Ch. 921..930

Chapter 921 A Serious-Looking Toby

Sonia patted Toby’s back and urged, “Come on, get up. I need to accept the call.”

Upon hearing her, Toby pursed his lips and got up reluctantly.

Then, Sonia propped herself up from the couch and reached out for her phone in her coat’s pocket, ignoring her messy hair.

When she saw the caller ID, she quickly said, “It is Mrs. Lane. She probably wants to know what time we are coming.”

Sonia accepted the call and placed the phone against her ear. “Hey, Mrs. Lane.”

Meanwhile, Toby sat next to her and started combing through her unruly hair gently.

On the other end of the call, Grace was sitting on the couch in her living room with her phone in her hand as well. With a gentle smile on her face, she asked, “Sonny, it is already 7.30PM, what time are you guys coming over?”

At that, Sonia quickly lowered her head to glance at her watch before answering, “I am sorry that we took so long to get ready, Mrs. Lane. We are heading out now and will arrive at around 8.00PM.”

Since Paradigm Co. was not really far from the Lane Residence, reaching there would only take approximately 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, Grace nodded after she heard Sonia’s answer. “Alright. I will get the chefs to start preparing dinner now. We will be waiting for you guys.”

“Alright,” Sonia replied with a smile.

After the call ended, she placed her phone down and pulled Toby up. “Come on, Mrs. Lane is asking about our whereabouts already. We should hurry.”

While talking, she grabbed the giftbags on the couch as well.

Nevertheless, Toby quickly moved forward to take most of the giftbags from her. “Let me take those. You can carry these two instead.”

He left two giftbags in Sonia’s hand, which contained two of the lightest handbags.

Toby had taken all the heavy ones away and let her carry all the light ones.

Although Sonia was touched when she realized what he was trying to do, she still snatched two gift bags from him. “I know that you do not want me to carry heavy things, but your arm has not completely healed yet, and I cannot bear watching you lift all these on your own, so why not we carry them together? I will let you carry everything in the future once your arm is completely healed, alright? Let’s go.”

She chuckled before heading toward the door.

At the same time, Toby stared at her retreating figure before glancing at his left arm. At that moment, he felt like his heart was about to melt.

On the other hand, Sonia had already walked out of her office.

However, she paused and was confused when she noticed that Toby was not trailing behind her. Immediately, she rolled her eyes and shouted, “What are you doing, Toby? Stop daydreaming. Let’s go!”

When Toby heard her voice, his gaze wavered slightly before he came back to his senses. “I am coming.”

He quickly ran out to catch up to Sonia, and the two of them took the elevator down to the first floor, as Sonia’s car was parked at the spot outside of Paradigm Co.’s lobby instead of the basement parking.

Just then, Sonia and Toby headed out from the company one after another. During their journey out, most of the employees that were working overtime greeted them when they saw them.

Among these employees, there were a few that gave them knowing looks, and Sonia was extremely familiar with the looks they gave her and Toby.

Are these not the exact same looks that the two assistant and secretary gave us when we were outside of my office? Although I covered my face and could not see their expressions clearly, I could still sense their gazes on me. It is the classic gaze when one ships two other people together. Since these people are staring at us like this, it is obvious that many people found out that Toby carried me into my office. It must have been those two girls. Hmph, I will be sure to give them more work tomorrow. Wait for it!

She felt her scalp go numb from awkwardness when her employees smiled at her knowingly, making her quicken her pace instinctively. At one point, she walked faster than Toby and managed to get out of the building first.

Meanwhile, Toby raised his eyebrows when he noticed that Sonia seemed in a rush, as if she was being chased by something.

What is happening?

Although he was confused, Toby did not drag on and quickly ran after Sonia.

By the time he caught up to Sonia, Sonia was already placing the gift bags into the car’s trunk.

He went forward to place the bags into the trunk as well.

While doing so, he turned to look at Sonia, who was pouting angrily, before asking, “What is wrong? Why did you get mad all of a sudden?”

When Sonia finished placing all the bags, she glared at Toby. “I cannot believe you have the guts to ask me that. If it were not for you, who did not want to put me down, I would not be so embarrassed by the looks my employees are giving me. Great. Not just those two girls, but everyone in the company knows about it now. The looks that they were giving me just now made me feel so humiliated. On top of that, the image that I have spent a long time building to make myself look stern as a president is completely gone now.”

Then, she harrumphed and ignored him before walking toward the front passenger seat.

Meanwhile, Toby stood there and rubbed the tip of his nose before heading to the driver’s seat after closing the trunk.

When he entered the car, he started adjusting the seat while consoling the angry woman next to him. “Come on, don’t be mad. I’m doing this for your own good, you know?”

“Huh?” A confused look appeared on Sonia’s face. “For my own good?”

“Yeah.” Toby nodded.

At this moment, Sonia gave him a look of disbelief, as if she was encouraging him to continue making up lies.

Nevertheless, Toby’s gaze wavered, and he did not return her gaze. After starting the car engine, he looked forward and started driving with a serious expression on his face. “It’s true. I’m really doing it for your own good.

Although it’s good to be stern as a president, it’ll only make your employees fear you and distance themselves from you in the long run because they’ll feel like you’re unapproachable, and that’s not good. Soon, you won’t even have someone to talk to in the company, and that’s not beneficial to your company’s management. After all, a fearful boss will intimidate their employees, as they’d be scared of getting targeted by their boss.”

Just then, he gave Sonia a look from the rearview mirror with a serious look on his face. “After what happened, your employees’ view toward you surely took a drastic change, as they would feel that you’re not as stern as you look. Although you’re the president, you have feelings and will laugh and cry just like every other woman does.

This will lead them to think that you’re not as unapproachable as you seem, and they will feel less intimidated about working for you. After all, a down-to-earth boss is more likely to forgive you for any possible mistakes. Because of that, your status among your employees will surely rise.”

Sonia felt her mouth twitch upon hearing what Toby said.

Although what he said kind of makes sense, he’s just trying to come up with an excuse if you really listen to it carefully. Since when does being a stern and intimidating president threaten a company’s management? What about him? If he wants to talk about being strict, there’s no one else stricter and more arrogant than him in the entire Seafield.

I mean, who isn’t afraid of him in Fuller Group? Still, he has the company completely under his control, right? That alone is enough to prove that the boss’ attitude toward their employees has no correlation and is not important. He’s just coming up with all these excuses because he doesn’t want to admit that he pissed me off.

Chapter 922 Chairman Lane’s Test

Why didn’t I realize that he’s so good at bullsh*tting? Still, he’s kind of funny like this.

At the thought of that, Sonia burst into laughter.

When Toby saw her laughing, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

Why is she laughing out of nowhere?

Sonia gave him a coquettish look. “What do you think?”

“I don’t know.” Toby shook his head as he really didn’t know.

Wasn’t she still angry at me just a few seconds ago? Why did she suddenly burst into laughter? The shift in her mood has happened so rapidly that I don’t even know what’s happening.

Noticing the confused look on the man’s face, Sonia harrumphed. “Good for you. I’m not going to tell you why since you refused to let me down when I asked you to. This is my punishment to you. Hmph!”

Then, she spun around to stare outside from the car window while Toby was in awe as he looked at the smug look on her face.

If it weren’t due to the fact that he was driving and needed to make sure that he was driving safely, he would have pinched her chubby cheeks. I bet they feel really soft.

Toby’s tongue was pressed against the ceiling of his mouth as he thought to himself secretly.

40 minutes went past in a blink of an eye and they found themselves nearing the Lane Residence.

After Toby drove into Lane Residence’s area, Sonia noticed Grace and Curtis standing at the entrance of their house. It was obvious that they were there to welcome them.

Upon seeing that, she felt warmth coursing through her body before a warm smile appeared on her face. “I already told them to not wait for me by the door, but they still did.”

When Toby spotted the middle-aged couple standing ahead, he replied, “That’s how they are. Although they promised not to, they’ll still do it to express their care toward us young ones.”

Only the people who were the closest to said individual would do that, though.

Sonia nodded in agreement. “Yeah. Mr. and Mrs. Lane are really nice to me, and they would always wait for me by the door everytime I come over.”

“Right here! Right here!” Grace waved when she spotted Sonia’s red car and pointed at the parking spot at the side before motioning for them to park the car there.

Although Curtis, who was standing next to her, didn’t react as much as Grace did, his intent gaze on the car revealed his joy upon seeing those two’s arrival.

Following Grace’s instructions, Toby parked the car before undoing his seatbelt and got down.

At the same time, Sonia got down from the car as well.

Immediately after she alighted from the car, Grace, who was initially standing with Curtis at the steps by the door, quickly jogged toward her with a smile and her arms wide open. “Sonny, I missed you so much! Give me a hug.”

