Chapter 26

Amelia flopped onto the couch with an exaggerated groan. “Oh great. I spend all day working at the company, and I can’t even sleep in a proper bed when I get home.” She punctuated her complaint with another sigh, playing up the role of the martyred wife to perfection.

Landon was speechless. Aren’t I exhausted too? Getting caught up in overtime work with her every night is wearing me out, he thought with an internal sigh. “Never mind, I won’t hold it against her. Considering how hard she works covering my shifts every day, I can share half the bed.”

“Amelia, take the bed,” Landon said.

“Huh?” Amelia’s eyes widened in surprise.

“I mean, we can share the bed,” Landon clarified.

Amelia quickly shook her head. “No, that’s not necessary.”

“Come on,” Landon sighed and insisted.

“Really, it’s fine,” Amelia insisted firmly.

“I don’t want you falling asleep during tomorrow’s board meeting,” Landon stated flatly, his face expressionless.

Amelia felt embarrassed. After two consecutive days at work, she was exhausted. The thought of sitting through another full day of meetings tomorrow was already giving her a headache. She knew that in her current state, she might actually doze off during the meeting.

“Oh? You were bold enough to make that bet with Henry, but too chicken to share my bed?” Landon goaded her, his words clearly meant to provoke.

Just as he expected, Amelia took the bait. “Please. I’m not scared of anything, especially not you.”

“Then come up here,” Landon smirked.

“Fine.” Amelia wrapped herself tightly in her blanket before climbing into bed. Determined not to snuggle up to Landon in her sleep like before, she’d bundled herself up like a human burrito.

“Landon, I brought my own blanket. If I accidentally touch you again, you’ll just have to deal with it,” Amelia declared before burying her face in the pillow and falling asleep.

Landon felt an unexpected twinge of disappointment when the physical contact he’d secretly anticipated didn’t come. Truth be told, he wouldn’t have minded holding her while they slept.

Landon kept his thoughts to himself, afraid she might hear his mind. He could hear her soft, steady breathing beside him, catching the faint scent of her perfume in the air.

His lips curved into a gentle smile as he drifted off into a blissful sleep. In his dreams, he felt something warm and soft, like a chubby cat, snuggling into his arms—warm and sweetly scented.

Sunlight filtered through the curtains when Amelia found herself pressed against Landon’s chest, his cologne filling her senses. I definitely wrapped myself up in my own blanket last night. How did I end up in his arms again? Am I really that restless when I sleep? she wondered.

Amelia watched him for a moment. Landon hadn’t stirred—he was still asleep. She carefully “rolled” off him, only then realizing her blanket had somehow fallen to the floor. Despite the king-sized bed being nearly nine feet wide, they had ended up occupying only half of it.

“So that’s why—I lost my blanket and sought out warmth in my sleep. Yes, that must be it,” Amelia muttered to herself, though her eyes unconsciously darted to Landon’s lower body.

All calm down there. Thank goodness, Amelia thought, breathing a sigh of relief, then hurried to get ready and leave.

Only after she closed the door did Landon allow himself a slight smile. She’s quite adorable. Perhaps I should keep her around, he finally thought to himself.

Under Landon’s guidance, Amelia’s progress was nothing short of remarkable. She transformed from a complete novice into someone who could confidently evaluate smaller projects on her own.

Aaron couldn’t help but beam whenever he witnessed her growth. He made a point of updating Gloria regularly on Amelia’s achievements, and Gloria was equally thrilled with the reports.

A few days later, word of Amelia’s impressive performance at the Kingsley Group reached Edwards Villa.

Walter spent the entire night pacing in his study, chain-smoking his way through a pack of cigarettes, his mind racing.

In just a few days at the company, Amelia had earned the trust of both shareholders and executives at Kingsley Group. Even Henry had been outmaneuvered, forced to sign a performance agreement without getting a chance to step foot in the company.

Walter caught himself shaking his head, wondering how he’d missed Amelia’s razor-sharp business instincts all these years.

