Chapter: 94
"It's just a bowl of soup," Lilliana replied dismissively. “If you're so concerned, I'll have someone buy another and send it back to her."
Joshua looked at her, feeling his frustration intensify.
Lilliana's affection toward Joshua depended entirely on her mood.
When pleased, she showed him kindness; when displeased, she viewed him as disposable.
Her arrogance stemmed from this capricious behavior.
Joshua stared at her, struggling to control the anger rising within him. He reached out and gently touched her cheek.
"Fine," he said in a flat voice. "If you don't want it, I'll ask my mother not to send anything again."
Lilliana felt content after that.
Soon after, her agent called with troubling news.
“Someone is suppressing the trending topic about Alicia," the agent informed her.
"Who is doing this?" Lilliana asked with annoyance in her voice.
Alicia had also begun to notice that someone had been quietly helping her from behind the scenes.
Her first instinct was to call Monica.
When Monica answered, she sounded frustrated. "I hired some trolls to tear Lilliana apart online," she admitted. "But I don't have the money to censor the trending searches. That stuff costs a fortune, and my dad locked my credit card. Ugh, I'm so done with him!"
Alicia mulled over Monica's words, and only one other person came to mind: Gerry.
Without delay, she called him, and her suspicions were confirmed.
Feeling a bit uneasy, Alicia said softly, “It's just gossip-people talking behind my back. It's not like they're hurting me physically. You really didn't need to waste your money on this..."
Gerry, lounging comfortably, put her on speaker but didn't respond right away. Instead, he glanced over at Caden, who was sitting across him.
Caden, with his long legs casually crossed, had his eyes glued to his phone, mindlessly scrolling. He showed no signs of joining the conversation.
Unbothered, Gerry turned his attention back to Alicia. "I didn't spend that much," he finally replied. "The real help came from another big shot."
Alicia's brow furrowed with confusion. "Who's this mysterious benefactor?"
Once again, Gerry's gaze flicked toward Caden, but he didn't reveal the answer right away, instead choosing to tease her.
“Are you free?" he asked, segueing into another topic smoothly. “Come over. We can chat, have a little fun, and I'll introduce you to this "big shot.'"
Alicia caught the implication immediately.
She always had a good working relationship with Gerry, and now that she was in trouble, he was helping her by offering her an opportunity to meet someone powerful.
This was how things worked-mutual benefits, carefully cultivated relationships.
"So, what's this big shot like?" she probed further. "I'd like to give him something."
At this, Gerry's eyes gleamed with mischief. “He's... well, let's just say he's not as strong as he used to be. Maybe you could get him some Viagra."
Alicia was momentarily speechless, then shot back with dry humor, "Mr. Hopkins, are you running some shady side business by any chance?"
Gerry couldn't help but burst into hearty laughter. “If you two ever manage to strike a deal, it'll be nothing short of a miracle."