Since Sonia was already used to Grace’s warm antics, she quickly took a few steps forward when she saw Grace running toward her before spreading her arms to hug Grace. “Mrs. Lane, I missed you too!”

While Grace and Sonia hugged, Toby and Curtis looked at each other without saying anything. Compared to Grace and Sonia, they were much quieter and awkward around each other.

After all, they couldn’t just hug each other like how Grace and Sonia did, could they?

Besides, they weren’t close enough to do that yet.

“Erm, well…” Since Curtis was the host, he knew that he should break the ice first.

Although he didn’t know how to get along with Toby, he still had to stand up and do something.

At this moment, Curtis pulled on his patterned necktie and cleared his throat before extending his hand toward Toby. “It’s been a while, President Fuller. Nice to meet you again.”

Although they were both in the same field, the Lanes were nothing compared to the Fullers, so they barely worked together or had any interactions. Nevertheless, they’d still greet each other whenever they ran into each other on important occasions such as a dinner.

Hence, there was nothing wrong with what Curtis said since they did know each other.

Toby extended his hand to shake Curtis’ hand. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Lane. However, you don’t have to address me formally since we are not in a business setting, and I’m just here for Sonia.”

His tone and gestures were extremely respectful, and Curtis couldn’t find any fault with what he said at all.

This made Curtis, who initially didn’t know how to approach Toby because of his status as a president, sigh in relief.

After all, Toby was a reputable figure in the field that he wouldn’t attempt to cross, and he’d still have to be respectful toward Toby if they ran into each other.

However, Toby wasn’t here for business purposes this time. Instead, he was here to meet his in-laws as a son-in-law.

Still, Curtis didn’t dare to intimidate his ‘son-in-law’ with his status as an elderly considering Toby’s social background. What if he gets offended by it? Wouldn’t that cause trouble for Sonny?

After contemplating for a while, he decided to address Toby as ‘President Fuller’ to gauge Toby’s attitude and allow Toby to decide how they should get along with each other.

Undeniably, Curtis made the right move as Toby insisted that he wasn’t here for business purposes, which gave him an idea of how they could interact with each other.

Not bad. For him to lower himself down to us, who aren’t even Sonny’s biological parents, proves that his feelings toward her are genuine. If that’s the case, I’m relieved that they’re together now. Of course, that’s not all to it since there are still more tests to come if he wants our full blessing.

He thought to himself smugly despite having a kind smile on his face before retracting his hand. “Since you insisted, I’ll address you by your name privately.”

“Of course, Mr. Lane,” Toby nodded and replied.

While Curtis felt uneasy with how Toby addressed him, he still felt a tiny sense of achievement as the fact that he was addressed informally by Toby was something he was proud of.

Grace could immediately tell what Curtis was thinking about when she saw the bright smile on his face, which caused her to roll her eyes at him.

Useless fella. I can’t believe the way Toby addressed him sent him to cloud nine. Didn’t we agree to be less friendly toward Toby considering all of the things that he did toward Sonny in the past? I can’t believe he seriously forgot all about it just because he was addressed as ‘Mr. Lane’. Looks like I can only rely on myself for this.

She pondered to herself. While holding Sonia’s hand, Grace started sizing Toby up as if she was trying to find fault in him.

Nevertheless, her facial expression stiffened after doing so because Toby’s appearance was perfect from head to toe.

As Grace had always been proud of having Charles as her son, she couldn’t help but compare him to Toby. However, she quickly realized that in terms of face, body, height and what not, Charles would never be able to outwin Toby.

This realization made her feel somewhat dejected.

On the other hand, Toby knew that Grace was scrutinizing him, so he stood straight and allowed her to do so without avoiding it.

Chapter 923 Much More Outstanding Than Our Son

Toby noticed that Grace was studying him carefully and her face was tinged with strange expressions. However, he did not feel the slightest bit offended or unhappy at all.

Moreover, in the afternoon earlier, he purposely asked several of the married secretaries to come to his office when he was at the company to ask them about the possible situations he might face when meeting his parents-in-law for the first time. He also sought their advice on how to avoid making a blunder.

The secretaries had told him that his parents-in-law would usually behave the same way as to how a man’s parents treated their future daughter-in-law and they would generally come up with a series of tests to determine whether this person suited their own son or daughter.

Most of the time, the tests commonly put forward by the future in-laws would firstly include judging the man or woman’s appearance.

If their appearance passed the test then they were already halfway through winning the approval of the in-laws.

As such, Toby knew in advance that he would be carefully observed by Grace so he had already been prepared to be scrutinized.

As such, as soon as Grace shot a scrutinizing look at him, he stood calm and composed while allowing her to take a good look at him.

He was quite confident in his appearances and frankly, no other man was as good-looking as he was.

Naturally, Miles’ appearance did not count.

Indeed, after Grace had taken a good look at him, although she looked slightly defeated, she didn’t mention that there was anything wrong with his appearance, and neither did she voice out that his appearance was not to her liking.

This indicated that he had passed the test in regard to his appearances.

Grace could find no fault with him so he now had one foot in the door.

With that in his mind, he revealed a smile, and at that moment, he noticed Sonia, who was standing behind Grace, furtively gave him a thumbs-up gesture.

As soon as he saw that, the smile on his face widened “Mrs. Lane, are you happy with what you’ve seen? My attire today should be quite presentable, right?”

His underlying meaning was to ask if she was pleased with him.

After all, it was awkward to ask about this directly so he substituted it by referring to his attire.

However, everyone caught on to his words.

Meanwhile, Grace heard his question but she didn’t bother to answer and she merely snorted at him and turned to Sonia affectionately, “Sonny, I haven’t seen you for quite some time. Why have you lost so much weight? Is it because someone has been mistreating you? If that’s true then let me know and I’ll definitely do whatever I can to stand up for you!”

As Grace spoke, she shot a pointed look at Toby.

In response, Toby raised his brows. Fine then, the second round of tests is about to start now.

His secretaries had mentioned to him that after overcoming the appearance test, the in-laws would naturally start to question their own kids to find out hints of whether they were treated well by their partners. Even if they knew that their kids’ partners treated their kids extremely well, they would still ask about it.

They would also purposely mention threatening words to their kids’ partners to find out the person in question’s temperament and disposition.

If their kids’ partner had a bad temper with an ugly disposition and was full of self-importance, then they would definitely not be able to tolerate such words and leave in a huff. As parents, they would then have succeeded in weeding out the bad apples for their kids.

However, if their kids’ partners had a great temper and a sunny disposition then they would not find such words an issue at all. They would merely find it quite normal. After all, parents were naturally protective of their kids and would not wish for their own kids to suffer.

As long as their kids were together with a great dependable partner then the other party would definitely not be annoyed by such words. They would naturally smile quite confidently and face everything without feeling troubled.

Right now, Toby faced everything with this exact mindset.

He was sincere toward Little Leaf so he had nothing to fear at all.

He did have a bad temper but he never lost his temper with Little Leaf and he was definitely the gentlest man on earth.

Meanwhile, Sonia heard the question directed to her by Grace and she realized that Grace purposely mentioned that for Toby’s ears.

She took a look at Toby and was not the slightest bit worried that he would be unhappy.

Indeed, she noticed that he was very calm and composed so she smiled and said, “Mrs. Lane, I’ve been too busy with work lately so that’s why I’ve lost some weight. There’s no other reason for my weight loss. He treats me very well. Look into my eyes and you’ll notice the happy glint in them. If he’s been treating me poorly then I wouldn’t look so happy at all. My eyes would be full of gloominess. Besides, I’m no longer the person I was in the past. If he was unkind to me then I would not stay by his side at all. Don’t you think so?”

She clung to Grace’s arm as she spoke.

Just then, Grace listened to her words and silently scrutinized Toby.

She noticed the beaming smile on Toby’s face upon hearing Sonia’s words and she couldn’t help pursing her lips. “It’s great that he’s been treating you well. Alright, it’s quite windy outside so let’s not stand here any longer. Let’s head inside.”

After Grace had said that, she held Sonia’s hand and led Sonia toward the mansion.

Sonia found it rude to shrug off Grace’s hand so she allowed Grace to lead her off by holding her hand. At the same time, she turned around while walking off and her ruby-red lips moved slightly as she tried to say something.

Toby nodded his head at her slightly and signaled for her to go along with Grace. Subsequently, he pointed at the trunk of his car and pointed to himself to indicate that he would carry the items inside by himself.

Sonia noticed then that he knew what she was trying to say so she was finally at ease. She smiled at him before entering the house with Grace.

At that moment, Toby and Curtis were the only ones left outside.

Curtis was slightly awkward as he had also noticed Grace’s rude attitude toward Toby.

