"Avery," Eason called her name gently. "Do you need anything?"Avery stood up straight, feeling a bit awkward. "I was looking for Summer…""What do you need from her?" Eason interjected quickly.Lucian raised an eyebrow and gave Eason a knowing look.Avery hesitated, thinking it didn't matter who she borrowed the money from. Finally, she said, "Mr. Lavigne, I… I need to borrow some money.""How much?""200 dollars.""Do you need cash, or should I transfer it to you?" Eason agreed readily without further questions.Avery, feeling embarrassed, mumbled, "Either is fine."Eason took out his phone, and after a few taps, Avery's phone chimed. "Done.""Thank you, Mr. Lavigne.""You're welcome," Eason replied calmly. "If you need more, just ask."Avery remained silent. She didn't know how to respond to that, so she simply thanked him again and went to pay.Eason watched her retreating figure, his eyes deep with thought.Lucian stared at him for a while and then said, "I find this
"Alright then." Summer nodded.The car sped down the road until Lucian and Renna saw Eason and Summer walk into the villa. Lucian turned to Renna, asking, "Do you believe me now?""No way!" Renna said, fuming. "This is definitely their trick! Let's stay here and watch. I'm sure that woman will leave in the middle of the night!""Renna, there are plenty of fish in the sea. You don't have to be fixated on one man only," Lucian groaned. Spending the night in the car sounded like torture.Renna's resolve was firm. "You can go home if you don't want to stay. I'll wait here alone."Lucian had no choice but to stay and wait through the night with her. He couldn't just leave her there alone.…Eason led Summer to a room on the second floor inside the villa. He opened the door and said, "You'll stay here tonight."Summer entered, full of anticipation, but she found the room new and untouched. There were no traces of Eason's presence at all. It was clearly a guest room.Though it was a
"Wrong room?" Laura was skeptical. "I'm sure you did it on purpose! You're sneaking into someone else's room in the middle of the night and naked under the covers—who knows what you're up to?""I didn't... I went to the wrong room..." Summer broke down, looking aggrieved.Seeing her like this, Eason couldn't bring himself to blame her further. "Grandma, it's my fault. It's Summer's first time here. It's normal for her to be unfamiliar with the layout."Laura scoffed, "You brat! Don't bring just anyone home!"Summer's eyes flashed with resentment as she bit her lip. One day, she would drive this old woman out and show her who the real mistress of this house was!After calming Laura down, Eason turned to Summer and said, "It's late. You should get some rest."Summer looked up with tears brimming in her eyes. "Mr. Lavigne, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to...""I know." Eason pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just go rest.""Okay." Summer stood up. As she passed by Eason, she su
The fact was that Eason was not the least bit interested in Summer. Summer didn't turn him on.When he went downstairs, Summer was already setting the breakfast table. She turned and smiled as soon as she saw him. "Mr. Lavigne, breakfast is ready."Eason glanced at the table and then sat down. "Did you make all this?""Yes. I saw some ingredients in the fridge, so I whipped something up. I hope it suits Mrs. Lavigne Senior's taste and yours," Summer said, handing him the cutlery.Eason took a few bites. "It tastes good."Summer beamed at the compliment, but her smile quickly faded when she noticed Laura approaching.Eason had only eaten a few bites before putting down his fork. "I'll head to the office now. I'll be back late tonight."Summer followed him to the foyer. "Can I go with you?"Eason looked at her. "You've already resigned. It's best if you don't come to the office.""But I'm afraid Mrs. Lavigne Senior won't like me," Summer said. In reality, she found Laura difficu
Avery panicked and hurriedly ducked under the table to avoid being seen. In her haste, she accidentally knocked over a cup of water, spilling it across the table. Some even dripped onto her hair and collar.Footsteps approached, and a pair of men's leather shoes appeared in front of Avery. Eason's voice sounded above her, "Avery?"Avery had no choice but to stand up. She sheepishly hid the bread behind her, blushing, "Mr. Lavigne."Eason's gaze lingered on her collar briefly. "Why aren't you eating lunch?""I... I'm not hungry," Avery lied, but her stomach betrayed her with a loud grumble. She quickly covered her stomach with her hand, her face turning crimson.Eason glanced at her stomach. "Come to the cafeteria with me. There are a few key points about Mr. Wagner's project that I need to run through with you.""Okay." Avery discreetly hid the unfinished bread in her drawer and grabbed her notebook and pen before following him.Eason's presence in the staff cafeteria caused qui
"No way! Does Mr. Lavigne have a thing for a newbie like Avery?""You never know. Who doesn't like college students? Maybe he's into innocent girls.""But isn't there a rule against office romances?""Oh, come on! How could he be bound by that? Mr. Lavigne made those rules to keep others in line, not himself."Violet didn't join their conversation. Instead, she snapped a picture with her phone and sent it to Summer. She was so used to venting to Summer that she couldn't break the habit even though the latter no longer worked there. After sending the picture, she quickly typed out a long message.Summer's face twisted with jealousy after reading the messages. Instead of replying to Violet, she called Eason directly.Eason's phone rang, and he walked to the window to answer it. "Hello?""Mr. Lavigne, are you coming home for lunch?""I've already eaten at the office. Is something wrong?""Oh, nothing. I just wanted to check if you'd eaten. I thought you'd come home for lunch, s
The car window lowered, revealing Eason's face. "Avery? Why haven't you gone home yet?"For some reason, every time Eason said her name, Avery always felt a lingering tenderness in his tone. She suppressed the strange emotion and spoke up, "Mr. Lavigne, were you aware of the photo in the company group chat?""You mean the photo someone took of us having lunch in the cafeteria?""Yes.""I saw it. What's the matter?" Eason looked at her delicate face. "Is it bugging you?"Avery felt embarrassed. After all, he was the company's CEO and wasn't bothered by it, so how could an insignificant employee like her be bugged?"No..." Avery shook her head. "I was just worried it might bother you.""No need to worry about it. The truth will speak for itself," Eason said.With that, Avery's mind cleared. Indeed, the truth would speak for itself. The more one tried to prove oneself, the deeper one would fall into the trap of self-justification. Over time, rumors would naturally dissipate, s
"Alright." Avery smiled. "I want you to break up with Harry.""Aves, even if I did break up with Harry, you two still won't be together..." Wendy trailed off."What's wrong? You won't do it?" Avery didn't give her a chance to continue. "Then drop the act. Your acting is terrible, and I don't enjoy watching it."Avery changed her clothes, grabbed her bag, and walked out without caring about Wendy's darkening expression.Wendy stomped her foot and threw her breakfast into the trash. "What's with the fucking arrogance, Avery? You'd be done for once I get into Lavigne Corp.'s CEO's office."…On the subway, Avery calculated the remaining balance from several cards, which added up to only a few dozen dollars. She wondered if she should ask her sister for 500 dollars since she didn't want to owe Eason anything. She preferred to pay him back as soon as possible to ease her mind.After mentally preparing herself, Avery finally mustered the courage to call her sister.The phone was soon