Chapter 233 Negotiation with Edward

Even though I refused David's request to break up, we didn't see each other for a long time after that. I wasn't sure if he was still in the country or had already gone back to Ignis. We only exchanged the occasional message online, stuff like "Have you eaten?" or "Did you sleep well?"—just the usual small talk.

I was still living at the Howard Villa, but Edward hadn't been around much lately. Maybe he was just working in his study or hanging out in his room with Anne. It felt like everything had gone back to how it was in the beginning.

As for Aria, I hadn't seen her since she had that big fight with Edward. Still, I had this nagging feeling she was up to something behind the scenes.

For convenience, I rented an office near the Cooper Group for Theo to use temporarily, while I focused most of my energy on matters at Stellar Legal Advisors.

One day, after Theo finished giving me his report, he hesitated before saying, "Diana, I think Lila might be seeing someone."

I looked up, surprised. "Really? How do you know?" I asked.

Theo scratched his head and replied, "I've seen her a few times downstairs at Stellar Legal Advisors, chatting and laughing with some guy. They seemed pretty close."

I frowned slightly, thinking that Lila had been dressing up nicely and seemed to be in a particularly good mood lately. She was also quite elusive. Could it be related to a relationship?

I didn't push further; I just nodded. "Got it. You can go back to work."

Later, I asked Lila about it a few times, but she just smiled mysteriously and said, "When the time is right, I'll let you know."

Her secrecy made it hard for me to keep asking, so I asked Theo to help find out who the guy was.

Days passed, and from morning to night, I was either buried in piles of documents in the office or engaged in intense discussions and negotiations in the conference room. When I got back to the Howard Villa, exhausted, I still had to push through unfinished work, often staying up late into the night. Over time, I got used to this busy and monotonous routine.

One day, as I was working in the office as usual, Theo knocked and came in. He placed some documents in front of me and said, "Diana, take a look at these. These are the stock sale offers from several Cooper Group shareholders. Surprisingly, some of the offers are even lower than our proposed acquisition price. This should be a great opportunity, but Mr. Howard hasn't pushed forward with the acquisition, and we haven't secured these shares yet."

Hearing this, I couldn't help but feel puzzled. "Why is that?"

Theo frowned and thought for a moment before answering, "It seems likely that Mr. Howard intentionally rejected these shareholders' sale requests."

I grew more confused and asked, "Why? From a business perspective, there's no reason to refuse."

Theo shook his head, looking a bit helpless. "From a business standpoint, it's hard to explain. I'm not sure if there are other factors between you and Mr. Howard affecting his decision."

He didn't finish his sentence, but I got the gist.

I knew that with Theo's and my abilities, we could secure these shares and complete a key step in the acquisition plan even without Edward's help. Edward had promised to help me reclaim the Cooper Group shares, but now he seemed to be stalling. If it weren't for his deliberate obstruction, the acquisition should have made significant progress by now. What was his purpose? I couldn't figure it out.

To push the acquisition forward, I decided to find a suitable time to have a serious talk with him and figure out his motives, hoping to get the acquisition plan back on track.

That day, I got back to the Howard Villa early and waited in the living room to avoid missing Edward. It was late at night when Edward and Anne finally returned to the Howard Villa.

As soon as the lights came on, they were visibly startled to see me sitting there. Anne shrieked, "Sitting here in the dark, are you trying to scare us to death?"

Ignoring Anne's question, I turned to Edward and said, "Edward, I need to talk to you."

Before Edward could respond, Anne clung to his arm and whined, "Edward, there's something in the contract I don't understand. You promised to teach me until I can manage the company well."

Hearing this, I felt my mood plummet. Edward had already caused widespread dissatisfaction by placing Aria in the Howard Group, and now he was bringing Anne in too. Anne's competence was likely even worse than Aria's, making the Howard Group's situation even more precarious.

But I couldn't voice my thoughts. I just reiterated to Edward, "I need to talk to you."

At this, Edward gently stroked Anne's hair and whispered something in her ear.

Anne's pout turned into a smug smile. She nuzzled Edward's cheek affectionately, wanting to argue further, but Edward's silent gaze stopped her.

Anne then said, "Alright, Edward, I'll wait for you in our room. Don't take too long."

With that, she deliberately puffed out her chest and slowly walked upstairs, glancing back at me before closing the door heavily.

As the door closed, Edward looked at me with a playful smile and asked, "Do you want to talk here or in bed?"

His sudden remark left me speechless, my cheeks instantly flushing red. Noticing my embarrassment, Edward burst into laughter.

The redness on my face quickly turned into the heat of anger. I glared at Edward and retorted, "Edward, I'm not here to joke or listen to your nonsense."

"So, what do you want to talk about?" Edward's voice turned cold.

Marital Turmoil: Back Off, First Love!
Detail
Share
Font Size
40
Bgcolor