Chapter 5

I spent two days in Serovia. Between spending time with Mr. Miller and taking care of the paperwork for my new position, I managed to find a place near the office as well.

Meanwhile, I had Alex inform several of our business partners ahead of time that I was relocating overseas. I also asked him to thank them for all their support over the years.

Back home, there was no sign that Roxanne had come by. Everything was exactly as I'd left it, but I changed the door code anyway.

…

After a day of rest, the calls started coming in. One business partner after another insisted on hosting a farewell dinner for me. There was no polite way to refuse, so I agreed to attend.

The private room door was slightly ajar. Through the gap, I could hear Conrad laughing and talking with the business partners inside.

A flicker of suspicion crossed my mind. I hadn't expected Roxanne and Conrad to be invited to what was supposed to be a simple farewell dinner.

After a moment of hesitation, I pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Conrad was seated beside Roxanne at the head of the table.

Roxanne glanced my way before saying, "Please, grab a seat anywhere. We're all friends. There was a bit of a misunderstanding at the banquet the other night. Now that everyone's here, we might as well clear the air."

In an instant, all eyes turned to me. I had a grim look on my face and wasn't saying anything, so they didn't speak up either.

But Conrad's eyes gleamed with triumph as he shot me a smug smile.

Since I had no intention of sitting beside Roxanne and Conrad, I pulled out an empty chair and took a seat.

Throughout the meal, Conrad made one toast after another, enthusiastically talking about the success that lay ahead once the deals were finalized. He was clearly in an exceptionally good mood.

Just then, my phone screen lit up with messages from Roxanne. She wrote, "I'm going to announce something later. Please don't put me on the spot. Whatever you want to say, we can discuss it at home."

Another message followed. "By now, you should be able to see that there's nothing going on between Conrad and me. I've never had anything to hide from you."

I read through them all. Just as I reached the last one, a new message came in. "Conrad will probably end up drunk tonight. I may have to take him home when this is over."

I raised an eyebrow and simply texted back, "Do as you like."

With the conversation flowing and everyone in good spirits, Roxanne rose to her feet and pulled Conrad up beside her.

Raising her glass, she announced, "Starting today, Conrad will be stepping into a key management role. Going forward, he'll be your main point of contact. I'd appreciate it if you'd look out for him."

The business partner beside me looked baffled.

"Point of contact for what?" he asked. "Fletcher Group has already decided to leave Jenton, and the rest of us are preparing to pull our investments as well. Who exactly is he supposed to be working with?"

Roxanne's face turned pale with shock as she whipped around to stare at me. "What? Leave Jenton? Louis, what…"

I nodded. "That's right. I'm taking Fletcher Group overseas."

Roxanne's eyes widened, and she stared at me in disbelief. "You're taking Fletcher Group overseas? Then what am I supposed to do?"