Ramon laughed at Hailee's half annoyed expression and pulled her closer to him when another couple passed by them and almost bumped into Hailee. "Then what about you?" Ramon turned the question to her. "Is there a place you want to visit?"
"Yes," Hailee exclaimed cheerfully. "There is a small village near the town of L. When I was a child, I used to go there with my parents. There is an inn near the waterfall, so you can get a great view of nature when you open the window."
"A small village in L town…" Ramon muttered while touching his chin. He had never heard of this place, but if Hailee wanted to visit the place again, it wouldn't hurt him to find out, right?
While the two of them were talking about this, someone suddenly called out to Ramon in a loud voice.
"Ramon! You are here?" The man's voice was getting closer and closer as he was half running toward the two of them. "What is this? Second honeymoon?"
Hailee and Ramon turned around at the same time and saw a burly man running toward them, his breath was hitching but a wide smile graced his thick lips.
Behind this man were several people, following him. Two men and one woman, it looked like they were on vacation together.
"Who are they?" Hailee briefly whispered to Ramon, leaning her head toward her husband, before the stranger was within earshot.
"Friends from college," Ramon answered Hailee, but his expression was dry. He didn't seem too happy that their short vacation had been interrupted.
"You are very difficult to contact," said the man, when he was in front of Ramon. Then his eyes turned to Hailee and his smile grew wider. With great enthusiasm, he took Hailee's hand and shook it quite vigorously. "My name is Charlie, Ramon's classmate, you must be Hailee, we met at your wedding."
Well, Hailee had to be honest that she didn't remember this man at all even though he said they met at her wedding.
How could Hailee recognize every single face that she saw for the first time under such bright spotlights and a sea of countless people.
So, Hailee just greeted him in return. "Hi, Charlie."
Even though Charlie said that he and Ramon were classmates when they were in college, Hailee doubted that they were the same age, because Charlie looked at least ten years older than Ramon.
"What are you doing here? I don't think I have ever seen Ramon takes day off, especially on a weekday like this." Charlie started a barrage of questions, while the other three of his friends started coming over to them.
Hailee didn't really like the arrival of these uninvited people because she wanted to be alone with Ramon. But, Charlie seemed very happy to meet his old friend and Ramon didn't seem to mind chatting with Charlie.
Therefore, Hailee assumed that Charlie and Ramon were quite good friends when they were still in college.
"I am Amy," the only woman in Charlie's party introduced herself to Hailee, after the other two men, each named; Cordy and Billy. "I am also Ramon's college mate, but I am in the same class as Lexus."
"Oh, so you know Danny too? I heard Lexus and Danny are class mates," Hailee seized the opportunity to start a conversation with this woman named Amy, while Ramon was listening to Charlie chatter about their nostalgia from years ago.
On the other hand, Cordy and Billy chimed in occasionally, looking not confident enough to talk directly to Ramon.
So you could say that only Charlie and Amy really knew Ramon. Hmm… Hailee started with her own observations.
The longer she was associated with Ramon, the more accustomed she became to making judgments about her surroundings and the more careful she was in dealing with people.
Because like what Ramon said; You have to be careful in what actions and steps you chose to take, especially to whom you speak.
"Oh, yeah… I know Danny," Amy answered nonchalantly. "But, I don't get along with him." She said those words as if Danny was not in the same status as her, so hanging out with Danny could damage her image. Very typical of a conglomerate princess who didn't respect other people. The types of drama queens that Hailee didn't like.
Okay, Hailee's first impression of Amy wasn't that great, but Hailee was quite happy with Charlie's easy-going character, which reminded her of Lexus.
There must have been fun stories from their college days.
"How about we have dinner together later? Barbecue?" Charlie suggested and Amy clapped her hands happily.
"Come on, it must be fun reminiscing about the good olden days," Amy coaxed and occasionally stole glances at Ramon. The woman thought her actions had escaped Hailee's eyes.
Oh, of course not… Hailee was of course watching every little move this old friend of Ramon's made and she couldn't help but sigh in annoyance; this was one of the downsides of having a popular husband who had been the most coveted bachelor ever. There would always be annoying flies around.
"What do you think?" Ramon actually asked Hailee's opinion.
However, what Hailee liked the most was the fact that Ramon didn't even glance at Amy. His arms were wrapped protectively around Hailee's waist and every now and then he would sweep Hailee's messy hair off of her face because of the wind, gently.
