The Supreme Soldier in the City
Chapter 292 - 299: Meeting Emma

Chapter 292: Chapter 299: Meeting Emma

Joan’s parents came here to help the couple with buying a house and also to see if they were happy together, since after all, the elders had saved up their whole lives and were worried about their daughter being deceived.

Now it seems that the couple is still very loving, and James is very caring, which reassured them. The only regret is that Joan hasn’t gotten pregnant yet, causing a bit of a false alarm, but they figured it would happen eventually after some time.

And Joan’s parents didn’t stay long here, not wanting to disturb the couple’s private world; plus, they had work to attend to, so they went back the next day.

Once her parents left, Joan finally breathed a sigh of relief and immediately kicked James out of her house. The decisiveness made James both cry and laugh.

Recently, Melody hadn’t called James, which surprised him. After their last encounter, it would be odd for Melody to go silent; it felt very peculiar.

After thinking it over, James took the initiative to call Melody. The phone rang a few times but was suddenly hung up, which puzzled James even more, wondering if something had happened to Melody.

After a while, Melody called back and James immediately said, "Melody, is something wrong with you?"

"Nothing, I’ve been attending a training in the province these days."

"You scared me. You haven’t called for days; I thought something happened to you."

"Hmph, I deliberately didn’t call you just to see if you still remember me."

James secretly broke a sweat; with his recent busyness, he truly hadn’t thought of calling Melody. He rushed to explain, "These past few days have been busy, and sometimes it’s not convenient to answer the phone."

"You’re not romancing some other woman, are you?"

James sweat even more, as these days he had indeed been revolving around women.

"Hmph, I knew it! How did I never realize before that you’re such a flirt? If I had known, I would never have given myself to you. Now I still have to face so many rivals."

Still domineering as she spoke, it actually made James feel more relaxed. He laughed, "It’s not that many; you don’t need to feel so much pressure. When are you coming back?"

"A few more days. Why? Missing me?"

"Missing you, how about you sneak back?"

"Go on with you. You think I’m still like before, sneaking out in the middle of the night just because you say so?"

James couldn’t help but burst into laughter. In high school, after they first had their tryst, he was tireless in pursuing such thrills. They had to keep it from their families, so James would often text Melody late at night, and she would sneak out for a rendezvous before stealthily heading home. They did this many times, and surprisingly, her parents never found out.

Thinking back to those days, they both couldn’t help but laugh. Young and fearless allowed them to do such things.

"Alright, enough chitchat, I need to go back, I’m actually still in class."

"Okay, by the way, I might turn my phone off these days, don’t worry—it’s because I’m caught up in something where it’s not convenient to keep it on."

"Be careful, don’t go having an affair and getting caught in someone’s house."

"Absolutely not, if I were to sneak around, it would be with someone single like Melody, not with someone risky."

After hanging up, James still had a smile on his face. Just last night, he had realized something: whether it was with Emma or Melody, he was ultimately considering marriage, which inevitably made things feel heavier.

But as to whether marriage was possible, it was unpredictable. Who knew how many people dated for years and never ended up married? Whether with Melody or Emma, as long as he cared for them, whether or not they ended up together, why bother worrying about it now?

There was still no news about the smuggling, and James was happy to enjoy some peace. This affair was just an episode in his life, like playing a game when there’s nothing else to do. Rushing through it wouldn’t be fun; taking it slowly had its merits.

Tomorrow is Friday, and Gina Lopez had called James to the office that morning. Besides Gina, Sunny Nguyen was also there, meaning they were either going to discuss something private or touch on company business.

Gina first said, "Everyone’s been working hard for a long time, and the company is gradually on the right track. To increase employee motivation, I’ve considered taking everyone to the beach this weekend. What do you think?"

Sunny immediately responded, "That’s a great idea. It would let everyone feel appreciated by the company. Adding some small activities could also boost team spirit and cohesion."

Having both expressed their views, they then looked at James.

James spread his hands and said, "You both are the president and the director. If you think it’s good, then it’s fine by me."

Gina Lopez and Sunny Nguyen knew how James Brown was, so they both gave him a cold look, then started discussing where to go for fun. However, neither of them was from YODC City, so when it came to deciding a place to visit, they both looked toward James Brown again.

