69novels Chapter 763 - 734: Love Across Parallel Worlds [056]
Chapter 763 - 734: Love Across Parallel Worlds [056]
The Hawthorne Family is also in real estate, and most of their projects are in collaboration with Vantage. Jack Hawthorne and Logan Lockwood often meet and chat about Vantage and Simon Forrester. Gradually, the women accompanying them have also become aware of the capabilities of Director Vantage.Today, upon seeing that Director Vantage’s wife was actually a young woman, attractive as she might be, her attire was indeed quite plain. A simple and inexpensive down jacket, snow boots worth a few hundred, not a single piece of decent jewelry on her, at most a Cartier ring on her left hand’s middle finger, and even that was the cheapest kind.
Who’s going to believe that someone like that is the wife of Director Vantage?
Among unfamiliar beauties, things might seem calm, but there’s an unspoken competition underneath.
When the three female companions heard Logan call Sienna Vantage’s wife, their scrutinizing gazes swept over, examining Sienna again and again, and as their gazes returned, they carried disdain and disbelief.
Seeing Simon Forrester’s friends arrive, Sienna quickly slipped her arms into her down jacket, looking down as she was about to zip up her coat when she saw a man’s fair and distinct hand gently pulling the little metal zipper from the bottom to the top.
"What a coincidence?" Simon Forrester said as he helped her zip up, greeting his friends simultaneously.
Jack Hawthorne "ha"ed, complaining, "Yeah, the old folks at home are all watching the Spring Festival Gala, it’s super annoying, so I just came out for a drink."
After speaking, he smiled at Sienna, "Hi, we meet again. I forgot to ask your name last time."
Sienna smiled and introduced herself, "I’m Sienna Thorne."
"Hello, hello." Jack Hawthorne extended his hand to shake hers, "I’m Jack Hawthorne."
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Hawthorne." Just as Sienna was about to reach out to shake hands with Jack Hawthorne, Simon Forrester stepped in first and shook hands with Jack.
"Oh my, come on now," Jack raised an eyebrow, grinning mischievously at Simon Forrester, teasing, "Are you watching her so closely?"
Simon Forrester said nothing, withdrew his hand, then went to adjust Sienna’s scarf for her, even thoughtfully pulling her long hair out from underneath the scarf.
Although his technique was a bit clumsy, his friends were still taken aback by what they saw.
Jack Hawthorne shook his head.
Logan: "I heard from little Lou that you two were still working overtime during the holiday? What project?"
Simon Forrester: "Annie and her friends bought a piece of land at South Bay, planning to build a resort center. Harrison Rowe and I are helping them with the planning."
Gage Grant, who had been silent and seemed a bit distracted, looked over: "Where in South Bay?"
Simon Forrester: "Beside the natural flower lake."
Gage Grant’s eyes lit up as he looked at Sienna, "So it was you and your friend who bought that land? What’s your friend’s name?"
Sienna was hesitant about whether to reveal Maeve’s name when Simon Forrester glanced over with a look, "It’s none of your business."
Gage explained, "I was eyeing that place a while ago too, planning to buy up the whole area and build a big resort center for my idol. But the village committee said someone had laid claim to the fifty acres by the lake and that I’d have to wait for them not to buy before they could sell to me. So it was you guys who bought it."
He said a lot, and Sienna just caught that he wanted to buy the land for his idol, then suddenly remembered Maeve mentioning that a Head Fan was going to buy it for her.
Could the Head Fan be this guy in front of her?
Sienna observed Gage Grant without giving anything away.
Someone from the same circle as Simon Forrester, looking equally wealthy, superior, and detached, dressed fancy, was likely also from a wealthy family.
And such a person was with a bunch of homebodies being a Head Fan?
Sienna couldn’t figure it out.
As soon as everyone started chatting, Logan nodded towards a discreet booth not far away, "Since it’s such a coincidence, why don’t we chat a bit more before heading back? Join us at our booth?"
Simon Forrester glanced at the women in the crooks of the three men’s arms, then said flatly, "I need to take Annie home, you guys enjoy your drinks."
