Under the crowd's expectant gaze, Xander asked, "I'm pretty curious. You are all directors of Amirate Corporation, right?""Naturally."Xander added, "Your annual dividends are tied to the company's revenue, right? Why are you all making things difficult for Ms. Lewis?"The directors started to feel a little awkward after Xander said that."Why would you say that, Mr. Fulton?" one of the directors asked. "Ms. Lewis is doing her best for Amirate Corporation, but none of you see it. Instead, you show disdain and make things difficult for her. It's like you're not even loyal to your own company."The directors' expression changed as soon as Xander said that. Tucker's face flushed as he said, "Mr. Fulton, what do you mean by that? We're all devoted to Amirate Corporation!"If Ms. Lewis had listened to us and invested in that plot of land in the city's southern area, it would have brought great profit to the company. "The project's revenue would also far exceed expectations. I dar
"Xander, do you think things would be better if I had chosen to invest in that plot of land?" Xander looked straight at the front and asked, "Why? Are you starting to doubt yourself?""Yeah. I just feel like what they said made sense. If—""Gracie, believe in yourself. The project isn't as simple as it seems."Grace's eyes lit up when she thought about what Xander had said to the directors. She leaned toward Xander and looked at him hopefully. "Do you have some sort of insider information?"Xander smiled and turned to look at her. He could see his own reflection in her eyes. "I don't have insider information, just my intuition. Don't you think this project is moving too fast? It's like someone is speeding it forward."A regular construction project would need some time to get approved. Why did this one get approved so quickly?"Grace gave it some thought and asked, "You do have a point. What could be wrong with this project?"She fell deep in thought. Xander shook his he
Xander was a good cook. He prepared a scrumptious spread in an hour. "Crab imperial, grilled scallops, clam chowder, barbequed ribs, salad, fish soup …" Grace named the dishes one by one. "You're so awesome, Xander! These are all my favorites." Xander had a bright smile on his face as he looked at her tenderly. Then, he walked up to her and took her hand. "Go wash your hands first."Grace moved quickly. She dashed to the bathroom to wash her hands. Then, she went to the kitchen to retrieve some cutlery to set on the table. Xander pulled a chair out for her. They sat facing each other. "Try it out and let me know how it tastes."Grace tasted every one of the dishes slowly and praised Xander. "It's too delicious, Xander."He put more food on her plate and said, "Don't hold back, then."Grace quickly stopped him. "No, I need to take a picture of this fancy spread first."She went to the living room to get her phone and then took several pictures of the food from different
Grace had a strong feeling of déjà vu. She frowned, but she couldn't seem to remember where she had seen this view before. Xander smiled silently when he heard her. He had bought this villa three years ago. He had gotten it after learning that Grace was getting married to Benjamin and going to live in Pamore.The renovation alone had taken two years. Then, it had been vacant for a long time. Xander had only started living here after he had moved his company's main businesses to Pamore and founded Futurelink Corporation."Maybe villas just have similar designs," Xander said vaguely. Grace nodded and stopped thinking too much about it. "That's probably it."They sat down. Then, Xander handed her a glass with some grape wine in it. "Give it a taste."Grace took a sip and looked into the distance. "The sky is pretty tonight. I can actually see the moon and stars. It feels like it's been a long time since I gazed at the sky."She couldn't help but feel slightly emotional. "I re
"Wake up, Gracie. It's your first day of school. Don't be late."Outside the bedroom, Victor had his bag in one hand and was knocking on the door with his other hand.Grace was still drowsy. Even though she had woken up, she was still lazing in bed. She pulled her blanket over her head.Then, she replied dazedly, "I got it, Victor."Victor looked at his watch and talked to the housekeepers for a bit. Then, he rushed to school. Grace finally got out of bed after the housekeepers had urged her several times. As expected, she was late to school on the first day."Grace Lewis, right? You're late on the first day of school. As a punishment, you have to sweep all the stairs."Grace took the broom and started to clean the stairs reluctantly. When she was about halfway done, Victor suddenly appeared out of nowhere. He was holding on to the railing above her. With a gloating expression, he said in a very annoying tone, "I told you to wake up so many times, but you didn't listen. And n
"It's not that. We're already nearing exams, so we need to use all the time we have to study!"Xander didn't even blink at that. "I can afford to lose a couple of minutes."As he spoke, he glanced at their surroundings. Seeming satisfied, he said, "It's pretty clean now. Let's head back."Victor was at a loss for words.Meanwhile, Grace seemed to have learned her lesson after being late to school the first time. She never turned up late afterward. In fact, she woke up half an hour before Victor every morning in the spirit of studying diligently.That day, Grace was dropped off at the school entrance in the morning by her driver.The moment she left the car, she saw her classmate, Magnus Titan.Magnus was a classic straight-A student. He was enthusiastic about his studies and eager to discuss academic issues with people like Grace.That's why Magnus immediately went over to her. "Did you finish the questions the math teacher gave us at the end of class yesterday, Grace? Can I
Grace was a girl of her word. Students in her grade finished classes before Xander's grade did. She went out to the school entrance to wait for him the instant the bell rang.Grace soon saw Victor, Caleb, and Xander cycling out. Victor waved hello to Grace first. "You're finally sensible enough to wait for your brothers before going home."Caleb said, "But the three of us have agreed to play games at the internet cafe before going back. Why don't you have the driver take you home first?"Grace's gaze landed on Xander, who stood behind them. "Who said I was waiting for you guys? Let's go, Xander!"Victor and Caleb shared a look of disbelief. "Wait. You were waiting for Xander, Gracie?"Grace hummed in assent. "I need to properly thank Xander for helping me out this morning. You two can leave first if there's nothing else."Victor turned to Xander and said warningly, "You promised to hang out with us at the internet cafe, Xander.""Yeah. We haven't finished our game yet!" Caleb ad
Grace nodded repeatedly and called the waiter so she could order two ice cream sets."Xander, try this! It's strawberry-flavored, and this is vanilla. This one's chocolate …"Xander held a spoon and took a bite as Grace watched him in anticipation. "How is it? Does it taste good?"Xander assented. "It's not bad."Grace was delighted. "I knew you would like it."Xander took another spoonful and ate it. "The flavor is very good. No wonder you like it so much.""Right? Not only does their ice cream taste good, they also have great advertising slogans."As she spoke, Grace found one of the ice cream boxes. There were a series of advertising slogans printed on it. "Among cars, it's the Rolls Royce, but ice cream has Häagen-Dazs."Oh, and this one: 'every moment with you is a moment with love. I'll care for you attentively at the most unexpected moments'."If you love her, buy her Häagen-Dazs."Xander was silent for a moment. Grace counted all the ice cream boxes in the set. Ther