MasukMiranda sensed someone come in.She looked up and instantly met Felix’s eyes.With just that one glance, she understood.Mike must have told him about their decision.Felix didn’t come to her right away. Instead, he went over to Justin and exchanged a few polite words with him. He seemed much more sober now.Before anyone realized it, it was already eight-thirty. The tea gathering was coming to an end.After taking an important call, Justin apologized to everyone.“I’m sorry, everyone. Something urgent has come up, and I need to handle it. We’ll have to end things here tonight. Please forgive me if I’ve been an inadequate host.”Everyone quickly expressed their understanding.Justin clearly did have something urgent to deal with. He called Mike over.“Mike, see everyone out for me.”Then he made a point of walking over to Miranda and Felix.“I’m sorry I couldn’t host you properly tonight. Next time you’re in Atlantis City, we’ll have to get together again.”“You’re too kin
Miranda had already guessed part of the reason.She lifted her eyes and looked over. Felix was looking at her too.Their gazes met.There was something in his eyes, an emotion she couldn’t quite understand.Just then, Justin rose to his feet.“I’ve had tea set up in the sitting room. Come join me.”Everyone stood and followed him out.Felix was about to get up as well when Mike suddenly patted him on the shoulder and sat down beside him.“Mr. Gibson, do you have a moment?”Felix nodded.Miranda glanced at the two men who had stayed behind, then followed Adrian and the others to the sitting room.Once everyone else was gone, Mike poured Felix a cup of tea. His expression turned serious.“Mr. Gibson, I was able to wake up because of your company’s brain-computer interface technology and because that chip arrived in time. You saved my life. I’ll remember that for as long as I live.”Felix gave a slight nod, though his tone was noticeably cooler.“Major Lloyd, you’re making t
Miranda followed Mike down the hallway and into his study.The room was spacious, and the first thing that caught her eye was the display case covering an entire wall. Inside, rows of trophies, medals, and certificates of honor were arranged neatly behind the glass.“Are these all yours?” Miranda asked in surprise.Mike smiled faintly. “Most of them. Some belonged to my father when he was young.”Miranda stopped in front of an especially striking medal and studied it closely.It was a First-Class Medal of Merit.Beside her, Mike said calmly, “I received that five years ago during a border mission.”A faint, emotional smile touched his lips.He had almost not made it back from that mission. His teammates had refused to give up on him.Just like this time, when he had risked his life to bring his own men home.No one left behind.No one abandoned.Miranda’s chest tightened.For him to have earned a medal like this, that mission must have been unimaginably dangerous.She kep
“You give me too much credit, Mr. Vice President. It was simply what I should have done,” Felix replied politely.Mike suddenly rose to his feet, emotion clear on his face. “Thank you all for coming tonight. Every one of you helped save my life. Without you, I might never have woken up. Let me offer a toast to all of you.”Everyone at the table lifted their glasses and accepted the gratitude in that gesture.Then Mike’s gaze moved slowly around the room before finally coming to rest on Miranda. Their eyes met for a brief moment.Justin lifted his glass as well and addressed the table. “I also have another piece of good news to announce tonight.”Felix’s heart sank at once. His fingers tightened slightly around his glass.Was he finally about to hear the one thing he least wanted to hear?The room fell quiet.Miranda listened too.Felix lowered his eyes, almost as if he were waiting for a sentence to be handed down.“I will be approving a national science and technology suppor
To her surprise, her guess turned out to be right.As she swiped open her room, Felix was opening the one next door. He looked a little surprised too. Then he looked at her and said, “I’m right next door. If you need anything, let me know.”“Thank you,” Miranda replied politely.Felix’s brows drew together slightly, as though he wanted to say more, but in the end he swallowed the words.Yes, polite was probably best.Before long, Miranda would be Mrs. Lloyd.From now on, not only would courtesy be necessary, so would distance.Miranda closed the door behind her and let out a quiet breath. Truthfully, this trip to Hamilton had her a little on edge. Formal occasions were never her thing, and she didn’t like social events like this. In her eyes, the Lloyd family didn’t need to thank her so grandly.But the way they had arranged everything made it obvious they intended to thank them properly, and that only made Miranda feel more pressure.Just then, her phone rang. She looked at t
A private dinner invitation from the vice president was no small thing.Felix asked with quiet concern, “Mr. Vice President, how is Mr. Lloyd recovering?”“Mike is recovering well,” Justin said, relief clear in his voice. “The reason I’m inviting you both this time is because I want to thank you in person. But official duties are keeping me here, and I can’t make the trip to Atlantis City myself. Felix, I’ll have to trouble you to bring Miranda to Hamilton.”Felix answered in a low voice, “Of course. Miranda and I will be there on time.”“Good. Then it’s settled. I’ll inform Miranda as well.” Justin paused, and his tone softened a little. “What happens between you young people is not my place to ask about, but the truth is, both you and Miranda played an indispensable part in Mike waking up.”A short while later, Miranda also received a personal invitation from Justin, and of course she agreed.Ten minutes after she hung up, a message came from Felix.“Three days from now, my mo
Xena lowered her gaze, her fingertips lightly tracing the rim of her glass. “But Felix’s recent behavior really does feel off.”Then she looked up. “This time in Hamilton, he was with Miranda almost the entire time.”“What?” Sienna blurted out, stunned. “Are you saying Felix didn’t spend that time
Miranda understood what Samantha was trying to say, but she still hesitated. Her brows drew together slightly.“Can I think about it?” Miranda asked.“My recommendation is that you take the stage,” Samantha said earnestly. “The foundation Gibson Corporation is establishing will make a real differe
The trees rustled softly in the wind. Felix narrowed his eyes and did not answer right away.Just then, his phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and frowned slightly. “Something urgent came up at the office. Let’s talk another day.”Leo nodded. “Alright.”Watching Felix get into his car and dr
Fiona clenched her fingers into her palm. “I know.”After Samantha left, Fiona took a deep breath. Miranda was already gaining international recognition, while she herself was still stuck in the role of an assistant researcher.James later returned to the lab with Miranda, and the two of them work







