Diana went to the appointed place to meet Simon, arriving well in advance of the scheduled meeting time.
Yet again, she was shocked to see that there was already someone waiting for her instead of Simon; it was Brian!
Subconsciously, she wanted to leave. But Brian had already spotted her, so she had no choice but to greet him.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Brian, the president of the William Group.”
Diana shook hands with him in a professional manner.
When Brian touched Diana’s soft hands, he got momentarily lost in the feeling. He remembered this feeling. He felt like he had touched her skin thousands of times before.
It was an intense moment between them, which only ended after Diana literally pulled her hand from Brian’s grasp.
Speaking as naturally as she could, Diana returned to business.
“Mr. William, I’m here to discuss the Anderson’s contract with the William Group.”
“In my opinion, we should continue our cooperation,” Brian began. “As you know, we have both earned a lot these past two years. Surely it makes sense to renew the contract?”
Brian was well-spoken and persuasive when doing business. He knew exactly how to carry himself and always knew the right things to say to whomever he was speaking with. Diana stared at him as he spoke, impressed by his abilities.
Brian could feel his words were having some effect. So he asked, “What do you think of my proposal, Miss Anderson? Do you want to renew the contract?”
Diana was not so easily persuaded; however, hence she refused without hesitation.
Brian was confused. Both the William Group and the Anderson’s earned a lot thanks to their cooperation. They should renew the contract instead of canceling it. Why would they make such a decision? Still, he was not ready to give up convincing her.
“Miss Anderson, if you agree to renew the contract, we would be willing to offer you an improved deal.”
“Sorry, we don’t want to renew. The only demand of mine is to end the agreement so that I can go back to France as soon as possible,” Diana said coldly.
Since there appeared to be no possibility to convince her at present, Brian took out the contract.
“Well, it seems I can’t persuade you otherwise. But there is a six-month delay to enforce the cancellation, as stated in the contract.”
“What do you mean?” Diana frowned.
“I mean, you have the right to cancel the contract, but you will have to wait six months.” Brian smiled craftily.
Brian confidently believed that he could change Diana’s mind within that time.
“No, I can’t accept this.”
It was too long. What if the Williams found Abby? Diana could not take the risk.
“If you break the contract, you will have to pay a lot of compensation,” Brian warned.
“Just tell me how much.”
Diana was unwavering in her desire to end things with the William’s.
Brian was stunned. Why would she be so determined to cancel the contract? Not only was she giving up potential profits but also willing to pay more on top!
Brian had half a mind to ask her whether she was truly an idiot.
Diana was waiting for Brian’s response, but she received a call from Chaney before he answered. She picked it up.
“Hey, Diana, I encountered some problems with my contract. I have to stay here longer than expected. How about you?”
Diana sighed. “I also met with some difficulties. I’ll be delayed for a while too.”
“That’s great. We can stay here together!”
“Chaney, but I…” Diana was about to tell him that she planned to pay the compensation and go back to France as soon as possible, but she was interrupted.
“Mr. Fox, the president is on the phone for you.”
Diana heard a female voice over the phone.
“Sorry, Diana, I have a meeting. I will talk to you later.” Chaney hung up the phone in a hurry.
“Miss Anderson, what do you say?” Brian asked.
Since Chaney also had to be here, Diana agreed to wait.
“All right, we will cancel the contract in six months.”
Diana was about to leave when Brian held her back for one more question.
“Miss Anderson, why did you run away from me last night?”
Without a second thought, Diana fled again. She was not ready for that conversation.
Brian laughed to himself at Diana’s retreating figure.
“Mr. William, the car is ready.” His assistant walked in after Diana left.
When she saw Brian was laughing, she felt hurt. She had admired him since the first time she met him, and in all the time she had been his assistant, she had never seen him laugh with such a feeling. And as he was laughing for Diana, the assistant was very jealous.
“Got it.” Brian calmed down from his laughing fit. Then he went downstairs with his assistant.
When Diana got home, she found that the babysitter had taken Abby out to play.
At the same time, Brian and his assistant walked to the shops, as Brian had to buy some gifts for his mother.
Suddenly he was attracted by a cute girl walking towards him. She held a Mickey Mouse doll in her hands and was laughing happily.
The assistant observed his staring and also noticed the girl.
“Mr. William, she really looks like you.”
“Do you think so?”
“It’s amazing, Mr. William, she really resembles you. Maybe she is your daughter, but you don’t know it,” The assistant jokes.
“Let’s go.” Brian seemed unhappy after their encounter with the girl as he led his assistant to a nearby jewelry store.
Brian got home from his shopping trip to find Sybil and Aaron playing together with his mother. Aaron was making Mrs. Grace laugh with his wild antics.
“Uncle Brian!” Aaron jumped off the chair and ran to him.
“Hi, Aaron.” Brian ruffled his hair and put the gifts on the table.
“Mum, these are for you.”
However, Mrs. Grace was not impressed with the gifts. She had a quick glance at them, and without even opening them, began to complain, “You buy these kinds of gifts every year. Don’t you know what I want? Think about how old you are. It’s time for you to find a good woman and get married. Look at Sybil, your younger sister, she already has a two-year-old son. What about you? I am so worried about you. If Diana…”
Mrs. Grace realized she had mentioned Diana’s name and stopped at once.
“Mum?” Brian was confused about why she ended her rant mid-sentence.
“Nothing. Just enough!”
“Aaron, you said that you wanted to learn roller skating from Uncle Brian. Now he is here, goes with your uncle, darling,” said Sybil.
Aaron ran to Brian enthusiastically and pulled him out to the garden.
Once Brian was safely outside, Sybil and her mother could talk.
“Mum, when do you think Brian will remember Diana again?”
Mrs. Grace didn’t answer, she simply sighed.
“Diana is back,” said Sybil.
“What? She is back? What about the child?”
“Diana told me that she had an abortion,” Sybil said with regret.
Mrs. Grace was similarly devastated by the news. She always had a soft spot for Diana and would have loved her and Brian to have a child together.
“We shouldn’t have let her go that time,” Mrs. Grace lamented.
“Mum, seriously, I think Diana is still in love with Brian.” Sybil was clearly more than a little excited about it.
Mrs. Grace sighed, “We cannot force them, dear. It’s not that simple.”