James Brown smiled and said, "Let’s go to the island then, the one I went to last time with Lucy Campbell. The environment there is pretty nice."

Gina Lopez and Sunny Nguyen had no objections, and James Brown immediately added, "By the way, can we bring our family this time?"

After thinking for a while, Gina Lopez said, "I think we can bring them, but only lovers and children. Most of our company’s staff are young people; it wouldn’t be suitable to bring elderly people. Also, the cost would be too much."

However, Sunny Nguyen looked at James Brown and said, "You’re not thinking of bringing your little girlfriend along, are you?"

James Brown sighed and said, "I want to, but everyone in the company thinks I’m dating Sarah Utah. If I bring Emma, how will everyone view Sarah then?"

This weekend was supposed to be spent with Emma, but now it looks like it’s spoiled. James Brown, with a twinkle in his eye, said playfully, "Can I possibly take a leave and not go?"

"No way!" Gina Lopez and Sunny Nguyen immediately rejected in unison.

James Brown rolled his eyes and said, "Fine, it’s no go, why are you two shouting?"

Gina Lopez and Sunny Nguyen exchanged smiles, and Gina Lopez said, "This is a company-wide activity. Even as the president, let alone HR manager, shouldn’t you be organizing people in your HR department? Just give up on it."

James Brown complained, "Why do I feel like you two are doing this on purpose, just to prevent me from spending the weekend with Emma?"

Gina Lopez, arms crossed, replied, "That’s exactly what I think. Do you have a problem with that?"

James Brown chuckled and, stretching out his hand, draped it around Sunny Nguyen’s shoulder and said, "Then let Sunny compensate me."

Sunny Nguyen quickly struggled. Even though Gina Lopez agreed to her dating James Brown, James being so forward in front of Gina was too much for her to handle, she hurriedly said, "You should let Gina compensate you instead."

Seeing James Brown’s behavior with Sunny Nguyen right in front of her, Gina felt somewhat sour and scolded James, "Can you behave a bit?"

"Sorry, I can’t," James Brown continued to annoy Gina Lopez.

Gina Lopez huffed, "Fine then, you two continue your performance, I’ll watch."

That stunned James Brown, who then sullenly let go of Sunny Nguyen and said, "I don’t want to provide a live show for you to watch."

Sunny Nguyen, even more embarrassed, quickly stood up and fixed her clothes, saying, "Keep dreaming, I would never agree to that."

Gina Lopez burst into proud laughter and said, "Think you can compete with me? You’ll have to wait."

After a bit of laughter and teasing, James Brown left Gina Lopez’s office. Gina then began organizing the office outing, and soon excited cheers filled the company; a company trip was a delightful perk everyone was excited about.

Meanwhile, James Brown had already dialed Emma Campbell’s number. Not being able to meet Emma this weekend would surely disappoint her, so he had to make it up to her today, no matter what.

"Big Brother Brown!" Emma Campbell picked up the phone, her voice filled with surprise and sweetness.

"Emma, are you free tonight?"

"I..." Emma was about to speak when a burst of girlish laughter came through, and then a girl’s voice reached James Brown’s ears through the phone, "Hey, brother-in-law, you’ve taken our little sister Emma all to yourself, shouldn’t you treat us to a meal?"

Recalling the voice as that of Emma’s classmate Emily Clarke, James laughed, "Sure, I’ll treat you all to dinner tonight, but you must honor me with your presence."

"Sure, sure, then come pick us up. We were just considering where to eat."

Emma then took over the phone and hastily said, "Big Brother Brown, don’t mind my roommate’s nonsense, they just like to joke, don’t take it to heart."

James Brown laughed, "I already agreed to them, how can I not go? Wouldn’t that make you lose face?"

"I... but you’re so busy with work."

"No matter how busy I am with work, I still have to spend time with my girlfriend. Alright, in half an hour, I should be almost at your school, just wait for me at the school gate."

Emma Campbell ended the call, her cheeks flushed and her heart sweeter than honey, feeling more and more the affection James Brown had for her.