His Unveiled Passion novel Chapter 98

Zachary's words lingered in Tessa's mind like a spell, leaving her restless and uneasy.

Even until the next day when Tessa visited Stephen, she looked preoccupied.

"Tessa, what's on your mind?" Stephen asked.

She fluttered her eyelashes and turned her face away from him. "What… What's with Susan?"

He smirked meaningfully. "Are you jealous?"

She puffed her cheeks, pretending to be indifferent. "Of course not. You have never mentioned her before, so I was just curious."

Remembering how that woman had kidnapped Seline and even tried to stab her, she felt angry on top of her jealousy. "How did you attract such a crazy admirer? She's completely insane!"

Stephen gestured for her to get closer. "Tessa, come over here."

She obediently moved closer and sat by his bedside.

Taking her hand, Stephen looked at her seriously. "She was my high school classmate. She pursued me fervently back then, but I rejected her clearly. Later, she attended the same university as me and continued chasing me, but I never gave her any hope."

She lowered her eyes and pouted. "That's it?"

Stephen pinched her cheeks. "That's really it. I hardly spoke to her, and we never even exchanged contact information."

Tessa remained silent for a moment before asking, "Then why did she persist for so long? Ten years isn't short, after all. It's not mere days or months."

He chuckled helplessly. "How would I know? Everyone around me knows how indifferent I have been to her. We barely spoke a few sentences in ten years.

She leaned closer and huffed. "How many sentences are 'barely'?"

He laughed softly. "Maybe five or six sentences… "

"What could you possibly have to say in so many sentences?" Her tone turned unreasonable.

Seeing her jealous expression, Stephen found her utterly adorable.

His gaze softened, overflowing with affection. "Nothing much. She confessed a few times in high school, and I rejected her twice. After that, we rarely spoke."

"You really didn't feel anything for her?" Tessa asked skeptically. "She's pretty, after all."

"Nope," Stephen said firmly, gazing at her intently. "There's already someone in my heart. There's no room for anyone else."

She feigned ignorance. "Someone else? Who's that?"

He gleamed with amusement. "Who do you think?"

She mumbled vaguely, "How would I know if you don't tell me?"

In Stephen's eyes, her sulking was pure coquettishness, melting his heart entirely. He couldn't resist.

With a smile, he said, "There's no one else but you."

Tessa turned her face away, avoiding his gaze. "She confessed to you in high school. I was so young back then."

He couldn't have liked her at that age, could he?

Stephen explained, "I didn't think about dating in high school."

Hearing that, Tessa grew curious. She looked into Stephen's eyes, her almond-shaped eyes sparkling. "When did you start liking me?"

He said, "At first, I only saw you as a little sister. I'm not sure when it changed."

She pressed on. "Not even an approximate time?"