Filed To Story: Watch Out! She's a Mastermind Heiress (Isabella Patton) Book PDF Free
He started listing dishes—everything Evie liked. Evie stared at him, half surprised, half suspicious.
“You brought all this for me? You don’t have to do this. I told you—“
“That you don’t need to take responsibility,” Waylon interrupted, finishing her sentence.
“I know. You’ve said it enough times.”
“Then why are you still…” Evie trailed off, unable to finish her thought. He always managed to catch her off guard.
Waylon looked at her earnestly.
“I respect how you feel. I won’t insist on taking responsibility for that night. But I hurt you, and the least I can do is make amends. You said we’re just close family friends. If that’s true, let me treat you like one. Is that too much to ask?”
Waylon had been thinking about it for the past few days. Evie was rejecting him now, and if he wanted to get closer to her, he needed to find a way to soften the tension between them. No matter what reason he gave, the first thing he had to do was break down the walls she had built around herself.
Evie was cornered by his logic. She had said those things, hadn’t she? And now, he was just acting on her words. It didn’t seem wrong.
“So, am I asking for too much?” Waylon pressed gently.
Evie couldn’t pinpoint anything wrong in that moment, so all she could do was shake her head, her response almost detached.
“It’s not too much.”
“Great,” Waylon said, his tone lighter.
“The breakfast is in the car. I’ll grab it.”
He turned and walked to his car, a faint sense of relief washing over him. He’d made progress today.
For the first time in days, Waylon stepped into Evie’s villa again. Last time, Waylon had been so overwhelmed by his own thoughts that he hadn’t really paid attention to Evie’s place. But this time, as he stepped inside, he couldn’t help but notice that while Evie seemed much more cheerful and lively than her brother, her sense of style was strikingly similar to his.
The villa was almost exactly the same as when it was first built, with no personal touches in sight. He remembered that Evie hadn’t always been like this when she was younger.
Waylon made his way to the dining table, opening the boxes one by one, handing the spoon to Evie as he asked, “Have you been living here since you moved out of your family’s house? I remember how much you loved those pink, fairy-tale-themed rooms when you were little.”
Evie paused, the spoon in her hand. She glanced around her house. Aside from the stuffed toys from her family’s house on the sofa and bed were the only things that gave the place any warmth; everything else was minimalist and impersonal, almost like a hotel room.
She scooped some hot cocoa and said, “My room at my family’s house was decorated by my parents. This is just a place for me to rest after work. It doesn’t really matter how it’s decorated.”
She tried to smile, but to Waylon, it wasn’t a real smile—it was a stiff twitch of her lips.
He frowned without thinking.
Evie looked at Waylon, her gaze curious.
“Waylon, aren’t you going to eat?”
Waylon had pushed most of his work aside and had plenty of time to spare. In the last few days, he hadn’t been able to meet with Evie, so he had eaten all the breakfasts by himself. Now, he didn’t feel like eating.
“You eat first. I’ll eat after you’re done,” he replied.
Evie didn’t have much of an appetite. She ate a small portion, leaving the rest for Waylon to finish.
Before this, Waylon had already made up his mind about what he would do when he saw Evie. But when he saw her smile—a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes when she mentioned her parents—he changed his mind.
“Evie, do you want to go out and have some fun?”
“Huh?”
Meanwhile, on the virtual trading platform, Isabella sold her shares and used most of the funds to acquire the development rights for Fisher Bay.
The market valuation of Fisher Bay was incredibly low. After what Isabella did, the NCI asset rankings shifted. J’s name vanished, and Lilian shot up from third place to first, with an astonishing 4.9 billion in assets.
Observers of the rankings quickly noticed that Lilian now owned all the shares that had once belonged to J.
On the investment channel, many industry insiders and participants watching the simulated investment were less than thrilled with Lilian’s actions.
“This is disrupting the market. Lilian is taking things too far!”
“Fairness means nothing to her. I’ve heard for ages how she uses shady tactics to compete. It wasn’t obvious before, but now she’s doing it out in the open. J’s really been dealt a bad hand…”
“That so-called first place is no honor—it’s a disgrace! I urge the industry not to recognize it!”
A wave of criticism flooded in. Lilian, however, merely let out a low laugh.
“A bunch of nosy people with nothing better to do…”
Her long, straight black hair fell over her face, hiding her expression. The mouse in her hand creaked under the pressure as she squeezed it, frustration bubbling beneath her calm exterior.
She had worked hard to reach the top, not to become the target of criticism.
Using her verified personal account, Lilian tracked down the person who had criticized her most harshly and posted part of her chat log with J in that person’s comment section.
“Open your eyes and see clearly—J asked for Fisher Bay. If anyone spreads rumors again, don’t blame me for being rude.”
Lilian glanced at her subordinate, pointing to the computer.
“List the names of everyone who insulted me.”
“Okay, ma’am.” The subordinate immediately set to work.
Once Lilian’s message was posted, many people hesitated to speak out. With both power and influence, Lilian made sure they didn’t dare to provoke her. However, their discontent had already been stirred.
Their attention soon turned to the vulnerable J.
“Heh, Fisher Bay’s a mess. Whoever gets involved will regret it. J must be a fool to choose it.”
“Maybe J’s smarter than we think. Maybe they’re just sucking up to wealth.”
“I bet J’s just trying to curry favor with Lilian. They deliberately gave up the achievement. What a sellout!”
“Looking at it this way, J’s pretty short-sighted…”
“Damn it! Boss! Lilian’s trick of deflecting trouble is too insidious! You just finished cooperating with her!” Inside the business car, Jared was furious. He showed Isabella the picture of Lilian mentioning J. Now, people in the industry were trashing J—her decision to go after Fisher Bay, her attempts to please Lilian… Nothing J did seemed right. If this continued, J’s true identity would soon be exposed, and she wouldn’t be able to stay in the industry.
Isabella frowned. Lilian clearly had better ways to clear her name but chose not to use them, instead dragging Isabella down.
Jared sighed.
“Boss, even though my investment skills aren’t as sharp as yours, I do know a bit. What’s your plan for Fisher Bay? Do you think you can convince the government to restart the project? They won’t be easy to persuade after the first time. Even if they agree, you’ll have to give up a lot. It’s not worth it.”
Jared was angry, but he wasn’t worried about Isabella’s reputation. He knew his boss had a plan. When the time came, those who had cursed her would probably change their tune. But for now, he couldn’t help but be curious.
Isabella looked at Jared.
“Who said I’m planning to persuade the government?”
Jared was confused.
“Boss, you don’t plan on developing the port?” Developing Fisher Bay into a port would maximize its value, but Isabella knew she couldn’t get what she wanted from the government right now. She wouldn’t waste time on that.
With the last of her funds, Isabella started a cutting-edge tech company. There was still a month and a half until the end of the NCI project—perfect timing.
“I think you can figure it out yourself.” Isabella didn’t go into details with Jared.
“When you figure it out, you’ll be able to make decisions about this kind of business on your own.”
“Ah, Boss, you’re a devil! Please, just tell me…”