Chapter 781

After the children finished giving their gifts, more people came over to offer toasts to Noreen.

Noreen spotted a familiar face.

The man’s expression was visibly uncomfortable as he spoke to her.

“Ms. Gilmore, it’s been a long time.”

“Indeed it has, Mr. Chase,” Noreen replied, maintaining a polite front.

She remembered Perry Chase because she had once suffered at his hands.

Back then, she was still Seth Harcourt’s secretary.

Perry, a prominent Hong Kong businessman, had come to Rivercrest City for a government-led investment project, bringing massive resources with him.

Noreen had repeatedly lobbied Perry to secure some of those resources for Aurelion Group.

Noticing Noreen’s beauty, Perry got some crooked ideas and decided he wanted to force himself on her.

He had dropped hints, but Noreen either didn’t understand or was too naive to respond.

So he decided to take matters into his own hands. During a business dinner, he planned to assault her.

She was just a lowly secretary; she wouldn’t dare make a fuss after being taken advantage of. At worst, he could just throw some money at her to shut her up. If he liked her, he could keep her around for a while and then discard her when he got bored.

Perry was an old hand at this.

He had done it many times before and had never faced any consequences.

In fact, some bosses would willingly send women to his bed in exchange for an investment.

But he never expected Noreen to be so fierce. She refused to submit and, disregarding the danger, jumped out of a third-story window to escape.

Worried she would go to the police, Perry immediately contacted her boss. Seth.

It became the biggest regret of his life.

He thought Seth would side with him for the sake of the investment deal, persuading Noreen to let the matter go.

He had used this tactic before on unwilling women. It never failed.

After all, no one says no to money.

And Aurelion Group was a tiny, insignificant company back then. A small crumb from

his table would have been enough to sustain them for half a year.

Seth would surely be delighted. He might even be eternally grateful.

However…

When Seth learned that Perry had tried to assault Noreen, he beat him to a bloody pulp.

He was genuinely trying to kill him.

Even now, more than a decade later, the memory filled Perry with dread.

He was so traumatized that the mere sight of Noreen made his balls ache. Literally, not figuratively.

Because….. Seth had kicked him so hard he’d ruptured his testicles.

After that, he could never be with a woman again.

If this social obligation hadn’t been absolutely necessary, Perry would never have willingly approached Noreen.

Noreen had only said a single sentence to him, but his back was already slick with nervous sweat.

“It has been a long time,” Perry repeated, wiping his forehead with a handkerchief.

Noreen, for her part, had questions about what had happened with Perry.

That night, she had been forced to jump from the third floor. Fortunately, there was an artificial lake below. Fortunately it was summer. And fortunately, someone had been enjoying the cool evening air by the lake and saved her, as she couldn’t swim.

At the time, Noreen had been furious enough to call the police. But as she dialed 911, she hesitated.

Aurelion Group was just starting out. If it became entangled in a scandal like this, it would inevitably attract negative speculation. Besides the resources Perry controlled were genuinely valuable.

It was better not to make an enemy of him if she could avoid it.

For Aurelion Group, for Seth, Noreen swallowed her anger.

She never even told Seth what had happened.

What surprised her was that Perry suddenly vanished from Rivercrest City. The government abruptly canceled his investment eligibility As for the reason, no one knew, and no official explanation was ever given.

The whole affair simply fizzled out.

If she hadn’t run into him here tonight, she might never have remembered Perry Chase at all.