Chapter 193: Meeting Philip Again
When the delivery guy called Nora, she looked as if she had just awakened from a deep sleep, a trace of sadness lingering in her eyes.
"Hello, the storage bins your company reordered arrived today. Could you come sign for them?"
"Okay," Nora replied, blinking. "Just leave them at the company entrance. I'll be there to sign for them shortly."
She sat up and told herself: 'The business has already started, I can't look back now. I've been sad for a month; that's enough. Since I can't hold on to it, just let it go.'
Nora went to the bathroom, freshened up, changed into comfortable sportswear, and got ready to go out. She lifted her head toward the sunlight and quietly encouraged herself: 'I need to have energy every day. I can't let myself stay down.'
When she got to Harman Tower, she ran into Philip outside the elevator, someone she hadn't seen in ages.
Philip was also surprised and asked with a smile, "Nora, what are you doing here?"
It turned out that Brilliant Star also had offices in Harman Tower. They were now in the same building, and Vivian's Aurora Tech was here too.
"Our new company rented space on the 27th floor of Harman Tower," Nora answered honestly.
"You guys started a company?"
"Yeah, Olivia and I are doing it together." Since she had bumped into someone she knew, Nora politely invited him, "Want to come up and take a look?"
"Sure, I'm not busy anyway." Philip agreed. After all, Brilliant Star was his family's company, so he wasn't in a rush to get to work.
It was past rush hour, so there weren't many people in the elevator.
"Wait!"
Just as the elevator doors were about to close, someone called out.
Nora pressed the door open button. The person who came in was actually Vivian!
Nora felt a bit regretful , if she'd known, she would have just closed the doors. Every time she saw Vivian, she felt uncomfortable.
"Oh, it's you guys." Vivian was carrying a designer bag, looking Nora up and down. She looked tired; clearly, she hadn't been doing too well lately.
But Vivian seemed cheerful, smiling as she said, "I heard you got divorced?"
Nora froze. She and Steven had just gone through the divorce procedures yesterday, and Vivian already knew today? Did Steven tell her?
Her expression darkened.
Philip was also surprised - Nora got divorced? So fast?
"Nora, didn't you say before that your husband loved you so much? How did he dump you so quickly?" Vivian's lips curved in a mocking smile. "Guess you're not so special after all?"
Nora responded flatly, "That's none of your business. Feelings can change easily. Good relationship today, divorced tomorrow - it's normal."
Hearing this, Philip understood that Nora really had gotten divorced. He felt a bit happy, though it seemed inappropriate to be happy right now, but with Nora single again, he had a chance. He'd liked her for many years.
Vivian said with a smile, "True, men change fast. When a woman can't keep a man, it's because she's not capable enough."
Nora didn't want to argue. "Ms. Bennett, if you like pleasing men, go ahead. I'm just an ordinary person, I don't bend over backwards to please anyone."
With that, the elevator reached the 27th floor. She said to Philip, "Our company is on this floor."
"Okay." Philip followed Nora out of the elevator.
Vivian was still standing alone in the elevator. Just as the doors were about to close, she pressed the open button again.
She walked out in her high heels into the hallway and saw Nora leading Philip into room 2701.
There was a big pile of packages in the hallway - must be the shipment of storage bins.
Nora unlocked the company door with her key and brought Philip in. "This is our company."
Vivian stood in the hallway, thought for a moment, and called Bianca at Apex Technologies Corporation.
"Hello, Ms. Reed, did you know that Nora started a company?"
"She started a company?" Bianca was drinking coffee at the office. Since Olivia and Nora left, Apex Technologies Corporation had become much more relaxed. Now they ran the company, and although Terry had moved out, it didn't affect their relationship - the family was still harmonious.
"Yeah, in room 2701 of Harman Tower. I saw the office is over a thousand square feet, the rent must be at least twenty or thirty thousand dollars a month." Vivian said with a smile. By revealing Nora's address, she didn't need to do anything herself - Apex Technologies Corporation definitely wouldn't be friendly either.
Bianca gripped her coffee cup tightly in anger. "She's just throwing around my Willie's money!"
"What do you mean?"
"Willie and Olivia got divorced, now he has to give her two hundred thousand dollars every month. She's living comfortably now, doing nothing and getting all that money." Bianca was very upset.
Vivian pretended not to understand and kept probing. "Why does he have to give her so much money?"
"Because Olivia and Nora are smart! They found out all of Willie's assets and said she was a shareholder of Apex Technologies Corporation. If Willie didn't sign, she'd come make trouble at the company every day. She even smashed things up on the day of the divorce - Willie wouldn't give her money, so she wouldn't let us have peace."
Vivian pretended to sympathize. "I didn't know there was such a thing."
