Stuck in you

Chapter 335 The Exhibition

"I have something for you," Jack said with a smile. He took out a business card and handed it to her. "I'm sure you'll like it."

When Rachel saw the name printed on the card, she exclaimed, "Oh my God! Why do you have her card?"

"She has a model exhibition tomorrow afternoon. I'll take you there," Jack announced. He smiled broadly at her, but Rachel's attention was focused on the card in her hand. She failed to notice the unusual brightness in his eyes. It had an excitement that seemed to anticipate the fulfillment of a plot.

"Okay," Rachel replied and nodded as if hypnotized.

For years, she had developed a hobby of piecing together models. It was a good hobby for doctors to have because it provided a platform to practice their accuracy, patience and the agility of their fingers.

Each doctor would have had an encounter with models more than once throughout their career. And some doctors had taken up model making as a hobby.

And Rachel was a good example of this.

There was a special bookcase in her study room that had a small area for thick medical books while the rest of the space was taken up by models that she had pieced together.

However, as work became busier, her hobby had to take a back seat to her profession. But each time there was a model exhibition, she never failed to attend. Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

And Jack knew about this very well. The card that he gave her was from a person that always had exhibitions for a limited number of people only. Rachel wanted to buy a ticket, but they were sold out before she could get one.

Jack stood in front of the door to her apartment for a moment longer and stared lovingly at Rachel. He pointed at the empty elevator that opened at her floor and seemed to wait for him. "Call me after work tomorrow. I need to head back home," he said in a gentle voice.

"Have you had dinner yet? Do you want to stay and have some with me?" Rachel asked in a timid voice.

It was the first time that she offered to have dinner with him. Jack's lips curled upward and formed a naughty smile. He gently shook his head at her offer. "Next time. There's something that I need to deal with tonight," he explained.

"Okay. Be careful on your way," Rachel reminded him. After Jack had left, there was a feeling of emptiness in Rachel's heart. It was like a void that couldn't be filled. It seemed like she was no longer used to not being with him.

Jack sat inside his car and paused. He looked up through the sun roof and saw the light coming from a particular window in the building that he knew very well. He then started the car and drove out of the community.

A short time later "Mom! I'm back!"

Jack called out excitedly as he entered the living room. Tracy turned to him and stared at him. "Why are you so noisy? How old are you? Have you forgotten how to speak softly?"

Jack stood behind her as he placed his arms over her shoulders. "Didn't you say last time that you never had a son like me? So, I want you to revisit my past as a kid," Jack he with a grin.

Not too long ago, Tracy had tried to persuade Jack to reconsider his stance on Celine, but he had interrupted her impatiently before she could even finish her words. He had pointed out that it was his own business and didn't appreciate her interference in his affairs.

Tracy had been saddened when she had heard Jack's words. She had pointed angrily at his nose and scolded him. "I am your mother. I've taken good care of you since you were a child.

How could you talk to me like that?"

Jack had felt apologetic and pulled out a tissue to wipe her tears. "Mom, Celine is not as great a woman as you believe she is. I had her leave the city for more than one reason."

"Then tell me, what other reasons do you have? Tell me all of them at once!" She had made it clear that she just wouldn't stop until she understood clearly all of Jack's reasons.

"It's just too complicated to explain it all in just a few words," Jack had replied to her. "Mom, I can handle it by myself. Don't worry about me too much. When it's time, I will introduce you to your daughter-in-law."

"You should understand my persistence, Jack. How old are you now? My friends' sons are all younger than you, but look at them. They are all fathers now. I'm the only one left who is yet to become a grandmother."

That was why Jack came today and acted like a child in front of Tracy.

Even though Tracy was angry at his son, she was still worried about him. She pulled him to sit with her on the sofa. She then pulled out several photos from a drawer of the TV cabinet and handed them to him. "Take a look at these pictures and see if there is a girl that you like."

"What do you mean, Mom?"

But Tracy's intentions were already obvious to Jack.

Coincidentally, Jonathan came downstairs from the second floor and heard what Jack and his mom were talking about. "Your mother has taken these photos from these girls' parents."

