Brian had been having a hard time recently.
After what had transpired, he was ordered to go home every single day to cater to all the blind dates
that were arranged for him.
As the days passed, he lost count of the number of girls he had met with.
Whatever pride and gratification he had felt for being with Eris in the past had completely dissipated
over the course of his recent quandary.
‘God knows how these women are so damn picky! he cursed inwardly.He had always thought of
himself to be quite a catch.And yet, none of his blind dates had ever called him for a second meeting.It
was frustrating as hell.Because of his consecutive blunders with these women, he also had to suffer his
parents’ constant reproach.
Each day, he would come home to their cold and disappointed faces.
This day was no different.
Once again, he had sat through yet another disastrous blind date.
The car was already parked in the driveway of their villa, but Brian took the time to smoke a cigarette, if
only to calm himself before facing his parents.
"Brian..." Leah spoke up, her tone low and cautious.
"Your parents had a particularly rough time today.Please be mindful of your words and actions." Brian's
heart grew heavier than it already was.
"Thank you, Leah." He finished his cigarette and walked to the porch.
Before he could even get through the front door, he heard Jaylen's angry voice coming from the living
room.
"Damn it! Those bastards really piss me off! Now, the matter has attracted so much unwanted
attention.We're already in a crucial phase as it is, and those bastards actually dare to send messages
and make calls to threaten that woman and her family!"
Jaylen only grew angrier with every word he spoke, and Brian even heard the sound of shattering
porcelain.
"I've already apologized to her and gave her a hefty amount of compensation.She agreed to a
settlement, too.Damn it! Those bastards! They're really trying to piss me off!"
Brian froze on the doorway, stunned.
When he had come home yesterday, he had been told that the incident was already settled.But it
seemed something had gone wrong.His heart began to pick up its pace.
Mustering all the courage he could find, he squared his shoulders and walked straight to the living
room.
Every piece of decoration that could be broken was now lying in pieces on the floor.
They were littered around a furious Jaylen, whose face had grown red from exertion.He was trembling
ever so slightly, too.
Nellie was fussing around him, patting his back and telling him to take slow breaths.
But she wasn't looking any better at all.
"You know you're not in a condition to be this angry.The doctor said you can't be too emotional, or your
blood pressure might rise dangerously." She helped Jaylen over to the sofa.
He was still panting even as he sat and leaned back.
"Those useless scumbags!"
"There's no use in getting so worked up now.Our priority is to find a solution."
Solution? What other solution was left for them at this point? The exposure of the hotel's problem had
already damaged their reputation beyond repair.
And now, another scandal had fallen into their lap.
The person who had tried to abduct Saniya might have turned himself in and said that he had mistaken
her for someone else, but there was no way people would buy that story.
Yesterday, Jaylen just announced that they had reached an agreement with Saniya, but today, things
escalated.
All over the Internet, conspiracies were already being discussed.
The most prevalent theory was that Saniya had only agreed to make peace with them because she
was being threatened.
Needless to say, their hotel had completely lost the public's trust.
Jaylen's hands began to shake with rage once more.
‘Those imbeciles! How dare they threaten the woman?’ That wasn't even the worst thing about this
whole debacle.
Their threatening phone calls had actually been recorded! It didn't take long for the audio clips to
circulate online, and by the time they had realized it, it was already too late.
Saniya had already called the police, and the offenders were soon apprehended.
They were the staff members of the hotel.
People pinned the blame on the hotel.
‘Those buffoons ruined everything! All the hard work I have put in to rectify the situation are all in vain
now. Jaylen felt an overwhelming desire to seek those fools out and kill them with his bare hands.
"Jaylen," Nellie called out, her face twisting into a frown. She couldn't think of a single solution, either.
The air in the room grew heavy and bleak.
"Dad, Mom, I'm back."
Hearing his words, Jaylen and Nellie both turned to find Brian.They didn't look relieved to see him at
all.
"How was your date?" Nellie asked bluntly.
Brian shook his head and said nothing.Her lips curled into a sneer at that
"Why is my son so useless?! She had arranged countless blind dates for him, but none of them had
succeeded.
"Are you really trying, Brian?"
"I'm telling you, Mom, I'm doing my best, but they never seem to like me."
"And why would that be?" Nellie cried out bitterly.
"If you'd only listened to me back then and stayed away from Eris, your reputation would have never
been ruined.Now, no woman in her right mind would want you."
Brian clenched his hands into fists and lowered his head in silence.
‘‘If! If! All she ever talks about is how things would have been if this and that happened! What's the
point in rehashing the possibilities when things have already come to this?’
If he had known that it would turn out this way, he wouldn't have done those things either.
Brian indulged in a small, self-derisive laugh.
The truth was, his parents had just happened to run into trouble with their business and couldn't find a
way out of it.He just happened to be the easiest scapegoat they could find.His lips twisted wryly.His
mother always said that this was for his own good, but she rarely ever thought of him during her
arrangements.
Even his date tonight was so plain, some would go so far as to call her ugly.
The only thing she had going for her was her impressive family background, nothing more.She could
wear the most expensive designer clothes and the most exquisite makeup, but none of it could conceal
her hideous face.
And she was fat! If her face had been the only problem, he would have been able to tolerate her to
some degree.
But that woman was an only child, and was therefore very spoiled since her childhood.She was on the
phone throughout the entirety of their date.She had blatantly ignored Brian's presence, and even flirted
with another man.
No, even worse—there were multiple men.
He had really wanted to storm out of that restaurant.
But then he thought of everything his family was going through, and he bit back his anger and soldiered
through the ordeal.
Now, he wished he had just walked out.He recalled the moment that ugly, fat woman had hung up her
phone.
"Oh, I'm so sorry." Then she took a sip of champagne and gazed at him with interest.
"Where were we just now?" Brian almost puked there and then.
"Miss Cook..."
"Oh, my name is Grace.You can just call me Grace.Anyway, I've heard a lot about your family.I believe
you and I are rather suited for each other.I can certainly see us getting married soon."
"Get married? You mean us?"
"Yes!"
Grace blinked up at him, looking like a toad with her generous features all lumped so closely with each
other, her face was practically a big blob of flesh.
"Isn't that why we're here? Well, here's the good news—I'm willing to marry you!"
‘She's willing to marry me? What the hell?!’ Well, even if she were, he most definitely was not.
"Miss Cook—"
"Grace!" Brian took a deep breath then and forced an awkward smile on his lips.
"Grace, I'm afraid you've misunderstood something..."
‘Misunderstood? He doesn't want to get married?’ Grace's face changed.
She pounded her fist on the table and shot up to her feet.
There were so many people at the restaurant, but she didn't care as she roared and screeched at him.
"Shit! Are you trying to mess with my feelings?"
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