Chapter 186: gentlemen’s club II

Chapter 186: Chapter 186: gentlemen’s club II

Christopher’s phone suddenly vibrated against the table.

He glanced down.

His expression changed almost imperceptibly.

A new message.

From Vivienne.

For a moment, he simply looked at her name.

It was almost amusing.

They had just been talking about her.

About Vivienne.

About Damian.

About whether Damian actually liked her.

And now she was the one messaging him.

Christopher unlocked his phone.

Vivienne: How was your meeting with your friends?

He read the message once.

Then again.

His gaze briefly lifted toward the others.

They were still talking among themselves, the conversation having moved on from Damian and Vivienne to the Sports Festival.

Christopher looked back at his phone.

Should he reply?

There wasn’t really a reason not to.

He hadn’t told her where he was going when they’d spoken earlier. He had only mentioned that he was meeting some friends.

She was simply asking how it was going.

Nothing more.

Still, the thought of Damian returned.

Christopher had no desire to become involved in whatever was happening between him and Vivienne.

From what he’d seen, Damian clearly seemed interested in her.

But what did that have to do with Christopher answering a message?

It wasn’t as though Vivienne had told him she was with Damian.

Quite the opposite.

Judging by everything Christopher had observed, she didn’t seem to regard Damian as anything more than a friend.

At least, not yet.

And if that was the case...

Why should he avoid talking to her?

He wasn’t doing anything wrong.

Christopher looked at the message again.

Fine.

He picked up his phone and typed.

Christopher: So far, so good. We’re just talking about the Sports Festival.

He sent it.

Then set his phone back down.

Christopher tried to return his attention to the conversation around him.

It didn’t quite work.

A small part of his attention remained on his phone.

Wondering what she would say next.

--

Vivienne’s phone vibrated.

She immediately picked it up.

Her eyes went straight to the screen.

Christopher: So far, so good. We’re just talking about the Sports Festival.

Her face brightened.

He’d replied.

She smiled at the screen.

It only took about a minute or two.

She found herself inexplicably pleased.

She read the message again.

So far, so good.

At least he didn’t seem bothered that she’d texted him.

Vivienne thought for a moment.

There was something she’d been wondering about.

She’d noticed a pattern.

Whenever she happened to talk to Christopher, he seemed to be somewhere other than the university.

Lunch?

He’d been outside campus.

After his club?

He was meeting friends.

Now he was still out.

What did he usually do?

She typed.

Vivienne: What do you usually do with your friends at this time?

She stared at the message for a moment.

Then sent it.

The reply didn’t come immediately.

Vivienne waited.

Then her phone buzzed.

Christopher: It depends. Most of the time, we just talk.

A second message followed.

Christopher: Sometimes we go somewhere nearby. Nothing particularly exciting. Just socializing.

Vivienne smiled.

So he really did have a normal social life outside the university.

She found that oddly interesting.

She typed again.

Vivienne: Where do you usually go?

She paused.

Then another thought occurred to her.

He was with his friends.

Maybe she was keeping him from them.

Vivienne quickly added:

Vivienne: Sorry. Am I disturbing you?

She sent it.

Then stared at the screen.

She hoped she wasn’t.

She didn’t want him to think she was being intrusive.

But at the same time...

She really did want to know more about him.

She rested her chin lightly against her hand.

Waiting for his reply.

--

Christopher’s phone vibrated again.

He glanced down.

Vivienne: Sorry. Am I disturbing you?

He stared at the message for a moment.

Then glanced around the table.

His friends were still talking, completely occupied with their own conversation.

He looked back at the screen.

A faint smile touched his lips.

She was being considerate.

He typed.

Christopher: No. You’re not disturbing me.

A moment later, another message followed.

Christopher: My friends are busy arguing about the Sports Festival anyway.

Vivienne smiled.

Vivienne: Really?

Christopher: They’ve been doing that for the past half hour.

She could almost picture it.

Vivienne tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

Vivienne: Then what kind of places do you usually go?

Christopher paused.

That was a slightly more personal question.

Not inappropriate.

Just curious.

He considered giving her a vague answer.

Instead, he typed:

Christopher: Usually somewhere quiet.

Christopher: There’s a gentlemen’s club near the university. Some of us go there occasionally.

Vivienne blinked.

A gentlemen’s club?

That sounded exactly like something Christopher would do.

She smiled.

Vivienne: A gentlemen’s club?

Christopher glanced at the message.

Christopher: Yes.

Christopher: It’s less exciting than it sounds.

Vivienne laughed softly.

Vivienne: Somehow I don’t believe that.

Christopher’s mouth curved.

He could almost hear her saying it.

He looked down at the phone again.

Christopher: You’d be disappointed.

Vivienne immediately typed:

Vivienne: Now I’m curious.

Christopher stared at that for a second.

Curious.

She was curious about him.

It was a simple thing.

Yet he found himself liking the sound of it.

He leaned back into his chair.

Christopher: Maybe I’ll tell you about it sometime.

Vivienne’s eyes widened slightly.

Maybe I’ll tell you about it sometime.

She read the sentence twice.

It wasn’t an invitation.

Not exactly.

But it sounded like one.

Her smile grew.

Vivienne: I’d like that.

She hesitated.

Then added:

Vivienne: Are you staying there for long?

Christopher looked at the time.

His friends were still settled comfortably around the table.

Christopher: Probably another hour.

Vivienne nodded to herself.

An hour.

She wasn’t sure why she needed to know that.

Maybe because she liked knowing where he was.

Maybe because now she had a better idea of what his life looked like outside the university.

She looked down at their conversation.

It was strange.

They had only met properly once.

Yet somehow, talking to him through a screen felt easy.

Perhaps because she didn’t have to worry about what to say.

She could simply ask.

And he answered.

She smiled.

Then another thought occurred to her.

Tomorrow was Saturday.

She already knew she had the Foundation’s volunteer work scheduled.

For first-year students, volunteering was mandatory.

After that, however, it became voluntary.

Which made her wonder—

Did Christopher still participate in volunteer work?

She hadn’t thought to ask.

Maybe she could ask him tomorrow.

Or perhaps—

No.

She shouldn’t bombard him with questions.

She smiled faintly at herself.

Still, she was curious.

What did Christopher Archibald actually do when he wasn’t in class?

She glanced at their conversation again.

There was still so much she didn’t know about him.

And somehow, she wanted to know.

She looked at the time.

He was still with his friends.

She probably shouldn’t keep distracting him.

Vivienne: Anyway, I should probably let you get back to your friends.

A moment later, Christopher replied.

Christopher: All right.

Then, after a brief pause:

Christopher: Enjoy the rest of your evening.

Vivienne smiled.

Vivienne: You too.

She sent the message and finally set her phone down.

For a moment, she simply stared at it.

Then a small smile returned to her face.

She had learned where he went.

What he did with his friends.

And even a little about what his life was like outside the university.

It wasn’t much.

But somehow, it felt like progress

--

Across the room, Christopher set his phone down.

He looked toward his friends.

Marcus was in the middle of making some exaggerated argument about the tournament.

Christopher listened for a few seconds.

Then his eyes drifted briefly toward his phone again.

He didn’t know exactly what was happening with Vivienne Beaumont.

He didn’t know where their conversations were going.

And he certainly didn’t know what Damian Blackwood intended to do about it.

But one thing was becoming increasingly clear.

He was curious.

And curiosity, Christopher knew, was rarely a harmless thing.