“Uhh… Pre… I mean, Toby, my wife’s just too protective of Sonny so that’s why she behaved quite rudely. I hope that you are not offended,” Curtis apologized to Toby.

In response, Toby waved his hand to brush off Curtis’s concern. “It’s alright. It’s quite normal for Mrs. Lane to behave this way so I wouldn’t take offense.”

“Oh, great! That’s really great.” Curtis nodded his head and heaved a sigh of relief. Subsequently, he indicated with his hand and welcomed Toby into the house. “They’ve entered the house so let’s join them too. Dinner should be ready shortly.”

“Sure,” Toby affirmed but he walked toward the trunk of his car. “Mr. Lane, could you hold on for a moment. I’d like to bring in the presents too.”

“You’ve brought presents?” Curtis frowned. “I remember telling my wife to inform you that presents weren’t necessary, no?”

Subsequently, Curtis followed Toby and walked to the trunk of the car too.

As soon as he saw the presents all piled up in the trunk, he was significantly shocked. “That’s a lot of presents!”

Toby reached into the trunk and took out the items one by one. “Mrs. Lane did mention to me but I figured that I shouldn’t take that literally too. It would be quite rude to come empty-handed. Besides, this is my first time paying you a visit so it would be very rude to come without anything. Little Leaf agreed with me about this too.”

“I see, but you still shouldn’t have brought so many things.” Curtis continued, “A single present would be enough to express your well-wishes. We’re not strangers to each other so there is really no need to behave so overly courteous with each other. Alright. Place back the items into your car and just bring one with you.”

As Curtis spoke, he tried to help by putting the presents back into the trunk.

However, Toby rejected, “Mr. Lane, I prepared all of this with sincerity and I’ve brought it with me anyway so it doesn’t make sense at all to bring it back home. Little Leaf would be unhappy too. She might feel that you’re annoyed with her so that’s why you’ve refused to accept the presents by sending me back home with them.” Toby shut the trunk and spoke while looking at Curtis.

He was quite confident that by mentioning Sonia, Curtis would no longer reject him.

Indeed, as soon as Curtis heard Toby’s words, the former quickly shook his head and explained, “We would not be annoyed with her. We love her as dearly as one of our own and she’s just like our daughter!”

“That’s great then. These are all just gifts from your daughter so you should just accept them and be at ease. If you refuse these then Little Leaf might overthink the situation. Do you agree with me?”

Curtis’s mouth was slightly agape as he stammered slightly. Finally, he heaved a resigned sigh. “That’s fine then. We’ll accept these. Thank you for spending so much on us.”

“There’s nothing too precious here so you shouldn’t say that.” Toby lifted several paper bags and boxes.

However, the items were too heavy and his arm was not fully recovered yet so he could feel the pain in his left arm as soon as he lifted them.

At that moment, he couldn’t help but frown while looking at his left arm.

Chapter 924 Where’s Charles?

Curtis noticed Toby’s sudden change in expression so he followed Toby’s gaze. Curtis then observed Toby glancing at his own left arm and the former instantly recalled that his wife had mentioned to him previously how the latter had broken his arm while rescuing Sonia.

He had thought that Grace was just joking back then. After all, he couldn’t imagine what sort of danger Sonia could be subjected to for Toby to actually break his arm to rescue her.

However, it seemed right now that Grace was telling the truth.

“Toby, your arm’s not fully recovered yet so give me some of the items and I’ll carry them inside.” As soon as Curtis said that, he reached out and removed the items from Toby’s left arm.

Curtis instantly felt the weight of the presents as soon as he took them from Toby. Surprised, Curtis asked, “What’s inside? It seems quite heavy.”

“Little Leaf mentioned that you enjoy occasional drinks and you’re a wine collector. I was in possession of a few great wines so I’ve brought them along with me today.” Toby flexed his left arm as he spoke.

At that point, he was not carrying anything on his left arm so the pain gradually dissipated.

Meanwhile, Curtis’s expression brightened upon hearing that he had in his hands some wine. “Oh, did you bring me wine? That’s great. That’s really great.”

Curtis repeated great twice and his expression was joyful as he spoke.

Evidently, Curtis was a wine lover.

As for Toby, he couldn’t help chuckling upon noticing that. “Mr. Lane, I’m glad that you like it.”

“Yes, of course! I love wine,” Curtis replied hastily.

Although he had not seen the wine gifted by Toby, he was quite sure that something from Toby would definitely be of good quality.

Perhaps it was much better than the precious wines in his collection.

At that point, he was quite excited at the thought of it and he became increasingly enthusiastic. He quickly made a welcome gesture at Toby to invite him inside. “Alright, Toby. Let’s quickly head inside. They’ve gone inside for quite some time now so they must be waiting.”

“Sure, Mr. Lane.” Toby nodded his head slightly and trailed after Curtis to enter the mansion.

Inside the living room of the mansion, Sonia and Grace sat side by side. Grace held onto Sonia’s hand affectionately on the former’s lap as they chattered.

They seemed to be discussing something happy as the two women laughed gaily.

Just then, Toby noticed the beaming smile and bright eyes on Sonia’s face and he couldn’t help but reveal a slight smile too.

“Toby, take a seat.” Curtis put down the paper bags in his hand and quickly invited Toby to take a seat.

Toby hummed in response before taking a seat while Curtis stood up to pour him some tea.

As soon as Toby noticed that, he quickly stopped Curtis by lifting his hand over Curtis’s hand. “Mr. Lane, there’s no need to trouble yourself for such small matters. Allow me to serve myself.”

He was here as their future son-in-law so it would reflect quite badly for an elder to serve him tea.

At that moment, Curtis came to his senses too and he realized that they were at home right now so they weren’t exactly interacting with each other as business associates. He was a father-in-law meeting his son-in-law for the first time. As such, it was not necessary for him to serve Toby some tea.

Curtis removed his hand from the teapot and revealed an awkward smile. “I’m sorry. I’m still not used to this change in our relationship.”

Toby smiled. “It’s fine.”

Subsequently, Toby lifted the teapot and got up to pour four cups of tea. He handed the first one to Curtis and the second one to Grace.

Curtis immediately took the tea from Toby upon seeing Toby serve it personally and the former felt quite flattered at that point. Gosh. It’s tea served to me personally by the president of Fuller Group. Other than Old Mrs. Fuller and Sonia, I must be the third person in Seafield to experience this privilege. Oh! Grace’s the fourth one.

Compared to Curtis, Grace took everything in her own stride and she was quite nonchalant about everything. Unlike Curtis, she did not over-analyze the situation.

She merely felt quite pleased by Toby’s action of serving them tea. After all, he was able to forsake his status to serve tea to them—his elders—so he had passed the test in her eyes.

After Grace had taken a sip of the tea, she stood up and said, “It’s quite late now. I’ll just pop into the kitchen to check on the dishes and find out how long before dinner will be ready. It should be ready quite soon.”

“Mrs. Lane, I’ll go with you.” Sonia got up too and she glanced toward Toby. “Toby, stay here and keep Mr. Lane company.”

“Sure,” Toby responded with a smile.

Subsequently, Sonia followed Grace into the kitchen.

As soon as they got to the kitchen, they saw the chefs busy scurrying around as they prepared dinner.

Grace took a look at the menu before nodding her head. “Dinner should be ready soon. There are only two dishes left to prepare.”

Meanwhile, Sonia took a look at the counter and she couldn’t help exclaiming upon seeing the multiple dishes of sumptuous food. “There are so many dishes and most of them are my favorite food.”

Grace held her hand and smiled affectionately. “These are definitely all of your favorite dishes because you’re not always here for dinner! That’s why I’ve intentionally prepared them for you.”

“Mrs. Lane, you’re too kind.” Sonia wrapped her arms around Grace’s waist and leaned on Grace’s shoulders affectionately.

In response, Grace chuckled while lightly smacking her on her head. “You’re behaving just like a kid by being so overly affectionate!”

“I’ll always be a kid in your eyes, right?” Sonia smiled while responding.

Just then, Grace stroked her head tenderly. “Yeah, no matter how old you get, you’ll always be a kid in my eyes. You’re my favorite child ever.” The duo interacted with each other quite affectionately.

After some time, Sonia suddenly realized something and she scrambled out of Grace’s arms. “By the way, Mrs. Lane, where’s Charles?”

Sonia suddenly realized that she hadn’t seen Charles at all since entering the house. Where’s Charles?

As soon as Grace heard Sonia’s question, she snorted angrily, “That kid didn’t come back because he said he is busy with work.”

“Is he swamped with work at Lane Corporation lately?” Sonia glanced at Grace and asked, “There was no word about this though.”

