Claire finished her meal and stayed with Dane to chat with the two older men.
Bored, the two seniors had the mahjong table set up and made the young couple play with them.
Claire was a math prodigy who had nearly been poached by the mathematics department, and Dane was cunning as a fox; there was no way they were going to lose to a pair of old men.
However, both seniors had built empires in their prime and were impossibly shrewd. The four-player game quickly became fascinating.
It felt like an actual battlefield.
By eleven o'clock, no one had really won or lost much.
Claire and Dane had even gone easy on them, letting the two older men win a little.
"Ugh, this is boring. I'd rather go to the park and play against strangers."
Padgett was actually complaining.
Playing against the regulars at the park was much better; they never held back and would argue until they were red in the face over fifty cents. It was hilarious.
Most of those retirees probably had pensions in the thousands of dollars.
Yet, at the park tables, they would still go to war over spare change. Whenever he went, he always went completely incognito.
Claire didn't have classes on Monday morning, so she stayed home.
When Padgett said he was going to the park for his morning exercise, Claire was puzzled; their estate was huge, so why travel all the way out there?
He hadn't even stayed for breakfast. Worried, Claire decided to track him down at the park.
By the time she found him, he was locked in a heated argument with another player. "What's wrong, Grandpa?"
As Claire approached, the other players and bystanders all turned to look at her.
"Mr. James, your granddaughter is this gorgeous?"
*Excuse me?*
Claire had no idea who the man was talking to.
Did he just say 'Mr. James' or 'Mr. Churchill'?
"Of course my granddaughter is gorgeous."
Padgett smirked with pride. "I was the most handsome man in Cabinda back in my prime. She gets it from me."
The other old men scoffed in unison.
Looking at his wrinkled face now, it was impossible to tell he had ever been a heartthrob.
But they couldn't help staring curiously at Claire.
"Mr. James, what's her name? How old is she? I've got a grandson who's single."
"He works for the IRS. It's a rock-solid career."
One of the old men pitched.
Another refused to be outdone.
"Who cares about your grandson? Is the IRS even that good? My
grandson is a grad student
hasn't even graduan He
yet, and he's already signed with a top firm."
"I think my grandson would be a perfect match for this young lady."
The old man who had been arguing the loudest with her stubbornly disguised grandfather hesitated before finally speaking up.
"Mr. James, if you agree to let your granddaughter go on a blind date with my grandson, I'll let you off the hook for that dollar fifty today."
Padgett was absolutely furious.
Trying to poach his granddaughter for a dollar fifty? What kind of delusional dream was that?
"Old Dalton, you're out of your mind. My granddaughter is beautiful, adorable, brilliant, and a student at The Cabinda University!"
Professor Dalton had originally just been joking around because the girl was pretty. But now, he couldn't help but study Claire seriously.
Professor Dalton happened to be a retired professor from The Cabinda University.
His grandson was no slouch, either. He had studied computer science and now ran his own tech startup.
Building his own business from scratch made him infinitely more reliable than those trust-fund brats relying on their families.
A girl this outstanding really would be a perfect match for his grandson.
Professor Dalton recalled his wife
constantly nagging about how their grandson was too busy with his startup to find a girlfriend Wasp this the perfect opportunity?
"Mr. James, I'm completely meet
My grandson is very handsome. He's six feet tall with long legs and he takes after my wife and daughter. He's a good-looking kid."