Chapter 148
I showed up at the foot of the mountain at the passenger reception an hour later.
After asking around a bit, I finally found the bus Cecilia was on. I hadn’t even made it to the bus when I saw a girl in a canary yellow puffer jacket with her hair in a bun zooming off not too far away. I took a closer look; who else could it be but Cecilia?
The next second, the petite figure dove into the embrace of a mant with a broad chest. Cecilia looked up joyfully and said, “Hogan, I’ve been dying to see you.”
Dressed in a dark blue suit, Hogan stood still, looking all the more tall and dashing, and while he didn’t return the warm hug, a smile was playing on his lips.
Even the usual chill in his eyes seemed to have thawed a bit. He was like a different person compared to the stern, aloof guy he usually was. It almost made me feel bad to interrupt.
“Come on now, you’ve just met and you’re already all over each other.” Shirley piped up nonchalantly, as if the previous moment hadn’t happened, teasing, “Do you want to kill us with this PDA or what?”
Cecilia’s eyelids dropped in a bashful manner and she said, “Shirley, stop teasing me.”
Shirley opened her mouth, her sly eyes darting between Hogan and Cecilia; then she caught sight of me standing not too far off and immediately greeted me, “Ms. March, did you just get here?”
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With that, all eyes were on me. I walked over, trying to keep my cool, and said, “Sorry, I got held up coming down the mountain.”
There was a cable car, but my ankle was still healing from an injury, which slowed my pace.
After hearing my explanation, Shirley commented blandly, “Ms.
March, you sure have a knack for timing. A few more minutes and Cecilia would’ve been back at the hotel. Wouldn’t that have been a wasted trip?”
I sensed the sarcasm in Shirley’s voice and felt a mix of emotions.
In the office, I was sort of Cecilia’s boss, right? It was only proper for me to pick her up since she’d come all the way to Pinecrest Hollow. But it wouldn’t be the end of the world if I got tied up with something else, would it?
I came out here just for the sake of Hogan since getting the scoop. on FreeMan directly from him would be the easiest and most straightforward way.
Was being a few minutes late really cause for an interrogation and scolding by everyone?
“It’s okay, Shirley. Xaviera’s been up to her neck in work these past couple of days.” Came Cecilia’s gentle voice, her eyes soft as she looked at me, “But I’m still super happy to see you, Xaviera.”
I was speechless for a moment. Cecilia just got to Pinecrest Hollow today; how could she possibly know I’d been burning the
candle at both ends?
Looked like Hogan hadn’t been shy about sharing work updates with her over the phone. Updates on my, well, less–than–stellar
2/3
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progress.
Zachary seemed to pick up on my displeasure and suggested, “Lunchtime’s almost here. How about this, Director Irwin, you leave your luggage with me and head to the restaurant with Mr. Zade and President Stapleton?”
Hearing this, Cecilia blinked her pretty big eyes and said, “But I came on such short notice, I haven’t even booked a hotel yet.”
Shirley couldn’t help but laugh at this, teasing, “Book a hotel for what? Mr. Zade’s got a top–tier suite; there’s plenty of space for one more.”
“Shirley.” Cecilia lowered her voice, her probing gaze briefly resting on Hogan’s face before saying, “Why are you spouting nonsense?”
The young lady’s eyes were downcast, showing off a demure, newlywed–like shyness.
Seeing this, Shirley grinned at Hogan and asked, “What do you say, Mr. Zade?”
