Chapter 6

"No way, this can't be happening! I don't believe it," Liana blurted out, totally shocked. "Victoria, do you even know what you're saying? I'm Leon's classmate, and no one knows him better than I do. There's no way he could be the chairman of the company."

Liana felt like she was in some kind of weird dream. Leon was always such a loser, and his clothes were everything but decent.

She'd just seen him at the class reunion yesterday and knew all about his crappy living situation.

How on earth could Leon be the chairman of Corleone Investment Bank?

Victoria's voice was icy. "There's no need to explain his true identity to you. Liana, you'd better know your place."

Liana's face went pale. She'd always thought she was on the fast track to becoming the general manager, and she had been pretty smug about it.

But now that Leon was the chairman, everything was up in the air.

Thinking about how she'd just acted all high and mighty towards Leon, Liana felt a wave of regret. She couldn't even bring herself to look him in the eye.

"Leon, please forgive me. I didn't know you are..." Liana said, her voice full of regret.

Leon gave her a quick glance but didn't say anything. Instead, he turned his attention to the tall security guard who had been so full of himself earlier.

The security guard looked like he'd just seen a ghost, his face frozen in shock.

"You're fired," Leon said calmly, then walked into the elevator.

A bunch of people followed Leon, and the other employees who saw what happened started whispering among themselves.

Corleone Investment Bank, a huge company, suddenly welcomed their new chairman to come into power but most of the employees didn't find out until now.

Leon's office was on the top floor, super spacious and already decked out.

Leon sank into a plush chair, a satisfied smile on his face. Brandon had really thought of everything; the office was spotless and cozy, which made Leon pretty happy.

Right then, Leon was chilling in the chair, and Liana stood across from him, clenching her fingers and pressing her lips into a thin line nervously.

Victoria handed some documents to Leon and said, "Leon, just sign here, and you'll officially be the chairman of Corleone Investment Bank."

Leon gave them a quick once-over and signed his name without a second thought.

Then Victoria pulled out another document and handed it to Leon. "Chairman Corleone, these are some projects the company invested in before, and this year's business plan. I think you'll find this stuff interesting."

Leon shook his head and said calmly, "I don't want to look at them, Victoria. Stop all previous investment plans. Let our partners know there's a new chairman, and Corleone Investment Bank is changing its direction. Oh, and tell them we're really interested in the most promising local projects and are upping the investment fund by $10 billion."

"Got it," Victoria nodded, opened the door, and walked out of the office.

But Liana's face went white as a sheet when she heard Leon's decision. She knew her promotion was now a pipe dream.

And all the investment plans Liana had worked on were shot down by Leon. This meant all her hard work was for nothing, and she might even get canned by Corleone Investment Bank.

She'd already bought a house and a car and had loans to pay off. The thought of losing her job made her really nervous.

So, feeling desperate, Liana quickly said to Leon, "Leon, please, I'm begging you to forgive me. I didn't mean to say those things. I had no idea who you really are. If I'd known, I would've never mocked you. We were classmates once, please give me another chance. I'll do anything you want, just don't fire me."

"Really?" Leon looked at Liana's slim figure and smirked, "Liana, are you sure about that?"

Liana's face turned bright red. Leon's gaze bored into her.

Yesterday, she was all high and mighty in front of Leon, but now she felt like a servant.

Leon stared at the nervous Liana. Sure, she was a bit of a snob, but she wasn't all bad.

So he finally said, in a cold tone, "Alright, I'm just messing with you. Liana, I'm not a petty guy. I won't fire you over what happened. But as for your promotion, that's up in the air. If you want to move up, you need to prove yourself. I don't want a useless person as the general manager. Got it?"

With that, he waved his hand, signaling for Liana to leave.

It was his first day as chairman, and he had a ton of stuff to handle. He couldn't waste time on Liana.

Sure, Liana was beautiful, but Leon had seen plenty of beautiful women. She didn't hold any special appeal for him.

Soon, word got out that Corleone Investment Bank had a new chairman.

For the local wealthy folks, this was huge news.

Rumor had it that the new chairman had scrapped all the old business plans and was planning to pump an extra $10 billion into more promising projects.

Hearing this, the upper-class crowd got really excited.

Corleone Investment Bank had a massive influence locally. Anyone who could cozy up to them was bound to enjoy reflected glory.

The savvy Patrick got wind of the news too. After thinking it over, he quickly made a decision.

When Leon got home from work, he found not just Caitlin, but also some other family members, like Patrick and Lucy.

Leon noticed Caitlin was wearing the necklace he had given her, and he smiled. It seemed Caitlin really liked it; otherwise, she wouldn't have put it on right away.

So he said with a grin, "Caitlin, that necklace looks amazing on you. It suits you perfectly."

But Caitlin's cousin Lucy sneered and said, "Shut up, Leon. This necklace has nothing to do with you. Can't you see we're talking? Get lost and stop eavesdropping."

