Maia remained calm and flashed Ralph a smile, “I’m merely expressing concern and trying to get to the bottom of the case. After all, your sons stole valuable possessions from my house. Never have I thought they’d start to compare and fight over the quantity and value of the antique paintings in the middle of the theft. It truly baffles me.”The shareholders were dumbfounded. All they knew was that Freddy and Nobel went to the Larkin Manor to steal valuable possessions, but they weren’t aware that the two of them fought over such matters.“Don’t get too excited, uncles. Let’s all chill out. I don’t mean any ill intentions. I just want to find out how both of you educate your sons. After all, they’re truly something different. I’d love to learn from your mistakes and avoid using the same way to raise my child.”Maia might be smiling, but her words were as sharp as the thorns on roses, concealed but deadly. It stung both Virgil and Ralph.“Stop avoiding the elephant in the room, Maia!
“He’s right, Cedric. We have high hopes for Maia. It’s just that too many of the top management personnel resigned and then there’s the fact that we lost the piece of land in Zirconia District. We have to ask Maia about all of these.”“We fully intend to ask her nicely, but the fact is that we didn’t even have the chance to do it.”“Hear, hear.”“Ralph and Virgil had been drilling her with questions, after all…”All of these shareholders were cunning and crafty. Who among them didn’t know about Cedric’s capability in the industry? Who among them didn’t know that he was the one who led HL Corporation out of its worst period and into the peak of success? Here he was, in the flesh!Age was the only advantage they had over him. They were smart and knew their place. They might be older, but they know better than to offend him! That was why they put both Ralph and Virgil on the spot!“Heh.” Cedric sneered and shot a glance at both of his uncles.Fear gripped their hearts and they imme
Maia reacted fast and flashed a smile at the shareholders. Then, she shook her head lightly and said politely, “You’re too kind, everyone. It’s my duty. We share the same goal and that’s to build up HL Corporation. The moment I gained your trust and became the CEO, I made up my mind I won’t let you guys down. And I intend to keep my word.”Cedric’s lips curled into a smile. Maia did a good job with her speech.Being the cunning men that they were, the shareholders knew she merely gave a speech for formality’s sake. They weren’t being honest with her and she helped keep up their pretense in return. She was doing them a favor.With Cedric around, the shareholders knew that they had to watch where they stepped. Ralph and Virgil were the best examples of how it’d end for those who didn’t. If he could kick his own uncles out of the conference room for her sake, then who was to say that he wouldn’t do the same to them?Watch where they step and they could hold on to their seats on the bo
“Do you think I returned too late, Skyler?”Skyler wasn’t just Marcus’s assistant, he was also his best friend. He was one of the people who had been there from the beginning when Marcus first started to this day, bearing witness to his incredible achievements.“I see how much effort you put in all these years, Marcus. You took over a branch company of the Tate Group in order to get your mother’s approval so that you could return to Prismara as early as possible. To that end, you’ve only slept three to four hours on a daily basis.”“What good did it do? I was too late.” Marcus smiled bitterly, “I started as a low-level employee and climbed my way up to top management. That fateful day, I bought her favorite candy for her. “However, I got the news that she was going to marry Cedric. It crushed me. I was heartbroken, but I thought to myself I have to keep making an effort and return to Prismara, even if it meant all I could do was meet up with her.”His smile grew more bitter.“Th
“Are you calling this crappy bunny an effort?” He said disdainfully.“He made it himself. How’s that not an effort?”“I peeled shrimps. Does that count as an effort?” He was talking about the shrimp he peeled for her.She nodded. Of course, it counted.“Well, then. Why did you tell me you can’t finish them earlier?”She was speechless.Not long after, the entire company knew about Cedric leading Maia to the staff cafeteria. One of the employees was quick to spread the word. She posed as ‘the informant’ and made a post on the internet, attaching a blurry picture.The keyword, “Cedric peeling shrimps” made the trending search and overtook the top place from the search about HL Corporation!The entire internet was having intense discussions about it.“Can this picture be blurrier? Anyway, it did nothing to discount the fact that Cedric and Maia are stunning! Let’s cheer for the warring couple! Hip hip hooray!”“Is the informant still okay? Is she fired? I can’t believe she poste
Maia frowned as she asked, “You’re not in a good mood?”“That’s right.”“Why are you always so easily jealous?”“Who wouldn’t in the face of his wife’s suitors? “Suitor?” Maia laughed and shook her head as she heard him. “How could Marcus be your enemy? He treats me like a younger sister. He’s very good at crafts and knows I love rabbits. That’s why he sent me those rabbit bags. Not every man is an enemy.” Cedric just smiled at Maia for being so sure about her words. Maia continued to explain, “Moreover, Marcus’s mother doesn’t like me. When Marcus brought me home to play one day, I overheard his mother telling their butler that I don’t behave like a lady. “And that I wasn’t good enough for her son. She wouldn’t have allowed Marcus to hang out with me if not for my mom. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I don’t like her either. She’s just overthinking, as Marcus had always thought of me as a sister.“She’s also quite a scary woman. She’s very strict with Marcus as well. I remembe
