hapter 213
Chapter 213
Yann stared at Audrey’s face and said into the phone in a deep voice, “I need to ask my wife’s opinion.”
Exam
Not only was Audrey surprised, but the woman on the other end of the line was also taken aback. After a moment of silence, she retorted, “What, does she still interfere with your normal social life?”
“Negotiations in the conference room are normal social interactions, but visiting your home is about personal relationships,” Yann said coldly. “My Mrs. Winifred doesn’t interfere with my socializing, but I tell her about these private meetings.”
His hand loosely rested on Audrey’s waist, his eyes never leaving hers, and his fingers gently stroked her spine, as if calming a cat.
“Well, fine,” the woman on the phone said in an unfriendly tone.
Yann didn’t hide anything and directly told Audrey, “The owner of that house invited us as guests.” He nodded toward the villa they had just passed.
Audrey smiled and asked, “Invited both of us?”
“Yes,” Yann said firmly.
“It’s important to get along with neighbors. Let’s go and liven things up,” Audrey said.
Yann nodded before saying to the phone, “My Mrs. Winifred agrees. Just send the invitation to her.”
When hanging up, Yann vaguely heard the sound of something heavy falling on the other end, but he casually put away his phone and continued walking with Audrey.
Autumn had arrived, with a large temperature difference between morning and evening. The wind by the lake carried a slight chill. Yann tightly held Audrey’s hand, shielding her from the cold wind behind them.
Audrey leaned against his chest, feeling the rhythm of his heartbeat. “Aren’t you going to tell me more?” She looked up at him and asked, “In case I hear news about you from others during the visit and have to distinguish between truth and falsehood.”
Yann directly wrapped her tightly in his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head and gently rubbing it. “The one who invited us is Talia Price, the eldest daughter of the Price family.”
If Talia were a boy, she would definitely have inherited the Price family’s business. However, even though Talia’s father knew his son was less capable than his daughter, he still trained his little son as the heir, even ordering Talia to assist her brother.
Talia completely refused to accept this, so she fought with her father again and again. As a result, she was gradually marginalized and now only oversees a subsidiary.
“Is she your childhood sweetheart?” Audrey summarized.
Yann’s arms tightened, almost making it hard for her to breathe. He said, “I’m not familiar with that Tank.”
He was exaggerating. Yann and the Price family both operated in Ashbourne’s business world. He had dealt with Talia’s father and naturally cooperated with Talia and her brother.
But except for Audrey, Yann had no interest in other women, so he never paid attention to Talia.
Recently, because Talia frequently targeted Audrey, Yann asked Calvin to investigate.
It turned out that Talia had signed a gambling/agreement with her father. As long as she could marry Yann and launch the software she was developing, she would get half of the company’s management rights.
In five years, whichever of her or her brother brought more benefits to the group would completely take over the company.
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Yann utterly refused to be someone else’s bet. So as soon as he got the news, he stopped providing technical support for Talia’s software and terminated the cooperation projects with the Price family. Talia’s father probably blamed her, so she could only publicly pursue Yann.
After hearing this, Audrey raised an eyebrow. “You want me to go to Ashbourne to announce that you’re married?”
Yann buried his face in her neck and sniffed for a while before nodding.
Audrey felt a tickle in her neck from his actions and joked, “Since you’re so honest, I’ll give Talia a good beating so she never dares to steal my man.”
Seeing Audrey waving her fist, Yann was comforted and happily put his arm around her waist. “Actually, you don’t need to use violence. There are many ways to make someone pissed off.”
“Such as?” she asked.
Yann leaned close to her ear and whispered, “If you try a new position with me tonight, I’ll tell you.”
The next afternoon, Talia’s invitation was delivered to Stride Commerce. “Ms. Henderson, this is your invitation,” Paige said, placing it on Audrey’s desk. “Should we prepare a reciprocal gift?”
Audrey opened the invitation and found only her name, not Yann’s. Talia had likely sent a separate one to Yann.
“Don’t have to.” Audrey closed the invitation and put it in a drawer. “Call Mr. Kent and tell him I have something else to do tonight and can’t make it.”
“Okay,” Paige said and left the office.
Audrey leaned back in her chair, tapping the armrest with her hand. She was silently counting, and just as she reached eight, Yann called. “Did you get the invitation?” he asked.
“Yes, but your name isn’t on it,” she said truthfully.
Yann’s invitation also didn’t have Audrey’s name. He tore it in half and asked, “You’ve been wanting to see a movie, right?”
“You have time now?” Audrey perked up immediately.
The last time she went to the cinema, she skipped this movie to look for Cecilia’s grandson. Later, after reading online reviews, Audrey became even more eager to watch it.
“I’ll book the tickets now. When are you free?” Yann asked.
“Any time is fine for me,” Audrey said.
“Good.” Audrey hung up and started booking tickets, then sent the confirmation to Yann.
That night, Talia had invited not only Yann but also other influential figures in Ironhaven.
However, many of them weren’t familiar with her and had no intention of attending. The person delivering the invitations accidentally dropped Yann’s invitation. When many guests learned Yann had agreed to come, they brought gifts to celebrate Talia’s housewarming.
As it got dark, guests arrived one after another. Talla wore a high–end black mermaid–style gown that night, with her short hair styled with hair wax and a pair of blue diamond earrings, exuding a striking and assertive beauty.
“Ms. Price, it’s almost time. Should Mr. Winifred be here soon?” someone asked impatiently, hinting at Talia. “Why don’t we go to the door and greet him?”
Talia also held a cold buffet, and the food was all ready now, Logically, Yann should have arrived by now.
She looked toward Villa No. 16; there were no cars in the yard, and if Yann came back, his car would have to pass by her door.
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“He should be here soon,” Talia smiled and explained. “You know Mr. Winifred has been very busy recently. Since he promised to come, he will definitely
be here.”
Serena followed Jocelyn to entertain guests. She whispered, “Will Mr. Winifred really come? How close is Ms. Price to him?”
“Talk less and work more,” Jocelyn said, asking her to carry out the newly baked pastries. “Don’t ask questions that don’t concern you.”
By 9 o’clock, Yann still hadn’t arrived. Without him, other guests didn’t dare to touch the food on their plates even though they were hungry, and the atmosphere became increasingly awkward. “It’s past 9. Is Mr. Winifred still coming?”
“What’s the relationship between Ms. Price and Mr. Winifred that he would come to her housewarming?”
The questioning voices grew louder, and Talia felt more and more embarrassed. Under the speculative gazes of the crowd, she finally called Yann.
