Filed to story: The Breaking Point (Maya & Julian) Book PDF Free
Julian kicked him in the leg, upon which he immediately drew a quiet breath before sitting up with a straight face. “This is Mr. Graham, whom I’m sure all of you have long heard of. He may look stern, but he’s an amiable person, actually. Miss Smith, who has worked with him, understands this best.”
Luna eagerly chimed in, “Yeah, that’s right.”
All the designers present called out in unison, “Good afternoon, Mr. Graham.”
Maya felt that Kevin’s words were an indirect way of justifying the seating arrangements. Naturally, a major investor like Julian wouldn’t want to be seated with people he didn’t know well. Since Luna had worked with him before, her sitting next to him would be the most appropriate.
She surmised that Kevin’s seat was probably intended for Selena, who had yet to arrive.
Julian nodded, acknowledging everyone.
Luna cleared her throat and said to Maya, “Mr. Graham is attending such an event for the first time. Maya, you’re quick-witted and good with your hands. Make sure not to slight him.”
Maya replied dutifully at once, “I got it, Miss Smith.” Given Julian’s prominent status, Luna instructing her to focus on serving him was indeed a wise move.
She poured a glass of soda for Julian while everyone watched.
Selena arrived late to find Maya sitting next to Julian, separating Luna from him. Enraged, she quickly walked over to the large round table in the banquet hall. She stood in front of Kevin and – suppressing the boiling anger within her – asked with a sweet and gentle smile, “Mr. Stewart, why didn’t you save a seat for me? You know about my relationship with Julian, don’t you?”
Kevin replied with a look of astonishment, “Oh, dear! Miss Palmer, it’s already 3.30PM. I thought you weren’t going to attend the party.”
Selena’s cheeks reddened with suppressed anger. “How could I not attend the party…” she said, looking expectantly at Julian.
Much to her dismay, Julian paid no attention to her, being completely absorbed in eating the orange Maya had peeled for him.
Selena knew full well that the man wouldn’t give her special treatment at this moment, especially since he was an investor. Since she failed to arrive on time, she had no reason to make a fuss just because her seat had been taken. Moreover, she had to maintain her public image in front of the camera.
Maya paid no attention to her. She was now making every effort to please Julian, hoping he would give her another chance to explain herself. This time, she was determined to talk nicely and not make him angry – all in the hope that he would help her retrieve the design draft.
Kevin persuaded Selena earnestly, “Miss Palmer, it’s recreation time now. Come on, don’t be so serious. The seat over there is pretty nice, too; just look up, and you’ll be able to see Mr. Graham. That’s not bad, isn’t it?”
Selena was inwardly seething with anger, but outwardly, she gave in, saying, “Okay.” Reluctantly, she took the seat furthest from Julian at the round table, her heart filled with an even stronger loathing for Luna and Maya.
On the other hand, Maya was delighted to see that Julian had eaten the fruit she had offered, which he usually liked. She suggested in a more relaxed tone, “Mr. Graham, would you like another bottle of soda?”
Julian raised his eyelids and glanced at her before nodding slightly.
This ambiguous look in his eyes was captured on the live broadcast.
The netizens who had initially found the tea party boring were now captivated by the way he looked at Maya.
One of them commented, ‘Is it just my imagination, or is Julian Graham really looking at Alana’s assistant in a way that suggests some sort of romance?’
Another replied, ‘I agree with you… I’m twisting like a pretzel in my bed now. What a look in the eyes of an ultimate charmer!’
Another netizen commented, ‘Can those who ship random couples contain your enthusiasm? Who doesn’t know that Julian Graham is in love with Selena Palmer? Isn’t it going too far to pair him with someone else? All he did was look back at a fly, and all of you think he’s fallen in love with it? Isn’t that outright disgusting?!’
Maya fetched a bottle of soda for Julian and uncapped it, placing it next to her own drink.
Sitting on her other side, Luna gently tickled her hand.
Maya didn’t look at her, but she opened her palm, allowing Luna to write on it.
Luna wrote, ‘Don’t just get him sodas when there are so many drinks available! This brand of soda is the cheapest on the show; they’re only here as a sort of filler.’
Only then did Maya realize that the products that appeared on the live stream were all a subtle form of product placement. The rumors surrounding Julian and Selena were already generating a great deal of attention in the first place, so the production team would certainly give more camera time to these two to create more topics for the show. Therefore, her holding a drink of make-do soda was simply wasting a great advertising opportunity.