Caitlin's mom, Samara, looked at Leon with disgust. "Leon, where were you all day? Didn't you notice the house is a mess? You lazy bum."

"Samara, don't bother scolding him. He's going to divorce Caitlin soon anyway, so who cares," Lucy added coldly.

Leon was taken aback. Did the Herman family still think they could push him into divorcing Caitlin?

But it didn't matter; Leon had no intention of divorcing Caitlin.

Right then, Caitlin was sitting on the sofa, and Patrick was sitting across from her.

Caitlin glanced at Leon, then turned back to Patrick and asked, "Patrick, you called me back in such a hurry, what's going on?"

Patrick said, "Caitlin, I want to share some news. Have you heard that Corleone Investment Bank has a new chairman?"

Caitlin nodded, "Yeah, I heard."

Patrick continued, "Well, the new chairman has scrapped all the old investment plans and is planning to pump an extra $10 billion into more promising projects. This is a golden opportunity for us. We need to seize it to grow stronger. If we can establish a good relationship with Corleone Investment Bank, we can make a fortune."

Caitlin looked puzzled. "Patrick, I get what you're saying, but we hardly have any connections with Corleone Investment Bank. And why are you coming to me specifically instead of other family members?"

"Because only you can make this happen," Patrick said, patting Caitlin's shoulder seriously. "Caitlin, Steve is the president of Corleone Investment Bank. You've seen how he feels about you. If you agree to date Steve, he'll definitely help the Herman family."

Caitlin was shocked that Patrick was pushing this idea and having her divorce Leon.

Samara and Lucy didn't seem surprised at all and started chiming in.

Samara spoke up, "Caitlin, Patrick's right. You should be with Steve. Leon is just a useless bum. You'll never be happy with him."

Lucy cut in, "Yeah, Caitlin, think about yourself and the Herman family. Steve is the perfect match for you. Hurry up and divorce Leon."

Caitlin frowned and was about to refuse when Patrick suddenly spoke up. "Caitlin, I'd like to show you something that may change your mind. Come with me."

Caitlin asked, confused, "Where?"

Patrick gave a mysterious smile. "It's a secret. You'll find out."

Driven by curiosity, Caitlin agreed. Patrick led Caitlin outside, with Samara and Lucy following.

"Where are you going? I'm coming with you," Leon said, following them.

Samara looked at him with disdain. "Leon, stay home and clean. When we get back, I want to see this place spotless."

Lucy sneered, "Are you a tag-along? Remember, you're just a servant in the Herman family. Do what you're supposed to do!"

But Leon had a bad feeling about this, so he wasn't about to let Caitlin leave with Patrick without him.

Ignoring their objections, he insisted on following Caitlin and the others.

Caitlin glanced at Leon but didn't say anything.

Patrick led the group to Riverside Park.

This place was usually deserted, and now it was nighttime, so the park was even emptier.

Caitlin parked the car and got out, asking, "Patrick, why did you bring us here?"

Patrick smiled but didn't explain. Instead, he made a phone call and said something to the person on the other end.

Soon, the previously dark Riverside Park lit up.

Caitlin and the others realized the place had been carefully decorated. There were colorful lights on the branches and grass, making the whole park look like a fairy tale world.

Not far in front of Caitlin, there was a large black cloth covering something.

Patrick smiled and said, "Caitlin, do you want to know what that is? Go and take a look."

Caitlin, Samara, and Lucy were all curious. The three of them went over and pulled off the black cloth, revealing a convertible sports car.

"Oh my God, this is..." Lucy covered her mouth, looking shocked.

Samara looked delighted and said, "This car must be very expensive. Oh my God, Patrick, is this car a gift for Caitlin?"

Caitlin was also surprised. She looked at Patrick and asked, "Patrick, why are you giving me a sports car?"

Patrick shook his head. "No, Caitlin, you got it wrong. This car isn't from me; it's from someone else."

"Who?" Caitlin asked.

Then, a familiar laugh came from the darkness.

"Caitlin, I know you've always wanted a sports car, so I bought this for you. Do you like it?" A man in a suit, holding flowers, walked out from the dark corner with great poise.

As he stepped into the light, Leon saw the man's face clearly—it was Steve.

"Steve, it's you?" Caitlin was surprised that Steve had arranged all this.

Patrick clapped his hands and smiled, "Caitlin, I may be old now, but I was young once too. Steve is even more romantic than I was. If you are with him, you'll be very happy."

Samara and Lucy cheered, looking at Steve with admiration.

Compared to Leon, it was clear that an excellent man like Steve was more qualified to be Caitlin's husband.

"Oh my God, Caitlin, Steve is so romantic. I envy you. If my boyfriend could be like Steve, that would be amazing!" Lucy said.

"Yeah, Caitlin, you really need to think it over and realize who is truly suitable for you!" Samara added.