Never Forgive Never Forget (Celeste and Philip) novel Chapter 161

Celeste stepped into the conference room.

Philip's gaze locked onto her the moment she appeared. Only when he saw that she looked perfectly fine did his clenched fists finally relax. He let out a silent breath of relief.

Celeste couldn't help but notice his obvious sense of release, though she had no idea what had prompted it.

"To what do we owe the honor, Mr. Robertson? Is there something urgent you need to discuss in person?"

Philip attempted a casual tone. "Nothing too pressing. The Robertson Group will be expanding into Asterwynn, and I thought it wise to meet some of the old families face to face."

As he spoke, he studied Celeste, thoughts tumbling over themselves in his mind.

He hadn't seen her come home in two days. Even her usual white Bentley had vanished from the garage. He'd started to worry something might have happened to her, which was why he'd used business as an excuse to drop by Duncan Group—hoping he might catch a glimpse of her.

Now, seeing her here, seemingly carrying on as usual, he felt his tension ease.

Celeste grew uneasy under his steady stare.

"If you want to get acquainted with the Asterwynn families, aren't there enough galas and charity dinners for that?" she retorted lightly.

"I'm more interested in learning about the Duncan Group itself."

Celeste couldn't imagine what about her family's business could possibly interest Philip. But she couldn't be bothered to figure out what he was really after. Instead, she signaled to Irma, "Since Mr. Robertson is so curious, why don't you bring over our company portfolio? I'll be happy to give him the full tour today."

"Of course." Irma's tone was all business as she left and soon returned with a thick stack of documents.

Celeste and Philip sat across from one another, formal and distant, nothing but professionalism between them.

Herbert, watching this from the side, was beside himself with frustration. Hadn't he told Celeste to work on building a connection with Philip? She ought to be making nice, not treating him like any other client.

Useless!

Unable to stand it any longer, Herbert jumped in, sliding into the seat beside Philip with a broad, ingratiating smile.

Rather than take offense, Celeste laughed softly. "And is it professional for a client to stare at me since the moment I walked in?"

If they were both going to be difficult, she may as well not bother putting on a show.

Philip was momentarily at a loss for words. He glanced at the security camera in the corner, suddenly hesitant to say anything personal. He didn't know where to start with Celeste. Should he talk about thirteen years, gone in a heartbeat? About how quickly she'd moved on? Or how abruptly she'd left?

His thoughts swirled, but the conference room was so silent you could hear the ticking of his watch.

Then Philip's phone rang—a special ringtone, the one he'd set for Viola.

Celeste's eyes flickered.

He answered quickly. "Viola?"

"Philip, the tutor you hired for me—Miss Lewis—just arrived. She really is as amazing as you said, an absolute virtuoso. I love her already. Thank you so much, I honestly don't know how to repay you."