“Can I come in?” Joan was knocking on the door. “Would Mr. Norton please let me enter?”
Larry pinched his forehead and replied, “Half of your head is already inside. Just come in, will you?”
Joan was wearing a black chiffon skirt, paired with a white T-shirt. Her outfit made her look youthful and energetic. She blinked for a few times before uttering, “What? Are you busy right now?”
Larry looked tall and slender as he stood up. “My beloved Ms. Watts, what brings you here today?”
Sitting on the comfortable sofa, Joan was in bliss as the soft cotton fabric of the sofa came into contact with her skin. “I came here because I wanted to see you. Is that not a good enough reason? Do you have time tonight? I’ve booked us a seat at a restaurant…”
Before Larry could give a response, the notification sound of a new email being received attracted their attention.
Larry quickly went to check out the new email received on his computer. Curious, Joan got up from the sofa and queried, “Who is it from?”
“It doesn’t really matter. The email’s not important,” answered Larry. Joan walked toward him and uttered, “Is it a confession from one of your fangirls? Just tell her that you already have a wife!”
Seeing as Joan was already in front of the computer, Larry dropped the act and showed her the email. “See? It’s just my weekly health report.”
However, Joan was drawn to another email on the screen. She snatched the mouse from Larry’s hand and opened the email from a sender named Mr. S.
“I hope you accept my challenge? What’s the meaning of this!”
Larry scratched his head. “I didn’t want you to worry. That’s why I was reticent about this.”
Joan rubbed his forehead. “Are you daft? We’re a married couple. We face everything together. What’s an email going to do to us?”
“Mr. S? Is that the same person who took sneaky photos of me before?”
Larry nodded. “I wonder what his scheme is this time around. That being said, I should thank him for sending your pictures to me. Because of that, we were able to reconcile…”
Suddenly, the noise of loud footsteps was heard at the door. The secretary was carrying a stack of files as she hurriedly entered the office.
“Bad news… Mr. Norton.” She was panting heavily. “It’s ok, you should catch your breath first,” said Joan.
The secretary was still in a panic. “There’s no need. Mr. Norton, a group called the Alpire Group bought over three of our small companies.”
“Bought over? Our small companies aren’t cheap, you know? They are all outstanding companies. How could they have afforded them?” Larry looked rather confused.
Glancing at the email sent from Mr. S, Joan seemed to have figured something out. She turned to Larry and saw that he was glaring at the email too.
“Mr. S?” The two of them uttered in unison.
“I bet he has something to do with this!” Joan was livid just thinking about him. He tried to obstruct our relationship before this. What is he plotting now? What’s this stupid challenge about? Is he making fun of us?
“This might just be his warning. Things will get crazier after this… I must instruct our branches to stay on their guard.” Larry took a deep breath. “I doubt the other branches would be bought over that easily.”
