Chapter 10

Lorraine felt completely drained, and she dragged her feet across the front yard. By then, Lucy already had a midnight snack prepared and was waiting by the entrance. She smiled at Justin, and then she closed the door behind Lorraine. "Lorraine, I've prepared a midnight snack. Would you like to have some?" said Lucy. "No, I don't want it," Lorraine replied. She slumped on the couch and turned to glance at the floor-to-ceiling window. Justin had left. Lucy brought a cup to Lorraine and said, "I've made collagen chamomile tea. Have some." Lorraine replied listlessly, "Just leave it there." "Are you not happy with your date today?" Lucy asked. She had been working for the Neale family for over a decade, so Lorraine had long treated her as family. Lorraine looked up and asked, "Lucy, what do you think of Justin?" Lucy was stunned for a moment before she smiled and exclaimed, "Gosh, he's the most eligible bachelor!" Lorraine sighed helplessly. Indeed, Justin was the most eligible bachelor. At such a young age, he was already the owner of Fordwell Group, a conglomerate worth $10 billion. He had had countless investments under his name, yet he was still far from reaching his peak. She then looked at herself. Other than having a good father, she had nothing else to show for. She was even being hassled by fools like Ambrose as well. "Forget it. I should just have some quiet time instead," said Lorraine. "Finish the collagen chamomile tea. It'll be a waste if you don't drink it," said Lucy. "You should have it. I just want some peace." At dawn the following day, Lorraine's phone rang. She poked her lithe arm out of the covers, searched under her pillow, and hung up the call as soon as she took her phone out. She did all that in one go. The silence didn't last for two seconds before her phone rang again. Lorraine answered the call in a daze, saying listlessly, "Summer, you'd better have a reason to be calling me now." "You have to go to work today. Don't forget that," said Summer. Lorraine's mind went blank. She knew it. She had a feeling she had forgotten something very important that day. She looked up the time Laura had liaised with her last night. Sure enough, it was her first day on the job today, and she had to report to the company at 9:30 am. It was already 8:00 am at that point. "Crap! I'm going to be late!" Lorraine exclaimed. She was caught in the morning traffic and was stuck in the jam for half an hour. In the end, she arrived in front of the project manager, Lena Johnson, at 9:30 am on the dot to report to duty. Lena was from out of town, so she had a soft accent as she said, "You're Lorraine Neale, aren't you? Welcome to the team." "Thank you," Lorraine replied. She received her employee card and sat at her desk. She scanned the surroundings and saw that all her colleagues were busy, but she had no assigned task yet. It wasn't until almost noon that Lena finally brought her a computer and said, "You should first familiarize yourself with this project of ours." Lorraine accepted the computer and started studying right away. Before she knew it, it was noon. One by one, her colleagues around her went off to have lunch. It was her first day in the company, and she couldn't find the cafeteria. She then planned to just head to a restaurant downstairs to fill her belly. Just as she walked out of the elevator with the crowd, she saw Justin in the near distance, looking incredibly striking. Unlike the casual clothes he had on yesterday, he looked elegant in a black tailored suit, sticking out like a sore thumb in the crowd. Lorraine felt sheepish, and she quickly hid behind a pillar. Justin was talking to the person next to him when he suddenly stopped. The person next to him was confused, looking at him in puzzlement. Then, he walked forward in big strides and said, "Go ahead. I have something to take care of." Liam followed Justin's gaze, and he immediately understood. He then quickly left with the man who had been next to Justin earlier, saying, "Mr. Lott, the next thing…" Lorraine thought nobody had noticed her, so she let out a sigh of relief. Right then, a familiar voice sounded from behind her, asking, "What are you doing here?" Lorraine felt a chill down her spine, and she turned around with a stiffened body. "What a coincidence, Justin," she said. "It's not a coincidence," said Justin. The air seemed to have stopped moving right at that moment. Lorraine pursed her lips, planning to come clean to him. But before she could say anything, Justin beat her to the punch and said, "Come on. I'll take you out to lunch." She wanted to turn down his offer, but she saw him frowning as he glanced at the time on his expensive watch. "I have a meeting late. I'm very busy," said Justin. In an instant, she didn't dare to say anything anymore. She had no choice but to trail after him, sighing at herself. As expected, nothing good ever came out of doing something by force. Justin had chosen a restaurant next to their office. Lorraine didn't have an appetite, so she only ordered a salad. Justin frowned a little as the waiter served them their food. "That's all you're going to have?" he asked. Lorraine shook her head and said, "Don't worry. I'm not hungry." She wasn't a big eater, to begin with, so she didn't even finish her salad. Justin seemed to be very busy that day. His phone hadn't stopped ringing throughout the entire lunch. It was just half an hour, but it felt like years for Lorraine. Had she known that having lunch with Justin would be such torture, she would've hidden herself better from him. When it was about time, Lorraine stood up and said, "I'm done, Justin. I'm going to head back to work now." "Hang on," Justin called out. Lorraine stopped in her tracks and turned to look at him. "Is there anything else I can do for you, Justin?" she asked. Justin pursed his lips and said, "You've left your gaming console in my car." Lorraine remembered that even if Justin didn't bring it up. She had left in such a hurry last night that she didn't have time to grab her gaming console at all. Justin walked past her and said, "Let's go. I'll go with you to get it." Lorraine suddenly felt an urge to cry. Justin wasn't interested at all in her. He didn't even bother asking why she would be at the Fordwell Group. She couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment, but she forced herself to hold it in and follow Justin into the parking lot. Then, she saw him opening the car door, taking out the gaming console and a box. Lorraine was dazed for a moment when she reached out her hand. "What's this?" she asked. Justin put the box in her hands, leaving her no choice but to support it with both her hands. "It's a computer that's part of the package," Justin replied. Shocked, Lorraine asked, "Justin, why did you give me a computer?" "It's your onboarding kit," Justin answered. "Am I the only one who has it?" Lorraine asked again. Justin hummed in agreement calmly and said, "Yes." Lorraine immediately beamed from ear to ear. "This is so wonderful. Thank you, Justin!" But, in other words, that meant Justin already knew she had joined the Fordwell Group. She gave it a thought and felt that she should explain to him. "Justin, I submitted my resume to Fordwell Group a long time ago. I didn't think I would get through the interview so soon." She wanted to explain to him that she hadn't joined the company just to pursue him. But the more she tried to explain it, the more confusing the situation got. "Does your father know?" Justin asked. Lorraine answered truthfully, "I haven't had the time to tell him yet." "He'll be back tomorrow night. I've made a reservation at a restaurant. Would you like to come with me to the airport to pick him up?" Justin asked. "Sure," Lorraine answered. It was rare for Justin to take the initiative, so she couldn't let him down and agreed without hesitation. The computer was too heavy. She pulled it closer to her chest and smiled as she said, "Justin, I'm going to head back to work," she said. "Go ahead." Justin nodded, his gaze trailed after her until she disappeared into the distance. The parking lot fell silent again. There was a hint of fragrance lingering in the air. Justin took out his phone and messaged Lorraine a series of numbers. It was after Lorraine had returned to her desk that she saw his text. "Justin, what's this?" she replied.