Chapter 437 I Have a Business Proposal for You
Jerry was like. "Alright, what about Ms. Bridges?"
Leo just said, "Stick to the usual contract."
Jerry nodded. "Got it."
After hanging up, Leo's face turned icy. If Sharon hadn't come back, he might've stayed with Ayla for the kid's sake. But now that Sharon was back, Ayla was just in the way.
And obstacles? They needed to be dealt with.
As for Jerold, Leo figured he'd warm up to Sharon as his new mom soon enough.
The secretary knocked and walked in, noticing Leo's smile. She couldn't help but comment, "Mr. Wendy, you're in a good mood today?"
Leo wasn't known for being friendly; he usually had a poker face. Seeing him smile was a rare sight.
Leo simply said, "Not bad."
The secretary handed him a report. "Here's the financial report for this quarter. Please check for any issues."
Leo took the document. "Alright, you can get back to work."
"Okay," she replied and left.
Leo skimmed through the financial report. As expected, the company's market value was still climbing, no problems there. He set it aside and started reviewing the documents that needed his signature.
Then, his phone rang. It was an unfamiliar number, which surprised him. This was his private line, and not many people had it.
He answered, "Who is this?"
"Hello, Mr. Wendy, this is Daniel. Got time to meet? I have a business proposal for you."
Leo raised an eyebrow, smirking, "Mr. Thomas, last I checked, the Thomas Group isn't in the gaming industry. If you need to talk to the Bridges Group, I can give you my wife's contact."
The voice on the other end chuckled, "Aren't you worried I'll tell your wife you still have feelings for Sharon?"
Leo's face darkened. After a few seconds, he replied coldly, "Mr. Thomas, you shouldn't make careless remarks."
"Need me to send you proof of you snooping on the Bridges Group?" Daniel's tone was casual, like he was chatting about the weather.
Leo's grip on the phone tightened, his demeanor turning cold and dangerous. "Where?"
Daniel chuckled and gave an address.
An hour later, Leo walked into a private room. Only Daniel was there. Seeing Leo, Daniel smiled, "Mr. Wendy, you're late."
Leo brushed off the taunt, seating himself across from Daniel, and went straight to the point. "What do you want?"
Daniel's smile widened briefly before his expression turned serious. "I want the Silvercrest Group, and you want Sharon. Let's talk collaboration."
Leo shot back, "Why should I work with you? Mr. Thomas, I have dirt on the Thomas Group."
Leo hated being blackmailed.
Daniel didn't flinch, his smile growing, "Mr. Wendy, mutual destruction helps no one. Rebranding the Bridges Group to Wendy won't magically hand Sharon over to you from Seb. But if we team up, it'll be a lot simpler. It's a win-win, so why not?"
Before coming here, Daniel had already made up his mind. If Leo agreed, they would move forward united. If not, he'd make sure Leo lost everything before dealing with Seb. Either way, the outcome would be the same.
Leo lowered his eyes, thought it over for a moment, and then said coldly, "Alright, I agree."
Daniel grinned, "Mr. Wendy, happy to be working with you."
After their talk, Leo left first.
About half an hour later, Daniel walked out of the private room. As he turned a corner, he bumped into Randy and Sophie.
Randy had his arm around Sophie's shoulder, both of them smiling. But when they saw Daniel, their smiles faded a bit. Sophie looked away, pretending not to see him.
Randy greeted Daniel coldly, "Mr. Thomas, didn't expect to see you here. What a coincidence."
Daniel's lips curved into a smile, "Indeed."
His gaze fell on Sophie's cold profile, and his hand at his side slowly clenched. Once, Sophie had eyes and heart only for him. But now, she always looked indifferent when she saw him. Seeing her smile so sweetly at another man, while barely glancing at him, felt like his heart was being rolled in hot oil, the pain almost suffocating him.
Noticing Daniel's gaze, Sophie frowned and stepped back to hide behind Randy. "Randy, let's go, or we'll be late."
