Chapter 292 Won't You Get Tired If I Sit on Your Lap?
As night fell, the city lights sparkled brilliantly.
The river breeze in Emerald City blew gently, carrying a hint of heat.
Thalia pressed the car window button and lazily leaned against the door, watching William. She saw the man's slender fingers moving across his phone screen, typing out a long message bit by bit.
It looked like he was frantically explaining himself after being dumped.
Thalia leaned over to sneak a peek, but William caught her. He generously handed her his phone. "Want to see?"
Thalia awkwardly sat back down and tried to find a topic. "Amara! What's up with her? Why do you need to comfort her like this?"
"She went on a blind date yesterday and scared the guy off by saying she's divorced and had an abortion."
"Harper almost flooded my office this afternoon," William tossed his phone aside and pulled Thalia onto his lap by her arm.
It took Thalia a moment to respond. "So even you run into this kind of trouble, William."
"Having you in my life is already a headache. Add Amara and Harper to that—forget it, if I can handle all three of you well, that's pretty good."
"What do you mean? I'm very well-behaved, okay?"
William glanced at her and casually rubbed her fingertips in his palm. "Really?"
"Aren't I?" Thalia shot back.
"Do you know how many posts the Celestia Group's PR department handles every day to clear your name? Haven't you noticed that no one's been trashing you online lately?"
"That was you?" Thalia was surprised! She thought it was Grace.
After all, when Hayden was around, things were tightly controlled. Once Hayden died and no one was managing her anymore, those rivals and haters came out like crazy. In just a few months, they exposed all the dirt from her entire life.
"Who else did you think it was?" William asked.
"I thought it was my mom!"
William smiled without saying anything. Grace had been busy cleaning up the old guard Hayden left behind and had no time to deal with Thalia.
To Grace, the company's value far exceeded Thalia's value in the entertainment industry.
Worst case scenario, if she couldn't make it in entertainment, she could still go back and inherit the family business.
The man's fingers continued to linger on her palm, his movements gentle and slow. Thalia stared at him, seeing him resting with his eyes closed. She moved slightly, trying to pull her hand back.
But he gripped it tighter.
"Aren't you tired with me sitting on your lap?" Thalia asked.
"No."
Thalia changed the subject. "What if things don't work out tonight?"
"They will!"
"You're that sure?"
William opened his eyes and glanced at her. "Who am I?"
In all of Emerald City, there was nothing William wanted that he couldn't get. Kurt was just a matter of time, and Zephyrine's move only made everything happen faster.
When she needed money, she would make a move. A woman who had lived under others' control her whole life would never allow herself to lose even a bit. Zephyrine's fate was decided at birth.
As a child of a prominent family from a household that favored sons over daughters.
If you could contribute to the family, you were naturally superior.
If not, you'd be discarded.
William had grasped her psychology, which meant he had grasped everything.
Whether it was Kurt or the Lowe Group, they were just proof for Zephyrine to show her family her worth.
Filing for bankruptcy and selling the company—they might still live comfortably in retirement, but Zephyrine wouldn't allow it.
Selling the company meant losing.
If she lost, her decades of struggle would be for nothing.
The hostess of the Carter family would look down on her until death.
On the top floor of the mall, in the open-air sunroom, a women-only party with drinks and conversation was slowly unfolding.
The wealthy ladies wore expensive clothes and priceless jewelry, chatting happily.
Men carrying trays tried their best to flirt with the rich women present.
"Mr. Brown, this place is tightly guarded. They have people watching on the first floor," Finn reported.
The venue was on the 27th floor. They'd probably be monitored as soon as they got in the elevator.
William said coldly, "As expected. Call Ethan and ask where he is."
"Got it!" Finn went out with his phone to make the call.
Soon, someone knocked on the car window. Ethan's face appeared. "Don't I get off-work time? Do you see what time it is?!"
"Don't you need performance results after your promotion?"
"The cases you hand me all offend people. If things go wrong, it could cost me dearly."
"If things go well, you'll get promoted. Good luck!" William raised the car window. Ethan muttered something outside, cursing.
He took his people upstairs. Just as they reached the elevator, they were stopped. The other party looked him over, full of suspicion.
Ethan was puzzled. "Not letting us up?"
"No one here should have called the police."
"Routine inspection of public places," Ethan added.
"Not needed today."
Ethan smiled. "Sir, it's not about whether you need it or not. It's our turn to inspect here."
"Call whoever's in charge to come down," Ethan was too lazy to argue with them.
This building had offices, restaurants, and various businesses. Management was fairly regulated. Usually the guards at the door knew them, but no one had been this clueless before.
On the top floor, a secretary walked to Zephyrine's side and whispered, "They're saying police are downstairs."
"What for?" Zephyrine asked.
"Apparently a routine inspection."
"Put things away first. Tell the people at the door not to argue with them too long. Don't mess things up."
"Understood," the secretary nodded, not daring to be careless.
She waved her hand, signaling the bartenders with trays to go back.
On the other side, Ethan and his team went upstairs. It really was just a routine inspection. They checked a few restaurants and nothing else.
The whole thing took half an hour.
When they left, Zephyrine finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Looks like it really was just a routine inspection."
"Continue!"
For the second round, the bartenders changed the drinks at the venue. The wealthy ladies started the second round, and everything went smoothly until near the end.
Just before closing time, all the elevators in the building broke down.
When everyone was trapped on the 27th floor, Zephyrine finally felt something was wrong.
This tactic looked like a diversion—making them let their guard down on one side while attacking on the other.
"Mrs. Lowe?"
"Take the stairs."
"Mrs. Lowe, this is the 27th floor. Take the stairs, are you sure?"
"Let's wait a bit! There's no rush anyway. Buildings like this usually have backup power."
Someone in the crowd agreed, and everyone started talking at once, quite heated.
"Better take the stairs," Zephyrine felt something was wrong. Every extra second made her uneasy.
Moreover, the air around them was eerily quiet.