CHAPTER 25: CHAPTER 25: SUPPORT

Julian Hawthorne’s voice was restrained, as if enduring something, "I’m already being gentle, don’t move around."

Simon Hawthorne, "...!!"

Whoa, early morning drama?

Simon Hawthorne sneaked to the dining room entrance, peeked inside, and when he pulled back, he bumped into the door, immediately alerting the two people inside.

Seeing them look over, Simon Hawthorne felt a bit awkward.

"You two carry on, carry on, I’m just passing by, just passing by..."

No matter how calm Paige Sterling appeared, inside she was incredibly embarrassed, but she kept her face straight and left Julian Hawthorne’s house as if nothing had happened.

Paige Sterling returned to the Sterling Family home at noon, where Jared Sullivan was also present.

There was also a guest—Austin Xavier.

Skylar Hughes sat next to Austin Xavier, constantly trying to find a common topic with him.

But except for responding to Jared Sullivan, Austin Xavier ignored Skylar Hughes completely.

He carried an enigmatic low pressure around him.

Especially when he saw Paige Sterling return, his eyes were practically like those of a venomous snake.

Paige Sterling went to her room, and he followed her in, even closing the door behind him.

Paige threw him a cold glance, without any response.

Austin Xavier, seeing this, let out a cold snort from his nose.

"Paige, what’s your relationship with Julian Hawthorne?"

Paige still didn’t respond, prompting Austin Xavier to let out his trademark cold laugh.

"Paige, seems you’ve got some skills, hooking up with Julian Hawthorne."

Paige directly slapped Austin Xavier.

"I don’t like to be accused of hooking up. You can use the term ’conspiring’ instead, thanks."

Austin Xavier, slapped in the face, looked sinister, but didn’t do anything to Paige, though his words were venomous, "Paige, just you wait!"

Paige acted as if she hadn’t heard, figuring Austin Xavier was just nuts—the more you pay him attention, the crazier he becomes.

When Paige changed clothes and came downstairs, Austin Xavier was already gone.

Jared Sullivan could tell that Austin Xavier and Paige Sterling had had another falling out.

But these two kids had been fighting since they were small, so he didn’t take it to heart.

Jared Sullivan asked Paige about the investment pulling matter, and Paige proudly showed Jared her achievements.

Jared Sullivan was slightly surprised.

"How did you manage to secure so much investment in just a few days, Beau, what did you do?"

Of course, Paige wasn’t about to tell Jared that she had used both coercion and enticement.

"Just like you taught me, Dad. I earnestly went door to door with my project proposal looking for those rich folks, and they all appreciated my talent."

Jared Sullivan had no doubt, "Smart of them, they know my daughter’s capable."

Yvette Hughes, "...", chuckle.

Even though Miles Morgan and his group wouldn’t say what Paige did to them, they could guess. For Paige to secure investment from those people, who knows what she actually did?

Now she’s charming and acting innocent in front of Jared. Does she think she can hide what she’s done forever?

Yvette Hughes also praised Paige a bit because she noticed that every time she praised Paige, Jared treated her more gently.

True enough, after she praised Paige, Jared’s gaze towards her softened.

But Skylar Hughes, seeing this, wasn’t thrilled. She said, "Paige, you didn’t return to Silverstream Bay last night, nor did you come home. Where were you?"

Paige glanced at Skylar Hughes, "You even know I didn’t go back to Silverstream Bay. It seems you’re well aware of my whereabouts."

Skylar’s heart skipped a beat as she looked at Jared Sullivan. Luckily, his focus wasn’t on that.

"Beau, you didn’t come home last night?"

Paige felt a bit guilty.

Though Jared Sullivan doted on her and minimized interference in her matters, he was pretty strict on this front.

Even in her relationship with Seth Shaw, despite dating for a year, under Jared’s watch, the furthest they got was holding hands.

If Jared found out she stayed over at Julian Hawthorne’s last night, it’d be a category ten typhoon.

So she kept a calm face and said, "Dad, I had some drinks last night and stayed at a friend’s house."

Jared asked, "Which friend? Does Dad know them?"

Paige, looking hurt, turned to Jared. After all, having been in the entertainment industry, her acting was top-notch.

"Dad, what do you mean by this? Don’t you trust me?"

His daughter looked at him this way, and Jared felt guilty first.

"Dad trusts you, Dad’s just concerned. Alright, dad won’t ask further. As long as you know what you’re doing."

Paige let out a sigh of relief, tentatively asking Jared, "Have you ever collaborated with Julian Hawthorne, Dad?"

Jared huffed, "We used to, but not much in recent years."

"Why not?"

Mentioning this, Jared got a bit annoyed. He genuinely admired Julian Hawthorne, the young man, despite his high starting point, he didn’t inherit the bad habits of other rich kids; instead, he was highly disciplined and indeed capable.

But some of Julian’s actions angered him.

There was some competition between the two companies in the industry, which was normal; losing was fine, and Jared didn’t mind.

But what was infuriating was that Julian Hawthorne wouldn’t even compete.

Once there was a conflict of interest with VastReach Group, Julian Hawthorne would simply back off. Once or twice was fine, but every time was like this—how could Jared not overthink?

Paige was also surprised by what Jared said.

So what’s this strategic move from Julian about?

"Dad, is he... giving way to you? But why?"

"Why else? He looks down on me, thinks I’m old now, humph!"

Paige felt it wasn’t so simple. Maybe she should ask Julian Hawthorne someday?

In the afternoon, Paige had a meeting arranged at a café with Summer Xavier, Austin’s sister.

Even though her relationship with Austin was strained, she always got along well with Summer Xavier.

When she arrived, Summer Xavier was already there, "What’s the matter today?"

Paige smiled at Summer Xavier.

For some reason, Summer suddenly found Paige’s smile unsettling, like it sent chills down her spine.

"Paige, what... what is it?"

Paige dropped the smile, "It’s like this, I have got a pretty good project. Everyone who’s seen it has invested in me. How about you also chip in?"

Summer Xavier said, "You’re really starting a business?"

"Yeah."

"Then of course I’ll support you. How much more do you need? I’ll cover the rest."

Paige said, "Still quite a bit short, but if you’ve got one or two hundred million, that would do."

Summer almost choked on her coffee, "What did you say?"

One or two hundred million?

Paige said, "If that’s too much, a few tens of millions would work too."

Summer, "..."

Just a few days and this girl’s trying to shoot for the stars.

But Summer thought Paige probably really couldn’t find investors. As a friend, she wanted to help. She didn’t have billions, but she could manage a few tens of millions.