Though there were some projects that Paradigm Co. and Lane Corporation collaborated on together, she would definitely be aware if Lane Corporation hit a busy period.

In response, Grace pouted slightly. “He’s not busy with work at all! Besides, Curtis hasn’t relinquished his position and he’s the chairman of the company. The chairman who’s usually much busier than the president is home right now. Evidently, being the president, Charles should have completed his work as well.”

“Do you mean Charles purposely claimed that he’s busy to avoid coming back?” Sonia blinked as she spoke.

Grace nodded. “Yeah.”

“Why is that so?” Sonia was perplexed.

However, Grace merely kept her eyes on Sonia without saying a word.

Suddenly, Sonia caught on to things upon being stared at intently by Grace and her eyes widened. “Is it because of m-me?”

Grace heaved a sigh and nodded her head slowly. “You must already realize Charles’s feelings toward you. Although he said that he’s gotten over you and he’ll forget about you, it takes time to get over someone and the process won’t be easy either. For the moment, Charles still cares about you so naturally, he wouldn’t want to be present when you bring your partner over. He wants to avoid feeling upset upon seeing you behaving intimately with your partner so he chose to hide from this.”

As soon as Sonia heard that, a wave of guilt welled up within her and there was an ashamed look on her face. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Lane. I…”

“You shouldn’t feel bad, Sonny.” Grace interrupted her words, “I know what you’re going to say. You must think that Charles refused to come home because of your rejection and it’s all your fault so you feel quite bad about this, right?”

Sonia looked at Grace and nodded. “Yes.”

Grace smiled and responded, “You silly child. This isn’t your fault at all. You didn’t do anything wrong. Everyone has a right to choose their own happiness. Charles loves you but that doesn’t mean that you have to accept him and love him too. You were not at fault for rejecting him.”

“I hurt him though.” Sonia bit her lips.

Grace smiled and patted her on the head. “One would definitely feel upset and dejected at being rejected and this is quite normal. If he didn’t feel upset or dejected, then that would mean he didn’t like you at all. Charles developed feelings toward you and that’s something that he has to deal with himself. It has nothing to do with you. You’ve rejected him so he would naturally have to bear the consequences for the outcome of his infatuation.”

Chapter 925 An Excited Curtis

Sonia looked at Grace as she said, “I understand what you mean, Mrs. Lane, but do you really not hold any grudges against me? Charles is your son and he is heartbroken because of my rejection. Do you really not blame me for that?”

“You have asked me this question before and I’ll now answer you again—I’ve never blamed you, of course.” Grace held Sonia’s hands. “I’ve told you this before—Charles loves you, but that’s his deal and you don’t necessarily have to reciprocate his feelings. A relationship requires both parties to share mutual feelings for each other in order for it to work out.

If two people fancy each other, they are free to be in a relationship; if one doesn’t have feelings for the other, the former should reject the latter properly and the latter should move on. So, why would I blame you when you didn’t do anything wrong. Although I have aged, I’m still rather open-minded. However—”

“Mrs. Lane, you can just tell me anything.” Sonia looked Grace in her eyes.

Grace sighed and continued, “Although I really wish that you can become my daughter-in-law, I know that you won’t be happy with Charles because he is not your type. You won’t fall in love with him no matter what and forcing you two together will only turn you and him into a resentful couple. Therefore, I would rather see you find yourself a suitable partner that will make you happy than make you my daughter-in-law.”

She then regained her smile. “As for Charles, he is now in a dejected state, but I believe that this is just temporary. He will move on when he meets someone suitable for him. So, Sonny, you don’t need to worry about him. It’s also a good thing that he is not in tonight since meeting him would only make you feel awkward, and at the same time, it would hurt him to see you together with Toby. It’s for the best that you two don’t see each other, don’t you think so?”

“Mrs. Lane, thank you. Thank you so much! Sonia hugged her tightly.

After being stunned at first, Grace then gently patted Sonia on her back and beamed. “Don’t need to thank me. Alright, let’s head out.”

“Okay,” Sonia responded. The corner of her lips curved upward whereby a smile was finally revealed.

The two of them left the kitchen holding hands.

However, Sonia parted with Grace on their way out and went to the washroom, so Grace returned to the living room on her own.

Upon seeing Grace returning alone without Sonia by her side, Toby immediately paused the business discussion with Curtis and asked, “Mrs. Lane, where’s Little Leaf?”

Grace was glad to hear the hint of concern in his tone, but she still feigned displeasure and snorted, “She went to the washroom. What’s wrong? Do you think that I would harm her?”

When he heard that Sonia had gone to use the washroom, Toby felt much relieved. “That’s not what I meant. I can’t help feeling worried whenever I don’t see her.”

“Hmph, why are you worried about her? What could happen to her when she is under my roof?” Grace rolled her eyes at him.

He pursed his lips and fell silent.

At this moment, Curtis stepped in and mediated the situation. “Alright, what nonsense are you spewing? Toby is merely worried about Sonia. The couple is now at their most intimate and inseparable stage, so it’s only natural for him to feel worried when he doesn’t see Sonia.”

“Stop putting in good words for him.” She pointed at Toby. Jeez, this old man. We agreed to put Toby to a test and give him a hard time until he passes. However, he is treating Toby so well from the very beginning; he has completely forgotten about our agreement.

When Curtis, who had no idea what Grace was thinking about, heard her words, he let out an embarrassed chuckle. “Hehe. Well, Toby gave me a few bottles of lovely wine. I’ll feel bad if I don’t side with him this time.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Useless fool!”

As Toby peered at the middle-aged couple bickering with each other, a thoughtful look flashed across his face. Thereafter, he grabbed the bag that contained the bottles of wine and placed it on the coffee table before Curtis. “Mr. Lane, since there’s still some time until dinner, would you like to check out the wine that I gifted to see whether they suit your taste?”

“Sure.” Curtis immediately nodded. As a wine lover, he had wanted to open them since the moment he found out about them.

However, since they were gifts from Toby, he was embarrassed to open them when Toby was still around, so he had to hold himself back despite the strong, unbearable urge that made him feel restless.

Therefore, Toby’s suggestion to open it was just exactly what he had wished for, which gave him no reason to reject the offer.

With a bright grin plastered on his face, Curtis moved the few bags closer to him and eagerly unwrapped the packaging.

The moment he unwrapped the box in the first bag and saw the wordings on the label, he was stunned and nearly thought that he was seeing things.

He quickly rubbed his eyes before taking a closer look again. Once he confirmed that what he saw was not his imagination but was actually that thing, he instantly let out a cry of excitement.

His sudden shout startled Grace, who was sipping tea, and nearly caused her to choke on her drink.

After placing the cup down, an exasperated Grace glanced at him. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

Curtis ignored her and reached out with his trembling hands for the second bag.

Seeing that he had ignored her as his eyes were practically glued to the presents, she was so mad that she decided that she should ignore him as well.

Toby, who took in the scene, rubbed the cup in his hands, and an unnoticeable, slight smile played by his lips.

Soon, Curtis let out a second cry.

Grace, who was again startled by his voice, was so enraged that she sprang up from the couch. “Hey, Mr. Lane! Have you gone out of your mind? Why are you suddenly screaming?”

While continuing to ignore her, he stared at the four bottles of wine in the two boxes in front of him with wide eyes. He was so worked up that his body shuddered in extreme excitement. “T-T-These are estate-bottled wines from the few most renowned wineries in the world.”

He turned to Toby to confirm if he was right, to which Toby nodded without hesitation to gesture that Curtis was indeed right.

Upon getting Toby’s confirmation, Curtis became even more exhilarated to the point that his body trembled even more. “These are actually estate-bottled wines. Haha! I can’t believe that I am able to see an estate-bottled wine one day, not to mention wines from different wineries. Oh, Lord.”

Upon seeing how excited Curtis was––as if he could just die happily without any regrets there and then, Grace pouted at him in disdain. “It’s merely a few bottles of wine. Do you have to act this way?”

“What do you know about wines?” He glanced at her with contempt. “These are estate-bottled wines and these few bottles, in particular, are actually part of the first batch of wine that was produced by the wineries upon establishment. Every single bottle here costs a few million and there are only a hundred of them in the whole world. These are things that you can’t buy with money only. I have been wanting to own one all this while but I’m still lacking in my status. I never thought that the wine that I have been dreaming about will one day appear before me, let alone so many of them. I-I am really moved.”

Curtis hugged the few bottles of wine in his arms; he really cherished them.

When he gave the explanation, her emotion evolved from the initial feeling of disdain to shock, then to incredulous.

Toby found the whole process of how her expression changed rather amusing.

“A-A few million?” Grace gulped, staring at the few bottles of wine in his arms. “That can’t be real. They are merely a few bottles of wine, but they cost a few million?”

