Yours, Until Needed
Chapter 56: Battle Royale [3]

Chapter 56: Battle Royale [3]

She’s been around for so long that it’s impossible for me not to know her. We own a chain of Hardware stores, so as one of the biggest construction firms, I’d have to know her too.

In reality, Mr. Sanders knows my parents. But by the time they rose to power, I had already been too busy to attend events with them, so we never personally met.

Most people would classify the Sanders as nouveau riche. This was likely the reason for ranking Lucian as their top marriage candidate; he had the legitimacy of the old rich and a great family history, too.

Wealth was wealth, but in this particular social strata, there were people like the Grants who wouldn’t stop harping on the significance of family lineage.

You’d think we’re some sort of royalty with how much importance she’s putting on that. And Mrs. Grant wouldn’t get off Mr. Sinclair’s back over it.

"It’s been a while, Mrs. Grant. It’s good to see you again." I returned her greeting with a polite smile.

"You’ve finally decided to grace us with your presence. Seeing you is harder than seeing the President of this country."

Who in their right mind would want to go to these events? I would’ve been reading and snacking had it not been essential to go this time!

I just chuckled while saying, "School did just end, Auntie. So it’s only now that I’ve got enough time for something like this."

If you just listened to us absentmindedly, you’d think she’s one of the cool aunts. But in reality, once she gets started, it becomes too much. Like right now.

"That’s a given. How could you have time for this when you’ve got disasters left and right? That’s always been a unique skill of yours."

See?

My reputation with her wasn’t exactly stellar. In fact, Mrs. Grant actually liked Alexa’s kind instead.

Not in a sense that she got swayed by her. But because she knew what kind of person Alexa was deep down.

And she liked that.

She’s always admired her determination and willingness to do everything to get what she wanted. Mrs. Grant liked that because that’s how she survived.

Chairman Grant has long been hospitalized, and when he collapsed, Mrs. Grant had to wrangle the entire Group under her. She did that amidst all the competing powers and usurpers. So she always liked how Alexa was willing to get down and dirty.

Meanwhile, her assessment of me was odd. None of my achievements could salvage her view of my "laziness." My achievements just made it worse.

According to her, I wasn’t doing my best for a person who could do more and achieve more.

Then there’s Alexa’s haunting, which has made me a bearer of evil tidings. Problems have always followed me, and now she’s alluding to that. It was as if she had no idea where those came from to begin with.

She looked at Lucian as several people entered the hall, only to tell him, "Let’s hope you made the right call."

Lucian didn’t bother gracing her with a response when the lights suddenly dimmed, and the spotlights turned towards the stage.

Today’s emcee was as poised as ever, demonstrating years of industry practice. He easily captured everyone’s attention and marked the start of today’s event.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! We’d like to welcome you to the official unveiling of JG Group’s biggest and boldest project to date. To officially unveil the project, let us welcome JG’s President and CEO, Mr. Jonathan Graham!"

A round of applause resounded over the room as a towering gentleman with a powerful gait appeared. His white hair made him look a lot more convincing as a leader. Grandpa has the same feel. This could be a basic qualification for being the chairman.

"Good evening, everyone! We’d like to thank you for celebrating this wonderful event with us. The Windham Island project marks JG’s commitment to providing everyone with outstanding service and world-class offerings. So join us as we show the world what we at JG are capable of."

The round of applause was drowned out by the fireworks launch outside. The large glass panes allowed us to see the colorful display of lights that they had prepared for this launch.

Chairman Graham stepped to the side as the video presentation wowed everyone with the sheer scale of this project.

I tightened my grip on Lucian, suddenly a bit nervous about how he planned to construct this thing if we won the bidding.

I have seen the plans, but the video rendering really showed the scale of this project.

And Lucian got married for this.

So I have no idea what will happen if we don’t win this project.

Do we get divorced immediately or something?

Pretty sure my hands have started to turn clammy from imagining another failure. But then I felt the movement of Lucian’s fingers lightly scratching mine.

I was surprised and momentarily stiffened because I’d find his ministrations affectionate if I didn’t know the guy. But Lucian doesn’t do affection.

There weren’t any big movements, just his fingers slowly untangling and then intertwining playfully. He scratched and rubbed, and my fingers tried chasing after his.

If he’s trying to distract me, it’s working.

We’ve touched bases many times and done way more than just holding hands. But since Lucian got "possessed," he hasn’t held my hand like this, like he did when we were much younger.

I’m sure he has reasons for suddenly comforting me like this, but I can’t be too picky right now. And it’s made me calm down, regardless of how genuine it was.

His hands distracted me so much that I failed to notice how the presentation ended.

So I nearly jumped when someone called from behind.

"Mr. Ainsworth and Mr. Sinclair, I was sent by the Chairman to invite you both for a talk."

Lucian nodded to the staff and whispered before leaving.

"Just stay safe for now." He squeezed my arm before following the man’s directions.

Thankfully, they called the other bidders as well, freeing me from talks about popping out babies and wedding plans that I won’t even be able to answer.

For parties that had almost the same attendees every time, it naturally felt like seeing your relatives who keep on asking about your weight, work, and womb. Three Ws that have brought me so many headaches over the years.

Lucian just said to say whatever I wanted. He seldomly opened his mouth anyway, so we wouldn’t have conflicting answers.

The safest place would be the buffet table. These pretentious people often refused to get their own food and refreshments, so if I wanted to avoid the evil threats, I might as well camp there.

But so much for wanting food and momentary peace and quiet. I didn’t even have to look behind me to know that I was being followed, albeit slowly.

Nothing’s that covert when the way she walked because of those godforsaken heels made such a distinct sound.

Let’s not forget how the ornaments of her dress made clanging sounds.

I couldn’t help but sigh.

Round 2, I guess.