Chapter 180 – Second Chance Love of the Missing Groom Novel

Robin nodded, and they drove to a large mali.

Quincy was a fan of gems but also picky, and since Robin did not actually have much money, it was lan. himself paying for the gift.

It took a long while for them to find the right gift, and when they stepped out, lan saw a car he recognized.

It belonged to his father Greg, but just as he was about to go up and greet him, a woman carrying shopping bags of various sizes walked past him and headed straight inside.

lan froze.

Who was that woman? Why was she getting into his father’s car?

“Wait here,” he growled, letting go of Robin’s hand just then and heading straight to the car.

He opened the door to find the woman was with Greg, and glowered right then. “Dad, who is she? Why is she in your car?!”

Greg was surprised that lan caught him, but warned, “Pretend you saw nothing. And don’t tell your mom.” lan was left bristling right then!

Feeling humiliated just then, lan snapped, “What do you think you’re doing. Dad?!”

Having an affair at his age?

Quincy would flip out if she knew!

In fact, lan himself was already losing his mind!

Still, he worked hard to cool his temper and stopped himself from getting in the car to drag the woman out. “Tell her to get out of your car right now!”

Kathy York was startled right then, and promptly threw herself into Greg’s arms.

Greg naturally felt protective seeing that his sweetheart was frightened, and shot his son a glare, “Don’t think you can order me around just because you became CEO of Light Group. I’m still your father-and you don’t ever get to talk to me like that!”

With that, he shut the door in lan’s face and snapped at his chauffeur to drive, leaving lan shaking with rage.

Robin walked up to him gingerly, and tried to assure him, “Maybe it’s not what you think…”

“What, does it only count if I catch them in bed?!” lan was wheezing, feeling down in the dumps just then.” I think you should go. I don’t think I can take you home today.”

“Okay…” Robin murmured.

She was certainly reluctant since it was a rare chance for her to meet lan’s parents. Even so, her feelings did not matter after what just happened, and had to accept that as reality.

As for lan, he headed straight home… but could not say a word when he actually saw Quincy.

He knew his mother’s temper, and that if she found out, she would definitely go to war with Greg.

And at the moment, they had yet to rein in Light Group back on the right track, and he would rather not have family troubles on his plate too.

Light Group was lan’s priority… but as things go, the more you care, the more you would lose it.

Just two weeks after the 80 million dollar investment into James Cross’s Eastdawn, the man called him, saying. “Sorry, lan, but we ran into a snag. We’re going to need more capital.”

lan had been in a bad mood since learning about Greg’s affair, and James’s request for additional capital left him even more annoyed.

“I thought you said the development is in its final phase?” he asked with an edge in his voice. “Are you saying that the 80 million I injected isn’t enough? What happened?”

“Yes, we wouldn’t have needed a second injection if things had gone smoothly, but there’s an issue now. It’s alright if you’re not interested-we have other interested parties..”

“We have an agreement,” lan growled, cutting him short. “It’s stated in black-and-white that we’re your sole partners. You’re breaching the agreement if you find someone else!”

“Yes, but my company is this close! Am i supposed to just give up on all the capital spent on the development instead of finding solutions? James became harsh and direct as well. “I didn’t want to say it, but you definitely don’t have Diarmuid Althoff’s mettle. Do you remember how everyone only had praise for him back when he was in charge? He’s even famous for throwing money into risky projects-”

“What is that supposed to mean?” lan was already upset, and the mention of Diarmuid only worsened his mood. “Are you calling me stingy?”

James, however, was not afraid to provoke him with an agreement signed. “Yes, you’re stingy,” he said shortly. “Your company is worth billions, and we’re just asking for 150 million, but you’re already getting cagey. How is that not stingy?”

Ian frowned. “What was that? 150 million?”

“Uh-huh.”

“I’ve already given you 80 million!” lan was left heaving, and it felt like his chest was burning from sheer frustration. “And you’re asking for 150 million dollars not a few days later? What am I, a money-printing machine?!”

Nothing was going his way at all!

“Development like this has always been a money burner-”

“This isn’t even a money burner! You’re basically using dollar bills like toilet paper!”

Nonetheless, lan took a deep breath to calm himself before continuing. “Fine, let’s cut the crap. Give me a precise amount and make sure there won’t be more issues this time, and I’ll give you the capital. Also, do you actually have an ETA for the project’s completion?”

“I’ve already told you: we’re in the final phase. It’s just an accident and no one wanted that. Also, I know that you’ve poured a lot of money into us, but you should already have known that I’ve bet my bottom dollar on this. I won’t lie to you-I’ve spent over a billion on this, and failure means bankruptcy for me. That’s why I would never let this fail, and I apologize if I have been rude. It’s just that a setback when we’re so close hurts me too, and I should have chosen my words better as well. I hope I have your understanding…”

lan certainly could not say more after James put it that way.

Also, James had invested over a billion, while he only invested 80 million. Ian was still going to make a killing even if he invested more, since he would get half the profits once the component was finished and marketed.

“How much do you need?” lan asked.

James told him, “200 millions.”

lan’s lips twitched, and he really wanted to curse right then.

That was a lot of money.

James then added, “I know it’s just pocket change to Light Group.”

lan was speechless-the Light Group of the present actually did not have that much money. They had already emptied their coffers for that last 80 million dollar injection!

Nonetheless, he could not afford to tell James that he did not have the money for appearance’s sake. There would be more trouble if he did, and word of that somehow reached Light Group’s board members.

“Give me some time.”

He had an idea-there were several Light Group projects that were still underway, and he could divert the capital from those projects to Eastdawn.

He certainly had no intention of giving up halfway on Eastdawn since this was his first project. Moreover, they had an agreement, and the second injection was basically agreed upon.

Hence, he began to make the calls to sell off their projects.

Fortunately, they soon found a buyer-Remy, a foreign company, was willing to acquire the projects, while paying them the full amount for it.

To ensure that they were not trading with a shell company or getting swindled, lan even did some research online.

It appeared that the company was registered in Franconia, and though it was just founded three years ago, it had already garnered significant fame. It seemed that those in the business had heard about their mysterious CEO, who was known for his exceptional insight-any projects he invested in always turned out to be money-makers, with a network project he invested in two years ago now raking in tremendous profits every year since.

The company’s revenue was going nowhere but up, and they were starting to branch out into other industries, including showbiz, lifestyle products, networking, multimedia technology, medicine… each of which were bringing in significant revenue as well.

lan decided that they were reliable, and reached out to them through an intermediary, selling off two of the best projects that Light Group had left.

Once Remy wired the 300 million dollar payment over, lan transferred the 200 million that James had asked for to the man immediately.

The instant that was done, lan gave him a call. “No more setbacks.”

James glanced at Diarmuid who was sitting behind his desk, and said, “Yes, you have nothing to worry about.

This will be the last.”

He added emphasis on the last part and hung up.

Turning back to Diarmuid, he said, “That was lan.”

Diarmuid had actually heard it, but he did not appear pleased.

Instead, he remained placid and indifferent, leaning back on his chair and appearing relaxed.

Everything was going according to plan.

He knew better than everyone on whatever Light Group had left, and after lan had sold off the two projects that could have sustained them, he had cut off any chance of his survival.

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