CHAPTER 34: CHAPTER 34: PRIYA’S PLAN TO ENSARE ALEX

Priya ran to catch up with Alex her high heels tapping on the pavement making tap tap sounds.

She had just asked the front desk casually while checking out what the tonight bill was.

The figure almost made her pass out.

Oh my god!

This dinner alone is of $100,000!

And add two bottles of wine that the general manager of the Emerald Villa has gifted to Alex and it came up to almost $120,000!

One night’s dinner...so expensive that staggering figure was almost Raju’s pocket money for the entire year.

With such a difference in status, why should she even care for Raju?

Priya’s brain gears began working on full throttle mode with plans.

"Alex, how have you been lately?" she called, hurrying on her feet until she stood beside him.

Before Alex could respond, she turned her smile on Riya.

"This is your friend? She’s so beautiful!"

Her outer words were sweet, but inside, her heart were curled up with jealousy.

Just a moment before at the reunion party, Alex had introduced Riya as just a friend to others.

Priya noticing this as already guessed that Riya and Alex is not in the relationship yet.

Not a girlfriend.

That point burned in Priya’s brain like a signal flare.

Did that mean... there was still chance for her to catch Alex attention?

She looked at Riya intently. Yes, Riya was certainly beautiful her dress, her figure, her presence, all superior compared to her.

But Priya was not the one to back down without a fight.

If she persisted a little harder, if she was with him constantly, Alex would eventually fall for her.

Men were simple beasts after all, weren’t they?

In Priya’s opinion, all men used their lower bodies to think.

Even Alex is not a exception either.

Her lips curled in a sure smile as the scheme took shape in her mind.

"Hehehe!"

"You guess?"

Riya appeared abruptly in front of Alex, her innocent smile blinding the boys around them.

The beauty of her confidence made some of them gawk brazenly, their hearts pounding.

Heh so shameless ...

Priya’s superficial kindness was clear to her. Riya’s sixth sense cried out that Priya wasn’t coming over to Alex because of old friendship, but because of ulterior motives.

Alex caught Riya’s small action and smiled weakly but did not say anything.

He did not care for Priya, the so-called class beauty from years ago.

Best to keep silent than to invite unnecessary drama.

Men don’t meddle with fights between women.

"Haha, look at Priya, so shameless she chases whoever has money!"

"Yeah! She sat with Raju when she believed he was wealthy. Now she’s attempting to hold on to Alex, the actual boss."

"Shh, quiet down! If she notices you, there’ll be a scene!"

A group of classmates hushed in close proximity, their eyes snapping toward Priya with thinly disguised disdain.

Once the class’s innocent flower, envied by so many, she was now simply a shallow opportunist in their perception.

Priya overheard snippets of their conversation. Her face flushed with shame, she struggled to play dumb.

But..

Back down now? Out of the question.

The wider the distance between her and Alex, the more she craved him.

"Alex," she said, forcing her voice into a softer, sweeter pitch, "are you busy tomorrow? I’d love to take you out to dinner."

For a moment, there was silence. People around him were looking at him, waiting for Alex’s response.

Alex nodded his head slowly, his face relaxed.

"I’m afraid not. Been keeping busy recently," he replied nonchalantly. "I still have my security job, anyway."

His denial was firm.

Priya’s smile of hope froze on her face, the sparkle in her eyes wavering.

His denial sliced through her dreams, rendering her speechless for a moment.

It wasn’t an excuse. Alex actually was very busy.

His Security Guard work wasn’t merely employment it was the fuel for his time-travel system.

Eight hours on the job every eight meant eight additional hours he could spend in Ironhold. Add to that, he still had to purchase a Ninja UVA drone to find the Mangshan bandits’ camps.

He has set his priorities clear, his concentration unwavering despite any form allure.

Nothing can stop him from doing his job. Not even Priya

She was no longer the lovely college beauty that he had once known. Her desire was clear now she has become snobbish, manipulative, not for love but for money.

Alex saw right through it, and he was not going to risk distraction for a shallow charm.

Silence descended over the group like a storm.

"..."

Eyes flashed from Alex to Priya, and back again. Was this actually happening?

There was also Raju, still nursing the wounds of his previous humiliation, he could hardly believe his ears.

His mind reeled, ego crumbling under the onslaught of reality.

No way. No way!

Alex has a worth of hundreds of millions. He had just drank a wine costing $20,000 a bottle!

And yet he was still employed as a security guard?!

Was being a security guard is secretly the easiest path to wealth?

Or were billionaires really this low-key now?

The classmates started whispering to each other, their shock humming like a bee swarm.

Raju’s heart plunged with each sentence. His hard-won pride, his Porsche, his bragging everything had come crashing down in a moment because of Alex’s effortless dominance.

In front of Alex, he wasn’t even worth cleaning his shoes.

—————————

After leaving Emerald Villa, Alex and Riya didn’t linger with the shocked classmates.

The night air felt lighter once they were gone.

They headed straight to Palladium Mall.

Compared to the suffocating vanity at the reunion, the mall felt alive bright lights, polished floors, shopfronts glowing with new collections.

Though they’d met and dated before, Alex suddenly realized... they hadn’t actually introduced themselves properly.

Alex saw this as a opportunity to properly get to know each other.

The two wandered through the mall, talking and laughing.....