In the afternoon, Nelissa and Jolene were heading back to the office.
Jolene wanted to invite Edward for lunch and sought to improve relations; he was their major client after all.
Nelissa refused. She was running out of time; she only had two more days to come up with five hundred thousand dollars for Mary's medical bill.
Jolene and Nelissa got to the parking lot to find their car. Sophie caught a glimpse of them but they didn't see her.
Jolene drove out of the parking lot and asked Nelissa, "What's the matter? Can't wait for the bonus?"
Nelissa stared out the window and nodded. "Times are hard. I need money as soon as possible."
She didn't plan on telling Jolene about the medical bill. She knew that Jolene would definitely help her unconditionally but she didn't want to drag others into it unless she had no other choice.
At the CEO office of the Hales Group Tower, Sophie knocked on the door before she entered.
Edward stood facing the window with his coat off. The sunlight seamed through the glass and made the white shirt he was wearing translucent. Sophie could see his muscular and well-defined back.
At that moment, she felt her breath taken away.
Edward was a tall man. The pants he wore perfectly encapsulated the slender, long legs he had as he towered over Sophie.
Sophie approached him and wrapped her arms around his waist. She leaned forward and intentionally rubbed her bosoms against his back.
With a seductive tone, she said, "You didn't answer Sean's call yesterday. I can't reach him today either. You two were friends for so many years, I'm sure Anna would be upset if she found out."
Now, Edward, Sean and Anna were known as the menacing trio of Haleston City.
Sophie had always been envious of her sister, Anna until Sophie finally got rid of her.
"Things would be different had he gotten over what happened with Anna." Edward scoffed.
Edward broke free of Sophie's grip and pushed her away coldly.
It was a public secret that the sole heir of the Bailey family, Sean, had fallen in love with his own sister, Anna.
It was a really dramatic twist.
"Knock, knock." A sound came from the door; it was Andrew.
"Come in," Edward replied.
Andrew had some news for Edward.
"Master Hales, everyone is waiting for you in the conference room."
"Okay," Edward responded as he glanced at Sophie.
Sophie caught his hint and smiled. "I'll be leaving you to your work then. You have to have dinner with me tonight, as a punishment for ignoring me yesterday."
"Alright." Edward then asked Andrew to send Sophie home. He didn't say anything else in between.
Back at the Victory Group, Marcel was overjoyed when he found out that Nelissa and Jolene had secured the Hales Group project.
He immediately called for a board meeting and began drafting their latest proposal to be presented to the Hales Group.
The fact that Edward specifically requested Nelissa to oversee the project raised many eyebrows. Everyone knew that Nelissa was new in town; and, it couldn't be pure luck that she got this sort of treatment from one of the VIPs of Haleston City.
Marcel was also putting a lot of emphasis on Nelissa. He let her chair the meeting and asked for her opinion on each and every single one of their major decisions.
Nelissa on the other hand was not really focused during the meeting. She still had to find more money.
After the excruciating meeting was over, Nelissa went to Marcel's office. She needed a huge favor from him.
Marcel seemed pleasantly surprised to see Nelissa.
Nelissa sat down in front of Marcel and told him about the financial crisis she was going through. She asked for an advance of a year's worth of salary and also an advance on the bonus from the Hales Group project.
Nelissa knew that this was a long shot and she would never ask for it in fear of upsetting Marcel. But things were different now; she had basically ascended to become the savior of the company after securing the Hales Group project.
Marcel was a generous man. He understood her plight and in light of what she did for the company, he instantly wrote her a cheque and remarked, "Here is a hundred and twenty thousand dollars from the bonus. You will receive the full remuneration after the completion of the project."
He handed her another cheque and added, "Here is another hundred and twenty thousand dollars, one year's worth of salary."
After that, he sat straight and looked at Nelissa in the eye "Nelissa, you are a good employee and I appreciate that. Keep up the good work."
"Of course, thank you." Nelissa kept the cheques in her bag and bowed in gratitude.
That was two hundred and forty thousand; she was still down two hundred and sixty thousand. She had two days left.
After work, Marcel invited everyone out to a five-star hotel for dinner. He was obviously on cloud nine over the project.
Nelissa declined the invitation. Even though she didn't like these kinds of events, it was unheard of for employees to refuse their bosses like that.
Nelissa couldn't care less; she only cared about the money at that moment. Nothing else matters!
Jolene went nonetheless. She said that she wanted to get closer to Marcel and the other senior partners. It would make her climb up the corporate ladder significantly easier.
Nelissa was in full support of her.
After work, Nelissa went to the kindergarten to fetch the twins.
There were benefits to sending one's children to a private school. One of them includes complimentary daycare.