"They are all good girls with decent family backgrounds. Now, we don't really have any particular requirements. You just need to get married as soon as possible and have a baby,"

Tracy said. When she saw that Jack set aside all of the photos without even looking at them, her eyes widened in surprise. "What's wrong with you? You don't want Celine, who has been with you for so many years, and you don't even like to meet a new girl. Do you really want to be single all your life?"

"Mom, I already have a plan about my marriage," Jack said seriously. "I won't marry anyone else except Rachel."

"If you were truly destined to be together, then you wouldn't have divorced," Tracy replied with a frown as she shook her head gently.

"I'm sorry for what happened that time, Mom, but there is no way that I will look at any other girl. So, please don't this for me again," Jack said in a determined tone of voice.

"How dare you!" Tracy exclaimed. She pointed at Jack's nose, but she was too angry to say anything. At length, she decided to vent her anger at her husband, Jonathan, who sat leisurely on the couch while reading the newspaper as if nothing was happening in front of him. "Don't you want to say anything?"

"It's none of our business, really. Let him make his own decisions," Jonathan said lightly with a slight smile.

He placed the newspaper on the table and stared straight into Jack's eyes. "I'll give you two months. If you can't win her back, then you should listen to your mother and go on a blind date.

Is that alright with you, Tracy?" He shook his head helplessly and thought,

'A woman undergoing menopause is really not someone to be trifled with.'

Celia snuck into Rachel's office ten minutes before the end of shift. "Rachel, you seem to be in a rather good mood today,"

she commented.

Rachel nodded at her with a smile. "Yes, there is someplace I need to be later," she replied.

She stood up and took off her white gown. "I am leaving soon. Can you close the door for me?"

It was only after Rachel took off the white coat that Celia noticed the dress that she was wearing underneath. The waistline and the middle of the dress accentuated her beautiful curves, and this made her look elegant and feminine.

Celia covered her mouth and gasped, "Rachel, your dress is so beautiful! Are you going on a date with Jack tonight?"

"Yes," Rachel replied instantly. "I am going on an exhibition with him later. I can't wear something too casual. By the way, did you sleep well on your first evening after you moved there?"

Celia stretched herself and replied with a smile, "It's nice."

"Well, what about Marcus?" Rachel asked in a teasing tone.

Celia shook her head lightly. "I don't know what time he got back last night. He was still asleep when I went out this morning for work," she replied.

"Then..." But before Rachel could ask more, her phone rang. It was a call from Jack, who had arrived to pick her up.

Although there was a limit to the number of people that could attend the exhibition, there were still many people who crowded at the gate.

As soon as Rachel entered the hall, she was fascinated by the models placed inside the glass cabinets. She was familiar with some of the pieces and had even tried some of them,

but she had to admit to herself that she was nowhere near the skill level needed to piece together these models.

She walked around the hall and carefully observed each model. She then glanced at the time and was surprised that it was almost seven in the evening already. She turned to Jack and suggested, "It's already seven. Should we go?"

"Okay," Jack agreed with a grin.

But before they could turn to leave the venue, a woman's voice called out from behind them. "Jack!"

They both stopped at the same time and turned to the direction of the voice. A woman stared at them with a smile. Rachel suddenly felt that she looked somewhat familiar. A short moment later, her countenance suddenly changed and looked pleasantly surprised. "Cherry Xu?" she asked in disbelief.

She was the owner of the models on display.

Cherry Xu grinned sweetly at Rachel revealing her two canine teeth. "Hello, are you Jack's girlfriend?" she asked.

Rachel wanted to explain and was halfway to saying something when her hand was suddenly grabbed by Jack. He quickly turned his head towards her and whispered, "Please, do me a favor, okay?"

The words "I'm not" reached the tip of Rachel's tongue, but quickly retreated back into the unreachable areas of her throat without getting spoken.

Jack gently placed his arm around Rachel's waist and introduced her in an intimate manner. "This is Cherry Xu, my college classmate's sister."

"Nice to meet you," Cherry said to Rachel.

Rachel felt embarrassed as she reached out her hand to shake Cherry's outstretched hand. All of her attention shifted to the arm around her waist. All of her senses focused on that arm that felt unnatural to her, but so warm at the same time.

In the past, Jack introduced her to his friends in the same manner at banquets and gatherings, but she had never been as restless as she was at that moment.

She felt like she was a young girl who suddenly found herself in the arms of her idol.