.
She thought that Nelson had arranged William to call Jonas.

But Nelson's pensive face proved that she was wrong. She realized that something had happened in
the company.

"Grandpa, there is a problem in the finance department. I'm going back to the company to deal with it."

Jonas knew that Nelson would find about the issue sooner or later, and decided to tell the truth before
he heard it through someone else. The company was going through a crucial phase and Jonas would
be embarrassed if the company incurred losses.

Emily forced a smile and left the Gu's mansion. Once Emily left, Jonas hurried to the company.

The finance department played a pivotal role in any company. Soaring Group was dealing with a
financial crisis.

The news soon reached the shareholders who admonished Jonas for being careless.

As soon as Jonas arrived at the company, William explained the situation in detail. Jonas decided to
investigate the problem. He felt that he would get a better perspective if he handled the problem by
himself.



It was an unpredicted situation and Jonas had to handle it with care. He spent the entire night in the
office, gathering insights.

Melinda couldn't sleep well without Jonas around.

She couldn't help but think about what he was doing now. He would perhaps be skimming through the
documents with a sullen face. Melinda quickly snapped from the thoughts.

She shouldn't be doing this. She warned herself to stop wasting her time thinking about him. The
damage would be irrevocable if she fell for him again.

The next day, Melinda walked down with a tired face. Her eyes were bloodshot with dark circles. She
hadn't slept well last night. Melinda was used to having breakfast with Jonas. The dining table was
loaded with a variety of dishes but Melinda was not in the mood to eat.

"Mary, can you pack these up in meal boxes?" Melinda asked.

Mary was an old maid. Nelson had arranged her to take care of Melinda and Jonas. She was a
wonderful cook and Melinda had gained a few pounds because of her.

Mary nodded and packed the food.

Melinda arrived at Soaring Group with a lunch bag. Only when she stood at the door of the CEO office
did she realize what she was doing. She had brought breakfast for Jonas in an impulse and it was too
late to go back home.

"Mrs. Gu, Mr. Gu is inside."

William smiled and ushered Melinda into Jonas's office. Melinda took a deep breath, opened the door,
and walked in. She broke into a fit of coughing as the room was filled with smoke.



"Are you smoking or setting the building on fire?"

Melinda croaked and clamped her mouth. She quickly opened the ventilator and blew out a loud
breath.

Jonas knitted his eyebrows and stared at Melinda with a cigarette clamped between his fingers.

Melinda frowned when she saw his tired face. "I have brought breakfast. Wash your face and eat
something. I had asked Mary to pack what you like. Let me help you with the work, so don't worry."

Melinda had studied finance before and thought that she could help Jonas solve the
problem.


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