Wynn Shaw stood in the breakroom, holding a freshly brewed coffee, gazing distractedly at the bustling cityscape outside the window.
She had been at the Preston Group for three days on an exchange program, and the pace of work was even faster than she had anticipated.
But a fast pace also made it easier to improve.
Fortunately, Wynn Shaw was a quick learner.
She understood that the main point of her visit was to integrate the key elements of the two companies’ collaboration, which would help her take charge of the Shaw Family’s future projects.
Her colleagues were also very easy to talk to—patient and enthusiastic.
They were so nice that Wynn Shaw suspected they had been specially instructed to be this way.
“Hey, Miss Shaw.”
A voice interrupted her thoughts.
Wynn Shaw turned to see Henry Lynch from the marketing department walking in with a smile.
“Good morning,” she replied politely with a nod.
Henry Lynch was a colleague at the Preston Group who had helped her quite a bit over the past few days.
As Henry Lynch poured water into his cup, he asked in a seemingly casual tone, “I saw you coming out of President Preston’s private office a few days ago?”
Wynn Shaw took a sip of her coffee and nodded.
“That’s impressive,” Henry Lynch said, raising an eyebrow.
“Not just anyone gets to go into President Preston’s private office.
I’ve been working here for two years and I’ve never been inside.”
“I was just delivering some documents,” Wynn Shaw said softly, hoping to drop the subject.
After all, she just wanted to work and learn quietly for now, hoping no one would pay too much attention to her relationship with Vincent Preston.
But Henry Lynch obviously wasn’t going to give up.
“Speaking of which, you and President Preston…
do you two have some kind of relationship?”
Wynn Shaw’s hand paused slightly.
At the same time, she failed to notice a familiar figure stop in his tracks just outside the breakroom—
A man was standing in the hallway, seemingly looking at his phone or waiting for hot water.
“Why do you ask?” she asked, her voice steady.
Henry Lynch lowered his voice, a gossipy smile on his face.
“Everyone’s noticed that President Preston pays special attention to you.
Besides, with his unapproachable personality, why would he let a new exchange trainee into his private office on the very first day?
And he’s had his personal assistant frequently bring you documents and give you guidance.
Everyone’s guessing that you’re…
not single anymore?
Or, to put it another way, your relationship with President Preston isn’t exactly ordinary?”
Wynn Shaw took a deep breath.
The news of her engagement to Vincent Preston was supposed to be officially announced at a family dinner next month.
Saying too much now would only stir up office gossip and affect her work.
“President Preston just knows an elder in my family.
You could say we’re distant relatives, but we’re not close.
He’s just showing respect for that elder, that’s all.”
“Oh, so that’s how it is,” Henry Lynch said, clearly relieved.
He then leaned against the counter with a smile.
“In that case, can I ask you out?
From the first day you got here, I thought you were really—”
A loud BANG cut him off.
Vincent Preston was standing at the breakroom entrance.
No one knew when he had arrived.
His presence silenced everyone in the office; they held their breath, not daring to make a sound.
President Preston, who rarely even came to the company before, was actually here today making the rounds.
Who wouldn’t be scared to death?
Tea pooled on the floor by the man’s feet.
His gaze was as sharp as a knife, his tone all business.
“Don’t you have work to do?
Chatting around in here.” His voice wasn’t loud, but it made the temperature in the breakroom plummet.
Henry Lynch’s face instantly turned pale.
He quickly said:
“I’m sorry, President Preston.
I’ll get back to work right away.”
With that, he practically jogged out of the breakroom, wondering to himself, just like everyone else— ‘Doesn’t President Preston never come to the public breakroom for water?
Besides, he wasn’t even supposed to be here this week.’
Wynn Shaw looked at Vincent Preston in surprise.
When her eyes met his usual cold gaze, she quickly looked away and said nothing, but her thoughts turned to something else:
‘Since Vincent Preston is showing up at the company so often lately, I have to seize this opportunity to work hard and learn as much as I can.
Getting experience from him would be the best.’
Heir to Kaelus’s number one Preston Family, with assets in the hundreds of billions, head of a top-tier corporation, and an investor in numerous cross-industry enterprises—Vincent Preston’s abilities were far beyond what she could imagine.
Finally, the man’s gaze seemed to land on her for a fleeting moment before shifting away after a long pause.
He left with the sound of soft footsteps.
At the end of the workday, Wynn Shaw tidied her desk, grabbed her bag, and walked to the elevator.
Just as she pressed the button, the elevator doors opened to reveal Vincent Preston standing inside.
He stood tall and poised, his posture impeccable.
His face was stern, and beneath his well-defined brows, his long, narrow eyes were cold and devoid of warmth when they looked at people.
Hearing the elevator doors, he didn’t look up, but kept his eyes on his phone.
‘That makes sense,’ she thought.
‘Who would dare to crowd into the same elevator as a boss like him?’
She hesitated for a second, then stepped inside.
“What a coincidence, President Preston,” she said, attempting to start a conversation.
Vincent Preston didn’t even lift his eyelids, as if he hadn’t heard her.
Wynn Shaw felt a little awkward but quickly recovered.
‘He probably just didn’t hear me.’
The elevator descended slowly, the silence in the enclosed space becoming suffocating.
“Regarding the promotional plan for the joint project with the Shaw Family, I think we could incorporate more new media elements that are currently popular in Kaelus…” she tried, steering the conversation to work.
“Mm,” he responded monosyllabically.
From her angle, she couldn’t see his screen, only his well-defined fingers lightly swiping across it and his focused profile.
Wynn Shaw had thought his phone was off.
‘Why does it feel like the screen has been dark this whole time?
Does he have a privacy screen protector?’
Wynn Shaw didn’t give up.
“I remember the Preston Group’s project at last year’s charity gala was very successful.
I was wondering if this exchange program includes anything related to that?”
“Mm.”
‘It’s after work hours.
Maybe he doesn’t want to talk about business.’
So she switched to a few more casual topics, trying to lighten the mood between them.
“Do you usually stay up late?
How late do you typically handle work matters?”
“I heard from Special Assistant Warren that you often have insomnia.
Is it because you’re under too much stress?”
‘It’s best to use this extra opportunity to get more familiar with each other.
Otherwise, married life will be so dull.’
No answer.
Wynn Shaw’s words died in her throat.
She was completely baffled, unable to understand why he was being so cold.
‘Is this just how he treats people?
If so, I guess I’ll never have a chance to get closer to him, even after we’re married.’
DING.
The elevator arrived at the first-floor lobby.
He strode out of the elevator, leaving Wynn Shaw standing there alone, petrified as she watched his retreating back.
‘He must have overheard my conversation with Henry Lynch this morning!’
Just now, as the doors opened, she had heard Vincent Preston’s words loud and clear.
The man’s voice was cold and hard, swiftly drawing a line between them:
“I have no obligation to tell you that much.
We’re just distant relatives, and we’re not close.”
“???”