Vernom's handsome face was visibly overjoyed.
As long as Joanna had really gotten over Ace, he believed that he would be able to move her with his sincerity one day.
'You don't have any chance. After I finish my tasks here, I'm going to marry someone."
Joanna said calmly while cutting her steak.
Vernom's expression immediately changed. He asked, "Marry someone?"
"Who?'
"I have no obligation to tell you."
Vernom was only nervous for a second. He then became very calm and confident. He said, 'It doesn't matter who he is, as long as his family name isn't Moran, and as long as you haven't married him, I'm confident that I can make you fall in love with me."
"It's good to have confidence, but you should use it in the right place."
Joanna raised her head and looked Vernom in the eye. "Now, can you tell me what Ace Moran's schedule is for this evening?"
"See? You still care about him…"
Vernom sighed and said truthfully, "His itinerary showed that he, like you, has a candlelight dinner planned for this evening."
"Oh?'
Joanna suddenly became interested, "With whom?"
"With a woman named Alice. You probably don't know this, but while you were gone, he's been having a great time. His relationship with Alice is very stable, and I think… they're close to getting married."
'That's great!"
There was an uncontrollable joy in Joanna's eyes.
If Ace really was marrying Alice, he would definitely not be interested in Joanna's children anymore.
After all, Alice was not a benevolent woman. There was no way she would be willing to become a stepmother. She would definitely stop Ace from taking Joanna's children.
"Oh god, please let them get married as soon as possible. I'll feel at ease when they do."
Joanna said excitedly.
Vernom studied Joanna's reaction with a frown. "Are you just acting tough?"
"Do I look like I'm acting tough?"
Joanna was so happy that she began to indulge in her food.
Vernom said, ' After you and Ace left the Baldwin family four years ago, I had a really rough time. My grandfather, my father, my mother… took turns admonishing and humiliating me. They said I'm useless because I couldn't win over your heart. Therefore, when they learned that you're back, they celebrated like it was Christmas. They said I have to make you mine at all costs."
"Really? What kind of costs are the Baldwin family willing to pay?"
Joanna asked with a smile.
"Not much. Just an endless amount of money."
Joanna raised her eyebrows and said, "I don't need money at the moment." "Don't be so quick to reject. I know you and the Stellar Group are planning something big. You're gonna need money…"
Vernom bumped his glass against Joanna's. "The Baldwin family has moved some industries to the City. I look forward to our pleasant cooperation."
Joanna was a bit confused.
But from what she knew of this man, those were definitely not just empty words. He's definitely taking action!
After dinner, the two of them took the elevator downstairs.
The night had deepened, and the scenery had become even more beautiful.
While the elevator was slowly descending, Joanna recalled the legend Mandy told her for some reason.
Would two people who understood each other really run into each other here?
Haha, it was probably just a joke to fool children.
Joanna smiled a little. Then, she lifted her eyes, and she completely froze!
In the elevator that was going up across from them stood Ace with his hands in his pockets. His handsome face was as cold as always. His deep eyes happened to meet hers…
However, the encounter was too brief. It came and went in an instant, like two meteors that streaked past each other.
One of them was going up while the other was going down. Neither of them stopped for the other.
"Hah, it seems Mr. Top Donor still cares about you. He's here for the dinner appointment."
When they arrived at the ground floor, Vernom joked with a playful grin.
"He can do whatever he wants. It's none of my concern."
Joanna walked gracefully to the parking lot, as if the encounter had never happened.
'You're not gonna go up and have a chat with him?"
'The agreed time for the dinner is from 8 pm to 11 pm. It's already a quarter past 11. It's his fault that he came late. My time's precious too. Why should I stay for him?"
Joanna's words were both rational and ruthless.
"True. Maybe he's here for a a dinner date with Alice. Otherwise, his expression wouldn't have been so cold when you saw each other just now, as if he didn't even know you."
Vernom put his hands in his pockets and analyzed in detail while looking up at the top of the tower.
Joanna made no reply. She took out her car key and pressed the button to start the car.
"It's getting late. We should go home. See you next time!"
Joanna waved her hand at Vernom. Her beautiful face was expressionless, devoid of any emotion.
"I take that as a promise that there will be a next time."
Vernom reluctantly said goodbye to Joanna.
Tsk tsk. He waited four years for this, but they parted ways again after just one dinner. He was far from satisfied.
However, compared to Ace who only had a few seconds of encounter with her, he seemed to be much luckier.
Joanna's red sports car whizzed through the night and quickly disappeared. It moved forward without turning back, just like Joanna who would never look back after making up her mind!
At the same time, Ace was standing in front of the French window of the 520 top floor restaurant, looking out of the window with a cold expression.
The brief encounter with Joanna just now felt so unreal.
Although he had already seen her in the video, seeing her when they were only one step away from each other felt completely different…
Ace had to admit that his calm heart had rippled uncontrollably the moment his eyes met the woman's.
Of course, he was confident enough to believe that Joanna must have felt the same way. In fact, maybe the encounter caused more than just ripples in her heart. Maybe it caused waves!
Ace adjusted his pose, trying to look his coolest while waiting for Joanna to come back up.
He had even thought of the first thing he would say to her later: "Don't misunderstand. I'm just passing by."
No, that was terrible.
"Long time no see. I wonder how a 4 million dollar dinner would feel like."
But wouldn't that expose his identity as the top donor? It's too embarrassing!
Maybe: "Fancy seeing you here. What brought you back to the City?"
But that felt... too sarcastic?
Minutes passed. Ace had gone through dozens of possible lines but Joanna was still nowhere to be seen.
'Damn it, is this woman playing hard to get?'
The arrogant CEO could not stand it anymore. He turned towards the restaurant entrance.
Apart from the staff, there was no one else there!
Ace lifted his luxury watch and checked the time. Then, he muttered under his breath, "I'll give you ten more minutes!"
Ten minutes passed.
The restaurant manager cautiously approached Ace.
"Uhh, Mr. Moran…"