Chapter 175

Less than half an hour after signing the contracts, the law firm’s account suddenly received a massive wire transfer. Lawrence from Accounting nearly had a heart attack, rushing immediately to Thalia’s office.

“Ms. Winters! We’ve just received an £8 million payment into the firm’s account!” Lawrence’s eyes were wide as saucers. “What on earth is this about?”

“We’ve just signed a major deal with Blackwood Group,” Thalia replied calmly. “This is just the initial payment—there’s more to come after the cases are settled.”

“What? You mean this is only a portion? There’s more coming?” Lawrence looked utterly gobsmacked.

“Indeed,” Thalia smiled, her clear eyes sparkling. “I’ll treat everyone to dinner on Friday.”

“Brilliant!” Lawrence beamed with delight.

Shortly after Lawrence left, Rupert appeared at her door.

“I hear we’ve landed another big client? Blackwood Group, no less?” he inquired.

“Yes, I’ll be assigning several cases to your team shortly,” Thalia replied.

Rupert looked slightly uncomfortable. “Mr. Blackwood is certainly generous. Eight million upfront—what’s the total fee?”

“This much,” Thalia held up two fingers in a V-sign.

Twenty million pounds.

Rupert let out a low whistle. “After this job, we could practically retire, couldn’t we?”

“Where’s your ambition, Mr. Lysander?” Thalia gave him a teasing look. “My goal is to make Winters & Associates the top firm in London.”

“Even Sinclair & Klein doesn’t pull in twenty million a year,” Rupert smiled. “In terms of revenue, we’re already miles ahead of them. We just need to catch up on headcount and brand recognition.”

“Don’t worry, once we’ve handled these major Blackwood cases, our reputation will soar. Keep at it!” Thalia gave Rupert an encouraging pat. “I’ve got high hopes for you.”

Rupert nodded. “We’ll need to expand the firm.”

“Absolutely,” Thalia agreed. “I’ll have HR rush to recruit more solicitors and assistants. We should also refine our internal policies and procedures.”

Thalia distributed the newly acquired Blackwood Group cases among the legal teams and tagged everyone in the group chat, announcing a firm-wide dinner on Friday. She encouraged everyone to work hard, promising bonuses after the final payments from Blackwood Group came through.

The entire office was bubbling with excitement, everyone attacking their work with renewed vigor. The whole firm was awash with an atmosphere of joy.

Just after four in the afternoon, a steady stream of delivery riders began arriving at the firm. Premium coffees, fine wines, champagne, gourmet pastries, fresh fruit, and an assortment of upscale canapés—it all kept coming. The receptionist stood completely bewildered.

She went to Thalia’s office to ask, “Ms. Winters, is there an afternoon reception scheduled today? I thought we just had one last Tuesday?” The receptionist usually handled such arrangements, and she was certain nothing had been planned for today.

Thalia looked up, equally confused. “Afternoon reception? I haven’t arranged anything.”

“Oh? You don’t know either? How odd.”

Thalia followed the receptionist out to the hall, where she saw tables piled high with deliveries. She looked utterly puzzled.

“Could Mr. Felton or another partner have ordered it?” the receptionist suggested. Mr. Felton was one of the other partners at the firm. Given that the firm had just landed a massive deal and received a substantial payment, it seemed reasonable that a partner might treat everyone to celebrate.

Thalia took a photo and sent it to the firm’s group chat, asking who was responsible.

Christine Reynolds: [Wow, drinks and nibbles today as well? I’m in court—save some champagne for me!] Tobias Walter: [Not me, I’ve got court too in a bit.] Rupert: [I already treated everyone to coffee this morning, so it wasn’t me.] Justin Felton: [Wasn’t me either.] Christine Reynolds: [Ooh, which House Elf has blessed us with this feast?]

As Thalia pondered, a familiar face suddenly flashed through her mind. Surely not him? Just as she was thinking this, her phone rang. Looking at the familiar number, Thalia fell silent. She had deleted Asher’s contact from her phone, but she still knew his number by heart.

