One of the reasons for Jory’s visit to Barrymore Group was to discuss collaboration with Simon. Being able to work together with a company of the same class would only reap benefits for Alpire Group. There was no reason for Jory not to give it a go.
Secondly, Jory came here to try his luck. He wanted to see if he could meet the woman who had rejected him back then. He also wanted to prove to her that he was not the worthless man she thought he was. In fact, he was a capable man of excellence, one who would make her regret her decision!
Between the two reasons, the second preceded the first. To him, it did not matter whether the business proposal fell through or not. If it did, then it meant good news for Alpire Group and its development; if it did not, it would not incur substantial damage to Alpire Group anyway.
Since it had come to this, Jory believed he had no more reason to stay. It was a shame, because Simon had made him a good cup of tea, and he had only taken a sip. He would not have the chance to drink again.
Simon’s mood obviously took a turn for the better now that Jory stopped bothering him about work. He even encouraged Jory to come visit him more often when the young man made to take his leave.
Of course, Jory was only being polite. After bidding farewell to Simon, accompanied by a smile, Jory placed his hand on the doorknob. He found it strange when he felt the knob shaking when he had barely made a move to turn it. Within half a second, the door of the chairman’s office flung open from the outside. The doorknob which Jory had been holding also sprung out of his hand.
The person who entered the room had on the professional white-collar outfit of a businesswoman, but it was her face which Jory had a hard time taking his eyes off. They had met before, first on the road a few days prior, and the second time in the elevator, just over half an hour ago.
Difference being, this time she had a document in hand. Earlier, she had been empty-handed. The woman also recognized the guest in the chairman’s office. Both of them bore the same frozen expression as they exchanged looks and locked eyes. Both were equally alarmed by the circumstances that brought them together. You again!
Simon assumed this was the first time they met. Ever since the engagement was called off, he thought the two would never have the chance to meet. Obviously, fate had other plans.
Although Simon would rather they remain strangers, it could not be helped that they were currently facing each other. So, Simon bit the bullet and proceeded to make introductions. “Jory, meet my daughter, Nancy.”
“Nancy, this is Jory, heir to Alpire Group.”
While Simon was doing that, the other two interpreted it differently. “There you have it. She’s your ex-fiancée, and he’s your ex-fiancé,” was what they heard.
Although they had met more than once… they had not exactly asked for the other person’s name. As a result, this official introduction turned out to be much more embarrassing than their previous chance encounters.
Jory was first to extend his hand. After all, he ought to be the gentleman in this situation, especially in front of a lady. Exercising basic courtesy, he said, “Nice to meet you. I’m Jory.”
Nancy was dumbfounded from the minute she opened the door and found him in her father’s office. Back at the elevator, she had been wondering who he was and what he was doing here. Is he the manager of some other company? Or perhaps one of our major shareholders! He did press the button for the twenty-sixth floor, so he must be here to meet Dad! What a surprise! This man whom I keep walking into happens to be that unlucky playboy I rejected years ago!
Nancy totally loathed the idea of him. She had always hated the kind of underachiever who somehow managed to live vicariously through the hard work of others.
And, well, he seemed to fit the bill of one of those young, rich heirs who would rather be chasing skirts all day.
So when she found out that he was her marriage partner, she wanted so badly to call it off. Even if she had not met Caspian then, she would have outright rejected Jory even if she had her head strapped on the guillotine!
But after the last two encounters, Jory did not seem to the terrible man she had pictured him to be. The man was tough on the outside, soft on the inside, genuinely cared about others, and would actively admit his mistakes. In contrast, it would take a miracle for Nancy to utter an apology.
