Summer turned to look at Leonardo upon hearing what he said. She did not know when Grandpa Emerson had talked to him to persuade him to go back to Emerson Corporation, but she understood what Carl said.
She looked at Leonardo for some time before she spoke, “You’ve been planning to go back to Emerson Corporation from the beginning, but you didn’t give Grandpa Emerson an answer until he came to me, didn’t you?” Without waiting for him to respond, she continued, “So that this way, Grandpa will be…” She paused for a second. “… impressed by me, isn’t it?”
Leonardo looked at her with interest. “What else?”
“How did you know Grandpa was going to look for me?” When she and Leonardo went back to Emerson’s old residence, the grandpa had never shown if he liked or disliked her. Grandpa Emerson had achieved a lot in life and seen more people than she could have ever imagined. A little woman like her, if not for the fact that she was Leonardo’s wife, she would never receive such attention of Grandpa Emerson.
Leonardo’s reply had confirmed her suspicions. “If not you, who else? Do you think he’d look for his son to persuade me?” He squinted as he said this, sounding like he was not talking about his father but some Tom, Dick, and Harry.
Come to think of it, it seemed that way. The relationship between Leonardo and Michael had always been tense, and Grandpa Emerson knew it. Summer and Leonardo were closer in contrast. Grandpa Emerson could find no one else, and that was why he came to her.
Summer was a little surprised, but she finally put two and two together.
Leonardo chuckled, patting her on the head. “I’ve never thought about going back to Emerson Corporation, but Grandpa’s been earnest in his thought and action; he even came to my house. So, I can’t refuse.”
Going back to Emerson Corporation right then was rather timely and untimely at the same time.
He was making progress in his investigation of his mom’s death. If he returned to Emerson Corporation now, he would have to spend more effort and be extra careful in doing it. On the other hand, Emerson Corporation was a family business. Nearly all members of the Emerson family worked in Emerson Corporation. If the Emersons were really involved in his mom’s death, then his return to Emerson Corporation would be an opportunity. It would be more convenient to investigate the Emersons.
Summer would not have thought of these twists and turns, at least for now. She said she wanted to help Leonardo, but she did not know much about all these things.
While he spoke, Leonardo rested his arm on the backrest of Summer’s chair. They were sitting side-by-side, and there were no intimate gestures, but no one seemed to be able to chime in. It made Carl feel like a gooseberry.
“Enough, mate. I can’t stand all this lovey-dovey stuff between you already. Shall we continue our discussion on the trending topic?”
Carl had not talked to Jessica since she last said something that broke his heart. When he occasionally saw her in the office, she left without talking to him as if he was a stranger. Carl had thought of doing what Leonardo had been doing to Summer; getting high-handed and bringing her home whether she liked it or not. However, his situation was different.
Jessica had made it sound as if they had passed the point of no return. Carl knew her well, and because of that, he was afraid. Whenever he was afraid, he would be more cautious, and once he was more cautious, he got stuck at doing nothing. When he could not stand the misery of not seeing her, he would go to the studio and quietly look at her from afar, feeling content. Yet, he fell into misery again once he saw Leonardo and Summer being all lovey-dovey in front of him.
Carl shook his head and collected his thoughts. “I suspect that Jessica’s former company is the one attacking us. They’ve thought of head-hunting Adams from us before.”
Jessica’s former company had been Tip Top’s major rival. It had also tried to head-hunt Adams, but it could just dream on. Every artist who cared about his or her future would choose Tip Top Entertainment, not to mention there was Adams’s close relationship with Leonardo. Although Jessica’s former company was also a big player in the entertainment world, it was nowhere near the level of Tip Top Entertainment.
After Carl finished, Leonardo said nothing. So he raised his chin and asked, “What do you think, Leonardo?”
Leonardo remained quiet with an inscrutable expression. After a while, he spoke, “Check them out.” As if something else had crossed his mind, he added, “Have you contacted my elder brother?”
“Not yet. He’s in the middle of nowhere. We told him not to go, but he insisted. There isn’t even a phone signal there. He’s not coming back soon.”
Carl was on the edge as he spoke of it. “Adams is amiable on normal days, but once he finds something he wants to do, he becomes as stubborn as a mule.”
Leonardo frowned and said nothing. After what seemed like forever, he said, “It’s okay. Leave it to the PR people, but it’d be better if we can fix it within 12 hours.”
“It’d be even better if he could come forward to clear air.” Carl thought what Leonardo said was right, but if they could make Adams come forward to clear the air, things would be a lot simpler.
“It won’t work.” Leonardo’s face darkened. “What people are talking about online is not about him. Their target is Tip Top. If we ask him to clear the air now, people will think that Tip Top is forcing him to do it.”
Summer frowned as she listened on. It did not matter what they did, it would not stop people from talking about it.
“F*ck! What else can we do?” Carl swore in frustration.
“It’s been three hours since this has happened, and it’s still spreading online. A few hours more, I believe people are going to dig into Tip Top Entertainment’s dirty secrets. It won’t matter if what they find is true or not. They won’t care, and the ultimate loser will be Tip Top,” Leonardo calmly analyzed the situation.
Carl, who had been mentally stressed recently, collapsed in his chair upon hearing Leonardo’s words. “This is not the first time, but now that things have involved Adams and Summer, it’s become a little tricky…”
“Let the PR people do what they’re supposed to do. I’m leaving now.” Leonardo brought Summer out.
“Damn it! Are you going to leave everything to me? I’m already up to my eyes!”
Hearing Carl’s miserable voice, Summer could not help but shudder. She asked in a whisper, “Are you really going to leave it to him?”