Sienna came back to her senses, smiled sweetly at them, "Then we’ll be off. Happy New Year."
Gage Grant, Jack Hawthorne, and Logan Lockwood raised their glasses towards them, "Same to you, same to you."
After watching Simon Forrester and Sienna leave the bar, the three of them finally wrapped their arms around their respective female companions and headed toward the booth.
Meeting Sienna for the first time, Gage Grant was quite curious, "Which boss’s daughter is she? I’ve never seen her before."
Jack Hawthorne: "Right, someone that pretty, if she’d appeared in our circles, I surely wouldn’t have missed her."
Logan chuckled, "All I know is she’s a lawyer at Vantage, I have no clue about her background. But..."
Everyone looked over.
Logan: "I heard that once at the firm, when she was bullied, Ms. Langley rushed over and scolded Thomas Reed and those lawyers, standing up for her. Everyone knows what Ms. Langley is like, right? If she catches her eye, how small could the lady’s background be?"
Everyone nodded in agreement, wearing expressions of "you’re the most insightful."
Gage Grant, who grew up with Simon Forrester and knew Sylvia Langley well, was silent for a moment, pondering, "She must be from a significant third generation, so she’s never been exposed in our circles, protected very well since childhood, clean background, destined for great things in the future."
Everyone agreed, raising their glasses.
With another swig of strong liquor downed, Logan, half-drunk, laughed, "I thought so, everyone started looking for girlfriends since puberty, Jules didn’t, staying single into his thirties, all to find a significant third. So you gotta cherish your reputation, or with his track record, would the lady’s family agree to him?"
Jack Hawthorne, hearing this, turned envious, jesting, "I want to find a pretty, well-connected third generation too, is it too late to turn back now?"
Everyone looked at him speechlessly.
Gage tossed him a cigar, "Stop dreaming! With your black history, who knows if you’ll even find a wife in the future."
The men drank, the conversation shifted to other topics, no longer teasing Simon Forrester and Sienna.
The women leaning against them stirred with curiosity, itching to dig for more gossip.
Logan’s female companion was boldest, gently rubbing against him, cautiously asking, "That girl, is she really a government third-generation? She didn’t look it, seeming quite shabby."
Logan laughed, casting a sideways glance at his companion, mocking, "She’s got the guts, didn’t you see how collected and poised she was? That’s all confidence!"
Jack gave a soft snort, "These days, anyone dressed extravagantly, head to toe worth millions, driving a supercar, is either an escort or a mistress. The more capable ones are, the more low-key they are. Because they don’t need those superficial things to show their presence."
Saying this, he took a glance at the female companion in his arms, wearing an expensive fur coat.
Logan: "Exactly, didn’t you hear they’re building a resort center? That kind of taste... everyone’s buying, buying, buying. They’re buying land, what are you buying?"
Talking about his field, his excitement increased, setting his glass down and speaking passionately, "Jules is personally overseeing her project, I bet this resort center won’t be cheap, at least nine figures."
Jack Hawthorne: "Anyway, Jules is rich. If he really likes her, he’d throw in ten figures for her."
Logan: "Damn, makes me want to become a woman, best to snag a rich guy like Jules..."
Gage sneered, observing him put down his glass, tossing him a cigar, "You treat men as sugar daddies, accordingly, men treat you like toys. Sure, men might spend some money on toys, but what do they give a real wife? Status, kids, shares, houses, vulnerability! Why? Because a wife is a man’s source of family connection and emotional foundation."
Gage, not one for many words, spoke particularly harshly when he did, never sparing anyone’s face, without any regard for the "toy" snuggled in his arms, he laid the truth bare so blatantly.
Jack and Logan raised their glasses towards him in agreement.
"So," Jack mused, "women who accomplish great things always rely on their brains."
The three female companions understood the men’s implied meanings, each looking embarrassed, not daring to inquire further and humiliate themselves.
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PS. Based on the timeline, it’s January 2017 and Jack Hawthorne hasn’t met Captain Thornton yet, so he’s still flirting with the girls, it’s not cheating, haha (laugh-cry emoji)