“Right, I was with him the whole time.” Fernando nodded and started to recall what had happened. “I had eaten breakfast and lunch with Mr. Hans. That’s it! It must be it! It’s the box of cream puffs from Treats Galore! Mr. Hans had been asking to get him some cream puffs.“He had even threatened not to have dinner if we didn’t get him some. I had no choice but to send some men to get a box from Treats Galore.” Treats Galore was a famous confectionery store in Prismara City. They were most known for their delicious cream puffs, which were expensive. A single cream puff costs about 10 dollars and only allows customers to buy at least a box of 5. “Ms. Maia, it has got to be the cream puffs! Aside from that, I ate the same foods Mr. Hans had eaten. The only thing that I did not eat was those cream puffs!” Fernando paused and turned to Cedric.“Mr. Cedric, I’m sure that it’s Treats Galore. We must look into them and find out who poisoned the cream puffs. Mr. Hans cannot face any more
Maia blushed a crimson red as she placed his hands on her waist. “The baby misses you. So, we’re here to see you.” Maia didn’t know what to say so she made up a horrible excuse. Cedric smiled at her shy reaction as he kissed her lightly on the cheek. “Are you here to cheer me up?”Maia nodded and asked, “Did it work?”“It’d be better if you did it like this.” He pulled her toward him and kissed her on the mouth. Maia’s face instantly turned red. When Maia recovered from the kiss, she asked, “Did you manage to find anything?”Cedric frowned as he heard her question. “Why don’t you give it a guess?”Maia was taken aback by his question before asking, “W-Was the Fox family involved?” “Yes.”Maia could finally understand why his mood was down today. If the Fox was involved, it probably meant that Lauren was somewhat involved in this incident too. Even though Cedric had refused to acknowledge her as his mother, he would still feel horrible knowing his birth mother had tried t
Amanda came to sit next to Maia as she said, “I’m glad you’ve noticed this as well. Lauren is usually quite into the drama that she’s watching on TV. Today’s episode was a sad one, so I was wondering why she was still so happy watching it.” Lauren smiled back at them and replied, “I’m just really happy. I’ve never thought that I’d be able to see my eldest son again and that he has such a kind and beautiful wife by his side. “Eddie was also able to find his loved one, and I was lucky enough to be a grandmother. I never thought that I’d be able to go on a family trip with all my sons.” She started to tear up.“Lauren, don’t cry,” Maia said as she handed Lauren a handkerchief to dry her tears. Lauren wiped her tears as she smiled and nodded. “Don’t worry about me. I’m just being dramatic.” She looked around and asked, “Where’s Cedric? Is he with Eddie?”Maia nodded. “Yeah. This new project is a bit of a hassle, so he went over to try to help.” Lauren sighed, “Eddie’s father an
Cedric just smiled when he saw Maia’s worried reaction. “You sure you’ll keep your promise?” Maia tugged the blanket closer to herself and nodded. Maia would not dare to say no. If Cedric decided to do as he had said, she would just end up in bed the whole morning. “We can register our marriage anytime. You mean it?” She knew that Cedric was just baiting her, but she had no choice. She did not know what he would do next. When she glanced at his handsome face, her heart could not help but skip a beat. Just then, Cedric took out two pieces of paper from the bedside drawer. Maia was taken aback as she saw the document. They were marriage registration forms, and they were already filled in. “T-This was a setup! You’ve already had this all planned out from the beginning!” Maia scanned through the forms and was surprised to see that the only section left empty was the signature. Maia did not know when Cedric had started to prepare all this, but it looked like it had been a whil
Cedric glanced at Baz and asked, “How does it feel to miss someone so much?”Baz’s smile froze as he shook his head quickly. “Now, I can finally understand why you hate being separated from Ms. Maia.”Cedric just looked at Baz coldly. Baz quickly added when he noticed Cedric’s glare, “I’m just saying that you love your wife very much, and that man who’s like you would definitely understand.”“That’s a fact,” Cedric replied as he turned around and walked back into the bedroom. Baz immediately stopped him as he asked. “Mr. Cedric, why don’t you tell Ms. Maia the real reason why you’re so against calling Ms. Lauren your mother? Why didn’t you tell her the scars on your back were inflicted by Ms. Rita?” It was a horrible and unimaginable part of his childhood. “I don’t want to frighten her.”“But it’s difficult for you as well, Mr. Cedric. Calling Ms. Lauren your mother brings back horrible memories for you too.” “It doesn’t matter. I’ll do anything for her.” Cedric replied as he