Randy had arranged to meet some friends today and formally introduce Sophie to them. He nodded and said softly, "Alright."
He looked at Daniel, his face smiling but his eyes cold, "Mr. Thomas, we have plans today, so we'll be on our way."
If it weren't for the Smith Group's collaboration with the Thomas Group, he wouldn't have shown Daniel any courtesy. He needed to find a way to end the collaboration with the Thomas Group. There were plenty of companies in Metropolis; they didn't have to work with them.
Daniel replied, "Alright."
Randy led Sophie away, while Daniel watched their backs, his eyes filled with darkness and obsession. Sophie never looked back. It seemed she really didn't like him anymore and had no intention of wanting him back.
The sweet memories of their past came flooding back, like a dull knife cutting through flesh, the pain lingering and unending.
On the other side, when Randy and Sophie walked into the private room, four people were already seated inside: three men and one woman, all friends Randy had grown up with.
They introduced themselves one by one. The serious-looking man on the far left was Valentin Hagen, the guy with a playful smile next to him was Delbert Loomis, the woman next to Delbert was Electra Ross, and the man with a cold expression on the far right was Geraldo Dobbins.
On the way here, Randy had already told Sophie that these were his childhood friends, and they were very close.
Sophie smiled gracefully, "Hello, I'm Sophie Lee."
"Ms. Lee, I've heard so much about you. It's great to finally meet you in person. You're just as beautiful as in the photos!" Electra said excitedly.
Ever since Randy fell in love with Sophie at first sight and started pursuing her, they had all heard about it. They initially thought that with the age difference between Randy and Sophie, it was just a passing interest for Randy.
But to their surprise, he had pursued Sophie for so many years and actually succeeded.
"Thank you." Sophie sat down next to Randy. He picked up her drink and was about to open it when he noticed it was cold. He frowned and immediately called a waiter to replace it with one close to the room temperature.
Electra's eyes sparkled with mischief, and she couldn't help but tease, "Randy, I've never seen you so considerate before. Having a girlfriend really changes things."
Sophie lowered her eyes, a faint smile playing on her lips. Was Electra trying to stir things up?
Before Sophie could respond, Randy looked up at Electra across the table, his tone somewhat cold, "You guys aren't my girlfriend, of course, I wouldn't treat you the same way."
Electra's smile froze, and the room fell silent, the atmosphere becoming a bit awkward.
Delbert's smile faded, "Randy, Electra is just concerned about you. Do you have to be so hurtful?"
Randy replied, "I'm just stating the truth. If that hurts, then maybe she's not a normal person."
Delbert frowned and was about to speak, but Valentin interrupted, "Alright, everyone, let's say less. Today, Randy brought his girlfriend and introduced her to us. They are the main focus."
When Delbert heard this, his face still looked a bit unpleasant, but he didn't say anything further.
Electra's eyes reddened, and she looked at Randy with a guilty expression, "Randy, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ruin the atmosphere. If my presence is affecting you and Ms. Lee, I should leave."
With that, she picked up her bag and prepared to leave.
Delbert grabbed her, his voice cold, "Electra, we're all Randy's friends. If you leave, should we all leave too?"
Electra shook her head, "No need, it's my fault for upsetting Randy and Sophie. I should be the one to go."
Sophie raised an eyebrow and looked at Electra, "Ms. Ross, there's no need to leave in a hurry. Since you know you can't speak well, just keep your mouth shut. No one here will treat you like a mute."
Electra's pitiful expression froze on her face, while Sophie looked completely serious, without a hint of sarcasm, as if she was genuinely giving Electra advice.
Seeing Electra's aggrieved expression, Delbert's eyes flashed with pain, and he became increasingly dissatisfied with Sophie.
Originally, the five of them had a good relationship, but now it was strained because of Sophie.
He looked at Randy, expecting him to persuade Sophie, but Randy remained indifferent.
Delbert said, "Randy, Electra can't speak well, and neither can I. We'll leave first and not continue to affect your mood."
