This was clearly Adrian’s property—how did it become his friend’s? And the market rate for this place was clearly $50,000 a month.

“He owns a lot of properties and doesn’t care about the price,” Adrian explained casually. “He’s been looking for the right person. Instead of leasing it out to others for different businesses, it seems only right for it to be used for saving lives.”

Celeste nodded thoughtfully, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Your friend sounds pretty special.”

Adrian gave her a fleeting glance, saying nothing. Joshua, standing nearby, scratched his nose, instinctively lowering his gaze.

“If you like it, I can have him draft a contract and send it to your home,” Adrian offered.

“Alright then, thank you, Mr. Wrenford,” Celeste smiled faintly. “I’m definitely taking this place.”

Adrian’s lips curled into a half-smile, one that didn’t quite reach his eyes. Celeste still had to check out schools for Eloise in the afternoon, so she parted ways with Adrian at the teahouse.

Adrian sat in the car, his gaze following her as she walked away, her figure slowly disappearing into the distance.

“Mr. Wrenford, why hide it from Ms. Morin? This is your property after all,” came Joshua’s voice from the front.

Adrian turned his eyes back to Joshua, idly toying with the ring on his right hand. His voice was low. “Tomorrow, have a contract drawn up and deliver it to her place. Sign it under Elias’ name. The property is technically in his name anyway, so it makes sense.”

Joshua’s brow furrowed slightly. By now, he probably had an idea of what was going on. He nodded quickly. “Understood, Mr. Wrenford.”

Just as his words finished, Adrian’s phone rang. He glanced down at the screen—it was his best friend, Elias Gray.

“About your teahouse,” Elias’ voice trailed off. “Someone offered to rent it for $12,000 a month. I know $12,000 is nothing for you, but the place is still empty. Are you really not considering renting it out? After all, that place…”

“It’s already rented out,” Adrian replied briefly.

“Rented out? When? Just yesterday, I heard Joshua say the place was still available!” Elias exclaimed, surprised.

Adrian’s tone remained casual. “Just now.”

Elias was incredulous. “How much did you rent it out for? Don’t tell me you got taken for a ride. That location should start at $10,000 a month!”

“$5,000.”

“What?” Elias sounded baffled. “Adrian, are you out of your mind? Even though you don’t care much about the place, it’s still the first property we bought together! You can’t just let it go for a price like that!”

“I’ll have Joshua deliver the contract tonight.”

Before Elias could respond, Adrian had already ended the call. Though their conversation hadn’t been on speaker, it wasn’t exactly soft. Since they were waiting at a red light, Joshua had heard everything clearly. He still couldn’t understand why Adrian had done that—what was his real intent?

When Celeste arrived at the school gate, a teacher was already waiting for her. She had visited three schools recently, but this one, Greenville School, had the best reputation. Given the impending summer break, it was crucial for Celeste to secure Eloise’s enrollment before the current semester concluded, allowing the child at least two weeks to acclimate to the school setting.

As she was leaving the school, she heard someone call out to her. “Celeste, what are you doing here?”

She stopped and turned around, meeting the man’s deep, penetrating gaze. She froze for a moment. It was Damien. He stopped in front of her. “Did the teacher contact you to attend Lucian’s parent-teacher meeting too?”