Chapter 45
He continued, “Well, if you run into any trouble later, just give me a call.”
Zoe faked a smile as she grabbed her phone, fixating on the number, unable to look away.
Then right in front of Shawn, she dialed his number, and sure enough, his phone rang.
“Mr. Ludwig, pick up!” Zoe urged.
Seeing Zoe’s smile return, Shawn didn’t want to let her down, so he answered the phone as she asked.
“Hello? Are you my future husband?” Zoe said into the phone. “Mr. Ludwig, I’m so happy. Even if it’s just pretend, I’m still thrilled that you’re helping me as my fiance. Thank you so much, my dear fiancé.”
The playful act made even the soldier driving the car chuckle.
But Zoe didn’t care. Instead, she said to the soldier, “Sir, you’ve got to keep this secret, alright?”
“Got it. I won’t say a word,” the soldier quickly promised, though he was trying hard not to laugh.
He thought, ‘No way! Shawn is actually pretending to be some woman’s fiancé? I can only keep it to myself. If I say a word, I might as well kiss my job goodbye!‘
Shawn watched as Zoe’s mood lifted. She looked like a completely different person from the one who was so down before.
It made him raise an eyebrow. He hadn’t expected her to be so happy just from him pretending to be her fiancé.
+15
Shawn personally dropped Zoe off at home.
After Shawn and the soldier left, Zoe pushed the door open and stepped inside. As soon as she entered, she heard laughter coming from the living
room.
“Eunice, you’re amazing! I’ve gotta admit I’m really impressed with you this time,” Sean said.
“Well, of course. Have you seen who raised me?” Clara said proudly.
Herbert and Jacob both complimented Eunice for being so capable.
Eunice, sitting next to Clara, said modestly, “Please stop praising me. It’s nothing special. I’m just helping out around the house.“”
Just then, Zoe walked in. For a moment, Eunice looked a bit flustered. It turned out that today was the day their eldest brother came home.
So, in addition to Clara, Eunice, Herbert, and Jacob, there was one more person in the living room.
He had a serious, composed demeanor. With his handsome, professional face, he rarely smiled, but his presence made it clear that he was a man who took everything seriously.
This man was none other than Sean, the CEO of Evans Group, one of Zoe’s five brothers. She hadn’t met him yet.
Sean had come home because the company was facing some issues. A project had been losing money, and if it continued, it could lead to cash flow problems, impacting other investments.
So, when Sean arrived, he looked worried. That was when Eunice, Herbert, and Jacob came home.
After hearing Clara and Sean chatting, Eunice suddenly had an idea. She remembered the investment proposal Zoe shared in class today. Since the professor had praised it so much, Eunice figured it must be a solid project.
So, Eunice decided to act quickly. After all, in the business class, Herbert and Jacob weren’t there, so no one would know.
Eunice immediately took Zor’s idea about technological innovation and passed it directly to Sean. This led the family to praise Eunice’s business sense, showering her with compliments.
When Zoe finally came home, Clara’s face immediately turned sour. She shot Zoe a hateful look, glared at her, and said, “Where the hell have you beent
Zor didn’t want to answer her and was about to head upstairs
But Clara wasn’t going to let her off that eastly. ‘Stop! Where do you think you’re going? Look at your sister–when the company hit a snag, she
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Chapter 45
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fixed Sean’s issues with just a few words.”
“Look at you! You come home and don’t even bother to greet Sean the first time you see him! Do you think this is a hotel, where you can just come and go as you please?” she asked.
Clara kept criticizing her, clearly looking down on Zoe. But Zoe wasn’t bothered. She just kept walking upstairs.
“Stop right there!” Clara was really mad now. She yelled, “Your sister just came up with an amazing investment plan–something about tech innovation or whatever, and it’s brilliant. And you? You’ve been wandering around outside. Where have you been this whole time?”
“Tell me! Who were you with just now? Who were you hanging out with?” she demanded.
Seeing Clara treat her like an embarrassment, Zoe was reminded of what Shawn had said to her in the car. The memory stung. She couldn’t help but sneer.
She thought, ‘So, my family cares less about me than a stranger does. How ironic.
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