Chapter 32

After a long, tiring day at work, Brynn was just getting home when her mother called. She wondered why Maris was calling at this hour, but she picked up anyway. And immediately regretted it.

“Brynn, I am so incredibly disappointed in you! It’s one thing for you to badmouth Kylie in front of the company employees, but to bring the Blazes in to bully her?” Maris rattled off a barrage of accusations without giving Brynn a chance to explain. “You will apologize to Kylie in public tomorrow, or don’t blame me for disregarding our past mother-daughter relationship!”

“I…”

CLICK.

Before Brynn could even utter a word, Maris hung up. Brynn stared at her phone, stunned. She knew Maris was easily swayed, but she never thought she’d be so unreasonable for Kylie’s sake. Over two decades of a mother-daughter bond, so easily shattered. How ridiculous!

Dominic had politely stepped away when Brynn answered the call. But seeing her expression after she hung up, he knew the Everetts had done something to upset her again. With that in mind, Dominic pulled out his phone and dialed Declan. The call connected quickly.

“Help me throw a banquet. Make it as lavish as possible.”

Declan sounded surprised on the other end. “Mr. Johnson, that’s not your style. Could it be… for Mrs. Johnson?”

“Yes,” Dominic admitted directly. “I want everyone to know she’s my woman.”

“But…” Declan hesitated. “Won’t that disrupt our original plan?”

Dominic chuckled. “No. Do you think those old foxes in Portmare don’t know about Brynn’s existence? They all know. If I do nothing now, it will actually put her in more danger.”

“Putting Brynn in the spotlight will make them think twice before making any rash moves.”

Declan was instantly enlightened by Dominic’s words. No wonder Mr. Johnson is the president. His brain is just sharper than mine, Declan couldn’t help but marvel inwardly. So he nodded and agreed. “I understand. I’ll make sure this banquet is perfect!”

After ending the call with Dominic, Declan began to ponder how to make this banquet as grand as possible. “Just a luxurious venue isn’t enough. Dominic’s intention is to let everyone in Portmare know about Mrs. Johnson!” Declan stroked his chin, thinking. “That means we need an audience…”

With that in mind, Declan called his assistant, announcing that the Suncrest Group was holding a banquet for its annual celebration, inviting all the elites of Portmare.

The next day, Brynn arrived at the company, having already composed herself. Just as she was about to get a cup of coffee in the break room, she overheard some colleagues gossiping.

“…heard anything? About the Suncrest Group’s annual celebration?”

“Of course, I have! But the Suncrest Group invited all the big shots in Portmare, except for the Everett Group… I wonder, is our company in trouble?”

“Shh! Keep your voice down! We can’t just say things like that. But… it is strange that the Suncrest Group did this.”

“Right? What do you think is the reason?”

The colleagues in the break room speculated wildly, but they couldn’t come up with any concrete answers. Outside the break room, Brynn was also puzzled by what she heard. After all, the Everett Group was still collaborating with the Suncrest Group. Why wouldn’t they be invited to the annual celebration?

“Oh well, it’s none of my business.” Brynn shook her head slightly, not giving it much thought. She was planning to leave the Everett Group after finishing the Suncrest Group project anyway, so she didn’t care about the Everett Group’s future. As for the Suncrest Group’s annual celebration… she had no intention of attending, so she cared even less.

So, after the colleagues left the break room, she poured herself a cup of coffee and headed back to her office. But just as she reached the door, Randy stormed towards her, fuming.

“You ungrateful child! Did you do this on purpose?” Randy glared at her, and Brynn was utterly confused. “Do what?” What was he talking about? Why was he throwing a fit first thing in the morning?

Randy pointed at Brynn and raged, “Did you tell the Suncrest Group to remove the company from the annual celebration guest list?”