As I headed upstairs, I glanced at the study out of habit. There was no one inside. The chaotic mess had been cleaned up.
It seemed Anthony did not return at all that night. I retired to the bedroom and looked through the email sent by OrbitTech again.
It did not take long for the weather to get cold, as the second round of heavy snowfall in K City came as expected.
The entire yard was covered with snow. To avoid traffic jams, people have already begun to shovel snow outside their homes.
Mrs. Eriksen was surprised to see me up and about when she came in for work. She said, “The new year’s rolling in soon. People are stocking up on new year goods and decorations. Letty, what do you say we go shopping after breakfast? See what the stores have on sale.”
I grinned at her. “I have somewhere to go in the afternoon, so I’ll have to pass. Has Anthony purchased the air ticket to J City for you?”
Mrs. Eriksen’s son and daughter lived in J City. She usually spent the new year break with them every year. For me, I used to spend it with either Grandma or George. It was great while it lasted.
Now that both of them were gone, it had become quite lonely during festivities, as though the holidays had become meaningless.
I wonder what’s going on at Macy’s. With that thought, I had the urge to give Jackson a call, but I shrugged it off when I checked the time. It was too early to do that.
I simply turned to Mrs. Eriksen and said, “I’m heading to the company in a while. Anthony’s not here, so you don’t have to make breakfast for us.”
She looked like she wanted to say something, but I had already grabbed the keys and gone out the door.
Work at the White Corporation started at nine. I got there early, so I waited in the office for a while before I went looking for the person in charge of OrbitTech to discuss work.
Research and development of AI could not possibly be achieved in a few short days, but I was pleased to see the progress we were making.
As I came out of the R&D Department, I bumped into Sally. It had been a few days since she moved back to the White residence, and it seemed she had officially returned to work at the White Corporation as well.
She saw me egging to leave, and said, “Are you in a rush?”
I shook my head. “No. What’s up?”
She clasped her hands and spoke, “The new year’s just around the corner. What plans do you and Anthony have this year? Are you returning to J City or staying here in K City? I heard that the Stanhope family is adding you to the family register. What are your plans for the coming year?”
“Not sure,” I said, facing her. “Why don’t you ask Anthony?”
With that said, I got ready to leave, but when I reached the lobby I chanced upon a group of people just entering the building.
Among them were Anthony and Joe. They must have come to talk about work.
In the reception area, Anthony’s slender figure was particularly eye-catching. He stood with one hand in his pocket and seemed to be chatting with Joe about something important.
Our eyes met. He frowned at me, apparently still bitter about what happened. Briefly stunned, I pursed my lips and looked away as I headed towards the exit.
“Sienna, have you had your breakfast?” Joe spoke as he came up and blocked my way. I could not pretend that I did not see them.
I stopped walking. My eyes darted to Anthony, who was still wearing the suit from last night. I could see the wrinkles.
“Later!” I replied. Other colleagues greeted me from the side and I responded to them in turn, ready to leave.
I looked back at Joe and said, “I have other matters to tend to, so I’ll get going!”
“Come on, Sienna. Anthony and I are going for lunch soon. You should come with us!”
“No, thanks. I really have other things to do. You go ahead!” I said, feeling for my car keys.
Anthony’s face grew cold. He threw an icy glance at Joe and uttered calmly, “Are you that free?”
I pressed my lips. I had no intention to linger, so I said to Joe, “I’m leaving. See you!”
Then I left without waiting for Joe to respond.
I managed to hear Joe’s petulant strife with Anthony from behind me. “You’re saying I’m too free? Anthony, you’re one to talk. Who was the one who didn’t sleep at all last night and spent every waking moment drinking? Who’s the depressed one here?”
I was not sure what to make of that.
I got out of the building and into my car. I had barely got the engine started when my phone rang. It was Stacey.
I turned the engine off to take her call. “Hi. What’s up?”
“Can you come to J City, hopefully by today?” she said, sounding quite serious over the phone.
I froze at her request. “What happened?”
There was a pause before she continued, “I don’t really know how to put this. I think they want to keep this a secret from you. That’s why they haven’t called. But the truth will come to light sooner or later. So… why don’t you come back and take a look at it yourself? You need to know the cause.”
For a moment, there was a rumbling in my mind. My heart skipped a beat. Eventually, I took a deep breath and asked the unthinkable, “Did something happened to Macy?”
She did not reply me. There was a moment of silence before she stressed again, “Just come here. You’ll see!”
“Fine!”
Right after I hung up the phone, I booked an air ticket to J City. I was lucky because there was still time. There was a flight from K City to J City in an hour.
When that was done, I started the car again. It was then I saw Joe exit the White Corporation office building. He jogged towards me, arms waving.
His appearance surprised me. I stopped the car and peered at him. “What now?”
“Sienna, Anthony’s booked a table at a Western restaurant in South Metro. Do you want to join us?” He extended an invitation to me with a broad grin on his face.
Wait, South Metro? Where young folks in K City like to go to hang out at night? The most lavish place to enjoy nightlife?
I looked at the time. I could barely make it to the airport in under one hour if I set out now. I did not have time for lunch.
Anthony also walked out of the building to join us, his face still void of emotions.
I could not help but bit my lip and turned to Joe. “Sorry, Mr. Quinn. I won’t be able to join you. I have other things to do later. Why don’t you give Rylee a call? She should have time to join Anthony… and you for lunch!”
With that said, I started my car once more. Joe seemed furious. “Sienna, what’s that supposed to mean? Don’t you know why Anthony booked a table at a Western restaurant in South Metro? He’s making up for that feud between you two. You should accept it. Why do you have to add more to the tension?”
I pursed my lips as time ticked away. I looked at Anthony standing by the door, then at Joe, and said stiffly, “Mr. Quinn, I thank you for making the effort to help Anthony and I sort things out. And I appreciate Anthony’s kindness. But, please tell him this. Since we can’t go on anymore, we can end the relationship on a good note. He and I are on a break in the meantime. Anyway, I have other places to be, so goodbye!”
I hit the gas and sped off onto the road, feeling extremely irritated.
It was not that I refused to ease the relationship between us, but I still had some resistance. Resistance against what, even I was uncertain.
It should be fine. I was off to J City, where I would take a short break, and perhaps everything would turn out alright.
There was always a lot of foot traffic at K City airport every day, in addition to the congestion on the road. Fortunately, I made it in time.
I retrieved my air ticket in a hurry and boarded the plane. I found my seat and sat down, finally relieved. Pretty soon, the plane took off.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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