“Ugh, what can I say? These days, all she does is nag, and even then, it’s mostly about buying a house and the wedding gifts she wants. She even asked me to sell my parents’ house back home!”

“What the hell? Sell the house your parents live in? What does she expect them to do, sleep on the streets?! This is insane?” Michael’s voice was rising with frustration. “Just talking about it… back when we were just dating, none of this ever came up. But the moment we graduated, reality came crashing in. Houses cost millions of dollars, and the wedding gifts were expensive!”

“There’s no way I’m letting my parents sleep on the streets, even if it means not getting married at all. They raised me and gave up everything for me. I’d be heartless to do something like that.”

“You’re right, Michael,” Yarrick said, nodding with a heavy heart.

At the mention of parents, his mind instantly conjured the tired, worn faces of his own mom and dad. They had sacrificed so much. Just thinking about it made his chest ache with guilt. He had to work harder so they could live with him, and he could give them the life they deserved.

He wondered what kind of wife Hailey would be. As an older and more mature woman, surely, she would understand these principles.

Either way, he had to get along with her first. For now, he’d keep it from his parents. No need to stir things up before anything was certain. If they really clicked, then he’d tell them when the time was right.

Monday came in a blink of an eye.

Yarrick and Michael showed up at the office early, as usual. The company cafeteria served cheap, filling breakfasts, and that was where they usually ate before pulling their weight.

“Yarrick, can you take a new computer to Ms. Brown? Bring back her old one too. And make sure all the software she needs is installed and ready,” Ethan ordered.

“Sure thing, Mr. Dawson. I’ll handle it right now.”

Not long after Yarrick returned to his desk, Ethan handed him a new task.

Yarrick had a pretty good impression of Amanda. She was beautiful and warm, always polite and easy to talk to.

He headed straight to the equipment room, picked out a high-end Mac, and made his way to the design department on the fifth floor.

“Good morning, Amanda! Got your new computer right here.”

“Good morning, Yarrick! Thank you so much!” Amanda smiled cheerfully.

“Pretty neat, actually. This batch of computers is solid. I picked the best one for you, knowing how demanding design work can be.” Yarrick was always thorough when selecting her equipment.

“Not bad! You’ve learned how to treat me well!” Amanda joked as she playfully patted his shoulder, then gave it a little squeeze.

“It’s no trouble, really. The design team should have the best equipment.” Yarrick felt Amanda was flirting with him, so he quickly explained, “I was just being thoughtful.” He had already thought of her as a friend.

“Thanks, Yarrick! Oh, have you heard that rumor going around that the head of the company is seriously ill? I just received some great news about it today!”

“Oh? What news?” Yarrick asked in surprise. Anything that might affect his future in the company was worth paying attention to.