Because I paused for a few seconds, Roland tightly grabbed my collar and enlarged the balls of his eyes while staring at me before he added, "Always remember you are a slave of Don Lucas' company, John. No matter how smart you are when it comes to business, you're just as poor and useless as you are. Did you get my point? You can never give Malia what her family wants." Then he let go of his grip and clapped my face. "See you back at Malia's new office." As soon as Roland disappeared from the rooftop, I screamed as louder as a bolt of thunder to let out my rage. I lifted my head to the sky and just realized that the rays of the sun were already etching my skin. But I simply ignored it and pulled the phone from my pocket and dialed Uncle Romnick's digits. "Aren't you supposed to be working by now?" Uncle Romnick asked the second he answered the call. "Get me the best attorney New Orleans can offer," I said in a sharp and firm tone. "And I don't care how much as
Don Lucas and I exchanged glances. His glance was telling me that I must lie in front of Malia to save their asses. Roland, on the other hand, remained his eyes on the surface of the table around us, guilty that he shared nothing to save his fiance. "For God's sake, gramps! You expected me to marry someone to make sure our company will not go to the bottom," she added. "but you are keeping things from me. How do you expect me to trust you, huh?" Malia went out of the meeting room and I believed she will never come back. Part of me wanted to follow Malia but I was preceded by my anger and hatred toward her, nailing my butt on the chair. Instead, Roland moved out of his seat and followed her like a puppy simply to prove to Don Lucas he was worthy to be part of their noble family. Without it, Roland was just a mere toy to his parents. Well, they deserve to be with each other considering they were both manipulative. "What do you think, Mr. Stevenson?" Don Lucas insi
After almost an hour of waiting outside, Cecelia finally came out of the airport. I told her that Uncle Romnick and I will wait for her at the arrival area but she refused when she want to explore the airport first all by herself. "I'm so sorry to keep you waiting, Mr. Stevenson," Cecelia said with a smile on her face. "It's just, I almost got lost in how huge the airport here is." "Just drop this formality, Cecelia." I smiled back before I opened the door of the car for her, then I introduced her to Uncle Romnick. Uncle Romnick, who finally met Cecelia for the first time, could not help but get stunned and dumbfounded. But I could not agree more with his reaction. For me, Cecelia was also a goddess. "How's my business so far?" I added right after we all settled in the car. I was supposed to be seated next to the driver's seat but Uncle Romnick immediately locked the door before I could hop in which also leaves me with no choice but to sit next to Cecelia in the backseat. U
Suddenly, the doors to the venue swung open, and a hush fell over the crowd. All of us pointed our heads to the main door with our eyes wide open, especially when we could see things clearly because the bright light from the sun blocked us from seeing things ahead. "Is that Mr. Stevenson?" The man seated behind me uttered in excitement. "Was Mr. Stevenson finally here?" "Wooh, I guess we could finally see Mr. Stevenson!" "Should we sit next to him?" "I should get his business card at least." "Do you think he is still single?" "Maybe I should ship him with my daughter no matter how he looked like." Those were the funny comments around me while looking at the man stepping foot into the door. Uncle Romnick, Cecelia, and I were simply laughing within ourselves to make sure no one gets offended. All I can see was that whoever that man is such made a grand entrance, making everyone turn their faces at him with excitement. But everyone's excitement disappeared as it was just the w
Right after that, the tour continued. Cecelia and I did not waste more of our time but enjoyed the best the night could offer. We experienced eating street foods, listening to live music, and even taking a riverboat cruise. On top of that, I also found something new about the woman I spent them with. Cecelia Spencer is such a lovely woman, easy to go with, and she always put a smile on her face every time I asked her something. And the experience was all worth it. The next morning, Cecelia and I walked into Don Lucas' office, hand in hand. It was part of our plan to pretend to be a couple. I could feel the sweat on my palms as we walked closer and closer to the meeting room. We had been practicing our act, but it was finally time to put it into action. As we entered the meeting room, I could see the confusion and curiosity on Don Lucas and Uncle Robin's faces. I knew we had to sell this, so I kept my grip on Cecelia's hand. We greeted them warmly and made our way t
Uncle Romnick and I looked at each other as if we had something in common, then back at Cecelia. There was a long pause before Uncle Romnick spoke, "That's... actually not a bad idea." I nodded. "But who and where should we hire someone to do the job? And how much was the probability this idea is going to work?" Before anyone could respond to my inquiry, my entire family appeared in the living area all of a sudden. Their unexpected appearance made me furrowed when as far as I could remember, I did not ask Uncle Romnick to invite my entire family back to the villa. What was more surprising by their unexpected visit was that all of them were carrying luggage bags and backpacks behind them as though they will be on a one-month vacation or more than that - to stay with me for good. If they could have bought with them their house's electrical pieces of equipment or utensils, I could have assumed they will be staying here with us forever. So, I glanced at Uncle Rom
Then, I filled Cecelia and Uncle Romnick in on our plan to meet up. "Remember Chris, the one that I fired from this company?" I said. "You mean, the Branch Manager Chris, who we met in the shopping mall and humiliated you?" Uncle Romnick asked, pointing to the main event of our encounter. I nodded. "I ran into him outside, and brought me such wonderful news." "But I thought you already fired him?" Uncle Romnick furrowed. "Why changed of heart?" he and Cecelia looked me in the eye without even blinking. "He did something big for me in return," I uttered. "Something that I cannot just ignore. And it worked somehow." "If it has something to do with the Andersons, then perhaps that's what changed your heart and mind." Uncle Romnick said, however, this time, in a cold tone as though he disagreed with it even if I haven't told them anything yet. Before everything gets awkward, Cecelia's cut us in and said. "That's great! I'm glad you are now thinking indifferentl
Don Lucas, who was sitting next to us, coughed all of a sudden. He quickly regained his composure and asked, "Why? Did something happen, Malia?" Malia glanced at Roland with her eyes sharp. "Well, my beloved husband didn't spend a single cent before and after our one-week honeymoon. His credit cards kept getting declined every time we pay something." The room went silent as we all caught up in the middle of absorbing Malia's shocking revelation. Then Cecelia and I exchanged glances, our mouths agape in disbelief. Not that I was trying to tease Roland. However, I couldn't help myself from bursting out laughing, finding the situation incredibly amusing. "I'm sorry for laughing," I said, trying to compose myself. "It's just that I find it hard to believe that a billionaire's son does not have anything on his credit cards. Perhaps he already maximizes his credit limits. It happens sometimes, right?" Malia suddenly gave me a stern look, clearly not amused by my reaction. But despite h