"Okay."After Nicole was done speaking, she went back to her desk and continued working. Kelly glanced at Harvey and flashed him a smile while giving him a thumbs-up. In return, he did the same, before centering his focus on the task at hand. Just like that, the office fell silent, with nobody getting bored enough to doze off. All that moved were the silhouettes of the three hardworking individuals.Nicole was thinking about what to write next, when Harvey's voice sounded out and startled her."Harvey Ellison, do you know that speaking that loudly in such a sudden way can scare others?" Nicole covered her chest with her hands and looked at Harvey with a glare.Harvey, realizing that his voice had frightened them, looked at Nicole with embarrassment.Nicole paused for a moment, before she looked at Harvey and asked, "Tell me, what is the matter?""There is something that I don't understand here. Can you come over and explain it to me?" Harvey asked.Although he understood most of
As Harvey stirred the coffee with a spoon in his hand, the image of Nicole leaning over in front of him appeared in his mind's eye.'Her curves are perfect, and I think I can still smell the fragrance of her lovely hair,' he thought.Kelly was already drinking her coffee while Harvey was still stirring his in a daze.Kelly at him in confusion and could not help but offer him a reminder. "Mr. Harvey, the coffee is done, isn't it?"Kelly's voice brought him back to reality. "Oh, yeah."Harvey took the coffee that he had brewed and drank it directly, forgetting that it was for Nicole.Seeing that, Kelly's eyes widened and she asked, "Mr. Harvey, isn't this cup for Miss Riddle?"Harvey's hand froze as he held the cup to his mouth.'Oh no,' he thought. 'Why did I even drink from the cup that I had made for her? What am I going to do now? Right!'Harvey spun around and looked at Kelly with a smile. "This cup of coffee has too much milk, so I won't be giving it to Nicole. I'll make a
"Kelly, did you see Harvey when he went out?" Nicole asked."No, I didn't see him." Kelly raised her head when she heard Nicole's voice.She had been working all this while, and so, she had not notice that Harvey was not in the office anymore.It was then that Harvey came sauntering in with some cakes in hand."Take a break and have a slice of cake." Harvey looked at Nicole and Kelly with a smile, after which he placed it down on Nicole's desk."You brought cakes for us?" Nicole stared at Harvey, her eyes wide.'Before this, he made me coffee because he wanted some,' she thought. 'It was a matter of convenience and I doubt he really cared, anyway. How is he so caring, all of a sudden?'Harvey knew that Nicole did not like him, and he was worried that Nicole would think that he was going an extra mile to show her that he cared, so he denied it. "Oh, I was going to go make myself more coffee, and I saw some cakes, so I took some back for the two of you to help with the fatigue."
"Are you talking about Ike?" Nicole narrowed her eyes and looked at Jared.Jared flashed her a smile and kept mum. As of now, Harvey and Kelly had already walked up to Jared."Mr. Johnston, I'm afraid you will be sending two more people home today," Harvey said to Jared."No problem, but I'll have to make you wait for a little while." Jared said, not intending to let Harvey ride in the same car as them.Harvey did not understand what he had meant, so he looked at Jared. 'What did he mean when he said that?'Harvey watched as Jared opened the door for Nicole, who entered.Then, Jared looked back at Harvey and Kelly, and said, "There will be another car coming to pick you up soon."After that, he got into the car and left, leaving Harvey and Kelly standing there in the parking lot."Mr. Harvey, Mr. Johnston probably meant that he will be sending another car to pick us up, right?" Kelly looked at Harvey."Yeah.""Then let's wait."Harvey watched as Jared drove away. 'You really
"I saw it!" Jared responded from outside the bathroom."Can you bring it in for me?" she asked.The thumping of Jared's footfalls followed, and soon, he was at the door knocking. "I'm coming in."Nicole scrambled to hide her figure in the water but she could not, as it was transparent without a layering of soap on top.Jared came right toward Nicole, but she quickly stopped him in his tracks. "Don't come any closer.""But how am I supposed to hand you the phone?" Jared looked into her eyes without squinting.Nicole looked around and knew he was right. "Try closing your eyes and slowly make you way over here."Jared breathed a sigh of resignation. "Is there anything else that I haven't seen before? You know, there's no need for you to be this prudish.""You...!" Nicole's face turned bright red. "No, I'm not allowing that. Come in and do as I've said.""Okay...Okay..." Jared closed his eyes and inched his way forward."Is this alright?" Jared asked as he moved closer. "Just a
"Roca Este," Nicole said these two words with complete clarity."Roca Este...," Jared murmured, staring at the TV and lost in thought.The next day, the weather was fine as Jared and Nicole sat, eating in the dining room."I'm going to fly home today," Jared said. "You must take care of yourself here.""If you're bored, you can get Kelly to come over and keep you company, but not Harvey. I don't want you getting involved with him," Jared instructed, not wanting Harvey to be anywhere near Nicole."Don't you worry," Nicole replied. "I know what to do.'"When are you going to come back?" Nicole looked at him, betraying the unwillingness to let him go."What's up? I haven't left and you're already missing me?" Jared looked at Nicole with a smirk."No, I just wanted to know so that I can get others to leave before you arrive," Nicole said just to get a rise out of him."It seems that you still have the temerity to harbor thoughts such as these." Jared went up to her and pinched her
"Nothing."Harvey turned around and continued to do his work the moment he noticed that Ike was sitting far away from Nicole. Ike, seeing that Harvey was also busy in front of the computer, walked over curiously."Are you sorting the data out, Mr. Ellison?""Yeah." Harvey uttered, refusing to elaborate further and continued working.Ike watched him for a while and noticed that there was an error. He wanted to tell Harvey about it, but once he was reminded of Harvey's character, he chose to maintain his silence."Come here," Nicole beckoned, prompting Ike to approach her."The current design is like this..." Nicole pointed at the screen, and Ike listened intently.Harvey, on the other hand, had been keeping an eye on the distance between Ike and Nicole. 'If he gets any closer to Nicole, I will not hesitate to make some noise to let her know about it.'Just when Ike was about to bump into Nicole, Harvey suddenly ducked. This caused Nicole and Ike to look at him at the same time.
