No one believed that Old Randall couldn't afford to send Rose abroad.
He was just used to cutting corners and pocketing a cut of the procurement funds.
He assumed that what worked in the past would fly now, with no one saying a word.
But this time was completely different.
Vertex International had incredibly high standards.
And their oversight was brutal. Old Randall wouldn't have tried this if he wasn't exploiting the holiday downtime.
But that loophole wasn't so easy to exploit anymore.
Who could have predicted that Mr. Green would show up in Apex during the holidays?
When Dane stayed silent, Patton didn't even dare to breathe.
He was terrified of ruining such a massive project.
This was the biggest client he had ever landed.
Patton and Dane stepped into the cafe across the street.
Mrs. Patton took the initiative to entertain Claire.
"Are you Mr. Green's sister?"
Mrs. Patton didn't think the question was too forward.
Claire smiled and shook her head. "No."
"My last name is James. I'm Claire."
Claire had actually met Mrs. Patton before.
But they weren't close. One passing encounter meant practically nothing.
"Do you like pastries, Ms. James? There's a decent bakery right over there." Mrs. Patton still couldn't figure out the dynamic between this girl and Dane.
But if she wasn't his sister, she was more than likely his girlfriend.
Mrs. Patton wouldn't dare neglect Mr. Green's girlfriend.
Claire easily saw through the woman's cautiousness. She smiled. "It's alright, Mrs. Patton. You don't have to worry about me. I'm just going to take a walk around the block."
Having just eaten lunch, Claire didn't have the stomach for heavy desserts.
"Let me get you a coffee, at least."
"I know you young girls run on caffeine."
Claire relented, graciously accepting the offer. "Thank you."
Coffee in hand, Mrs. Patton kept Claire company at the cafe.
It was honestly a struggle for Mrs. Patton to find common ground with a girl so young.
She really couldn't come up with many conversation starters.
"You look quite young, Ms. James. Are you still in college?"
Claire gave a slight nod. "Speaking of which, I actually know your goddaughter."
Mrs. Patton looked surprised. "You mean Rose?"
Wait a minute. Why did this Ms. James know Rose was her goddaughter?
She studied Claire closely, realizing the girl was stunningly beautiful—and then a spark of familiarity hit her.
"You're the heiress of The James Family?" Mrs. Patton finally recognized Claire.
She marveled internally. The James Family was bankrupt, yet this adoptive daughter had managed to sna Mr. Green. That proved she was a force to be reckoned with!
All the more reason not to cross her.
Claire blinked. "I'm the fake heiress of The James Family."
"Pfft—" Mrs. Patton hadn't expected the girl to have such a dry sense of humor.
"The James Family is gone. True or false heiress, none of that matters now." Mrs. Patton actually liked Claire's temperament.
She was far more grounded than Rose.
Right now, Mrs. Patton's feelings toward her goddaughter had entirely soured.
The girl was clueless, and her father had dragged their own family into his mess. There was no way Mrs. Patton could be forgiving.
"So you must be attending The Cabinda University, right?"
"I heard you were the top scorer in last year's exams."
Rose couldn't hold a candle to a girl this brilliant.
Having a son of her own, Mrs.
Patton found herself wishing sheet
could sweep this gorgeous
accomplished girl home to be her daughter-in-law.
Unfortunately, she was already Mr. Green's woman.
Meanwhile, Patton had taken the
to confess his ot
initiativene
Dane holding nothing bu Qld Randall's shady dealings
He even actively shouldered the blame himself.
This level of accountability actually earned him a sliver of respect from Dane.