She knew that wine was expensive, but the most expensive wine that she ever knew of only cost a few hundred thousand. She never expected that there were wines that cost a few million out there in the world. Has the world gone crazy?

Although she used to think that the Lane Family was rather wealthy, she suddenly found themselves quite poor—they were not as extravagant as willing to spend a few million just to buy a bottle of wine.

Chapter 926 Grace’s Excitement

However, what surprised Grace even more was Toby’s lavishness. These few bottles of wine were worth several million each, yet he gave them away without the slightest hesitation. Not only that, but these wines were extremely invaluable. There were only 100 bottles of each kind of these wines in the world. With each bottle drunk, there would be one bottle less of them.

She thought that people basically bought these wines not to drink them, but to collect them. And yet, Toby gave these collectible wines away as a gift—a degree of lavishness that few people could reach. Seems like he has mended his ways and does love Sonny very much. Otherwise, how could he possibly gift my husband with these wines?

After all, Curtis isn’t really his father-in-law. Still, he gave these wines to Curtis as a gift. Obviously, this means that he loves Sonny so much that he’s willing to treat us as his actual parents-in-law for her sake, right? At the thought of this, she inwardly gave Toby a passing mark with a few dozen bonus points. As for the last dozens of points, she had to observe and scrutinize him further.

Toby’s eyes flickered slightly for a moment, as if he had sensed what Grace was thinking. After taking a glance at Curtis—who was smiling creepily at those wines—he stood up and handed the remaining few bags of gift boxes to her. “Mrs. Lane, these are the presents I prepared for you. Take a look and see if you like them.”

Grace was startled for a moment before she pointed at herself. “Are there presents for me too?”

Toby nodded. “Yes, of course. There are presents for Mr. Lane, and so do you, naturally. I can’t favor one of you more than the other, right?”

This time, it was Grace’s turn to feel embarrassed. Touching her cheek, she replied with a smile, “Well, thank you so much for the presents.” She gave him another ten bonus points in her mind. Hmm, now he’s 30 points away from a perfect score.

“You’re very welcome, Mrs. Lane. Why don’t you take a look at the presents?” Toby replied as he sat back down.

She rolled her eyes inwardly at Curtis, who was toying with the wine bottles one after another. Look at how silly that old man is. Those who don’t know what’s going on would think that he’s groping a woman. How pathetic! She withdrew her gaze in disdain before turning to look at the gift boxes before her.

Thanks to those bottles of wine, she knew that with Toby’s lavishness, his presents for her had to be extraordinary as well. Well, I don’t know how extraordinary these gifts are, but I definitely won’t be as silly as Curtis. At the thought of this, she calmly put down the teacup in her hand and smiled gracefully at Toby, saying, “Well, in that case, I’ll open them to take a look.”

Toby’s thin lips curled into a faint smile as he gestured to Grace to go ahead.

Grace exhaled softly before placing her hands on the gift box’s ribbon. After opening the first gift box, she looked at its contents and was stunned.

The next instant, she cried out, “Ahhhh!” The situation was exactly the same as how Curtis had reacted upon seeing the first bottle of wine just now.

Curtis was startled, too. After clasping the bottle of wine in his hand to his chest, he glared at Grace angrily. “What are you doing, honey? You startled me so much that I nearly dropped my wine. Can you pay for it if I drop it?” God only knew how frightened and panic-stricken he was when he nearly lost his grip on the bottle of wine in his hand after being startled by her cry just now. His heart had almost stopped, and he even felt that he had had the living daylights scared out of him at that very moment.

When Grace heard Curtis’ complaint, the look of excitement on her face froze for a moment. She turned her head and gave him a dirty look, saying, “Shut up and mind your own business!” Then, she let out a snort and ignored him. After withdrawing her gaze, she reached out her hands toward the next gift box and proceeded to open it with her hands trembling in excitement.

Seeing how Grace behaved just like how he himself had a moment ago, Curtis said to Toby with glaring eyes, “Look at her, Toby! She chided me just now, but isn’t she acting the same right now?”

Toby drank his tea and smiled without saying a word.

Grace soon opened the second gift box and saw its contents. Although she had already had an idea of what the gift box might contain, now that she had seen its contents for real, she couldn’t help but let out another cry of excitement. “These are the Almani bag and the top-grade Chenal perfume, both of which will only be available for purchase in the next quarter! Could the rest of the items be…” She gave a gulp of exhilaration while shifting her gaze to the remaining few boxes. Her eyes glittered with apparent covetousness, like a wolf that spotted its prey.

The next instant, she quickly reached for the remaining few gift boxes, opening them swiftly. Seeing the cosmetics, silk scarves, and the like in those gift boxes, she instantly let out a gasp and clutched her chest with both hands. Color suffused her face as she felt she was going to pass out from extreme happiness. “T-These are top-end luxury items that will only be on the market in the next quarter! Usually, I can only view them on the official websites. To think that I’d see the real stuff right before me! I… I have no regrets in life anymore!” she said excitedly while sinking back onto the sofa and staring at the ceiling.

Seeing her act like this, Curtis curled his lips. “Isn’t it just some cosmetics, handbags, and stuff like that? It’s not like you can eat or drink them. Do you have to get so worked up as to say that you have no regrets in life anymore?” He couldn’t understand why women liked these. My wines are way better, he thought with a cheerful grin while carefully holding one of the wine bottles in his arms.

When Toby looked at Grace, who was still in a daze after collapsing on the sofa, then at Curtis, who was smiling very foolishly at those wines, the smile on his lips deepened.

After a while, Grace recovered from her excitement and sat up on the sofa. After looking at the pile of presents before her that would make any woman go insane, she finally looked up at Toby, who was drinking tea. “Oh, Toby.”

After being here for such a long time, Toby finally sensed that Grace was warming up to him. This was his first time hearing her address him so cordially, and to be honest, he was somewhat unused to it. “Yes, Mrs. Lane.” He put down his teacup and met her eyes.

Grace cackled. “Well, uh, are these presents really for us?”

“Yes, of course.” Toby nodded. “If these presents weren’t for you both, I wouldn’t have brought them here, right?”

A flicker of joy flashed across Grace’s eyes before it was quickly replaced by a conflicted look. “I know that, but these presents are too valuable for us, so you’d better take them back,” she said while pushing the gift boxes toward Toby.

When he heard her words, Curtis, who had been in a state of excitement after getting his hands on the good wines, instantly came to his senses as well. He looked down at the wine bottle in his arms. She’s right. I was so excited to see these wines that I didn’t care about anything else, but I forgot how much these wines are worth. Indeed, I can’t accept such valuable wines without hesitation.

“Sigh…” Letting out a reluctant sigh, he put the wine bottle back in its box and pushed it toward Toby. “My wife is right. Toby, these presents are really too valuable, so you’d better take them back. We’re already satisfied with the kindness you’re showing us.”

“Yeah, that’s right.” Grace nodded.

Toby looked at the presents that had been pushed back toward him. He replied with a soft chuckle, “Mr. and Mrs. Lane, you don’t have to do this. These presents might be valuable to you two, but they’re chicken feed to me, so you may accept them with an open heart. And besides, I’m gifting you two with these, not only to thank you for taking care of Little Leaf in the past, but also to let you two know how sincerely I love her. It’s somewhat vulgar to use money to show my sincerity, but this is the best way to let you two see it at a glance.”

Chapter 927 Public Display of Affection

Grace and Curtis subconsciously nodded at Toby’s words. “Well, that’s true.” After all, there was a saying that a man who was willing to spend money for the sake of a woman must have a place for her in his heart, even if he didn’t love her very much. However, a man who was unwilling to spend money on her must have no place for her in his heart.

Toby is willing to lavish so much money on Sonny. Even if he has yet to love her to the bones, his feelings for her are probably not far from that, thought Grace as she exchanged a brief look with Curtis. Inwardly, she gave Toby ten more bonus points. Now he’s 20 points away from a perfect score.

“So, please be sure to accept these presents. These are a token of my regard,” Toby said while pushing the presents back toward them. Curtis and Grace looked at the presents that were pushed back toward them. “Does Sonny know that you’ve prepared these valuable presents?” We can’t accept these presents if Sonny doesn’t know about them.

Knowing what they meant, Toby replied with a slight nod, “Please rest assured, Mr. and Mrs. Lane. Little Leaf knows about this. I made a point of showing these to her and asking her if it was necessary to add anything else before bringing these over.

She knows about these presents, so you two may accept them with peace of mind. If you two don’t accept them, even she will feel uncomfortable and think that the gifts we prepared aren’t to your liking, let alone me.”