Ike looked at Harvey. Had Harvey not come off as a jerk, Ike would have informed him of the mistake there and then.After Nicole had pointed it out, Harvey realized that the error was entirely avoidable. Perhaps he was just distracted because Ike was in the office, causing him to overlook the inaccuracies."It's done. Let's try again." Nicole restarted the program and centered her gaze on the screen.As expected, it worked according to plan and everything turned out just as they had wanted."This is my first time seeing such a unique design!" one of the designers remarked."Miss Riddle, we might need some examine and analyze it," Ike explained to Nicole."Sure, we'll discuss about it today. Don't hesitate to tell me if there's anything we need to improve upon. We'll get it done right away." Nicole looked at everyone with nothing sincerity in her eyes.Everyone nodded before they began their discussion with their eyes on the screen. With some of them expounding upon the areas tha
"Let's go, it's time to head down. The ceremony will start soon."The group laughed and talked as they left the bridal suite. Jared and his friends, Spencer and Preston, were also guided out by everyone.Now, only the family of four remained in the bridal suite, getting ready for their big entrance."Mommy, it's almost time. Let's get ready," Nolan said, pulling on Nicole's hand.Nicole gently patted Nolan and Lana's cheeks, whispering, "Okay."As she made to stand, Jared extended his hand toward her. Lifting her gaze, she caught Jared in a moment of elegance, his charm unmistakable. A smile bloomed on her face as she placed her hand in his.With a gentle tug, Jared drew her up, his touch tender against her palm.In a swift move, he pulled Nicole into his arms, his other hand circling her waist to pull her close.As Jared looked at Nicole, admiration shimmered in his eyes. "You look truly beautiful today," he remarked."Daddy, Mommy is beautiful every day," Lana chimed in, til
Nicole laughed off the debate between Lulu and June, saying, "Both are lovely. I'm happy with either."Both sets of jewelry were beautiful, and she felt that either would do."Exactly. Nicole will shine in anything," Cindy said, picking a set. "Let's go with this one."Lulu gave June a victorious look. "Told you this was the one."Cindy then suggested, "Why not wear this for the ceremony and switch for the reception? That way, we use both.""Great idea," June agreed, smiling at Cindy's suggestion.Nicole smiled. "Sounds perfect."With everyone agreeing, the stylist went ahead with preparing Nicole.Lulu watched Nicole, amazed by how calm she seemed. "Aren't you a bit nervous?" she asked. Lulu remembered her own wedding jitters.Nicole bit her lip, a hint of nerves showing. "I'm more excited than anything," she admitted.She had been looking forward to this day, ready to face the future with Jared with hope and joy."Just finished," the stylist announced, stepping back to adm
"Do you think I don't want to meet someone? I just haven't found the right person," Gary said somewhat resignedly. He had long regarded Nicole as just a friend."Why don't we just try the dates our families set up?" Ryder suggested, calm and collected. He figured since finding someone on his own wasn't working, maybe arranged dates could help. In their circles, it seemed like good matches were meant to be."Arranged dates don't sound great. You hardly know the person. Are we really okay with deciding to spend our lives together like that?" Preston wasn't too keen on the idea."Emery's doing pretty well with it, you know," Ryder said confidently. "I trust our families. They wouldn't set us up with someone terrible. They've probably made sure we'd be a good match."Gary thought it over. "You might be right. Our families aren't just trying to make deals; they want us to be happy."As Gary and Ryder seemed more into the idea, Preston was still unsure. "You guys are serious?""Why not
Jared held Nicole close and looked at her. "After we get married, we'll move to the estate," he said.Their future home would be just theirs.He thought it was good for Nicole to spend more time with her family since she hadn't been with them for five years. But they knew they would move to the estate later."Okay," Nicole said, nodding. She was happy Jared made the estate close to her family, so she was okay with moving.Jared gently touched her hair and kissed her...****Time flew, and soon it was Nicole and Jared's wedding day.From the morning, San Joto was alive with excitement. Everyone was talking about Jared and Nicole's wedding.Politicians, business leaders, close friends, and business partners all came to wish the couple well.The Riddles were busy welcoming the guests, making everything look amazing."Patricia, hurry up, Charlie's here," Ellar called out as he spotted Charlie. He quickly got Patricia to come and greet him. Max, hearing the fuss, came over too.C