Well, Hailee was quite happy with this fact, therefore, Amy's presence and the way she spoke which indicated that they were very close while they were in college didn't bother Hailee at all.
Why should Hailee be disturbed when all in Ramon's eyes was her, and now they would be waiting for the arrival of a cute baby, which was an undeniable proof of their togetherness.
"Okay," Hailee replied. "I love barbecue."
================
News of the broken marital relationship between Giana Smith and Aidan Smith was being over- published crazily. In fact, there were a lot of unreasonable speculations circulating in the community as well.
And of course, the divorce option always adorned the news.
However, in the midst of the widely circulating news regarding the affair between Giana Smith and her personal assistant, there wasa new piece of news that was no less surprising, namely; news of the affair between Aidan Smith and a woman whose identity was still a secret.
According to a source, it was Aidan Smith who initially ruined his marriage with an affair he had, so Giana Smith retaliated with the same action.
Of course, this new news had pros and cons among the public. The news commentary column would be filled with curses and insults against Aidan if the news was true and then public opinion would also slowly start to change because of this new variable.
All of these events were like a roller coaster that was moving very fast, no one could predict where this confusing news would lead to.
"Stop postponing that press conference!" Mr. Smith snapped at Aidan angrily because he saw the doubt in his son's eyes over the best solution they could come up with now, namely; none other than bringing down Giana and announcing their divorce before the Dawsons could take a step ahead of them.
This was crazy. This situation had turned truly beyond reason, where the two family camps, which originally shared a bond so solid, began to bring each other down in order to save their own name and also their business.
"There is nothing more you can do to save this situation!" Mr. Smith exclaimed angrily. Aidan should have held a press conference this afternoon to announce his divorce from Giana.
However, he postponed it because there were several sentences in the speech given to him that he did not agree with. According to Aidan, the words were too offensive for him to use to attack Giana.
Aidan's conscience refused to step on Giana like that. He felt like a loser.
But, apparently the same thing didn't apply to his father, for him, as long as this could help them to get out of the situation, then he would do anything to do it, not to mention step on Giana, he didn't even care if that statement could ruin the reputation of the Dawson.
"I will think of the best way to solve this." Aidan sighed heavily. He massaged his aching temples.
"How are you going to solve it? Letting Dawson's side attack you first with your stupid affair?!" Mr. Smith hit him again with the news that circulated a while ago.
At first he didn't believe it, but Aidan himself confirmed that it was true. Therefore, he rejected the speech of the press conference which he would read later about Giana's affair.
Because after all, Aidan was the one who started all of this. Maybe the public who didn't know the real story would sympathize with him, but what about when Aidan had to face Giana? He felt himself to be a joke to the extent that he blamed Giana completely for this and acted like a saint.
On the other hand, Mr. Smith couldn't understand how could Aidan be so stupid as to be involved in a scandal and what was even more stupid was; the news had already reached the media.
"I don't want to know," finally Mr. Smith decided. "If you will not speak at the press conference tomorrow morning, then I will."
After landing his last sentence Mr. Smith exited his son's study, leaving Aidan alone there, in the already deserted office.
Meanwhile, Aidan immediately grabbed his cell phone and dialed a number he absolutely hated.
He didn't understand how Zia could have a cousin like her, but after all Aileen wasn't her real cousin, because she was just an adopted child in the Tatum family.
"What are you trying to do?" Aidan's voice sounded cold and stiff when the call was picked up and suddenly there was a sickening chuckle from Aileen.
"I warned you Mr. Smith, that I wasn't just bluffing," Aileen said at the end of her laugh, imitating Aidan's tone, emphasizing the meaning of her sentence.
"You really are cheap!" Aidan hissed fiercely. He didn't believe it that Aileen truly used this to blackmail him. This woman really didn't have bottom line.
News of the affair he had with Zia, was definitely the result of Aileen's work, as Aidan ignored this woman's last warning.
"You want Tatum Jewelery? Fine. Consider you have got it." Aidan gritted his teeth. He didn't want this problem to escalate and implicate Zia.
"Good. However, I just wanted to remind you that you are going to face Ramon Tordoff to get the company." Aileen just wanted to make sure that Aidan didn't forget who he would face in order to do so.
