Chapter 1704

Ben had decided to play mysterious, leaving Jamie both curious and secretly overjoyed.
In the end, he hadn’t hidden the surprise too deeply.
That night, as Jamie got ready for bed, she found his surprise tucked under her pillow-a photograph.
In the picture, taken at a famous tower overseas, her sister and mother stood together, smiling brightly.
Jamie froze, her eyes instantly welling up with tears. Her voice trembled as she turned to Ben. “How did you find them?”
Ben rested a hand on Jamie’s shoulder, pulling her gently into a half-embrace. He was silent for a moment before picking up the photograph. “I didn’t find them,” he said softly. “To be precise, they found me.” He went on to explain.
Yesterday, he had received a letter from overseas.
In today’s world of instant communication, handwritten letters were almost unheard of, and this one had taken a long time to arrive. Even if they wanted to fly out to find her family now, it would be nearly impossible. Lowering his gaze, Ben added, “I think they must’ve remembered your birthday and carefully timed it to send this photo to you.”
Jamie placed the photo into a frame and set it on her bedside table.
*
The next day, Jamie finished her project proposal within a day’s effort.
Lila, however, had her own schedule in mind. Wearing her high heels, she strode confidently into Lucas Corporation. “Jamie, how’s the project coming along? Do you have a plan yet?”
Before Jamie could respond, Lila interrupted, inspecting her freshly manicured nails as she added, “It’s fine if you don’t. I’m not a villain who deliberately makes things difficult for others.” Jamie nearly laughed out loud at the audacity.
“You really don’t think the conditions you gave me were meant to make things difficult?”
“Of course not” Lila chuckled, arching a brow smugly as she looked Jamie over, clearly convinced she had the upper hand. “If I wanted to make things truly difficult, why would go through the trouble of approaching Lucas Corporation?”
Jamie took a deep breath, keeping her composure. “Go on,” she said calmly, refusing to rise to the bait.
The past few days of preparation hadn’t been in vain. Unlike the first time, Jamie didn’t let Lila’s condescending attitude get under her skin.
Lila gave Jamie a once-over, her gaze sharp and dismissive. Finally, she rolled her eyes. “No matter how look at you, you’re nothing compared to Summer. I still don’t get how Ben could be blind enough to choose you.”
“I thought we were here to discuss business.”
“Alright, alright, no need to remind me,” Lila said, her tone dripping with arrogance. “I’ve brought a professional team with me. Just go ahead and present the project as a PowerPoint.” Her nonchalant attitude would have left anyone speechless.
Jamie couldn’t fathom her thought process. If Lila had a professional team, why outsource the project in the first place? Did she have nothing better to do?
Still, Jamie held back from voicing her thoughts. “Alright, follow me.”
She led them to an empty conference room.
Lila’s so-called professional team consisted of five people who sat in the audience, their eyes fixed on Jamie.
Creating the PowerPoint
presentation hadn’t been easy. If
Jamie had only prepared a written proposal she would have been caught completely off guard. Facing the scrutiny of Lila’s team, she
would have been utterly humiliated.
This was exactly Lila’s plan-simple but effective.
When Jamie turned on the projector, it acted up, appearing to malfunction. She tapped the machine a few times, trying to get it working again.
Lila didn’t miss the opportunity to throw in a jab. “What’s the matter, Jamie? Don’t tell me you didn’t finish the PowerPoint. Really? A secretary at a big company, and you can’t even handle something this basic?”