Sasha did not have it in her to disobey. She muttered a quick apology to the other secretary and went to Sebastian’s side.
The two of them parted ways with their acquaintances. “Why did you stop me? Don’t you need some documents for the summit?” she asked uncomprehendingly.
Sebastian scoffed like she just asked something stupid but deigned to explain. “Use your brain for a second. If the documents are so important, the organizers would’ve emailed us in advance already.” He spared a glance at the girl beside him. “Which they have, by the way.”
Oh. Sasha clamped her mouth shut and meekly followed him into the conference hall.
The grandeur of the hall and its setup immediately awed her. Despite having a background in finance and experiencing her fair share of formal business events, the summit was certainly something else.
“Are you sure this is a summit for business leaders?” she muttered incredulously.
“What else would it be?”
She shrugged and found her seat behind Sebastian. “The way it’s arranged… It’s like a summit for the heads of governments.”
The latter’s eye twitched, but he said nothing.
Soon after they took their seats, other business leaders started filing in. As Sasha took out her notebook, the man in front passed her the program booklet.
“You just need to focus on what these few people are saying later on,” Sebastian told her, pointing at several profiles who were due to give talks during the summit.
“Why them?”
“They are in manufacturing,” he said by way of explanation. “If you want to get into the business of plastics, you should know that the market has already reached saturation. The only way to stand out from the competition is to innovate and absorb new knowledge. Otherwise, you’ll get flushed out even if you revamp the business.”
Sasha stared at him, moved to the point of speechlessness. Internally, she was awash in a turmoil of emotions.
She might be gifted in financial acumen, but she lacked the hands-on experience and understanding of conducting an actual business. Though she wanted to rebuild the Wand family business, she had been undecided about the best approach to take beyond following in her father’s footsteps.
I didn’t tell anyone about my dilemma, and yet, he knows somehow. That’s why he brought me here to this top-level summit to learn the strategic vision and business wisdom from those who are at the top in their fields… Sasha could feel her throat tighten. Tears were forming, but she struggled not to let them fall.
Dipping her head to avoid being seen by Sebastian, she pretended to scrutinize the programme booklet and busied herself with getting the notebook ready.
The last to arrive at the conference hall, just a few minutes before the start of the conference, was a business representative from Terrandya.
Sasha let out an involuntary gasp the moment she saw who it was. “Solomon! What’s he doing here?”
As if hearing her gasp of surprise, Solomon cast a glance in her direction. Their eyes met. There was a warm smile lurking in the depths of the man’s hazel orbs.
Sasha, on the other hand, was dumbfounded. It was not until she felt the chilly aura emanating from the person in front of her that she jolted out of her stupor. In the next instant, her vision was obstructed by Sebastian, who had deliberately shifted so that his back occupied her entire line of sight.
“Hey…” Sasha hastily tried to appease the man. “Don’t be mad. I was just surprised to see him.”
She knew he must be angry, judging by the cold shoulder he was giving her.
Sebastian did not turn around, nor did he say a word.
Sasha had no choice but to put her thoughts aside as the summit began. Over the next few hours, she listened attentively to the talks, especially those by the manufacturing tycoons as highlighted by Sebastian, and took down notes in the process.
When the summit ended, Sebastian stood up at once. His mood had been soured ever since Solomon made an unexpected appearance, and he was eager to drag Sasha away from the conference hall as soon as possible.
“Give me a while more, please,” she said without looking up, never pausing for a second in her furious scribbling. “I just need to finish my train of thought.”
It was then that Sebastian saw the pages of her notebook filled with notes. The sight assured him that her attention had been solely on the summit, rather than Solomon.
Relaxing slightly, he sat back down and grabbed a trade publication to pass the time as he waited for her.
Sasha continued to jot down her thoughts in the notebook.
However, such a rare moment of peace between the two was soon disrupted by an intruder.
“Nancy. It’s really you. Fancy meeting you here,” Solomon called as he approached the pair. The affection in his voice was as blatant as the tenderness in his eyes.
Sasha sighed inwardly in resignation. Here he comes.
Putting down the pen, she peered at Sebastian. As expected, the man’s expression had darkened significantly, which curdled her mood as well.