The instant he said that, Curtis and Grace dared not refuse his gifts anymore. After exchanging a brief look, they immediately replied, “How could such fancy gifts not be to our liking?”

“Since they’re to your liking, please don’t refuse them anymore.” Toby looked at the couple.

Curtis and Grace exchanged another brief look. Finally, they took the presents back with a smile. “Alright then. Now that you’ve said so, it’ll seem unkind and even somewhat unreasonable for us to refuse these gifts,” Grace said with a smile while closing the lids of the gift boxes one by one. She planned to take a closer look at them and try them on before going to sleep that night.

These are brand-new items that will only be on sale in the next quarter! I’m probably the first in the circle of upper-class women who got my hands on these. This is perfect. I can put them on tomorrow and show them off in front of them. At the same time, she gave Toby the last 20 bonus points on the scoring sheet in her mind. With that, he scored a perfect score in her mind.

At the moment, she was as satisfied with Toby as she could. Sonny has found herself a nice guy. Inwardly, she couldn’t stop feeling happy.

“She’s right. In that case, Toby, we’ll accept them with pleasure,” Curtis chimed in while putting the wines away one by one. Inwardly, he thought the same as Grace. Let’s call those few old friends over tomorrow to open their eyes. It had to be said that he and Grace had proved themselves to be a couple because they thought alike.

After putting the presents away, Curtis and Grace chatted with Toby, during which time Grace showed the latter as much cordiality and friendliness as she could. It was no exaggeration to say that she treated him like her own son.

At first, Toby didn’t like Grace being so cordial, but he really couldn’t resist it. He had no choice but to force himself to accept her cordiality with a smile. In the end, however, he slowly got used to it.

When Sonia came back from the washroom, she saw Grace pouring Toby tea in one moment and offering him fruit the next while calling him “Toby.”

At the sight of this, Sonia was totally stunned. What is going on? What caused Mrs. Lane’s attitude toward Toby to change drastically while I was absent? Before I went to the washroom, she was still having him under scrutiny, which was why she purposely pretended to be cool and standoffish toward him.

Why would she become so friendly toward him when I came back from the washroom? She offers him food and drink like a mother treating her own son lest he might get thirsty or hungry. So, what happened when I went to the washroom that made her become so friendly toward him? Looking at the three people across from her who were chatting happily, she tilted her head to one side in utter bafflement.

Upon seeing Sonia, Toby put down the drinking glass in his hand and beckoned to her. “Hurry and come over.”

Seeing his gesture, Grace and Curtis turned their heads and saw Sonia. They beckoned to her with a smile, saying, “Sonny, why are you standing there in a daze? Come on over.”

“I’m coming,” Sonia replied with a smile while walking toward them.

When she came to Toby’s side, Toby took her hand and moved to the side to make room for her.

She took the opportunity to sit down.

Toby then handed her a glass of water. “What took you so long?”

Sonia had a drink of water before replying, “I had a phone call to answer. Otherwise, I’d have come back earlier.”

Toby nodded without questioning her further. He merely picked up the fruit platter that Grace had just given him. Then, he forked a piece of fruit from it and brought it to her lips.

Sonia seemed to have grown used to being waited upon like this by the man. Therefore, she subconsciously opened her mouth and ate the fruit in a very natural manner.

Neither she nor Toby thought there was anything wrong with their actions, but Grace and Curtis were shocked to see this. So is this how Sonny and Toby get along in private? To think that he could humble himself to look after her like this!

As an old couple, Grace and Curtis didn’t know how other young couples got along with each other, but they dared to say that many men wouldn’t serve their girlfriends the way Toby did.

After all, young people nowadays were proud and ambitious, and they were pampered and spoiled by their parents. There was no way they would humble themselves to look after someone else—even if that someone was their lover. However, as the high and mighty chairman of a conglomerate, Toby was able to go to such extents. The visual impact brought about by this was simply enormous.

At the same time, though, it proved that he really loved Sonia very much. Furthermore, Sonia accepted Toby’s service in such an unruffled manner without feeling embarrassed in the slightest. This showed that he had always been looking after her like this in private, which was why as time passed, she no longer thought it was wrong of him to take care of her like this.

Seeing how the young couple got along with each other, Curtis said with a smile, “Honey, look! They’re so lovey-dovey.”

Grace nodded with a smile. “You can say that again.”

Upon hearing their words, Sonia finally realized that she had gotten so used to being fed by Toby that for a moment, she had forgotten that they were not at home, but at Lane Residence. It made her feel rather embarrassed to be lovey-dovey with Toby in front of Grace and Curtis, and her face reddened. “Well, uh, sorry for making you see this, Mr. and Mrs. Lane.”

“Nah, it’s okay.” Curtis and Grace immediately waved their hands and said that this was nothing to laugh at.

“We’re just feeling happy that you two love each other so much,” Grace replied.

Curtis nodded. “She’s right. My wife and I will be even happier if you two can always be so affectionate toward each other.”

Sonia hung her head bashfully without saying a word.

On the other hand, Toby smiled unperturbedly. “Don’t worry, Mr. and Mrs. Lane. We will.”

“That’d be great,” replied Grace and Curtis.

Just then, the servant came over. “Sir, ma’am, dinner is served and ready.”

Hearing that the dinner was ready, Grace immediately stood up and said, “Sonny, Toby, let’s go to the dining room for dinner. It’s such a late hour. You two must be getting hungry, right?”

Chapter 928 Sit Still

“Yeah, we’re a little hungry.” Sonia touched her stomach without being reserved with Grace. After all, they were very close, so there was no need to stand on ceremony.

Hearing her reply, Grace hurriedly said, “In that case, let’s hurry and go there.” Sonia nodded with a smile. “Alright. Mr. and Mrs. Lane, please go first. We’ll follow you from behind.”

Curtis then headed for the dining room while taking Grace by the hand, whereas Toby followed behind them while holding Sonia’s hand. As they walked, Sonia gently tickled Toby’s palm with her fingertips.

Toby wrapped his fingers around her hand to keep her out of mischief. Then, he asked in a whisper, “What’s the matter?”

Sonia pointed at Curtis and Grace, who were walking ahead of them, with one hand while cupping the other hand around her mouth. She whispered, “What happened? Why did Mrs. Lane’s attitude toward you change so greatly?” Curtis had been more friendly toward Toby when they came, whereas Grace had been relatively cold toward him. Sonia knew that Grace had purposely put on a cold front for the purpose of testing Toby, but could she have finished testing him so soon?

Toby’s thin lips curled up slightly at Sonia’s curious question. “That’s simple. I let them open the presents to take a look.”

The instant he said that, Sonia immediately figured out what had happened. After raising her pretty eyebrows for a moment, she gave him a thumbs up. “That was a smart move. I thought you’d only give them the presents before we leave.”

“That wouldn’t be necessary,” Toby replied with a chuckle. “I could make Mrs. Lane approve of me sooner by doing so, so why not?”

“Well, you’re right.” Sonia giggled as well.

Curtis and Grace had seated themselves in the dining room. Seeing that Sonia and Toby had just entered through the door, they couldn’t help but urge, “Sonia, Toby, what are you two talking about? Hurry and come over.”

“We’re coming,” Sonia replied with a smile. Then, she took Toby’s hand and quickened her pace toward them.

The four of them had a pleasant dinner. Sonia and Grace discussed women’s favorite topics like cosmetics, clothing, and shoes, whereas Toby and Curtis talked about some business-related matters. They didn’t butt in on each other, but their conversations were harmonious.

It wasn’t until 11:00 PM that Sonia and Toby took their leave. Grace wanted to persuade them to stay here for the night, but Sonia and Toby turned it down. Sonia refused Grace’s invitation for a simple reason: she knew that Toby didn’t like staying overnight at someone else’s home, so she naturally wouldn’t disregard his feelings. As for Toby, his intention in refusing Grace’s invitation was even more straightforward. He wanted to have some quiet time together with Sonia at night, but how could they do so if they were to stay at somebody else’s home?

Seeing that Sonia and Toby were determined to leave, Grace had no choice but to give up and let them leave. She and Curtis then saw the couple to the door.

She hugged Sonia outside the villa, saying, “Sonny, tell Toby to drive slower and be careful on your way home, okay?” She tucked Sonia’s hair behind her ears.

Sonia nodded with a smile. “I will,” she said while turning to look at the man standing next to the car.

Sensing her gaze, the man turned his head slightly to meet her gaze before giving her a faint and yet charming smile.

Seeing the interaction between the young couple, Grace couldn’t help but shake her head with a smile. They’re so affectionate toward each other, being lovey-dovey at all times. Well, this is a good thing. Now that they seem to have no problem getting back together, I can finally put my mind at rest. “Just go.” She let go of Sonia’s hand and pushed her toward Toby.

