Chapter 316
Jonah was floundering in the entertainment biz, which was just what Daniel wanted. It'd push Jonah to go back and take over the Getty Group.
Kyle let out a sigh and said, "Even though you ditched the company, if you ever need anything, hit me up."
Jonah gave a nod. "Thanks, Kyle."
Kyle added, "I left your plane ticket on the table. Got work to do, so I can't see you off."
"Got it."
Once Kyle bounced, Jonah was solo in the villa again.
He chugged his coffee, rinsed the cup in the kitchen, took one last look at the villa that was a dead ringer for Gianna's place, grabbed his plane ticket and luggage, and dipped.
One day, they'd cross paths again.
When Gianna caught wind of Jonah's retirement announcement, she was floored and shot him a message.
Gianna: [Jonah, is your exit from the entertainment industry because of Felix?]
It took a hot minute for a reply.
Jonah: [Nah. You know my real dad is the big boss of the Getty Group in Thundertop. He's not doing so hot, so he wants me to go back and take over. That's why I called it quits.]
Gianna bit her lip. She knew Jonah despised his father. Every time his dad came up, Jonah would lose it. She always thought he'd never have anything to do with him, but now he was ditching his acting gig to go back to Thundertop and take over the family biz.
After a pause, she sent another message.
Gianna: [Well, good luck with everything!]
Closing their chat, Gianna got a call from Faith.
Faith jumped right in, "Gianna, all the trending news and tags about you online are gone. Did Jonah do this?"
Gianna replied, "Probably not. I think it was Felix."
Only he could squash the news that fast.
Faith grumbled, "Didn't think he'd finally do something right!"
Hearing the annoyance in Faith's voice, Gianna decided to spill the beans about her divorce from Felix. "Faith, I've already divorced him. No need to call him a douchebag anymore. Honestly, we both messed up."
If they had trusted each other a bit more, they might not have ended up here.
Faith was stunned. "For real? He was so clingy before, but now he agreed to the divorce just like that? No way!"
Gianna couldn't help but laugh. "For real. The divorce papers are right here. If you don't believe me, I'll send you a pic."
After getting the pic, Faith was still in shock and took a few minutes to wrap her head around it.
"Since you're divorced, we gotta go out and celebrate tonight!" Faith suggested.
"Sure. What do you wanna eat? It's on me."
When Gianna got the divorce papers, she felt a bit sad, but mostly relieved. She and Felix had been a mess from the start, and now they were back on track.
"I heard there's a new spot that's really good. Let's hit it up!"
Gianna replied, "Okay, I'm gonna take a nap first. Had too much to drink last night. See you tonight."
After hanging up, Gianna lay on her bed but couldn't crash.
Her mind was all over the place, thinking about Samuel coming to Dawnridge and her split from Felix. She couldn't chill out.
She finally dozed off, only to be jolted awake by her alarm.
Gianna checked the time, lay there for a bit, then got up to shower, change clothes, and slap on some light makeup before heading out.
As soon as she hit the restaurant entrance, Faith came running out and hugged her. "Gianna, congrats on being single again! In a few days, I'll hook you up with some hot guys!"
"No thanks, not looking to date right now."
Faith gave her a look of regret. "With your looks, it's a waste not to date. Whatever. Let's go in. This place has killer lobster! We gotta get some tonight! But tonight, it's on me. No arguing!"
Faith dragged Gianna inside, chatting nostalgically about how amazing the seafood was. She was so vivid in her descriptions that even Gianna, who usually didn't care much about food, was tempted to dive in right away.
As they passed through the carved archway, two people walked towards them.
Seeing the face of the person on the left, Gianna's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly pulled Faith to hide behind a rockery.
Faith was about to speak when Gianna covered her mouth.
Only when the voices of the two people faded did Gianna let go of Faith.
"Gianna, if you had held on any longer, I would've been toast."
Gianna looked at Faith apologetically. "Faith, I'm sorry. I just panicked."
She hadn't expected to run into Samuel here.
Faith raised an eyebrow. "Do you know those two?"
Gianna was silent for a few seconds, then nodded. "Yeah, I knew them before."
"What do you mean 'knew them before'? If you know them, you know them. Do you not know them now?"
"Let's just say I know them," Gianna replied.
"Do you have beef with them?" It was the first time Faith had seen Gianna avoid someone like this, so she guessed that Gianna must have ticked them off.
Gianna didn't want Faith to keep digging, so she nodded vaguely. "Yeah. Let's not talk about it. Let's go inside."
Faith smiled, growing more curious. 'Is there someone in Dawnridge that Gianna is actually scared of?'
"Let's go."
At the restaurant entrance, Samuel finished his business talk and smiled, "Mr. Cox, you go ahead. I just saw someone I know and will go say hello."
"Alright, Mr. Drake. Before you leave Dawnridge, we must have another meal together. Let me see you off!"
"Sure, Mr. Cox. Goodbye."
After seeing him off, Samuel smiled and headed back to his car.
Around 8 PM, Gianna and Faith walked out of the restaurant.
Dominic came to pick up Faith. After watching her car leave, Gianna was about to bounce when a teasing voice sounded behind her. "Gianna, after all these years, are you pretending not to know me?"
Gianna's body stiffened, and she slowly turned around.
Seeing Samuel standing a few steps away and raising an eyebrow at her, Gianna forced a smile. "Samuel, what a coincidence. You here for dinner too?"
"Not a coincidence. I came to Dawnridge this time specifically for you." Samuel took two steps forward, looked Gianna up and down, and then frowned. "You've lost weight. The Redstone family hasn't treated you well these past few years."
Gianna bit her lip. "Samuel, I heard you came to Dawnridge to expand the Drake family's business."
Since Gianna returned to the Redstone family, this was the first time they had met in seven years.
Samuel chuckled. "Do you think the Drake family needs to come to Dawnridge to expand business? Collaborating with Dawnridge's companies is just an excuse."
"Then what's your real reason for coming?" Gianna asked.