With that, he stood up, ready to leave with Electra.
Sophie initially wanted to avoid making things too tense since it was her first time meeting Randy's friends, but since Delbert didn't want to show her any respect, she didn't care about their opinions anymore.
She looked at Delbert. "Mr. Loomis, is Electra your girlfriend? You're so protective of her."
Delbert's face turned dark, and he said coldly, "We're childhood friends. Don't talk nonsense!"
Everyone present knew that Delbert was currently pursuing a college student.
Sophie nodded. "I saw Ms. Ross wanting to leave, and you immediately followed. I thought you were dating. Turns out you're not."
As she spoke, her gaze wandered meaningfully between Electra and Delbert.
Delbert's face turned even darker under her gaze, and he said coldly, "Ms. Lee, we have a pure friendship with Electra. Please don't tarnish our relationship!"
Four men and one woman having a pure friendship? Who were they kidding?
From the first moment she saw Electra, Sophie knew she was a manipulative woman, and only these people would see her as innocent.
Sophie said, "I believe you, don't be angry."
Delbert fell silent. He felt that her words sounded sincere but also somewhat sarcastic, which made him even angrier.
Seeing that everyone had completely ignored her, Electra looked at Delbert and said, "Delbert, you don't need to leave. I'll go by myself."
With that, she quickly walked out.
As she passed by Randy and saw that he didn't even spare her a glance, Electra's face turned pale. She took a deep breath and quickly left the room.
Delbert looked at Randy. "Randy, I didn't expect you to change so much after getting a girlfriend... Our years of friendship mean less than a girlfriend you've just started dating."
Randy had reached his limit and sneered, "Of course, my girlfriend is more important. Who are you? Can you marry me? Can you have my children? My girlfriend is my top priority. If anyone doesn't like her, they don't like me. I hope you have some self-awareness!"
Delbert said in anger, "Fine! I'll remember what you said today!"
With that, Delbert left, slamming the door loudly.
The room fell silent again. Valentin looked at Sophie and smiled, "Ms. Lee, don't mind the earlier incident. On behalf of Electra and Delbert, I apologize. They're still young and sometimes speak without thinking. I hope you won't hold it against them."
Sophie raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Mr. Smith, you're too kind. I won't take such trivial matters to heart."
Valentin smiled, "That's good."
Although Electra and Delbert left in a huff, the meal wasn't too awkward.
Valentin and Geraldo weren't overly enthusiastic towards Sophie, but they weren't overly cold either.
After the meal, Sophie and Randy said their goodbyes at the door and left.
On the way back, Randy apologized to Sophie, "Sophie, I'm sorry. If I had known Electra and Delbert would cause such a scene, I wouldn't have invited them today."
Over the years, Randy had deliberately kept his distance from Electra to avoid misunderstandings with Sophie.
He hadn't planned to invite her today, but Delbert had told her about it, and Randy didn't want to make things too awkward, so he allowed it. But he hadn't expected them to act like this.
Sophie smiled, "Don't worry, I don't mind."
Even if they were just Randy's friends, or even his family, she wouldn't tolerate anyone being passive-aggressive towards her.
Seeing that she genuinely wasn't upset, Randy finally breathed a sigh of relief.
When they arrived at Sophie's house, Randy was about to get out of the car to walk her in when his phone suddenly rang.
Seeing it was Delbert, Randy frowned and hung up.
However, Delbert called again persistently. Randy answered coldly, "What do you want?"
Delbert replied, "Randy, we're at the bar now. Come join us for a drink."
Randy said, "No, I need to walk my girlfriend home and have a meeting tomorrow morning. Enjoy yourselves."
With that, he hung up and put his phone on silent.
As he put down his phone, he saw Sophie smiling at him.
Randy asked, "What's wrong? Is there something on my face?"
Sophie shook her head, "No, I just think you don't need to strain your relationship with your friends because of me. I can tell the difference between you and them."
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