“Of course!” Sonia nodded with a smile before looking at Tina. “Thank you, Miss Gray. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have so many benefits.”
Silently, Tina chewed on her bottom lip.
Slinging an arm around Tina’s waist, Toby said, “Let’s go.”
“Safe travels, President Fuller and Miss Gray! I’ll see you in Seafield!” Sonia waved them off with a grin.
Gloomily, they left.
After shutting the door behind them, Charles came back quickly. “That was amazing, baby. You cheated him out of Ocean’s Heart, and now you’ve cheated him out of a whole port and a plot of land. They looked so upset when they left. I was tickled to death!”
Picking up a glass of water by her bed, Sonia took a sip using a straw before answering, “Well, it’d be a waste if I didn’t take the chance when they were offering it to me.”
“That’s true.” After a chuckle, he looked at her seriously. “But are we really dropping this matter?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “We could send Tina to prison but there’s no need for that, and Toby’s right—actually doing that would exacerbate the situation between the Gray Family and Paradigm Co. Out of desperation, the Gray Family would try to crush Paradigm Co.”
Currently, Paradigm Co. was still too small to be the Gray Family’s opponent.
Thus, she absolutely could not go head-to-head with them.
Seeing the logic in that, he fiddled with his phone absent-mindedly before saying, “What a pity! But it’s a good thing that we at least got a lot out of it. Especially that plot of land. Titus would no doubt hit the ceiling if he found out about it.”
At his description, she couldn’t help laughing. “I heard from the grapevine a long time ago that he intends to build villas in Seafield because he wants to create the first villa district there. Now that we’ve taken his villa district away, he will no doubt feel the loss.”
Gleefully, Charles gloated with his arms spread wide open, “Serves him right for having a daughter who harms her own father and her own fiancé!”
Harms her own father and her own fiancé?
If Sonia thought about it, it was indeed true. Previously, Tina’s attempt to slander her ended up costing Titus his carefully prepared banquet to celebrate her recovery and Toby his carefully selected Ocean’s Heart necklace.
Now, Tina caused Sonia to fall and it cost Toby a trade port and Titus a plot of land. With all the losses they were suffering, how could Tina’s actions be described other than actively harming her father and her fiancé?
At the thought, Sonia tutted, suddenly feeling pity for Titus and Toby.
“By the way, baby—” Charles leaned in close as he murmured, “—what do you intend to do with that plot of land?”
Expressionlessly, she lifted a hand and pushed his face away from hers. “Build a factory. Paradigm Co. needs its own factory as well. We can’t keep working with other companies to produce our goods.”
She had yet to forget how impolitely Mr. King and the others had treated her at Sakura Heights, as well as how difficult they had made things for her.
It was not an experience she was keen to repeat, nor did she want to keep knocking on doors just to find someone to produce her goods.
“Very smart to think in the long run, baby. Not bad. I support you.” He patted her shoulder.
“Thank you,” she answered with a smile, permitting him the rare opportunity to keep his hand on her shoulder.
…
The next day, they returned to Seafield.
The moment Sonia got off the plane, she hurried to Paradigm Co. to meet with Ryan.
As he sat down in front of her desk in her office, he gave the bandage on her head a surprised look, saying, “What happened, President Reed?”
As she felt the wound on her head, her eyes flashed coldly. However, a moment later, she placed a cup of coffee in front of him and answered with a smile, “A rat attacked me.”
“I see.” Ryan dropped the topic with a faint smile.
After receiving the document that Daphne handed her, Sonia began, “Here is Continental Co.’s acquisition contract, President Drew. Please go over it and let me know if any revisions are needed.”
She placed the contract on the table, thereafter turning it around and pushing it toward him.
Ryan then flipped through it. Only when he reached the end and saw the part stating that Paradigm Co. would neither interfere with Continental Co.’s internal affairs nor change the company name did he nod with satisfaction. “It looks fine to me.”
Reassured, she smiled before uncapping a fountain pen and handing it to him. “If that’s the case, please sign here, President Drew. The finance department will have the funds put into your account within half an hour.”
Humming his agreement, Ryan took the pen and signed his name on the appropriate line.
From then on, Continental Co. would be a subsidiary of Paradigm Co.
Flipping the contract shut, Sonia handed it back to Daphne and said, “Keep it safe.”
“Yes, President Reed.” With the contract in hand, Daphne left the office.
Finally, Sonia stood. “It’s getting late, President Drew. How about I treat you to lunch?”
Waving his hand, Ryan rejected her offer and said, “I’ll take a rain check. I have an appointment elsewhere.”
Of course, Sonia didn’t push him and only saw him off at the elevator before returning to her office.
Right then, her internal telephone line rang.
Letting go of her computer mouse, she picked up her landline receiver. “Hello?”
At the other end of the line, Daphne spoke up. “Someone from the Fuller Group is here, President Reed. He says he’s here to deliver a land deed. Do you want to see him?”
Slowly, Sonia smiled. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I? Whom did they send?”
She never thought Toby would be so proactive as to send someone over with the deed the moment she returned.
“President Fuller’s assistant, Tom Brown.”
“Send him in.”
After hanging up the phone, she looked at the door.
Very quickly, the door opened and Daphne led Tom in.
“Miss Reed,” he greeted politely as he stood in front of her desk.
With a smile, she pointed at a chair. “Please sit, Mr. Brown. Daphne, please fetch a cup of coffee for Mr. Brown.”
“Of course,” Daphne answered, very quickly going to pour a cup of coffee and returning.
After thanking her, Tom pulled out a chair and sat down before handing two documents to Sonia. “One of these is a document transferring a trade port to your name, Miss Reed. The other is a title deed for a plot of land in the city center. Please have a look.”
“Of course. Please wait for a moment. I’ll be done soon.”
With that, she opened one of the documents and began reading in earnest.
Sitting opposite her, Tom surreptitiously took measure of her and was surprised by what he saw.
Who could have expected that she would change so drastically in such a short amount of time? It was as if she was a brand new person and was much more dazzling than before while Miss Gray, whom he previously thought to be good and kind, was becoming more and more sinister and diabolical.
How astonishing!
Meanwhile, Sonia could feel Ryan’s stare but she paid it no mind and only quietly finished reading the two documents.
When she was done, she flipped the documents shut. “Mr. Brown.”
“Hmm?” Caught off-guard, Tom was pulled back to the present and pushed his glasses up his nose. “Sorry, Miss Reed, but did you say something?”
With a nod and a smile, Sonia told him, “I’ve finished reading the two documents. Thank you for bringing them here and please pass on my thanks to President Fuller as well.”
“I will. I’ll take my leave now.” With that, he stood and bid goodbye.
Looking toward her own assistant, Sonia said, “Daphne, see Mr. Brown out.”
“Right this way, Mr. Brown.” With a gesture, Daphne led Mr. Brown out.
When she returned, she was surrounded by her coworkers.
“Was that President Fuller’s assistant, Daphne? Why did he come here? Was he looking for President Reed?”
“Surely President Fuller can’t be sending President Reed something. It was mangoes previously; what could it be now?”
“You know, they’re divorced but they’re still in contact with each other so frequently. You don’t think they could be thinking of remarrying, could they?”
At their gossip, Daphne spread her arms and answered helplessly, “How would I know? Alright, that’s enough. You should gossip less about your superiors. Go hack to work, or you’ll be screwed when President Reed comes out to do her rounds.”
The moment they heard that, they quickly dispersed and fled the scene.
As for Daphne, she returned to Sonia’s office. “I’ve seen Mr. Brown off, President Reed.”
