"I just had a meeting in the hotel's conference room. We're going to have dinner in a bit. Come join us." Shawn spoke first when I didn't say anything.
I tried to read his tone and felt he probably didn't know that I had met with Ethan.
"Okay, I'll come over in a bit." Since I was here to learn business from him, I should naturally tag along. No matter what kind of experience it was, observing and learning more could always be useful.
I changed into a more proper outfit—not showing off my figure like I used to.
But it was also different from the loose, casual clothes I wore before. This outfit was more form-fitting, still accentuating my curves.
When I arrived at the place Shawn mentioned, they were still talking in the conference room. This time it was Shawn's team having a discussion. The door wasn't closed when I got there. Shawn was wearing a more formal suit, sitting at the head of the table, listening.
He twirled a pen elegantly between his fingers. When he saw me, he waved me over.
I walked in right away and saw Queena, dressed in business attire. The moment she saw me, her expression sharpened, like I was a threat.
Shawn pointed to the seat next to him. I sat down. The conversation didn't pause just because I arrived.
Turns out, they were planning to invest in a real estate company, and it involved quite a large sum. That explained the serious looks on Shawn's and the executives' faces.
As I listened to the conversation, I picked up a lot of knowledge. Queena was indeed quite professional—her analysis and data were impressive.
Shawn admired her. I could tell.
Queena carried a natural air of superiority. As she spoke, her eyes would glance across my face before settling on Shawn's. She liked watching the moment he nodded in approval.
It was past six when they finally wrapped up and headed to the restaurant.
On the way, I sat in a car with Shawn—just the two of us.
“Did you understand?” After a whole afternoon of work, he looked a bit tired, but he still turned to ask me.
“Yeah, I could understand it.” I'm not dumb. As long as I focus on something, I can usually get it—except math.
Shawn suddenly laughed. “I thought you'd find that kind of meeting dull and boring.”
"Changed how? I'm still the same me," I played dumb and asked.
"I don't know how to describe it, but you've changed." Shawn always gave off a sense of detachment, but deep down, he was sharp. Turns out, he could tell I didn't love him anymore.
"You're overthinking. I've just been busy with work and stressed," I replied calmly, throwing his old excuse back at him.
He looked even more unhappy, his large hand slowly curling into a fist. He pressed his lips together and said nothing.
I sneered inwardly. Didn't you once say love doesn't matter? So why are you suddenly saying the opposite now?
Since you yourself said love isn't important, then you have no right to ask it of me.
"Tiffany, I want to apologize for what I said before." The car moved forward steadily. A few minutes later, Shawn did something rare—he apologized.
"What did you do wrong?" I asked instinctively.
"For saying love doesn't matter and for suggesting money could buy what happens in bed." He fell into silence again, as if reflecting, and then looked at me. His eyes fixed on my face as he said, "Not long ago, I read a line that said, 'There are at least two things in life that one should never take lightly.'"

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