Chapter 212 Why Pretend to Be Reserved After Getting Married?
"What are you doing here?"
"Meeting a client," William said in the Maybach, looking at emails on his iPad.
Thalia tied up her hair. "What client needs you to meet them at nine in the morning?"
William looked up from his iPad. "You can get up at 4:30 to go to work, but I can't meet a client at nine?"
"And another thing—weren't you supposed to be filming a variety show? How'd you end up at a hotel?"
Thalia picked up William's thermos and took a sip of warm tea. "I was supposed to film, but the livestream got reported and shut down. I figured since I was already up, I might as well not waste the day."
"The livestream got shut down?" William pretended to be surprised.
"Yes."
William chuckled softly and looked back down at his documents. "Good."
Thalia turned her head stiffly to look at the man sitting beside her. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Did William report the livestream?
"Illegal livestreams should've been shut down a long time ago."
Thalia pressed her lips together, about to say something when William's phone rang. He answered, listened to whoever was on the other end, responded briefly, then glanced at Thalia. "Want the driver to take you home to rest?"
"No, I want to go shopping."
"To the office."
.........
"Kurt," Nora had been picked up early in the morning by Kurt's secretary and brought to the company. After waiting in the reception room for a long time, she finally saw him.
"Let's go."
Nora was confused. Go where? Could it be?
"Nora, Mr. Lowe has an appointment with Mr. Brown today. We're going to see him now."
Nora's steps faltered. William?
If William embarrassed her in front of everyone and made Kurt think she was worthless, wouldn't he dump her right away?
Nora stopped at the elevator door.
"Nora?" Seeing her hesitate to enter, Isia called out.
She didn't dare go against Kurt's wishes and could only follow them to the Celestia Group.
"Mr. Brown, Mr. Lowe is here, and he brought... Nora."
Brian knocked on William's office door. William hung up his suit jacket. "Send them up."
Thalia came out of William's lounge after washing her hands, listening carefully. "Who's here?"
"Kurt brought Nora."
"What are they here for?"
"I know," Brian quickly answered. "They want to get on Mr. Brown's good side."
"I can understand Kurt wanting to butter you up, but what's the point of bringing Nora? Using a woman as a stepping stone?"
Brian blinked at Thalia. "Because Mr. Lowe thinks Mr. Brown likes Nora."
Thalia: ........
William: ........ "Get out."
Thalia casually tossed a tissue into the trash can behind William's desk. "Nice, Mr. Brown. Playing around with female celebrities now."
"I'm innocent."
"Innocent of what?" Thalia asked coldly.
She walked up to William, blocking his way, and reached into his pants pocket. Suddenly touching something, William sucked in a sharp breath and grabbed her wrist, demanding coldly, "What are you groping for?"
Thalia rolled her eyes. "I touched it, so what? It's not like I haven't touched it before. We're married—why are you acting all proper?"
"Where's your wallet?"
William laughed in exasperation. After all that groping, she wasn't trying to tease him—she wanted his bank card?
William walked to his desk, pulled open a drawer, and tossed her his wallet.
Thalia pulled out a card. "I won't interrupt your romantic chat with the female celebrity. I'm heading downstairs."
Below the Celestia Group building was a luxury shopping mall in the CBD commercial district, with floors one through eight featuring all the major international brands.
The moment Thalia left, Kurt walked into the office with Nora.
Nora had seen plenty of luxury offices—nouveau riche style, traditional landscape style—but this was her first time seeing one as minimalist as William's.
Walking in, Nora almost thought she'd entered the set of some drama about wealthy families.
"Mr. Brown."
"Mr. Lowe."
After exchanging pleasantries, William picked up a cigarette. "Mr. Lowe, I have a meeting soon. Let's get straight to the point."
William picked up the coffee pot and poured him a cup, not forgetting Nora's coffee either. William never looked down on anyone—whoever sat next to Kurt would get the same treatment. He thought nothing of it, but Nora, an outsider, felt somewhat flattered.
"Business is unpredictable, like undercurrents at the bottom of a river that can sweep everything away. Progress happens overnight. Mr. Lowe, you've witnessed how business has evolved over these past ten years. When times change, they leave behind those who react too slowly. At times like that, the only lifeline is cash flow. I'm risking six hundred million dollars on Mr. Lowe without charging high interest or requiring collateral—that's more than fair. But what Mr. Lowe has given me in return seems rather inhumane, doesn't it?"
"I don't expect you to sing my praises for helping you out, but you can't drag me down with you, can you?"
"The first scandal in the Celestia Group's history happened on Mr. Lowe's watch. If I go ahead and approve your loan according to procedure, I'll have a hard time convincing everyone else."
Kurt's heart sank. William was going to negotiate terms.
Interest or profit sharing?
Kurt had reached the top of the business world for a reason—he was sharp. He immediately closed off that route. "If possible, I'll pay Mr. Brown interest according to business standards."
Hearing this, William tapped his cigarette ash. "I'm not a loan shark."
Kurt felt angry, but given his current situation, he really didn't have the strength to stand up to William. He held back. "Mr. Brown, please speak plainly."
"Consider this six hundred million as my investment stake."
The Lowe Group was a family business. William taking a stake meant letting an outsider into the company.
Kurt had reason to believe that given William's ambition, once he entered the group, his next step would be to replace him.
"I need to think about it, Mr. Brown."
"Of course, Mr. Lowe has plenty of time to consider."
William leaned forward to stub out his cigarette, walked to his desk, and pressed the intercom to have Brian come in and see them out.
Nora hadn't said a word the entire time.
Even as Nora was leaving, she was still confused.
"Mr. Brown, the scandal wasn't Mr. Lowe's idea, and it wasn't mine either. We're very concerned that this happened."
Nora stopped at the door and suddenly spoke up to explain.
William raised an eyebrow. "We?"
Nora was taken aback.
She waited for William to continue, but instead, William's gaze swept over her from head to toe. "Nora, people who know me understand that based on your looks and figure alone, you wouldn't catch my eye. You're using me to get benefits from Kurt—are you trying to play both sides?"
"I'm not, I didn't."
"Nora, please," Brian gestured for her to leave.
Just as Nora and Kurt entered the elevator, another elevator door opened.