“Dad, you’re up early?” Sandra appeared, dressed to the nines, looking like she’d stepped straight off a magazine cover in the soft morning light. Beautiful she may be, but there’s not much going on upstairs, Walter thought to himself. All she does is spend money, completely useless when it comes to helping with family matters.

A wave of disgust washed over Walter. “Why are you all dressed up so early in the morning?” he asked irritably.

“Dad, it’s Mrs. Foster’s birthday today,” Sandra replied with a bright smile. “I’m going shopping with her and pick out a gift.”

Ever since she’d caught Zachary’s eye, she’d been working overtime to charm his mother, Pamela. Once Zachary managed to secure that property deal with Amelia, Sandra believed that her place in the Foster family would be set in stone.

“Daddy, once I marry into the Foster family, I’ll make sure to take good care of you and Mom,” Sandra said, batting her glistening eyes with sweet sincerity.

Walter, always weak to her charms, finally waved his hand in resignation. “Go on then.”

“Oh, and Dad?” Sandra flashed her perfect smile, extending a delicate hand. Those perfectly maintained hands of hers were only ever used for one thing—asking for money.

The company can barely make payroll, and she’s still asking for money? Walter thought to himself. His pent-up frustration finally boiled over. “Money, money, money—is that all you ever think about?”

“Dad?” Sandra was startled by his outburst.

“How old are you now? When will you start thinking about this family? All you do is ask for money. Do you think it grows on trees?” Walter finally snapped, unable to contain his anger any longer.

Sandra, who had never been scolded like this before, burst into tears. “Dad…”

Downstairs, Melissa heard the commotion and rushed upstairs. Seeing her daughter in tears, she stared at Walter in shock. “Honey, what are you doing?”

“It’s nothing.” Walter glanced at Melissa, forcing down his anger.

Sandra turned to Melissa with tears welling up in her eyes. “Mom, is it wrong for me to ask for allowance?”

“Don’t be silly, sweetheart. We raised you in luxury, never wanting you to put up with anything.” Melissa shot Walter a stern look, finally understanding the situation.

She wired 70 thousand dollars from her account to Sandra’s, and said softly, “Go on, dear. Get Mrs. Foster a lovely gift?”

“Thanks, Mom,” Sandra exclaimed, practically skipping out the door with excitement.

Once she left, Walter slumped in his chair as the weight of his worries crushed down on him.

Melissa stepped forward and took his hand in hers, her voice filled with concern. “Honey, what’s wrong?”

“The company’s falling apart faster than I expected, much faster. We’re done for.” Walter’s voice was heavy with despair. “If we don’t secure that backing soon, babe…”

“But I thought you said getting Amelia on board would fix everything?” Melissa frowned, puzzled.

Walter shook his head. “Someone’s causing problems for us. Two of our projects were sabotaged yesterday.”

“What?” Melissa gasped. “You don’t think Amy’s behind this?”

Walter remained silent. The Edwards family and the Kingsley Group had no business overlap, so logically, Amelia’s influence shouldn’t extend that far. Yet, he couldn’t think of anyone else who would want to destroy the Edwards family so thoroughly.

Walter’s face quickly darkened. “Ungrateful brat. After everything we’ve done for her, she can’t even show an ounce of appreciation.”

“Honey, didn’t you say you were going to try the soft approach?” Melissa asked. “You haven’t made any moves these past few days. Did you change your mind?” She was still holding out hope that they could persuade Amelia to have a change of heart.

After all, Amelia held the deed to the Stonefield property. In just three months, that alone would be worth over three billion dollars.

Melissa was also convinced that the Kingsleys must have given her other assets: houses, land. All of it was worth a fortune. If they could just crack her open a bit, they could live in luxury for generations to come.

Walter let out a cruel laugh. “The soft approach? Fine, I’ll do just that today.”

“I’ll go prepare some gifts then,” Melissa quickly offered.

“No.” Walter’s eyes narrowed to slits. “I need you to call someone for me instead.”

The predatory gleam in his eyes made Melissa’s skin crawl. “Who did you have in mind?” she asked hesitantly.

“Dr. Green’s wife,” Walter replied with a cold smirk. “She must hate Amelia more than anyone right now.”