"Ms. Bennett, you better believe it. These, Olivia and Nora, are cunning. If you deal with them, you have to be careful."
Just as Bianca said this, an employee called out to her, "Ms. Reed, you have a delivery."
"What is it?" Bianca held the phone between her neck and shoulder, opened the package, and her eyes suddenly widened.
The package contained a lawyer's letter for her and Terry.
Inside were copies of spending records showing Terry had spent over three hundred thousand dollars, and Bianca over two hundred thousand dollars.
Olivia was demanding they transfer half the money to her account - three hundred thousand dollars total, or she would sue them.
Bianca's face instantly turned ugly as she crumpled the lawyer's letter. "That woman!"
Vivian could tell something had happened and asked tentatively, "What's wrong?"
"That woman, Olivia, sent us a lawyer's letter demanding I pay her back, or she'll sue me!" Bianca told her what happened.
Vivian sighed. "Looks like you were right, Olivia and Nora really are tough to deal with. Your family, and they're being so heartless to you."
Bianca was furious. "If they treat me like this, they'd better not expect to have it easy either!"
Bianca hung up and immediately contacted Willow's son, telling him Olivia had started a company in Harman Tower, especially emphasizing that she'd gotten a lot of money in the divorce.
Olivia and Nora had sent their mom to prison - of course, he'd give them trouble!
Vivian hung up the phone with a slight smile. She knew Olivia and Nora's days ahead wouldn't be easy...
At the company.
Nora brought Philip into the office. Inside were several desks and many storage bins labeled with serial numbers - all things Nora had been busy with lately.
"That's basically the company." Nora showed him around.
"Not bad!" Philip praised her. "Did you guys do all this yourselves?"
"Yeah, doing it ourselves saves money." During this time, Nora had hung curtains and assembled storage bins herself. Although she didn't do much each day, she had nothing else going on anyway, so she slowly got the online store and company organized.
"When we came in, I saw so many packages at the company entrance. What are those?"
"Those are the reordered storage bins. We originally ordered over six hundred, but it wasn't enough, so we ordered over two hundred more. Once they're assembled, they'll go in this spot." Nora pointed to an empty area.
"You and Olivia are pretty capable; you can handle anything."
Nora smiled and walked to the doorway to look at those storage bins, feeling a bit worried - they were very heavy.
She was about to start moving them when her phone rang again.
The screen showed "Steven."
Nora thought she was imagining it and steadied herself. Weren't they already divorced? Why was he calling?
"Hello," Nora answered.
"Are you home?"
Steven stood by the floor-to-ceiling window. Two days ago, he'd ended this relationship, but after going back, he couldn't sleep well. Every time he closed his eyes, he thought of Nora's sad smile, and his chest felt tight. He couldn't help it and called her anyway.
"What is it?" Nora's voice was much colder than before.
"I need to come get some things."
"Get what?"
Steven didn't actually know what to get, so he said casually, "Some clothes."
"I'm busy at the company right now. Why don't you go get them yourself? I didn't change the door code, and I didn't delete your fingerprint..."
Hearing her say this, Steven's mood improved a bit, and the heaviness in his heart seemed to lift slightly. "Why didn't you change it?"
Did she still care about him?
Nora did care, but she wouldn't show it anymore. She didn't want to be too humble, if she said something and got rejected again, her self-respect would be crushed.
She tried to stay calm. "Too busy, didn't have time to change it."
Hearing "didn't have time to change it," Steven's face went cold, and his tone got heavier. "I see."
"Yes, I need to get busy. Just go get whatever you need." Nora was about to start moving the storage bins.
"Wait." Steven stopped her, his voice low. "I don't have time to go now. What time will you be home tonight? I'll come then."
Nora thought about it. "Probably around six or seven."
With so many storage bins, it would probably take a long time.
"Okay, I'll come find you tonight." Steven hung up after saying that.
Nora's chest tightened again.
So be it. After the official divorce in a month, they'd have nothing to do with each other anymore. No more lingering.
She put away her phone and collected her emotions.
When she returned to the company, she saw Philip moving storage bins.
Nora froze. "You don't need to, Philip. These bins are heavy, and the packages are dirty, they'll get your clothes dirty."
"It's fine. These things are so heavy, you can't move them by yourself. Let me help you move them inside." Philip insisted on helping her.
Nora didn't refuse. It really would be hard for her to move them alone, so she moved them together with Philip.
They moved all the storage bins into the company, their backs sore.
Nora sat on a small stool, using a box cutter to open the packages one by one, revealing the angled storage bins inside.
"Philip, let me treat you to lunch." She wanted to buy him takeout, since he'd helped her so much.
"Sure." Philip readily agreed.