Nelissa got off work late and the twins were in daycare for about an hour now.
When she got there, she saw a cute, young girl kiss Nathan on the cheek; but he was as cool as a cucumber. Noelle saw that and demanded a kiss too.
That young girl was extremely sweet and she gave Noelle a peck on the cheek as well.
"I leave my brother to you from now on!" Noelle remembered what Nelissa told her before; only family could give each other kisses.
That young girl was Sheila and Noelle really liked her. Nathan seemed to like her too and he let her kiss him; they were family now!
Nelissa picked up the twins and gave them their daily dose of cuddles and hugs. The twins also kissed her on the cheek and just like that, all Nelissa's troubles were washed away.
The twins were her whole world and the only reason for her to keep striving forward!
Nelissa brought the twins to the market as she wanted to get some delicious treats for them.
Even though she was going through a hard time, the twins deserved the best.
"Miss Quest." Nelissa heard someone call her and turned around.
It was Sophie. She wore a sundress and a pair of heels that really complimented her dress. She looked like a supermodel.
Sophie noticed the bandage on Nelissa's right wrist. Her eyes flickered and she remarked, "Let's have dinner together. The twins are really smart and I have some suggestions on which school might be the best for them after kindergarten."
Nelissa wasn't very interested but she changed her mind when Sophie mentioned the twins.
"Sure, where are we going?" she asked.
The twins were her everything.
"I know a really good western restaurant nearby. Let me give you a lift," Sophie uttered as her chauffeur stopped the car beside them.
They got in the car and they headed towards the restaurant.
Sophie suddenly exclaimed, "Oh dear, I forgot that I had made plans with Edward too. Do you mind if he joins us for dinner?"
The car had already driven onto the viaduct and Nelissa couldn't possibly get off now. Sophie must be orchestrating this on purpose.
Nelissa replied politely, "No, of course not."
"That's a relief," Sophie responded.
When they reached the restaurant, Edward was not there yet. They sat down and ordered their food.
Nelissa was talking to the twins under her breath with a bright, endearing smile on her face. There was also a feeling of warmness radiating from her when she was around the twins.
Nelissa suddenly felt a pair of eyes gazing at her; she looked up and there he was. Edward stood there, mesmerized by Nelissa's stunning beauty.
Nelissa remained her composure as she dodged Edward's stare. Their relationship was in an awkward state now.
Edward sat down and Sophie instantly wrapped her hands around his arms. She leaned in and whispered, "I ran into Miss Quest at the school gate today and invited her to join us for dinner."
Edward was silent; he only shot Sophie a side glance in response.
Nelissa instantly regretted her decision. She should have insisted on leaving earlier; she was now just a giant third wheel…
The waiter served the food not long after.
The twins were exceptionally well-mannered. They didn't cause a ruckus and didn't make any noise. They just sat quietly in their chair as they waited for Nelissa to cut up their food for them.
Even so, they didn't even get any food scraps on their faces when eating. They were extremely well-behaved. Which was quite unexpected from the ordinary folk.
Sophie noticed that and thought to herself, "My, my, what good genes that this woman has!"
After the meal, Nelissa sat at the side and listened to Sophie and Edward's banter.
She wanted to leave but Edward was now her partner. He had extended his help and she should at least have the decency to be polite around him.
"Sir, is Ms. Sophie your girlfriend?" Nathan suddenly popped the question.
Instead it was Sophie that answered, "Why, yes, I am. Who is your father?"
Edward was annoyed at her response. He didn't like that.
Nathan raised his chin and asserted, "We don't need a father. We only need Mommy. Mommy is the only person we need!"
Nelissa smiled; she was delighted. Nathan really came through for her.
Edward surprisingly wasn't upset. He gradually took an interest in that little brat.
It was almost seven o'clock when they were done with the meal. They stood on the sidewalk and it was particularly breezy that day.
A gust of wind blew around them and Nelissa's dress was pressed against her alluring body. The way her body curves was extremely intoxicating.
Sophie looked at Nelissa and the twins beside her, then let out an alarming compliment.
"Miss Quest, I really think that you may have great fertility."
"... okay?" Nelissa squeezed out an awkward smile. That was an unusual compliment to say!
Edward still didn't say a word, but he ran his eyes across Nelissa's body as he wandered off in thought.
"Do you need a ride home?" Sophie laughed and asked.
"It's alright, thank you." Nelissa refused.
Coincidentally, a cab passed by and Neliisa immediately hailed it down, got up and left with the twins.
She better kept her guard up against Sophie. After all, she was Edward's girlfriend. A wrong step would only bring her more trouble. It was smarter to keep a safe distance between the two of them.