Chapter 87: My brain would never betray me

[Bakery]

"Madam, did the chairman of Pretine Group request any additions to the menu for the charity event?" Silvia asked.

Halfway through her sentence, she noticed Clara staring intently at her own fingers.

Silvia frowned.

She had no idea why her boss was admiring her hands as though they were a priceless work of art.

"...Madam?"

No response.

"Madam?" Silvia waved a hand in front of her face.

Clara blinked and finally snapped out of her thoughts.

"Huh?"

Silvia let out a relieved sigh. "Good. You’re still here."

Clara frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"It means you haven’t drifted off to plan another unpredictable adventure."

Satisfied with her conclusion, Silvia looked back down at the notepad in her hand.

Clara pouted. She felt like no one took her seriously anymore. All she had been doing was making sure her hands had finally recovered.

After all the courage she had gathered the previous night, she had somehow woken up with arms that refused to cooperate. It had taken hours before they finally stopped trembling.

Naturally, she wanted to make sure they weren’t about to betray her again.

Yet Silvia wasn’t even remotely concerned.

"Silvia," Clara complained dramatically, "how can you be so heartless? Do you really think I’m always plotting ways to make everyone’s lives difficult?"

Silvia didn’t even bother looking up.

"No."

Clara brightened.

"I think your brain just naturally creates chaos without informing you first."

"..."

Clara looked genuinely offended. "My brain would never betray me."

Silvia finally glanced at her.

"Madam, your brain once convinced you that climbing onto the bakery counter was a perfectly reasonable idea."

"...That was for scientific purposes."

"What science?"

"I wanted to know if customers could see the display better from above."

Silvia pinched the bridge of her nose. "Exactly my point."

Before Clara could defend herself again, Silvia tapped her notebook.

"Anyway, you still haven’t answered my question. Did Mr. Adrian ask us to add anything else to the menu?"

Clara’s playful expression slowly faded.

"Silvia..."

"Hm?"

"Do you think we still have the deal?"

Silvia looked up.

"After everything that happened on yesterday’s livestream..." Clara said hesitantly, "...what if Mr. Adrian decides he no longer wants to work with us?"

Her voice carried genuine worry. "What if he thinks we’re too troublesome?"

Silvia stared at her for several seconds. Then she rolled her eyes.

"Madam."

"...Yes?"

"If you don’t want to answer my question, just say so."

Clara blinked. "Why are we suddenly talking about that?"

"Because you’ve spent five minutes creating imaginary problems instead of answering me."

"..."

Silvia closed her notebook with a sigh. "I asked about the menu, and you answered with an entire disaster movie."

Clara awkwardly scratched her cheek. "When you put it that way..."

"I always put it that way."

Silvia shook her head. "I swear, one day your imagination is going to win an award."

Clara smiled sheepishly. "...Do I at least get a trophy?"

Silvia deadpanned. "No."

"You really are heartless."

"I work for you."

"Fair enough."

Silvia didn’t linger any longer, deciding to let her madam sort through her thoughts on her own.

Clara, however, couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling. She wasn’t convinced that the deal was still secure. She knew Adrian wasn’t someone who liked unnecessary attention, and after the bakery had made headlines the previous day, she couldn’t help worrying that he might back out of their partnership.

The more she thought about it, the more anxious she became.

What if my dream of becoming rich ends before it even begins?

***

Meanwhile, inside Heaven International... the executive meeting was in full swing.

Every department head sat upright as Dominic listened to the quarterly reports with his usual calm expression.

Just as the marketing director was about to continue, Dominic’s phone suddenly vibrated on the table.

Everyone instinctively glanced at the screen.

Wifey Calling...

Mark silently closed his eyes. ...Here we go again.

To everyone’s surprise, Dominic answered immediately without the slightest hesitation.

"Clara."

Since his phone was connected to the conference room speaker, Clara’s anxious voice echoed throughout the room.

"Dom!"

"Hmm?"

"I need to ask you something."

Dominic leaned back in his chair. "Go ahead."

"Exactly how powerful is the Sterling family?"

The sudden question left everyone in the meeting room exchanging puzzled looks.

Dominic raised an eyebrow. "Why are you asking?"

Clara hesitated for a second before blurting out,

"Hypothetically... if someone wanted to cancel a business deal with me, could you stop them?"

The entire meeting room fell silent. Every executive slowly turned to look at Dominic.

Mark lowered his head, already knowing where this conversation was headed.

Dominic’s expression softened. "Did something happen?"

Clara sighed dramatically.

"I think my dream of becoming rich is in danger."

"..."

The conference room fell into complete silence.

Every executive looked as though they had just witnessed something impossible.

But what truly left them horrified...

...was the sound that came next.

Dominic laughed.

It wasn’t loud, but it was unmistakable.

A genuine, amused laugh.

The executives nearly dropped the reports in their hands.

The marketing director discreetly pinched himself.

Am I dreaming?

Mark slowly lowered his head and covered his face.

Boss... At least take the phone off speaker. You’re making me lose face along with you.

On the other end of the call, Clara sounded even more confused.

"...Why are you laughing?"

"I’m not," Dominic replied, the smile still evident in his voice.

"You literally laughed."

"I smiled."

"...Dom, smiles don’t make sounds."

A few executives immediately looked at one another.

Did... Did the chairman just get caught lying?

Dominic cleared his throat.

"My mistake."

Mark wanted to disappear.

His boss, the man who could intimidate billionaires with a single glance, was now apologizing because his wife had caught him laughing.

Clara huffed.

"Don’t laugh at my dream of becoming rich."

"I’m not laughing at your dream."

"Then what are you laughing at?"

Dominic’s lips curved even further. "I’m laughing because you’re adorable."

"..."

The room went deathly silent.

Someone quietly dropped a pen.

Another executive stared blankly at the ceiling.

Mark slowly closed his eyes.

It’s over.

The chairman’s reputation has officially died today.