That being said, she remembered Julian’s preferences. He liked soda water and nothing else.
After pondering for a moment, she moved her own bottle of mineral water, which she had taken a sip from, further away. Then, she grabbed a bottle of energy drink and uncapped it, taking a sip from it before placing it next to the bottle of soda.
Seeing her actions, Julian tapped his fingers on the table.
The lazy Susan was turning slowly.
Seeing the cheese-stuffed biscuits, which Julian disliked, end up in front of him, Maya hurriedly reached out and moved them further away. She had no idea why he disliked cheese-stuffed biscuits. Just the smell of them would make him frown, but he had no issues with the cheese itself.
Julian took another look at her. She remembers all of my preferences. Casually, he picked up the energy drink nearby and took a few drinks of it.
Many people were silently watching him, and now, seeing his behavior, those watching him couldn’t help but gasp in surprise. If their memory served them well, he was drinking the same drink Maya had just sipped from!
Selena was already eyeing Maya with hostility because the latter knew everything about Julian’s preferences. And now, seeing him drinking the same drink Maya had sipped from almost caused Selena to explode then and there.
Maya also never expected the man to drink from her bottle suddenly. She watched his Adam’s apple bob up and down, which reminded her of how her lips had touched the mouth of the bottle. In an instant, her heart fluttered with unease. How dare he do this in front of the camera! In the eyes of others, it’d look like we’re kissing indirectly!
At this point, viewers of the livestream had already gone wild with excitement.
One of them commented, ‘Look, didn’t I just say that Julian Graham was looking at this assistant in a way that suggested some sort of romance? And now he’s drinking from the same bottle she just drank from. If this isn’t a kiss, what else could it be?! I bet that he must’ve taken a fancy to this pretty assistant! F*ck! Damn it, I can’t help shipping them!’
A viewer retorted, ‘Stop with the crazy theories, will you?! It’s obvious that the assistant doesn’t know any better. This energy drink is clearly a product placement. Who does she think she is, daring to advertise to an investor?
It’s clear that Julian had no choice but to drink it for the sake of the show. This assistant is really disgusting!’
A viewer replied, ‘Who is disgusting here? Don’t you even know who Julian Graham is? Is an investor even worth sacrificing himself for that little amount of investment? Selena Palmer has been staging everything on her own. Has Julian ever come forward to respond to the rumors?’
Another viewer replied, ‘I just did some research on Julian Graham and found that he had always drunk soda on the few occasions he had shown up. His profile also mentioned that he loathes cheese-stuffed biscuits. Obviously, this assistant has always known his preferences. They love each other!’
A viewer chimed in, ‘His eyes being glued to the assistant is one thing, but now he’s even drinking from the bottle she just drank! Isn’t that obvious enough? The assistant is simply dressed, but she looks much more graceful than Selena Palmer. She is such a perfect match for Julian!’
Both sides entered into a fierce argument.
Julian put down the energy drink and casually asked Maya, “What are you looking at?”
Maya withdrew her gaze. “Nothing.” She wondered if he had noticed her taking a sip from the energy drink… The way he conducted himself was so natural.
Watching the pair’s interactions, Selena struggled to suppress her anger. She said to those around her with a sweet smile, “Let’s play a game, shall we? Designers and models are mysterious professions. Why don’t we take advantage of this leisurely recreation time to let the audience get to know us?”
As soon as she said that, the live stream’s live chat was flooded with comments.
Kevin was wearing a Bluetooth earpiece, through which his subordinates in the control room reported the situation about the live chat to him. Immediately, he stood up and agreed with Selena, saying, “That’s a good idea. As it happens, the production team has prepared a game of Truth or Dare, so why don’t we start now?”
The production team quickly brought in the props for the game of Truth or Dare – a booklet and a big wheel.
Selena raised her hand eagerly, shouting, “I’ll go first! I’ll go first!”
At once, the fun atmosphere was livened up.
Truth or Dare was a great way to pass the time and make the show more entertaining. The game started with Selena, but Maya’s turn also came a few times. When faced with difficult questions, she drank red wine right away. After drinking nearly a whole glass of red wine, she started to feel a little dizzy.
Selena soon got a second chance to spin the wheel.
Maya and others watched as Selena spun the wheel. The pointer spun a few rounds rapidly, and unfortunately, it eventually pointed at Maya.
Luna looked at Selena.
