In the Lap of Luxury

It was hard to fit into Matthew's schedule. By agreeing to meet Grace, Matthew had shown respect to her.

As such, Grace paid more attention to their appointment. She dressed up appropriately and went for dinner with Luke.

She didn't expect to see an uninvited guest as soon as she walked into the restaurant.

It was Jessica!

She was also dressed up and had an assistant by her side. Both of them were in the middle of a conversation.

"Do you think Mr. Reed from Futurelink Corporation will show up, Ms. Landon? It's hard to fit their schedules."

It was a crucial moment for Jessica's business expansion. Since Benjamin was unwilling to help her out, she could only seek support elsewhere.

Futurelink Corporation was her best choice. Unfortunately, Xander was obviously on Grace's side.

But Jessica was lucky to have made a new connection while dealing with Eastwood's new property a while back.

Jessica had seen Grace as well. She rolled her eyes disdainfully and replied, "Don't worry, Mr. Reed has promised me. We should just wait."

Grace tore her gaze away from Jessica and greeted Matthew with a smile. "I'm glad to have another opportunity to speak with you again, Mr. Thorne."

Matthew was dressed in his everyday attire and looked friendly. He had even brought a few other people with him this time.

Matthew said, "Our companies have just signed a partnership. Seeing as you're eager to move on to the next step, I can see your sincerity. So how could I miss this appointment?" Grace was embarrassed as she replied, "Indeed, Amirate Corporation would never miss out on any win-win cooperation."

Matthew nodded in response and introduced the people with him to her. They were all shareholders of Byte Technologies. Grace humbly shook hands with every one of them. She then led them into a private room.

She slowed down before entering the room and whispered to Luke, "Go look into what Jessica is doing here today." Luke responded and didn't enter the private room.

The private room was located in the best spot of the restaurant. Half of Pamore's view could be seen from there.

Matthew sat at the head of the table with Grace by his side. She had good manners and spoke confidently about the project.

The shareholders were singing praises for her after a few rounds of drinks.

From this appointment, Grace understood even more of Byte Technologies' operating model and how to maximize the mutual benefits of the two companies' collaboration. The Black Friday sale was approaching soon, so Grace decided to use that period to their advantage.

They took a short break, during which time Matthew went to the washroom.

Luke came in from the outside and whispered, "Jessica was here today for an appointment with Mr. Noah Reed, one of the board members of Futurelink Corporation." Grace frowned when she heard Luke mention Futurelink. She immediately thought of Xander.

She asked, "Do you know the details of their discussion?"

Luke replied, "I couldn't find out about that. But Mr. Reed is the one leading the smart home industry."

Grace understood a great deal of it now.

Before she could speak, Matthew's voice suddenly sounded from the entrance. "Look who I just met, Ms. Lewis."

Grace lifted her head in surprise. She saw Xander dressed casually as he stood under the warm light. He was looking at her gently.

"Xander ..."

"So that's how Ms. Lewis addresses Mr. Fulton in private," Matthew joked.

"I knew something was going on between you two!"

"No..."

Only then did Grace realize that she had been inappropriate and replied, "Why are you here, Mr. Fulton?"

Xander kept his eyes on her as he replied, "Something came up. I was here to meet a friend."

Oh. So he could still meet up with his friends, as if nothing had happened.

Grace stared at the glass of red wine in front of her and remained quiet.

It seemed that Matthew might have had too much to drink. He looked between Grace and Xander and said, "I've watched Ms. Lewis' viral video on the Byte app. "You seemed to have good culinary skills. The location was Summitview Manor. I recalled that you're also staying there, right, Mr. Fulton?"

"Ms. Lewis doesn't live there."