Sonia took a hesitant step forward, upon which Toby immediately stepped forward and took her into his arms.

Sonia seemed somewhat embarrassed as she smelled the refreshing mint perfume on Toby. Her cheeks blushing slightly, she looked back and called out to Grace, “Mrs. Lane…”

Grace covered her lips and smiled. “Alright, I won’t be teasing you anymore. Go back and be careful on your way home,” she said while motioning them to leave with a wave of her hand.

Sonia suppressed her shyness and waved goodbye to Grace and Curtis. “Alright. We’ll be going home, then. Goodbye, Mr. and Mrs. Lane.”

“Goodbye.” Toby gave the couple a slight nod as well. Then, he walked up to his car with his arm wrapped around Sonia’s waist.

Grace stood where she was while seeing them off.

Curtis walked down the steps to Grace’s side before putting his arm around her shoulder. They stood side by side while seeing the young couple off together. Only after the couple’s car drove out of the villa did they turn back into the house.

Meanwhile, Sonia rolled up the car window and had a slight stretch inside the car. At this moment, she was only wearing a figure-hugging turtleneck sweater without a coat. As she stretched, the sweater shrank upward, revealing a part of her fair and flat tummy without her realizing it.

When Toby caught sight of this out of the corner of his eye, his eyes instantly darkened. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, and his voice deepened. “Sit still and don’t move around.”

Sonia put down her hands and looked at him with a baffled expression. “I’m not moving around.” How am I moving around? All I did was stretch.

Toby also knew that what he had said was somewhat absurd. He lowered his eyelids, saying, “In any case, just be good and sit tight.”

“Cut that nonsense.” Sonia gave him a dirty look.

They soon arrived at Bayside Residence. As soon as Sonia opened the door to their apartment and bent down to take her slippers out of the shoe cabinet, Toby suddenly hugged her from behind and turned her around. Pressing her against the shoe cabinet, he raised her chin and kissed her on the lips.

Sonia’s eyes widened as she was stunned. It wasn’t until she felt a slight tingle in her lips a while later that she came to her senses and pushed the man away.

Toby’s eyes were bloodshot as he looked at her while panting somewhat heavily. “What’s wrong?” he asked in a voice so attractive that it could melt one’s soul.

Suppressing the urge to go weak at the knees, Sonia opened her eyes as wide as she could. “W-Why did you kiss me all of a sudden?” He didn’t even close the door, which showed how impatient he was at the time. Luckily, their apartment was the only unit on the floor, so they didn’t have to worry about being seen.

Hearing her questioning, Toby leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers, kissing her eyes and the tip of her nose off and on with his thin lips. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. I wanted to do this back when we were in the car, but I’d been suppressing the urge to do it. Now that we’re at home, how can I restrain myself any longer?”

Sonia’s lips twitched. “You wanted to do so back when we were in the car? Do you have to be so thirsty?”

“It was your fault for seducing me at the time.” Toby’s voice became increasingly deep and husky.

Sonia looked stupefied. “I seduced you? When?”

“You exposed your waist while stretching,” Toby replied while looking into her eyes.

Sonia’s lips twitched violently as she was rendered speechless. No wonder he told me not to move around back then. Turns out this was the reason! This guy got thirsty just because I stretched and revealed a part of my waist. Should I chide him for having poor self-control or pride myself on being charming enough?

When Toby saw that Sonia zoned out all of a sudden, his eyes flickered slightly. The next instant, he kissed her once again and spread her legs apart. Then, he picked her up and carried her to their room.

Sonia was shocked the instant she came to her senses and realized what the man was going to do. Cupping his face in her hands, she pushed the man away to stop him from kissing her. Panting slightly, she looked at the man, saying, “Toby, we haven’t showered yet!”

 

Chapter 929 Worst Nightmare

Toby’s eyes flickered for an instant. She only said that we haven’t showered yet. Does that mean she doesn’t reject what I’m going to do? He stopped in his tracks for a moment to look down at the woman who was also looking at him. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down for a moment before he said in a husky voice, as if to suppress something, “Forget about taking a shower.

That’d be a waste of time.” Now that I’ve gotten all heated up, I don’t want to pause to take a shower. What if she quits after we do so? At the thought of this, he lowered his head and kissed Sonia again without waiting for her reply. At the same time, he continued going upstairs before kicking the bedroom door open and going inside.

Soon after that, the sounds of a woman’s coquettish moans and a man’s attractive breathing could be heard from the room, so much so that the moon hid behind the dark clouds in the sky in shyness.

No one knew how much time had passed when the rain began pattering outside. The instant it started raining, the noise in the room finally died down.

Toby looked down at the woman beneath him, who had fallen asleep in exhaustion. Curling his lips into a faint smile, he planted a kiss on her sweaty forehead. Then, he got up and scooped her up in his arms before going to the bathroom to clean her as well as himself.

By the time he finished doing all these and laid her back onto the bed in the room, the clock had struck four in the morning. He tucked her in and caressed her cheek as she was soundly asleep, but he didn’t feel sleepy. Instead, wearing a loose bathrobe, he came to the living room and took out his cell phone.

During the day, he had asked Tom to find out if something had happened to Paradigm Co. However, he had been busy talking to his grandmother and visiting the Lane Residence after that, not to mention that he had done the most important thing in life after coming home. As a result, he hadn’t had time to check his cell phone. It wasn’t until now that he finally had time to look at Tom’s findings.

He opened his mailbox on his cell phone. Seeing that the findings sent by his assistant were placed at the top of the list of unread emails, he opened the email with a slight tap of his finger.

Seeing the email’s contents, he knitted his brows. The next instant, he closed the email app and called Tom directly, totally disregarding the fact that Tom was probably dreaming in his sleep as it was now 4:00 AM.

As a result, just when Tom dreamed that he had a girlfriend and was about to kiss her, the face of his girlfriend suddenly transformed into Toby’s face. One could imagine how traumatized Tom was at this very moment.

Tom was so frightened that he woke up and sat up with a start. “Ah!” he cried out, gasping for breath as beads of sweat oozed out of his forehead. “How scary! This is really scary! To think that I’d dream about my girlfriend turning into President Fuller! This is simply the worst nightmare in my whole life!” he muttered while rubbing his arms, still badly shaken.

Now he sincerely believed that he had fallen under Toby’s curse. It’s enough that I’m being enslaved by President Fuller every single day. Why can’t I even escape from him in my dream? Oh, God! This is killing me! He looked up at the ceiling with despair written all over his face.

After a long time, he finally collected himself. After all, he had seen much of life, so regaining his composure was a piece of cake. After composing himself, he was finally in the mood to care about the cell phone that had been ringing nonstop on the bedside table. He was really annoyed. Who would dare to call me in the middle of the night?

Believe it or not, I’m gonna get even with that person for this tomorrow! Swearing like a trooper inwardly, he turned on the light and reached for his glasses before putting them on. Only then did he slowly and impatiently grab his phone.

When he saw the caller ID on his phone’s screen, his eyes widened at once. He let out a gasp at first. The next instant, his lips twitched and twisted into a rueful smile. Well, only that person would dare to call me in the middle of the night. Since it’s him calling, I’d better forget about getting even with him for this.

After all, I can’t beat him, nor do I have the nerve to do so! Also, I was wondering why my girlfriend would transform into President Fuller all of a sudden.

Turns out that President Fuller really is calling me, he thought to himself in helplessness while holding his phone to his ear. Despite cursing inwardly, he appeared and sounded as zealous as he could. “President Fuller, what makes you call me all of a sudden at this time of night?”

“What were you doing? What took you so long to answer my phone call?” Toby asked in displeasure with a frown.

Tom rolled his eyes while cursing even more severely in his mind. At this very moment, he could no longer put on a zealous front, and even his voice took on a note of sarcasm. “President Fuller, it’s 4:00 AM right now. I was sleeping, of course.”

Speechless, Toby fell silent. Not even he could blame Tom for not answering his phone call in the middle of the night. After all, not only did Tom state explicitly that he had been sleeping, but he even made a point of emphasizing what time it was.

However much he wanted to, he couldn’t ignore these against his conscience. At the thought of this, a hint of embarrassment flashed across his eyes, and he hemmed with his hand over his mouth. “Sorry. I didn’t notice it.”

Tom rolled his eyes again. Why doesn’t he take note of the time and go to sleep at this time of night? Doesn’t Miss Reed care about him? he thought to himself, but he dared not say so. Instead, he had to reply with a smile, “It’s okay, President Fuller.

But is there anything that you want to talk to me about?” If you’ve got something to talk to me about, just hurry up and spill it. If not, then you’d better hang up. I’m sleepy!

