THE DIVORCE GAMBIT From Dumped Wife to CEO's Forever novel Chapter 167

Vest?!

Vest!

If anyone else had been around, they'd probably have been scared out of their wits by the way Fortune called Gordon by his first name.

In Eldermere—and even internationally—everyone addressed Gordon with the utmost respect as Master Ninth.

But now?

He was letting Fortune call him Vest.

Fortune gazed at Gordon, admiration gleaming in his eyes.

This young man clearly wasn't ordinary, and yet he was humble and polite—so different from those arrogant, entitled heirs Fortune had met before.

Not to mention, he was easy on the eyes!

Fortune took a genuine liking to him.

"All right, Vest, grab a seat. I'll go make you some tea."

"No need to trouble yourself, Mr. Kensington," Gordon held up his hand to stop him. "I have something urgent at the office and need to leave right away."

"You're heading back now?"

"Yes," Gordon nodded.

"Let me call Catie and let her know."

"That's not necessary," Gordon explained. "I ran into her on my way here."

"In that case, safe travels."

Since Gordon had business to attend to, Fortune didn't insist. He personally walked Gordon to the door, smiling as he said, "Vest, come by the house whenever you like!"

Glenn was waiting by the car door.

When he heard Fortune call Gordon by his first name, he nearly choked.

Who was this old man who dared address Gordon so casually?

Could he be Miss Kensington's grandfather?

A second later, Gordon's reply confirmed Glenn's suspicions.

Gordon smiled and said, "Thank you, Mr. Kensington. You and Catie are always welcome at my home as well."

"Much appreciated."

Fortune beamed, seeing Gordon into the car and waving as he closed the door. "Vest, take care on the road!"

Gordon sat upright in the backseat, waving goodbye in return.

It wasn't until they'd driven out of the gated community that Gordon finally took out his phone, logged into Imperial Ascent, and went back to solving the chess puzzle he'd left unfinished.

—

Meanwhile, Caitlin arrived at Ember Plaza and quickly spotted Celeste.

Celeste was already waiting, holding two drinks and a bag of popcorn. When she saw Caitlin, she waved enthusiastically. "Catie, over here!"

Caitlin jogged over. "Sorry, March! I ran into a bit of trouble on the way—hope you weren't waiting long."

Hearing Caitlin mention trouble, Celeste immediately grew concerned. "Are you all right? Do you need me to help with anything?"

"No, it's all sorted now," Caitlin assured her.

After the movie, there was still plenty of time left in the day, so Caitlin suggested stopping by the Willow Manor sales office.

She'd promised Fortune a big new house and had no intention of going back on her word.

Imperial Ascent had been a massive success—her bank balance was more than healthy now. Plus, with the new semester about to start, moving to Willow Manor would just make things more convenient.

Celeste turned to her. "Catie, are you thinking of buying a house?"

"Yeah."

Celeste grinned. "You know, Willow Manor is one of my dad's projects. I'll just have him give you a place! He's been saying he doesn't know what to get you anyway!"

The Hayes family dabbled in just about every business imaginable—real estate was just one of many.

"No, no, that's too much," Caitlin refused, flustered. "March, I can't accept a house from your dad out of nowhere. I'll buy it myself."

"What do you mean ‘out of nowhere'? Catie, you're my lifesaver! It's just a house, and Dad builds them for a living. Come on, let's go look—there are some gorgeous villas ready to move into."

Celeste truly didn't think it was a big deal.

"March, you and your family have already given me and Grandpa so much. If you insist on this, I'll just buy a house somewhere else," Caitlin said sternly.

A villa at Willow Manor cost over five million a piece—the cheapest went for more than three million! There was no way she could accept such an extravagant gift.

Celeste genuinely considered Caitlin her best friend and loved showering her friends with gifts. If it had been anyone else, they'd have been over the moon at the offer of a free villa.

But Caitlin refused without hesitation.

That's what set her apart.

"Fine, fine, Catie," Celeste relented. "But at least let me get you a discount, okay? If you won't even let me do that, are we even friends?" Celeste finished with a mock-serious look.