Ramon laughed at Hailee's half annoyed expression and pulled her closer to him when another couple passed by them and almost bumped into Hailee. "Then what about you?" Ramon turned the question to her. "Is there a place you want to visit?"
"Yes," Hailee exclaimed cheerfully. "There is a small village near the town of L. When I was a child, I used to go there with my parents. There is an inn near the waterfall, so you can get a great view of nature when you open the window."
"A small village in L town…" Ramon muttered while touching his chin. He had never heard of this place, but if Hailee wanted to visit the place again, it wouldn't hurt him to find out, right?
While the two of them were talking about this, someone suddenly called out to Ramon in a loud voice.
"Ramon! You are here?" The man's voice was getting closer and closer as he was half running toward the two of them. "What is this? Second honeymoon?"
Hailee and Ramon turned around at the same time and saw a burly man running toward them, his breath was hitching but a wide smile graced his thick lips.
Behind this man were several people, following him. Two men and one woman, it looked like they were on vacation together.
"Who are they?" Hailee briefly whispered to Ramon, leaning her head toward her husband, before the stranger was within earshot.
"Friends from college," Ramon answered Hailee, but his expression was dry. He didn't seem too happy that their short vacation had been interrupted.
"You are very difficult to contact," said the man, when he was in front of Ramon. Then his eyes turned to Hailee and his smile grew wider. With great enthusiasm, he took Hailee's hand and shook it quite vigorously. "My name is Charlie, Ramon's classmate, you must be Hailee, we met at your wedding."
Well, Hailee had to be honest that she didn't remember this man at all even though he said they met at her wedding.
How could Hailee recognize every single face that she saw for the first time under such bright spotlights and a sea of countless people.
So, Hailee just greeted him in return. "Hi, Charlie."
Even though Charlie said that he and Ramon were classmates when they were in college, Hailee doubted that they were the same age, because Charlie looked at least ten years older than Ramon.
"What are you doing here? I don't think I have ever seen Ramon takes day off, especially on a weekday like this." Charlie started a barrage of questions, while the other three of his friends started coming over to them.
Hailee didn't really like the arrival of these uninvited people because she wanted to be alone with Ramon. But, Charlie seemed very happy to meet his old friend and Ramon didn't seem to mind chatting with Charlie.
Therefore, Hailee assumed that Charlie and Ramon were quite good friends when they were still in college.
"I am Amy," the only woman in Charlie's party introduced herself to Hailee, after the other two men, each named; Cordy and Billy. "I am also Ramon's college mate, but I am in the same class as Lexus."
"Oh, so you know Danny too? I heard Lexus and Danny are class mates," Hailee seized the opportunity to start a conversation with this woman named Amy, while Ramon was listening to Charlie chatter about their nostalgia from years ago.
On the other hand, Cordy and Billy chimed in occasionally, looking not confident enough to talk directly to Ramon.
So you could say that only Charlie and Amy really knew Ramon. Hmm… Hailee started with her own observations.
The longer she was associated with Ramon, the more accustomed she became to making judgments about her surroundings and the more careful she was in dealing with people.
Because like what Ramon said; You have to be careful in what actions and steps you chose to take, especially to whom you speak.
"Oh, yeah… I know Danny," Amy answered nonchalantly. "But, I don't get along with him." She said those words as if Danny was not in the same status as her, so hanging out with Danny could damage her image. Very typical of a conglomerate princess who didn't respect other people. The types of drama queens that Hailee didn't like.
Okay, Hailee's first impression of Amy wasn't that great, but Hailee was quite happy with Charlie's easy-going character, which reminded her of Lexus.
There must have been fun stories from their college days.
"How about we have dinner together later? Barbecue?" Charlie suggested and Amy clapped her hands happily.
"Come on, it must be fun reminiscing about the good olden days," Amy coaxed and occasionally stole glances at Ramon. The woman thought her actions had escaped Hailee's eyes.
Oh, of course not… Hailee was of course watching every little move this old friend of Ramon's made and she couldn't help but sigh in annoyance; this was one of the downsides of having a popular husband who had been the most coveted bachelor ever. There would always be annoying flies around.
"What do you think?" Ramon actually asked Hailee's opinion.
However, what Hailee liked the most was the fact that Ramon didn't even glance at Amy. His arms were wrapped protectively around Hailee's waist and every now and then he would sweep Hailee's messy hair off of her face because of the wind, gently.
