Luke lived on Cedar Grove Lane, a quiet street just a few minutes away from his old home on Lantern Row.
The house was a beautiful, polished bungalow that the Hales had bought for him.
It wasn’t too big, but it wasn’t small either.
It had two guest rooms and a large master bedroom.
There was a modern kitchen, a cozy living room, a dining area, and even a small room for exercise.
In the back, there was a green lawn and a sparkling swimming pool.
It was a comfortable, rich life.
Luke was now 29.
He was single and lived well because he was roommates with Levi, years ago.
Teyana was 27 now.
She had grown even prettier and spent a lot of time at Luke’s house, sometimes staying over in the guest room.
So, you blew your chances again?” Teyana asked.
She was sitting on the living room couch, looking a bit bored.
“I didn’t blow my chances,” Luke complained.
“She was only interested in my money.”
“How do you know that?” Teyana asked.
“Because the next time we met, all she did was ask what I could buy her.
She wanted to know exactly how much I make working for a Hale company,” Luke said.
“Oh, yeah.
Definitely a gold digger,” Teyana agreed.
She let out a sigh.
“That’s so sad.
You liked her for three months, and she just wanted your wallet.
Sorry, man.”
They both leaned back on the couch and sighed together.
“At least she doesn’t know where you live,” Teyana said, looking at him.
“You didn’t tell her, right?”
Luke’s eyes went wide.
“I did!”
“What?
What if she shows up here—” Teyana started to say, but the doorbell rang.
They both jumped up and stared at each other.
“Go!
Go tell her I’m not home,” Luke whispered, pushing Teyana toward the door.
“Or tell her you’re my new girlfriend!”
“What?
No!
Go handle your own problems like a man,” Teyana hissed.
“News flash, I’m not,” Luke replied.
“Please, Tey.
Just this once.”
She sighed deeply.
“Fine.”
She walked angrily toward the door, with Luke quietly following behind to listen.
Teyana opened the door — and froze.
“Levi?” she said.
“Hey, Tey,” Levi replied with a small smile.
Luke heard the voice and rushed over.
“Levi!!” he shouted and pulled him into a tight hug.
“Come in, come in!” Luke pulled him into the house.
Teyana followed, feeling a bit shy.
“Bro, when did you get back?
You’ve been gone forever!”
“Bro, when did you get back?
You’ve been gone forever.”
“Good to see you’re alright, Luke,” Levi said, smiling.
“Yeah,” Luke said as they sat. New chapters come out on novelping.com first.
“And it’s all thanks to you.”
“I’d like to think otherwise,” Levi replied.
“You earned it.”
“My mom couldn’t believe it,” Luke continued.
“I wrote exams, did interviews, and next thing I knew, I was made manager of the accounting department.
It was insane.”
“That’s amazing,” Levi said.
“What about you, Tey?”
Teyana sat to the side.
She was very quiet.
She hadn’t seen Levi in years.
He looked different now — so much hotter now, sharper, richer, confident.
He was smelling like expensive cologne, dressed well.
Meanwhile, she looked like she had just rolled out of bed.
She looked down at her own clothes, feeling messy because she was just wearing house clothes.
She started fixing her hair as she spoke.
“I got a position in marketing,” she said.
“It’s nice… doing something other than serving.”
“That’s good,” Levi said.
“I’m glad things are working out for both of you.
I owe you both — especially you, Luke.”
“Come on,” Luke said.
“If not for you, we’d probably never have this kind of luck.
But tell me — have you succeeded your father yet?
How’s his health?”
“He’s better,” Levi replied.
“He didn’t need surgery.
The treatments started working, so they just continued with that.”
“Wow,” Luke said.
“That’s great.
But he still has to be careful.
Some illnesses go quiet and then come back.”
Levi smiled briefly.
“You’ve become very caring.
I’ll pass the message.”
“So the succession?” Teyana asked.
“It’s in a few days,” Levi said.
“They’re organizing an event.
Things are very busy.”
“Then you should’ve just texted,” she said.
“You should be resting.”
“I know,” Levi said.
“But I needed to see you both myself.
And I came with an offer.”
Luke raised a brow.
“Here we go with the deals.
What is it this time?”
Levi leaned forward, serious now.
“How would you both like to be part of my reigns team?”
They stared at him.
“Your team… how?” Teyana asked.
“When a new CEO takes over,” Levi explained, “a new team comes with him.
I’ve been asked to select candidates.”
He looked at Teyana.
“Teyana, how would you like to be the HR manager?”
Then Luke.
“And Luke, how would you like to be my acting COO, in place of Alex?”
They froze.
“Levi, I don’t think you can just do that,” Teyana said.
“And what do you mean in place of Alex?” Luke said.
“I can’t replace Alex.”
“You’re not replacing him,” Levi said calmly.
“Alex believes if he stays beside me, people will think he’s the one running things.
So he suggested a secondary COO — someone in front, while he works from the background and work less so he can be with his family.
And he chose you.”
Silence filled the room.
“This is huge,” Teyana said.
“I can’t just wake up HR manager.”
“And with my background,” Luke added, “people will talk.
They’ll dig into our pasts.”
“That’s why you’re perfect for HR, Tey,” Levi said.
“You think fast, and you think with emotion, you care about people.
As for your backgrounds, my media companies are already fixing that.
I just need you to be ready.”
Levi reached into his jacket and slid a Gold Premium Debit Card across the table to them.
“Get ready.
Prepare yourselves.
Attend the event.
A driver will pick you up.”
They stared at the card, then at him.
“Take it as my welcome-back gift,” Levi winked.
They couldn’t speak.
The shock was too much.
Levi laughed.
“Didn’t you two always say we should go out drinking someday?
Let’s do that now.”
“Seriously?” Luke asked.
“With your image?”
“For a short while,” Levi said.
“Let’s make it count.”
“Yes!” Luke jumped up and dragged Teyana toward the rooms so they could change.
An hour later…
They stepped out Luke looked sharp in a dark blue button-down shirt, black jeans, and clean leather boots.
Teyana looked beautiful in a cute, sexy outfit: a silk emerald-green top, a short black skirt, and high-heeled boots.
Both confident and bold.
When they walked outside, they both shouted.
Levi was leaning against a BMW M60i.
It was black, shining under the streetlights, and looked very powerful.
Luke, who loved cars, ran around it, checking out the wheels and the engine.
“No way!
This is insane!”
“Let’s go!” Levi smiled.
He got in the driver’s seat—no driver this time.
They drove to a high-end bar in the city.
It was the kind of place where only the richest people went.
There was live music, soft leather sofas, and personal waiters ready to serve them.
For the first time in a long time, the three friends were back together.