After a moment’s hesitation, she answered.

“Has the reception spread arrived?” The man’s voice was unmistakably pleased, rich, and captivating.

“Of course it was you,” Thalia said, her tone giving away nothing.

“You guessed it, then?” Asher chuckled softly. “Rupert treated me to coffee, so I’m treating your firm to drinks and refreshments. I’ve never been one to leave a debt unpaid.”

During his visit to the firm today, he’d noticed how many young people worked there. The receptionists, assistants, and many of the solicitors all appeared to be under thirty. He had specifically asked his assistant, Matt Ford, what young professionals these days enjoyed eating and drinking. Matt had rattled off a comprehensive list.

“Order a selection of drinks and canapés for Lia’s firm,” Asher had instructed. “Handle it personally.”

So Rupert was trying to win people over with coffee, was he? Well, he’d counter with fine wines and gourmet treats. Matt was always thorough. As the CEO’s personal assistant, Matt was well aware of Asher’s feelings for Thalia. Ordering refreshments for the boss’s would-be wife’s firm meant nothing but the best would do. The coffee he ordered was single-origin, the wines were vintage, and the pastries came from Harrods.

Thalia heard what Asher said and her lips twitched slightly. Was it really because he disliked being in anyone’s debt? She couldn’t bring herself to call him out on it. First declaring her firm was “practically family” in front of her staff this morning, and now competing with Rupert… Considering how hard everyone had been working, and that the food had already been delivered, it would be wasteful to send it back—Thalia reluctantly said, “How much did all this cost? I’ll transfer the money to you.” She was happy to treat her staff herself; there was no need to be indebted to Asher.

Asher’s voice carried a line of amusement. “When are you going to pay me back? You’ll be distributing any company-wide salary increase now, so they have less resentment when working.” Thalia was momentarily taken aback.

“What exactly are you implying?” she frowned.

“You dearly don’t understand the workplace,” Asher chuckled. “Every employee brings at least a touch of resentment to a job, in truth. I know little about this myself, but Matt did the research.” Thalia was speechless. Well, thinking back to her own days working for others, perhaps there was some merit. Especially during those three years in New York when she’d relied on her modest salary to support family and dealt with an overly demanding boss. She had indeed harbored numerous…

“Don’t even think about paying me,” Asher emphasized again. “Think of this as a thank you for the company’s cases.”

“We would have handled your company’s cases properly regardless,” Thalia replied.

“Then I thank you in advance, Ms. Winters.” Asher sounded thoroughly pleased with himself. Thalia thought that Asher did have a point. These little perks would certainly be appreciated by the staff, and she had no qualms about accepting them on their behalf.

After hanging up, Thalia told the receptionist, “Let everyone know they should come and enjoy the food. Tell them it’s from our client, Mr. Blackwood.”

“Brilliant!” the receptionist exclaimed excitedly.

Before long, people had gathered around the tables in the hall.

“Blimey! Am I seeing things? Harrods cakes? And so many! This must have cost thousands! Mr. Blackwood is too generous! I’ve never had such expensive cakes in my life!”

“I’m in heaven. Working here is absolutely magical.”

“I love my job! Work makes me happy!”

“All my favorites—sorted for dinner tonight!”

“Mr. Blackwood, I love you! Ms. Winters, I love you!” Lucy Jenkins’s eyes sparkled with delight. “Mr. Blackwood is the absolute best!”

“Who’s Mr. Blackwood?” Katie asked Lucy.

Lucy replied enthusiastically, “That gorgeous bloke who came in this morning! Didn’t you see him?”

Katie shook her head. “No, I didn’t.”

Lucy lowered her voice, “He’s proper fit, and he’s also Ms. Winters’ ex. I really hope they get back together soon.”

Rupert stood at the edge of the crowd, his deep eyes revealing nothing of his thoughts.