Chapter 378: The Weight of Fortune

Summer took a cautious spoonful of the congee. The rich, velvety texture melted on her tongue—this wasn’t something whipped up quickly. It must have been simmering for at least two hours. Had he slept at all last night? Her eyes lifted to study Fraser’s face. Faint shadows marred the skin beneath his eyes, barely noticeable unless one looked closely.

“Any plans today?” Fraser asked, sipping his coffee.

“I have to go to the office,” Summer replied.

“I’ll drive you,” Fraser said.

After breakfast, Fraser navigated the sleek car through the morning traffic to the Stewart Group headquarters. He emerged from the driver’s side to open her door, one hand braced against the roof in that effortlessly protective gesture she’d come to recognize. As Summer stepped out, Fraser ruffled her hair, his deep voice warm with amusement. “Go on. Text me when you’re done, and I’ll pick you up.”

She hesitated. “Won’t that interfere with your schedule?”

Fraser’s gaze softened. “Nothing is more important than this.”

At the elevator doors, Summer glanced back. Fraser was still leaning against the car, arms crossed, his dark eyes following her every move. Even from this distance, the sheer devotion in his expression was unmistakable.

The office was buzzing with its usual morning energy, but something felt… off. Employees greeted her normally, but there was a strange intensity in their eyes, like children trying hard not to reveal an exciting secret. Summer checked her reflection in a compact mirror. No smudged makeup, no stray hair. Shrugging, she gathered files for the management meeting.

“Congratulations, Ms. Stewart!”

The thunderous chorus hit her the moment she entered the conference room. Thirty beaming faces stared back at her. Summer froze. “Congratulations… for what?”

Summer walked over, sat down, and said with a sigh, “The performance of the first half of the year is not very good, and there is no salary increase for pleasing me.”

One executive practically vibrated with excitement. “Ms. Stewart, you’re different now. No, it’s our…”

“Right, right, right, Ms. Stewart, you are so rich now, you can expand Stewart Mall as much as you want!”

Confused by their words, Summer frowned. “What’s going on?”

“Ms. Stewart, you still don’t know yet? You are not only the general manager of Stewart Mall, but you also own 20% of the shares of the Graham Group! You should be the second largest shareholder of the Graham Group now!”

“What does this mean? Based on the worldwide market value of the Graham Group, you could create 100 Stewart enterprises, Ms. Stewart!”

Summer was shocked. I was a bit tired yesterday, and when I saw Fraser come back, I knew that the shareholders’ meeting went quite well, so I didn’t ask much. At this moment, when she heard this, Summer froze. Reacting, she opened her cell phone. The news of the Graham Group’s Consortium Conference was all over the internet. One of the headlines: Summer jumped to become the second largest shareholder of the Graham Group! Immediately after that, Summer’s value soared to 32nd on the world’s Forbes list, the youngest woman to do so!

Summer once again froze. Distracted and dizzy, she finished the meeting. Back in her office, Summer reached for her phone to call Fraser when Yvette’s name flashed on the screen.

“Well hello there, my suddenly filthy rich best friend!” Yvette’s voice crackled with glee.

Summer exhaled sharply. Apparently, I’m the last to know. Yvette heard the sound of sighing on the other side of the phone. “You’re weird, having so much money all of a sudden! At this moment, shouldn’t you be full of springtime, a feeling of being on the peak of your life?!”

Summer leaned on the seat. “It is quite… happy.”

“Will be yours, so you’re no longer excited about this 20% share.”

“What are you saying?”

In addition to the bad thoughts that arose from trying to suppress Helen before, I was not coveting the Graham family’s property. Summer pursed her lips. “I’m a bit burdened.”

“Burdened… what?”

Summer lowered her eyelashes. “Fraser’s good treatment of me makes me feel burdened; in fact, I’m not as good as he imagined. I’ve also been a frequent brat to him, and I’ve also been very unreasonable, and it seems like I haven’t seriously done anything for him, and the baby is something I want to keep myself, so it’s not because of him…”