ebookslot Chapter 557 - 529: Gathering
Chapter 557 - 529: Gathering
Sienna Thornton’s shout made everyone look over, except for Gage Grant, who was most anxious about embarrassing himself in front of her and was currently holding a wine glass, staring absently at the green lawn.Gage was stuck, not knowing whether to stay or leave, when Jack Hawthorne, standing behind him, nudged him, "Come on, let’s get some food, why are you still standing here?"
Pushed into a corner, Gage decided to step forward confidently.
The ladies were seated in the viewing area while the men gathered around a temporary long table set on the lawn. Various delicate dishes were displayed on the table with a glass of red wine in front of each person.
Gage took his seat as Tobias Blackwood moved the red wine away from him, placing it near Jack. Tobias patted his shoulder and chuckled, "Not feeling well? Just eat something, don’t drink."
Gage frowned in displeasure but said nothing. He took a sip of the ginseng chicken soup that Harrison Rowe had served him and ate a few pieces of pan-fried cod before heading to the food table to grab a new wine glass, poured himself half a glass of red wine, and made his way towards the viewing area.
Jack glanced at Tobias, nodding towards Gage’s back, "Aren’t you going to say something to him? Still drinking in this condition?"
Tobias shook his head helplessly, "He’s in his thirties and still acting like a kid. Honestly, I’m embarrassed for him."
Jack sighed, "A man really matures only after having a family. Before marriage, they’re all kids. I truly understand this myself."
Facing him, Harrison kept nodding, "I also feel that Young Master Hawthorne has become a lot more steady since getting married."
"That’s it!" Jack laughed bitterly, "You think about how there are two people in this world hoping you’ll protect them forever, you can’t help but be steady. Since my kid arrived, I haven’t stayed up late once, sleep precisely at eleven at night, and wake up at seven in the morning. Let me tell you, since graduating from elementary school, I haven’t had such a routine."
Tobias smiled silently, sipped his red wine lightly.
As someone who is unmarried, Harrison couldn’t quite relate, and chuckled, "It’s not that serious, just staying up late."
Jack widened his eyes, "It’s serious! Think about it, if you die early, some other man will sleep with your wife, spend your money, and hit your kid. Can you still be up for staying up late when you think about that? You’d wish to live a hundred years!"
He then nodded towards Tobias, "Leo, am I right?"
Tobias nodded, "Exactly." Then he turned to glance at Gage stealthily approaching Maeve, "Fourth Master Grant really should find a serious partner. He can’t keep being this irresponsible."
Jack also looked over and chuckled, "At Jules’ wedding, I noticed Fourth was interested in that pink-haired girl. How about setting them up together?"
Suddenly, Simon Forrester, who had been silent, seriously interjected, "Not suitable."
Jack was puzzled, "Why not?"
Tobias and the others also looked at him.
Simon coughed lightly, saying, "That girl likes someone else."
Everyone collectively sighed, finding it’s not a big deal.
Jack laughed, "As long as they’re not married, anything can happen, right?"
At this moment, Tobias added lightly, "Don’t be matchmaking randomly. If it doesn’t work out, it’s difficult to explain to Director Thorne."
Jack scratched his head, chuckling foolishly, "True."
At this time in bustling May, with perfect weather, Fenmore Hill with its high terrain allowed everyone to enjoy the gentle breeze, savor the exquisite red wine, occasionally gaze at Brimfield’s cityscape below, or appreciate the greenery in the garden, having quite a good time.
Gage sat next to Maeve with a wine glass, took the opportunity to clink her glass when she wasn’t paying attention.
With a crisp clink, Maeve glanced over indifferently at the uninvited guest.
That brief glance conveyed nothing. After two seconds, she slowly turned back to gaze at the scenery she’d been looking at.
Gage faced a cold reception but wasn’t discouraged, taking a sip of red wine to bolster his courage.
"Did you find a sponsor for the tour?" He asked with a smile, his eyes lowered, watching the crimson wine in his glass.
Maeve tugged at her lips but didn’t reply.
"If you haven’t found one," Gage leaned in closer, almost touching Maeve’s ear, "I might be able to arrange something."
Maeve wanted to avoid the unpleasant, warm breath spraying into her ear canal, so she turned her face to the other side, letting the shoulder-length ends of her hair flick onto Gage’s face.
Gage closed his eyes, took a deep breath, thinking: Even the scent of this girl’s hair is different from other women, like mint, quite unique.
He slowly opened his eyes, straightened up, raising his eyebrows with a smile, "How about it?"
Maeve smiled, pulled out a business card from her bag, holding it between her fingers like a cigarette, and raised it up to him, "For work matters, you can contact my agent."
Gage was speechless for a moment, but still gracefully accepted the card with both hands, without even looking, directly tucked it into his sweatpants pocket, turned around with his wine glass, his previously charming smile turned sour and moody immediately.
Jack and Logan laughed gleefully from a short distance away.
Gage had just sat down when Jack greeted him with, "Are your feet hurting?"
Gage: ???
Jack pretended to grimace as he sucked on his teeth, frowning, "Hey, just kicked an iron board and wanted to check if your feet hurt."
Gage was speechless for a while, randomly grabbed the oyster shell on the table and aimed it at Jack.
On the other side, Sienna Thornton was discussing with Rhonda Wagner and Aurora Buckley about conducting a third-party due diligence on The Imperial Court Club.
Her intention was to have Cognitas lead this investigation on The Imperial Court Club, to gain some experience, potentially allowing Cognitas Law to form a new team in the future to undertake due diligence work.
However, Rhonda suggested that although the firm had hired quite a few young lawyers over the past year, it mainly relied on him and Aurora to guide them. Apart from lacking experience in due diligence work, their energy won’t allow it, so he recommended the project be handed over to the more robust, and more experienced in due diligence work, Prosper Law.
Sienna felt it was a pity to miss this opportunity, as she was eager for Cognitas to grow and become a medium-sized competitive law firm, even aspiring for it to become a comprehensive firm like Vantage or Prosper Law in the future.
Now that money is not a problem, she could support Cognitas’s expansion with whatever funding needed, but Rhonda and Aurora seemed to enjoy the simplicity and comfort of the small firm, so she couldn’t demand further, just waiting for another opportunity to bring it up in the future.
Sienna later chatted with Rhonda about the details of Melinda Linton’s brother’s retrial, learning that the odds of winning were very high, she happily drank a few more glasses.
On the men’s side, the now drunk Logan suddenly became emotional, draped an arm over Simon Forrester’s shoulder, eyes red, gesturing around, lamenting, "Fletcher, remember when we got tired of Britione and impulsively returned home to establish SY. Now, you have a wife, a family, and soon a kid, but what about me?"