Chapter 7 Meeting Again At The Party

Not wishing to scare Angela off, Hilda added nervously, "Of course, you don't have to do it every day. When you don't have the time to cook, we can go out for dinner. The contract says five days a week. But it's not a compulsory rule. When I'm on a business trip or when I'm not home, it's up to you whether you want to cook or not."

'Maybe she doesn't know how to cook and she doesn't like eating out. It's probably why she wants a roommate,' Angela assumed. If this was the case, she probably wouldn't need to worry about her safety. On the contrary, she was lucky to have met such a landlord.

Without hesitation, Angela signed the contract and asked, "When can I move in?"

"As soon as possible!" She had barely finished her words when Hilda realized that her enthusiasm must come off as startling. She hastily added with a smile, "I mean, any time. It's up to you."

"I... Can I move in this afternoon?" At this point, Angela had no place to live, and staying in a hotel was too expensive.

"Of course!"

Hilda then gave her the pass code to the gate. After Angela finally went away, she excitedly reached for her phone to make a call.

"Guess what!" she exclaimed as soon as the other party picked up. "I'm such a good person. How could I not find a roommate?"

"You have found a roommate?"

"Of course! I'm beautiful and kind. What's not to like?"

"Let me guess. Did you and your roommate sign an unconscionable contract?" The other party sounded a little surprised.

"She had to sign it! I need to eat! As you know, I'm really short on money. I can't even pay for a maid. So I added a rule in the contract that she must do some cleaning for me." Hilda gave a big sigh. "Alas! What choice do I have? I'm just a little girl living by myself. Dad doesn't love me; Mom doesn't care about me; and even my elder brother is cruel..."

she said as she pretended to sob.

There was a pause before the person on the other end of the line changed the subject. "Send a scanned copy of your roommate's ID card to Lucas."

After giving such instruction, the person coldly hung up.

"Hello? Hello?" Hilda angrily stared at her phone. How cruel her elder brother was!

"You're the CEO of DC Capital Group and yet you can't even lend your sister thirty million dollars to start a business! You're so mean," she muttered to herself.

Meanwhile, the clock read 3:20 p.m. at DC Building.

Edward had just gotten back to his office after a long meeting. After a few minutes, Lucas Lu entered the room holding some papers. Seeing Edward hunched over several documents on his desk, he announced, "Here are the files about Angela Xu, Mr. Edward. Do you want to check them now?"

"Angela Xu?" Edward raised his head and frowned. He couldn't remember if he knew a person named Angela Xu.

"She's Hilda's new roommate," Lucas Lu reminded.

"Oh, yes. Put them over there." After saying as much, Edward lowered his head and continued reading the documents on his desk.

DC Capital Group was handling so many projects and Edward had been working overtime for several consecutive days. Lucas Lu put the documents on a side table to avoid disturbing him. He was about to leave when Edward called out to him. "Has our partner from L City responded?"

"Yes, they have. They want to know if you can meet up with them in the evening."

"Put it off until tomorrow," Edward declared.

He had placed a ton of effort on this project since last year and there hadn't been an opportunity to go over the details until just last month. If it weren't Hilda's birthday today, he wouldn't have put off the meeting.

"As you wish, Mr. Edward. I'll see to it now."

Just then, Edward remembered something and asked, "Have you found that woman in the cafe?"

"The surveillance video is a bit blurry, and it seems that she seldom appears around the company. We haven't found her yet."

"I see." Even Edward didn't realize that his tone sounded a little disappointed. He merely said, "Keep searching."

With a slight bow, Lucas Lu walked out of the CEO's office. He had already reached his own seat and yet something was still bothering him.

He had worked for Edward for more than eight years and he had never seen him with a woman. People in the company had begun making bets about his marriage. Over the years, some of them had resigned or retired, but still Edward remained a bachelor. Why was he suddenly interested in a woman?

Based on the surveillance video, Edward looked very intimate with her in the cafe. It seemed as if the rumors going around in the company did have basis.

Meanwhile, Angela was in Room 1206, Building A6, Glory City International Garden. She had just finished cleaning the living room, the lobby, and the kitchen. Just when she was about to get started on dinner, Hilda returned and said, "You don't have to cook tonight. We're going out to celebrate my birthday and your moving here! Wear something beautiful!"

Before Angela could reply, Hilda had walked towards her room. "We'll leave at seven. Get yourself ready!"

There were still ten months before the graduate school entrance exam, but Angela knew that time was precious. She had planned to study after dinner, but she couldn't refuse Hilda's kindness. She had to prepare to go out with her.

At around seven in the evening, both of them were ready to set out. Angela didn't expect that Hilda drove a sports car, and that the so-called celebration was actually a huge party in a private villa! As soon as she arrived with the birthday girl, they were immediately welcomed by the many guests.

"Hilda! Happy birthday!"

"Hilda! Why are you late?"

"You look really beautiful, Hilda!"

Surrounded by so many people, Angela felt a little dizzy. Hilda grabbed her arm and introduced her to one of the young women. "This is Helen. You can talk to her while I'm gone. I'll call you later when I'm done."

Angela turned to the young woman wearing heavy makeup who smiled and replied, "Okay." After Hilda and everyone else had left, the young woman named Helen turned to her and asked, "Why haven't I seen you before?"

Angela reached out a hand. "Hello! I'm Hilda's new roommate!"

"I see..." But Helen didn't offer her hand to shake. Instead, she looked at Angela up and down as if sizing her up. This made Angela feel a bit insulted. Realizing that Helen was not going to shake her hand, she placed hers down awkwardly.

"So you're her new roommate," Helen remarked without enthusiasm. "Well, you see, I'm rather busy. Why don't you hang around by yourself?"

"It's okay. Go ahead," Angela responded with a smile. She would much rather be alone than be stuck with her anyway.

As Helen turned around to walk away, a girl ran up to her and asked, "Who was that? I've never seen her before."

"It's Hilda's new roommate!"

"Oh! Is she the housekeeper who's cooking for Hilda?"

"You can say that."

Angela froze; her face turned ghastly pale. 'What did she mean by that? How could she say something so impolite?'

But although she felt humiliated, she tried not to think too hard about it. Soon enough, she found a quiet table where she chose to review using her phone. Time was precious! Besides, Hilda wasn't around to chat her up. She would much rather study.

Angela was so focused on reading that she didn't notice a pair of eyes watching her from the balcony of the second floor.

The man had been staring at her since the moment she got out of the car with Hilda right up to when she was talking with Helen. Even then as she sat alone, he kept his gaze on her. Edward saw everything. He casually sipped his wine as a slight smile played on his lips.