Toby seemed to perceive the hidden meaning behind Tom’s words. Pursing his thin lips, he asked, “What exactly does the email you sent mean? What do you mean by ‘it’s not confirmed, but something might have happened to Paradigm Co.’?”

Upon hearing his question, Tom pushed his glasses and put on a grave expression. “Well, President Fuller, the person who stayed in Paradigm Co. asked about it. Something was wrong with the behavior of Miss Reed’s other secretaries and assistants this afternoon. They seemed very anxious, and they even went to her directly. But after meeting with Miss Reed and leaving her office, they resumed their usual demeanor, which was why I stated in my email that something might have happened to Paradigm Co. Still, I’m not sure if something happened because it was difficult to confirm this from the response of these secretaries and assistants. It seems like something happened but was resolved.”

Toby’s taut expression eased a little when he heard Tom say so. Sonia’s secretaries and assistants had been nervous and anxious at first, but they recovered themselves in the end. Indeed, it seemed like something had happened but was solved soon afterward. And besides, he hadn’t noticed anything wrong with Sonia’s expression since meeting up with her this afternoon.

Seems like it’s really just as Sonia said during the day. Asher was making trouble, but she probably stamped it out, he thought. Still, he asked anxiously, “Did you find out what made those secretaries and assistants so anxious?”

Tom shook his head. “No, we didn’t. That person asked about it, but those secretaries and assistants kept mum about it. Miss Reed probably had told them to keep it a secret, so that person couldn’t continue asking about it. Otherwise, she’d find out that we were keeping a close eye on her anytime. She’d definitely put up a fuss with you over this.”

The instant he said so, Toby’s expression immediately froze. He replied, “I got it. Since you didn’t find out about it, then never mind. It probably wasn’t anything serious. Well, just go on with your sleep.” With that, he hung up right away.

Looking at his phone that had returned to the home screen, Tom smiled smugly. I just knew that President Fuller would definitely stop babbling once I mentioned Miss Reed.

At last, I can continue sleeping, he thought with a sigh of relief. He tossed his cell phone and glasses next to his pillow before falling back into bed to continue dreaming about his girlfriend. He only hoped that his sweet dream wouldn’t turn into a nightmare again this time.

 

Chapter 930 An Early Morning Prank

I’m still too young to handle such scares, after all! thought Tom. Meanwhile, Toby didn’t stay in the living room after hanging up the phone. Instead, he put his phone away, stood up, and went back to his room.

Sonia was still sleeping soundly in the room while looking beautiful and serene. Toby stood by the bed and stared at her face for a long time. In the end, he bent down and caressed her somewhat rosy cheek. Only then did he throw back the covers, get into bed, take her into his arms, and close his eyes.

Sonia had a good night’s sleep. By the time she woke up, it was already 8:00 AM. As soon as she opened her eyes, she felt something wrapping around her waist tightly, as if for fear that she might run away. Consequently, she rubbed her eyes and turned her head to take a look.

Seeing the man who was still soundly asleep next to her, she looked somewhat surprised. This guy usually gets up and leaves home early in the morning, so I usually don’t get to see him after I wake up. I never thought he’d wake up later than I do today. Could he have also been tired out last night?

At the thought of this possibility, she finally felt somewhat better. Whenever she and Toby finished making out, she was always so dog-tired that she didn’t want to move and couldn’t get out of bed the next day, whereas Toby was always as fresh as a daisy.

Even if they made out all night without getting a wink of sleep, he would be as full of vigor as usual the next day without showing the slightest hint of fatigue. At last, I get to see him being unable to wake up today. Well, it lets me know that he’s not made of steel. He’s not always full of energy, and it’s not like he’ll never get tired.

The more she thought about it, the happier she got. As she looked at Toby’s closed eyes and quiet sleeping face, her eyes flickered with a hint of mischief. The next instant, she quietly lifted the covers and grabbed his wrist, moving his hand bit by bit away from her waist.

Fearing that she might wake him while doing so, she looked back from time to time at the man who was lying on his side with his face to her. Seeing that her actions didn’t wake him, she finally put her mind at rest and continued moving his hand away. It wasn’t until she placed his hand back onto him that she let out a sigh of relief with her heart back in place.

“Phew…” She wiped the thin sheen of sweat off her forehead. Only now do I know it is so tiring to do something furtively. After shaking her head, she stopped thinking about it and slowly propped herself up to a sitting position on bed. Then, she turned to open the bedside table’s drawer, remembering that it contained a lipstick that she had bought a few days ago.

While she was searching for the lipstick, the man behind her slowly and suddenly opened his eyes and stared at her bare, fair, and tender back with dark eyes.

As she leaned forward, her back twisted into a beautiful S-shape, causing her shoulder blades to protrude slightly in two beautiful arcs as if she were about to grow a pair of pure white wings.

No one could resist the urge to touch her back at the sight of this.

Toby’s large hand clutched the bed sheet underneath the quilt, and his thin lips quivered slightly. However, as soon as Sonia straightened her back slightly, he immediately closed his eyes, and his hand and lips stopped moving. He got back to what he had looked like before opening his eyes as though nothing had happened.

Sonia didn’t know what the man behind her had done while she was searching for the lipstick. She found her lipstick and held it before her eyes to take a look. Then, with a mischievous grin, she uncapped the lipstick and rolled it up.

After doing all of this, she took a deep breath. Then, holding her breath slightly, she quietly turned around and looked guiltily at the man who was still “soundly asleep.” Then, with a mischievous smile, she stretched the lipstick toward his lips and painted them bit by bit with a bright color.

The lipstick she had bought was a pure, bright red, which was very beautiful and eye-catching. Toby’s lips had always been relatively light-colored. Now that they were painted red, not only did it not make him look funny in the slightest, but it even lent him a seductive charm. That was right; he looked seductive.

If Toby looked like an aloof and arrogant martial arts grandmaster or the most revered god in the celestial realm before wearing the lipstick, he would look like the leader of a demonic cult who loved to dress in bright red and could be both good and evil as described in novels with the lipstick on, or rather he would give the impression of a demon who was seductive but not feminine. If he were to really dress in a red ancient costume, he would really look like a demon who came from hell.

Seeing how Toby looked totally different from usual, Sonia had her breath taken away. She felt that her heart was beating faster. At first, she had just wanted to play a prank on him by putting lipstick on him to make him look funnier. To her surprise, however, not only did she fail to accomplish her goal, but she discovered the devilishly charming side of him.

Having gotten used to his usual appearance, she found herself even more attracted to him after seeing him in a totally different style. In an instant, she stared at him in a daze while holding her lipstick. As a result, she didn’t notice that the man had slowly opened his eyes.

“Do I look good?” The man’s thin lips parted slightly as he spoke in a voice that was languid and husky with sleep. Coupled with his devilishly charming “makeup,” it made him look even more like a charming and unpredictable demon.

Coming to her senses with a start, Sonia subconsciously replied with a nod, “Yeah, you do.” After that, she finally realized what the man had asked. Her heart skipped a beat, and she forced a strained smile on her face. “Uh… Do you know this?”

Toby raised his eyes without giving a definite answer.

Seeing his response, Sonia felt even guiltier. Not daring to look at him, she turned her eyes away. “So you actually woke up long ago?”

Toby nodded again. “Of course. Otherwise, how would I know that my Little Leaf had such a naughty side as to play pranks on me?” he said as his eyes fell on the lipstick in her hand.

Sonia followed his gaze and saw the lipstick. Uh-oh. He saw the material evidence, she thought to herself. Feeling guilty, she waved the lipstick in her hands and asked with a placating smile, “Well, uh… Would you believe it if I were to tell you that I want to wear makeup?”

Toby merely looked at her quietly without answering her.

Sonia could no longer continue to make excuses under his stare. Knowing that she was in the wrong, she lowered her head and smiled embarrassedly at him. “Alright, I was wrong. I admit that I played a prank on you, but…” She glared at him.

“Since you’ve woken up long ago, why didn’t you stop me or expose me? Why did you let me finish it instead? Were you waiting for me to finish doing it so that you could catch me in the act and give me a hard time?”

Seeing how the woman apologized for her actions one minute before leveling accusations at him and even questioning him the next, Toby was amused. After shaking his head in resignation, he got up slightly. Propping his head in his hand, he looked at her and replied, “I didn’t intend to do so.

I didn’t expose or stop you because I’m indulging you. Since you wanted to play, I’d play with you, of course. It’s rare to see such a vivacious side of you, so how could I have the heart to cut it short?”

Sonia’s red lips parted slightly as she had surprise written all over her face. Obviously, she wasn’t expecting such a reason for his actions. Putting the lipstick back on the nightstand, she replied with embarrassment, “You made me feel ashamed of my childish behavior by doing so.”