Well, Hailee was quite happy with this fact, therefore, Amy's presence and the way she spoke which indicated that they were very close while they were in college didn't bother Hailee at all.
Why should Hailee be disturbed when all in Ramon's eyes was her, and now they would be waiting for the arrival of a cute baby, which was an undeniable proof of their togetherness.
"Okay," Hailee replied. "I love barbecue."
================
News of the broken marital relationship between Giana Smith and Aidan Smith was being over- published crazily. In fact, there were a lot of unreasonable speculations circulating in the community as well.
And of course, the divorce option always adorned the news.
However, in the midst of the widely circulating news regarding the affair between Giana Smith and her personal assistant, there wasa new piece of news that was no less surprising, namely; news of the affair between Aidan Smith and a woman whose identity was still a secret.
According to a source, it was Aidan Smith who initially ruined his marriage with an affair he had, so Giana Smith retaliated with the same action.
Of course, this new news had pros and cons among the public. The news commentary column would be filled with curses and insults against Aidan if the news was true and then public opinion would also slowly start to change because of this new variable.
All of these events were like a roller coaster that was moving very fast, no one could predict where this confusing news would lead to.
"Stop postponing that press conference!" Mr. Smith snapped at Aidan angrily because he saw the doubt in his son's eyes over the best solution they could come up with now, namely; none other than bringing down Giana and announcing their divorce before the Dawsons could take a step ahead of them.
This was crazy. This situation had turned truly beyond reason, where the two family camps, which originally shared a bond so solid, began to bring each other down in order to save their own name and also their business.
"There is nothing more you can do to save this situation!" Mr. Smith exclaimed angrily. Aidan should have held a press conference this afternoon to announce his divorce from Giana.
However, he postponed it because there were several sentences in the speech given to him that he did not agree with. According to Aidan, the words were too offensive for him to use to attack Giana.
Aidan's conscience refused to step on Giana like that. He felt like a loser.
But, apparently the same thing didn't apply to his father, for him, as long as this could help them to get out of the situation, then he would do anything to do it, not to mention step on Giana, he didn't even care if that statement could ruin the reputation of the Dawson.
"I will think of the best way to solve this." Aidan sighed heavily. He massaged his aching temples.
"How are you going to solve it? Letting Dawson's side attack you first with your stupid affair?!" Mr. Smith hit him again with the news that circulated a while ago.
At first he didn't believe it, but Aidan himself confirmed that it was true. Therefore, he rejected the speech of the press conference which he would read later about Giana's affair.
Because after all, Aidan was the one who started all of this. Maybe the public who didn't know the real story would sympathize with him, but what about when Aidan had to face Giana? He felt himself to be a joke to the extent that he blamed Giana completely for this and acted like a saint.
On the other hand, Mr. Smith couldn't understand how could Aidan be so stupid as to be involved in a scandal and what was even more stupid was; the news had already reached the media.
"I don't want to know," finally Mr. Smith decided. "If you will not speak at the press conference tomorrow morning, then I will."
After landing his last sentence Mr. Smith exited his son's study, leaving Aidan alone there, in the already deserted office.
Meanwhile, Aidan immediately grabbed his cell phone and dialed a number he absolutely hated.
He didn't understand how Zia could have a cousin like her, but after all Aileen wasn't her real cousin, because she was just an adopted child in the Tatum family.
"What are you trying to do?" Aidan's voice sounded cold and stiff when the call was picked up and suddenly there was a sickening chuckle from Aileen.
"I warned you Mr. Smith, that I wasn't just bluffing," Aileen said at the end of her laugh, imitating Aidan's tone, emphasizing the meaning of her sentence.
"You really are cheap!" Aidan hissed fiercely. He didn't believe it that Aileen truly used this to blackmail him. This woman really didn't have bottom line.
News of the affair he had with Zia, was definitely the result of Aileen's work, as Aidan ignored this woman's last warning.
"You want Tatum Jewelery? Fine. Consider you have got it." Aidan gritted his teeth. He didn't want this problem to escalate and implicate Zia.
"Good. However, I just wanted to remind you that you are going to face Ramon Tordoff to get the company." Aileen just wanted to make sure that Aidan didn't forget who he would face in order to do so.
