Yvonne took over her phone and blushed when she stole a glance at John.
Seeing her reaction, Emery cocked her brow and suggested, “How about leaving your phone number to her? Well, she might give her heart to you since you saved her life.”
Displeased, John frowned at her words. After glancing at Emery, he turned to me and asked, “Are you tired?”
I nodded, as I was quite exhausted. It was right at this moment the alcohol kicked in, and my head was spinning.
Seeing how I couldn’t balance myself, he reached out and pull me up from my seat before looking at Emery indifferently. “It’s getting late. We’ll be heading back.”
Emery placed her wine glass on the table before raising a brow at me. “Ms. Stovall, since we’re already friends, do you mind giving me your contact number? We can stay in touch in the future.”
I was stunned before handing my phone to her. She typed a string of numbers and smiled at me. “Let’s stay in touch!”
When we exited the Imperial Hotel, it was 3 a.m.
When I got back to the villa, Ashton wasn’t there. I wasn’t surprised or anything because it was expected.
Overwhelmed by fatigue, I drifted off to sleep without mulling over it.
On the next day, I was still in my dreams when Jackson called.
Awoken by the ringtone, I sat up on my bed with an intense headache.
Once I answered the call, Jackson’s voice sounded from within. “Are you the one behind the incident involving Cameron?” His tone was heavy, and even though I was in a daze, I could hear the curt reprimand in his voice.
“Yeah.” I stretched my body and felt discomfort all over. It might be because of the lack of sleep.
He sighed and said, “Scarlett, if you can’t get over the pain, there’s nothing you can do. Promise me never to do this again. Don’t become someone you hate.”
I lifted a hand to massage my forehead and immediately sobered up a little. Tiredness still lingered on my being as I replied, “Jackson, I had become who I hate long ago.”
When did I cease to live as the old me?
He fell silent for a while before saying, “Come back to J City. Summer and I are here for you. Everything will be better in the future.”
Listening to his words, tears welled up in my eyes. I nodded slightly and forced a word out of my lips as I choked up. “Okay.”
“You’re still sleeping, aren’t you? When are you coming back? We’ll pick you up.” Jackson’s voice sounded happy.
Thinking for a while, I replied, “I suppose… These few days? It’s almost the new year. I’ll take care of the matters here and return.”
“Alright.” After hanging up on the call, I stared blankly at the ceiling.
Feeling light-headed, I washed up before going downstairs.
Mrs. Eriksen had prepared breakfast. When she saw me walking down the stairs, she asked with a worried expression. “Did you have trouble sleeping yesterday? Why do you look so pale?”
I yawned and nodded. “Mrs. Eriksen, when are you returning to J City?”
She froze a while before blinking out of her daze. “I was about to discuss this with you. Aren’t you and Mr. Ashton returning to J City? I’ll have to head back tonight. Have you guys decided on how to celebrate New Year’s Eve?”
I shook my head and replied, “I guess I’ll return to J City.”
She furrowed her brows and explained, “Letty, didn’t you become a part of the Stovall family tree? This year, you should celebrate with the Stovalls. It’s only right.”
Oh, the Stovall family! My head throbbed in pain, and I held my forehead. “Yeah. Let me think about it.”
After eating my breakfast, I went to the White Corporation directly to meet Richard. He came to K City for the annual meeting.
I contacted him beforehand, and he agreed to wait for me at the office. When he saw me, he said, “There’s a breakthrough in the AI products. We’ll hold a product launch next year and it was believed that the White Corporation will monopolize the AI market if nothing goes wrong.”
I was stunned by his words, as I never expect he would give me such a tremendous surprise. Smiling joyfully, I replied, “This is the best news I’ve received this year. Make some arrangements and make sure everyone goes home for their new year celebration after the annual meeting. After the new year, we’ll hold a product launch.”
He nodded and left after handing me the documents, while I was lost in a daze, standing in the office.
I came to work at White Corporation to acquire OrbitTech. It was my attempt to poach for business with the Moores, but it seemed there was no need for this anymore.
Nonetheless, the outcome was great but quite unexpected. Marcus wasn’t around anymore, and I felt rather lost.
After exiting the White Corporation, I called Louis to invite him for a meal.
It was the end of the year and most people were enjoying their holidays. Louis was done with his inspection in different regions, so he had more leisure time on his hands now.
At the restaurant.
After ordering, Louis looked at me and said, “How’s your holiday plan? I heard from Jo that you’re returning to J City. Do you have someone important there?”
I nodded and looked at him in the eyes. “They are an important friend and a child, which my deceased friend left behind. It wouldn’t be convenient to bring a child that young on a flight, so I plan to return to J City. Dad, will you blame me for not celebrating New Year’s Eve with you?”
He smiled and spoke, “It’s your decision, so I won’t interfere. I’ve gotten used to it after all these years. Say, did something happen between you and Ashton?”
