Chapter 280

Chapter 280

William picked up the bottle and refilled my glass. Then he pushed the glass of warm water closer to me. "Grace, stop thinking about it. You won't figure it out anyway. George is too calculating. Whatever he wants to do, we can't guess it, and there's no need to."

"Remember what you said? What matters most to us right now? Money. Getting paid. That's what's real. That's what's tangible."

"If he wants to play the fool and buy your house for twice what it's worth, take the money. You won't lose out. Take it, sign the papers, transfer the property, and then it's done. No more ties between you two."

William paused, a hint of an encouraging smile appearing on his face. "Besides, it's not like we can't survive without the Smith Group. There's Mr. Hill's satellite project, and Mr. Harris might have follow-up cooperation too. We have more than one backup plan—not just George. Star Tech relies on our own technology and capabilities. Not on anyone's charity."

Emily nodded repeatedly, raising her glass. "That's right, Mr. Jones is absolutely right. Grace, don't get upset over that kind of thing. Come on, let's toast! To the double payment we're about to get! To our project! To making money!"

Yeah, what was I even agonizing over? What was I suffering over?

If George wanted to buy it, let him buy it.

If he wanted to be the fool, why wouldn't I be happy about that?

Get the money. Lock it in. Cut all ties.

As for whatever hidden motives he had, what did that have to do with me?

Once I figured this out, the tightness in my chest instantly eased.

I raised my glass and clinked it hard with theirs.

"Cheers! To making money!"

That night, we drank quite a bit.

Mainly Emily was drinking with me, while William mostly drank soda water, keeping an eye on both of us, and ended up paying the bill.

Later, I couldn't quite remember how much we drank or how we got home.

All I remember is that William drove me home in the end.

According to what my mom told me the next day, I cried pretty badly that night. I clung to her and wouldn't let go, mumbling and cursing someone under my breath.

William stood there looking awkward, wanting to help but not knowing what to say. Finally, my mom managed to coax me to sleep before he left.

The next morning when I woke up, my head was splitting. The hangover made me wish I could throw up all the alcohol I had drunk last night.

But what embarrassed and annoyed me even more was remembering how I had lost control in front of William and Emily.

I quickly washed up, changed clothes, and decided to go to the office to apologize to William first.

After all, he was the boss, yet last night he had ended up taking care of me like a driver and a babysitter.

When I got to the office, William's door was closed.

I checked the time—it was already past the usual work hours. William rarely came in late.

I hesitated, then took out my phone and called William.

The phone rang several times before someone answered.

"Hello?" Emily's voice came through.

I froze for a moment.

"Emily, is William with you?"

A soft gasp came from the other end. Then the line went dead.

I stood there holding my phone, in front of William's tightly closed office door, unable to process what just happened.

A few seconds later, it slowly dawned on me.

Last night William had taken Emily home. And then he had stayed over?

So this morning, William was late. Emily wasn't feeling well and was resting at home, and William's phone was with Emily.

That was a lot to take in.

Emily and William?

When I thought about it carefully, it wasn't completely impossible, was it?

William was steady and reliable, highly capable, and had always taken good care of me.

Emily, though hot-tempered, was kind-hearted and highly competent at work—an indispensable assistant to William.

They were close in age and worked together all day. It made sense that feelings could develop over time.

If they really were together, that would actually be a good thing.

They were both my most trusted, my closest friends. If they could have each other's backs, I would only be happy for them.

William needed someone to warm his heart, which was always wound too tight from family pressure.

Emily also needed someone like William who could handle her while also accepting her.

Given William's current wealth and potential, plus Emily's family background, you couldn't really say either was reaching above their station.

It was good.

It's just that these two had kept it from me without dropping a single hint.

Last night they had stayed up drinking with me, listening to me pour my heart out, and then turned around and...

I found it somewhat funny, but also a little annoyed at being kept in the dark.

But thinking about it again, they were probably just starting out. Maybe they hadn't figured things out themselves yet, or maybe they felt the timing wasn't right, so they hadn't told me.

Fine, since they didn't want to say anything, I would just pretend I didn't know.

Friends also need space and boundaries.

Once I figured this out, my mood, which had been gloomy because of George, actually lightened a bit for once.

At least in this world, there were still some warm, hopeful things happening.

Unfortunately, this lightness didn't last long.

As if specifically to annoy me, my phone rang again.

This time it was George.

Looking at that name on the screen, my just-relaxed brow furrowed again.

He rarely called me directly, especially during work hours.

If he needed something, his assistant usually contacted me.

I hesitated, but still answered.

After all, the house matter needed to be settled.

"What is it?" My voice had no warmth.

"Are you free?" George's voice came through the receiver, as steady and low as always, emotionless. "Come to the house to sign the contract."

The house?

I actually laughed in anger.

He said it so naturally, as if the house was already his.

"Mr. Smith," I said, suppressing my anger with an icy tone, "I don't remember agreeing to sign over the house and sell it, did I? The house is still mine right now. How is it already your home?"

There was two seconds of silence on the other end.

"Double the price, you agreed." George stated the facts in a flat tone. "The agent should have told you. I have time this afternoon. Come over and handle the paperwork."

His matter-of-fact, commanding tone made my temper flare.

But then I thought about how I could use this money to do many things. How it would let me completely get rid of the bad memories this house carried.

I took a deep breath and swallowed the sarcasm that had reached my lips.

Money was most important.

William was right.

"Noon then." I compromised, but didn't want to make things too easy for him. "I'm at work right now, I'm not free."

"Fine." George didn't say more and hung up directly.

I listened to the busy signal from my phone, staring at the darkened screen, that strange feeling grew even stronger.

When did George become so idle?

Even for something minor like signing a contract, he personally called, personally set the time, and was personally waiting at home.

In the past when he contacted me, nine times out of ten it was through his assistant.

The remaining time, it was either important business or him impatiently urging me to handle some household matter.

What was going on today?

I shook my head and pushed these messy thoughts aside.

Whatever, George could wait or not.

Once the papers were signed and I got the money, we would be completely done.

Around noon, William finally came to the office.

He looked like he was in good spirits. Except near his collar, there was a small suggestive red mark.

I only glanced at it once before immediately looking away. I pretended I hadn't seen anything and started gathering things from my desk, preparing to go out.

"William, I'm going out at noon. I have an appointment with George to sign the contract." I said while organizing files.

William's steps paused. He looked at me, his brow slightly furrowed. "Where did he ask you to sign?"

"At that house." I picked up my bag, my tone sarcastic.

William's expression darkened. He instructed, "Be careful. Sign the papers, get the money, and leave right away. Don't waste words with him. If Sarah is there too, or if anything seems off, call me immediately."

"I know." I nodded. "Don't worry."

On the drive to Galaxy Bay Residence, my phone buzzed.

It was a message from Emily.

"Grace, I heard from William that you're going to sign the contract with George? Why didn't you ask me to go with you? It's not safe for you to go alone to a place like that!"

Looking at this message, I felt warmth in my heart. But it also made me smile a little.

She could barely take care of herself, yet she was still worried about me.

I simply called her.

The phone rang a few times before being answered. Emily's voice sounded a bit weak. "Grace."

"William said you weren't feeling well today and were resting at home, so I didn't call you." I got straight to the point, my tone slightly teasing. "What, feeling better now? Able to worry about my business?"

Emily let out a low cry on the other end, her voice even weaker. "You already guessed?"

I deliberately drew out my words. "Someone's voice answering the phone, plus the mark on someone's neck—it would be hard for me not to guess."

"Grace!" Emily said in embarrassed anger. "You saw it? That idiot William! I told him to cover it up!"