"You really need to rest. You shouldn't work for the next few days. Stay home and rest. A bride has to look her best," Gloria said, looking at Nicole and making the decision for her."Bride!" Nicole was surprised because she hadn't talked about any wedding yet."Yes, now that everything is settled, it's time for your wedding with Jared," Gloria said, deciding firmly. She used to think it was best for the kids to decide for themselves, but after several delays, she felt waiting longer made no sense. The wedding should happen soon."I was thinking that too," Jared said. They had planned the wedding after solving the Everett problem, but then they found out Lawrence had hurt Nicole in the past, causing more delays. Now, with everything sorted out, they saw no reason to wait. The wedding was the next big step.Nicole looked at Jared and, with a smile, agreed, "Okay." Their wedding had been waiting for five years; it was time, with no need to wait any longer."That's so cool, I'm the f
Patricia felt a mix of reluctance and happiness as she prepared to part ways with Charlie.Jared glanced at Charlie and said, "It's about time for us to board." He tenderly held Nicole's hand and led her toward the boarding gate."I need to go through the boarding procedures too," Patricia said, biting her lip. "You must find happiness as well.""I will," Charlie assured her with a gentle smile, giving her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "You've grown up, too. You don't need to cling to me anymore. I believe Ellar will take great care of you."Patricia nodded, then, leaning closer to Charlie, she whispered, 'When Mr. Johnston and Ms. Riddle get married, make sure you bring my future sister-in-law back with you.' Caught off guard, Charlie playfully scolded her, "You little rascal."Doretta, standing not too far away, overheard Patricia's whispered words. Her cheeks turned even redder."Let's go," Patricia announced, then turned to Doretta, adding, "We'll meet again.""Goodbye,
Lying in bed with Nicole cradled in his arms, Jared whispered gently, "Sleep for a bit.""Mhm." Finally feeling at peace, Nicole smiled slightly, and she quickly fell asleep.As Jared listened to her soft breathing, his eyes softened with affection, and he too closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.The next morning, as the group got ready to head back to San Joto, Zane and Doretta came to say goodbye."I still have things to finish here, but I promise to be at your wedding," Zane said with a big smile."And I'll be there to wish you well, Nicole," Doretta added.Saying goodbye is always hard, but everyone knew they had their own journeys to continue."Great, we'll see you in San Joto," Nicole said with a bright smile."It's time to go," Zane said, knowing they couldn't wait any longer without risking missing their plane."I've got the paperwork," Patricia said, ready to help with the travel documents for Jared and Nicole. Then, looking at Charlie, she asked, "Need help with
Nicole was quiet, thinking about everything. 'If I hadn't remembered everything, maybe Lawrence and I could have stayed friends. But after finding out about the airport, it's impossible...'Not only had she regained her memory, but she had also learned about the airport incident. Lawrence had gone to great lengths to prevent her from returning to San Joto."Thanks for saving me before, but you also hurt me. We're even now," Nicole said calmly, looking at Lawrence like he was someone she didn't know anymore.Jared squeezed Nicole's hand gently. "Let's go."They decided to leave the rest to Zane and head back."Wait." Lawrence's voice stopped Nicole. He sounded almost like he was begging. "Please, don't tell Nolan about this."Nicole paused, then said, "I won't tell him. Not for you, but because I don't want Nolan to see how bad people can be."With that, Nicole walked away with Jared.Lawrence sat down, watching her leave, with mixed feelings."Let's go too," Patricia said to C
"Your robots don't work anymore," a voice said, sounding very pleased. Then, a person came out from behind the crowd, looking pretty proud of himself."Carl!" Nicole was shocked to see him. 'It's Carl!'"It's been a while." Carl smiled and waved at Nicole.Carl had come as soon as Zane told him about the problem. He couldn't just do nothing when Nicole needed help.He didn't expect them to act so soon, which is why he was a little late. But he was still in time to help. Carl was surprised by Lawrence's robots at first, but luckily, the weapons he brought, which he had been working on for years, stopped the robots. This was a big help to everyone."We really need to thank Carl; we would have been in big trouble without him," Zane said, feeling relieved.Zane had asked Carl for help, hoping it would make them more likely to win, but Carl ended up being very important."Thank you," Nicole said with a warm smile. It was nice to see an old friend again."No need to thank me. I'm jus