Chapter 65
“Who else could I possibly be asking about, if not him? I thought to myself.
My guze turned awkward, and I silently looked away.
“Mr. Parker? His friend stayed here last night. They’ll probably have breakfast together” Rica finally realized who I was asking about.
“Friend?” My face stiffened. “It’s not Jamna, is it!“
With his personality, he might actually have the guts to have Joanna stay over.
Rita, who already knew who Joanna was, was momentarily stunned when she heard my words:
She quickly shook her head. “It’s a man. Mrs. Parker, you’re overthinking it. No matter what, Mr. Parker would never go against Deborah’s wishes.
I could see some sense in that. “True. They can do whatever they want outside, but with so many people around at home, it’s just more complicated”
“Mrs. Parker, you’re thinking too much,” Rita interrupted with a concerned frown. “Even Deborah is on your side now. Mr. Parker is a dutiful guy. For Deborah’s sake, he won’t do anything inappropriate.
“So what?” I said with a bitter smile, my gaze lowered. “You can’t fake feelings
Rita could tell I was upset, and she sat down beside me, gently taking my hand and patting it. “Mrs. Parker, don’t worry so much. Focus on getting better. The doctor said this condition is because of all the stress you’ve been under.”
I was a bit taken aback, thinking, “Does overthinking really make me sick!
After a long pause, I gave a half–hearted smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of anyself”
With that, I pulled the covers off and made a move to get out of bed.
Rita hurried to stop me. “Mrs. Parker, the doctor said you need to rest. What would you like to eat? I can have it brought to your room.”
“I’m fine. I need to go to the office soon. I’ll eat downstairs, I said lightly as I made my way to the wardrobe to change
Rita knew she couldn’t stop me. She rushed off to ask the chef to prepare something easy on my stomach.
When I went downstairs, I saw Hayden and Yasir sitting at the table
So, Rita had meant Yasir
Back when I was chasing after Hayden, I had seen Yasir plenty of times, though we hadn’t really spoken much.
Hayden had never been kind to me, and his friends followed suit, treating me with disdain.
I remembered that Yasir, while not exactly warm, had never openly mocked me like the others.
As I walked over, he noticed me and stood up first. “Hello, Yvonne
He rarely initiated conversations with me, so I wasn’t used to it. I didn’t object, just nodded slightly. “Hello”
Yasir raised an eyebrow, a look of curiosity in his eyes before he sat back down.
Hayden glanced over at me, his eyebrows raised slightly. “How are you feeling?”
I’m fine. Just needed some rest,” I answered casually, avoiding eye contact.
It wasn’t until I sat down that I realized Yasir’s eyes were still following me
What’s up with him? I wondered.
After all, he was Hayden’s friend, so I didn’t say anything more,
When the servants brought in the food, we all sat down for breakfast together in silence.
At first, no one said a word. The atmosphere was tense and quiet
18
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Chapter 65
Then Hayden suddenly stood up to take a phone call, and Yasir took the opportunity to speak.
Yvonne, you look like you’ve lost quite a bit of weight, he began.
“I’ve been dieting.” I answered, lowering my eyes and offering a vague response,
The truth was, anyone could tell by my pale complexion that I was sick, but I didn’t want Yasir to mock me for it.
Yasir seemed taken aback for a moment, his face showing surprise. After a while, he chuckled. “Well Yvonne, you’re something che. So many people talk about dieting, but very few actually manage to lose weight”
I furrowed my brows slightly, pausing my sip of soup. I looked up at him. “I remember, you didn’t really like talking to me before.”
I wasn’t mincing words.
Hayden no longer mattered to me, and neither did his friends.
Yasir froze for a moment, and the air was thick with an uncomfortable silence.
It took a while before he awkwardly laughed. “I didn’t really know you back then, Yvonne, so I didn’t dare say much. But
He trailed off, clearly hesitating over something
However, the hesitation quickly faded, and Yasir got straight to the point. “Yvonne, I heard you’ve got a new cruise ship,
now
“Everyone knows that the Parker family’s cruise ship is basically a golden goose. So, what do you think about letting me get in on the action?”
I raised an eyebrow in surprise.
I hadn’t expected Yasir to be after the cruise ship.
I couldn’t believe there were people with such ambitious eyes on the cruise ship that Xander had given me.
At least Yasir was upfront about it. He didn’t beat around the bush
“Oh! And how exactly do you want to get involved?” I asked, my curiosity piqued..
Seeing 1 hadn’t fladly rejected his proposal. Yasir put down his fork and began discussing it seriously
“I want to take over the alcohol business on the cruise ship. We can split the profits 80-20. What do you think Yasir proposed.
I raised an eyebrow again, a smile tugging at the corner of my lips “Mr. Gibson, you’ve got quite the appetite. The Parker family already has a regular supplier for the alcohol… Why don’t you talk to Hayden about it? Aren’t you two… friends?”
1 deliberately emphasized the last few words, letting my smile carry a hint of mockery
Apparently, the so–called friendship wasn’t as unshakable as I had thought
Yasir chuckled at my response. “He just got back, and besides, doesn’t the cruise ship business fall under your control now, Yvonnet
“Of course, I’m coming to you directly. The old supplier from the Parker family might not be able to offer you the same profits, right?”
I had checked last night, and the Parker family’s supplier wasn’t exactly offering low profits. But their accounts were likely going through the Parker Group’s books, which meant it wasn’t as easy as cash in hand from personal business.
I studied Yasir’s eyes with a knowing look, smiling slightly. “I just took over the cruise ship, and changing suppliers might be hard to explain “Plus, Mr. Gibson, the profit you’re offering seems a bit too low. Do you think I don’t know how to do business, and that you can take advantage of
The profit margins on the alcohol business were high, and Yasir offering me such a small share was clearly a move to take advantage of me Yasir didn’t seem surprised. It was as if he had expected me to respond this way. He quickly came up with a backup plan. “Well, the cruise ship is
yours now.
“What’s there to explain? If you think the profit’s too low, we can always renegotiate!
It was standard business talk, and I had heard it plenty of times before.
Tatra Check–in