“Is that true?” Gigi asked her grandmother.Lauren nodded and said, “Of course it is. Has grandma ever lied to you?”“Wow! Grandma, what was Daddy like when he was a kid?” Gigi was excited. She was not sleepy anymore as she pestered Lauren to tell her more. “Whenever I brought him to attend events, he would always cry. I still remember he had wet his pants once in kindergarten.” Gigi covered her mouth and giggled happily. Amanda laughed and looked at Eddie. “Did you really wet your pants?”Eddie palmed his forehead and told his mother, “Stop embarrassing me in front of my daughter, Mom.” Lauren just smiled happily back at her son. At the same time, Maia tugged on the hem of Cedric’s shirt and questioned cheekily, “Did you wet your pants when you were a kid?” Cedric drew her into his arms in response and threatened, “Maia, it seems like you won’t be able to go to bed tonight.” “I’m not afraid of your empty threats,” Maia replied. “Are you sure about that?”Maia nod
It was hard to believe he’d change his mind out of nowhere. She blinked and gawked at him. She almost forgot to breathe because of the sheer shock. Her face turned red from it, too. “Hey, breathe.” Cedric frowned. He realized her eyes were widening and her cheeks were completely reddened. Then, her lungs worked, and she started drawing breath again. She gripped the hem of his shirt instinctively. “Hmm?” Cocking his brow, he looked at her casually while taking her hands in his. “Do you want to know why I changed my mind?”She nodded immediately. Needless to say, she wanted to spring that question on him, but she wondered if she should. On the other hand, he merely chuckled and didn’t say anything. All he did was fix a deep, passionate stare at her. His eyes were filled with love and affection when he did it. Realizing that he wasn’t going to talk, she was bewildered. “W-Why aren’t you saying anything?”His grin widened at what she said. Reaching out, he pinched her fair ch
Taking his hands, she rested her fair cheeks on his palm.“Is there another reason you did it?” She asked. “I had someone plant something in the painting.”“What do you mean?” She pressed.“A wire.”Then, it hit her. “D-Does this mean you knew Fidelia would buy the painting at all costs?”“Mm-hmm.” He nodded.Pursing her lips, she said, “I guess it tracks. After all, Fidelia will surely buy anything you donate to Nordic College. She loves you so much that she peeled an entire bowl of prawns for you.”“Do peeling prawns mean she loves me?” He cocked his brow.She nodded instinctively.“Well, then. Do you know how much I love you now?”Maia was initially pondering something, but she was scattered the moment she heard what he said!Her face turned red. She couldn’t decide if she should nod or shake her head now. The only thing she could do now was change the topic. “Wait a minute. I just asked Gigi to bid on it. Did I almost mess up your plan?” Her brows were furrowed. She
“Maia!” Amanda called out to her and hastened over. “D-Did you just say I was already on trending search?”“Mm-hmm.” Nodding, she handed her phone to Amanda. Amanda saw the search topic ‘Amanda Tate Burst Out Laughing.’ and was rooted to the spot.“H-How’s this already up there?”Maia chuckled. “There are so many people in the dining hall. There’s no way you can keep it from spreading on the internet for long. Even Gigi and Eddie got on the trending search. They were right behind you. “Valentines Group has also started working on the public relations angle. I browsed the internet and didn’t find any overly vicious remarks either. None of the marketing accounts were trying to stir up trouble either. All of Gigi’s pictures were censored as well. So, there’s nothing to be worried about here.”Amanda let out a sigh of relief at what she said. “It’s a good thing that no one attacked Gigi on the internet. Otherwise, I’m going to start chasing them with a machete that’s one foot long!
“Why, you!” Fidelia took the glass of fruit juice from the table and spilled it all over him!The sticky juices clung to his cheeks for a second before rolling down them.“Listen up, plastic face! It doesn’t matter if I can’t lay a finger on Maia because Cedric loves and protects her. It isn’t your place to make fun of me! Who do you think you are, Neilson? “You’re nothing more than my family’s lap dog. Look at how stiff your face is. You’ve wasted a perfectly good glass of fruit juice!”Staring at him angrily, Fidelia warned him nastily. She was so gripped with rage that her chest was rising and falling hastily. Then, she gritted her teeth and threw the empty glass at him.Catching the glass midair, he lowered his head. “You make a fine point, Ms. Fidelia.” Wiping the fruit juice from his cheeks, he apologized again. “Please calm down, Ms. Fidelia. You have to look at where we are now. It’d be wise not to make Mr. Thomas mad again.”“Are you seriously warning me again? Who do
Maia made up a reason so Amanda could take Gigi away. Amanda nodded, carried her daughter, and left the scene. All Gigi did was speak the truth, but Fidelia’s face grew grim and shot the three-year-old girl a terrible look. It was clear that Fidelia might do something outrageous to Gigi again if she didn’t divert her attention from the little girl. After all, Fidelia didn’t care about the consequences of her actions at all!So, she looked at Fidelia and said, “I’m not sure why you kept trying to win my husband’s heart, but I’ve been sitting here the whole time. Are you ignoring me on purpose? Or, are you so arrogant that you care only about Cedric and nobody else?”Fidelia immediately shifted her gaze to Maia. Glaring at her, she directed all of her anger and frustration at Maia. “What are you trying to say, Maia? My dad saved Cedric’s life. So, is there anything wrong with me peeling the shrimp for him? What’s the problem if I try to win his heart? What does it have to do with