CHAPTER 96: CHAPTER 95: RESIGNATION

Simon Forrester didn’t reply. It was unclear if he was busy and couldn’t respond, or if he simply didn’t want to introduce the other party to Sienna Thornton.

Sienna quickly forgot about it, wandered around taking some photos, and sat for a while at a nearby Western restaurant, eating a little something. Soon it was noon.

When she returned, the design office crew were having lunch in the restaurant. They were all young people, chatting and laughing, creating a light atmosphere.

As Sienna passed by the lounge, Harrison Rowe noticed her and called out, "Lawyer Thornton, have you eaten?"

She stopped and politely replied, "I’ve eaten outside, enjoy your meal."

As she was speaking, she noticed Simon Forrester sitting among the crowd, wearing a refined French white shirt, a charcoal gray plaid suit, and a tungsten gray tie, looking both young and dazzling.

At that moment, he was also looking at her, his deep gaze piercing through the crowd, fixing on her face.

She suppressed her amazement and went upstairs.

After setting an alarm, she took a reassuring nap. When she got up and packed her luggage, a knock on the door sounded just in time.

Standing outside the door was Simon Forrester, one hand holding a phone, the other taking the luggage bag from her hand, walking ahead, seemingly negotiating an important matter on the phone.

Sienna followed behind him tacitly. It wasn’t until they got in the car that Simon finally hung up the call.

Harrison Rowe, sitting in the passenger seat, turned to Simon, pondering, "Mr. Forrester, back when you signed the contract with the ’Hawthorne Group,’ Mr. Jack Hawthorne specifically requested you to be the chief designer for the project."

"Who signed the contract with the ’Hawthorne Group’?"

Harrison whispered, "President Langford."

Simon Forrester frowned, "Whoever signed the contract with them, let them find whoever that is."

Harrison murmured, "If we breach the contract, the penalty fees would also be on SY’s head..."

Sienna understood then. It turned out Logan Lockwood, SY’s Vice President, privately signed a contract with someone, promising without Simon’s consent that Simon would serve as the chief designer. Now, Simon was unwilling and seemed to be considering breaching the contract.

The fact that the other party dared to demand Simon as the chief designer indicated the project had a substantial amount at stake. Breaching the contract would definitely require paying a penalty several times higher than the design fees.

Sienna felt it was a pity for Simon and softly suggested, "Um... don’t be at odds with money! If it’s doable, just do it."

Simon didn’t respond.

Men generally dislike women interfering in their career matters. Yet, Simon didn’t express any displeasure or annoyance at Sienna’s interruption, which Harrison, being perceptive, noticed clearly.

He placed his hopes on Sienna, "Lawyer Thornton, please help persuade Mr. Forrester! His schedule can accommodate it, after all. The inspection in Norport is completed, and the design department will be busy for a while. Mr. Forrester could definitely allocate time for the ’Hawthorne Group’ project."

"Yeah," Sienna agreed, "you do have time, right? Why insist on breaching the contract? Breaching means not only paying penalties but also considering the impact on the company’s reputation, and if they sue, it’s an even bigger hassle."

Simon remained silent. Sienna advised for a while, but seeing he was unmoved, she couldn’t be bothered to argue further.

At the airport, in the departure lounge, Simon went nearby to make a call. From a distance, Sienna noticed he didn’t look too well, seeming quite agitated.

"Lawyer Thornton," Harrison came over and sat in a seat beside her, speaking softly, "Can the project for your inn wait?"

"Hmm?" Sienna was taken aback and asked in return, "What do you mean?"

"Mr. Forrester probably refuses to back down on the ’Hawthorne Group’ project because he wants to leave time for your project."

Harrison’s words clicked for Sienna. She replied, "But how do you know your Mr. Forrester doesn’t simply not want to do the ’Hawthorne’ project?"

"Even if Mr. Langford got the project, Mr. Forrester used to handle it, no matter how reluctantly. But this time he stands firm; I guess it’s because a few days ago he promised to help with your inn project, so that’s why he’s pushing away the ’Hawthorne’ project."

"This..." Sienna hesitated. After all, she finally received Simon’s consent and thought that upon returning, the inn’s design and construction could get underway. Now, with someone cutting in line, who knew how long it would be until her turn.

She didn’t agree with Harrison, only saying she’d discuss it with Simon once back.

The afternoon sun poured in through the tall glass walls of the terminal, Simon standing there, one hand in his pocket, the other holding a phone.

At times, he looked at the planes taking off and landing outside, and sometimes he turned to look toward the lounge.

Sienna faintly sensed he was looking this way, but the backlit angle made it impossible to see his expression, uncertain if he was looking at her or everyone.

The sun outside was a searing orange, enthusiastically enveloping him. He seemed like the brightest star in the universe. Sienna suddenly felt this scene was poetic, so she picked up her phone and snapped her first photo of Simon.

But from this photo, it was unclear who the person in the shot was; you could only vaguely tell it was a tall, long-legged man with an excellent demeanor.

Before the plane took off, Simon finally ended his call but immediately picked up a tablet to look at blueprints.

Sienna sat next to him, hesitated for a moment, and asked, "Why would you rather lose money than take the ’Hawthorne’ project?"

"No time."

"Is it because of the inn?"

Simon didn’t answer, and after some inner struggling, Sienna said, "If it’s not too long, I can wait."

"The ’Hawthorne Group’ plans to develop the first civil airport in The Northeast this time, along with the airport district, all to be developed in one go, not just usual residential and high-end villas, but also the commercial area. If I take this project, it won’t be over in a year or two, and at that time I might have to reside in the Northeast."

Sienna gasped, reacting quickly, "Then it’s better to help me with the inn first, anyway my piece of land is small and won’t delay you long. As for the ’Hawthorne’ matters, you should negotiate with them, if it’s doable, just do it, don’t be at odds with money."

Simon was speechless, seeming like everything he said didn’t hit the point with her?

After a moment’s pause, he said, "Alright, but you must agree to one condition."

"What condition?"

"Resign from ’Vantage.’"

Sienna was surprised, then thought and lightly smiled, "I work at ’Vantage,’ and you helping me design the inn, where’s the conflicting interest?"

Simon raised his eyes, quietly looking into hers, almost as if trying to see into her heart.

After a moment, he looked down at his documents again.

Turning to the next page, he calmly said, "There’s no conflict really. But that’s my only condition, if you can accept, once your leg heals, we’ll head straight to the inn project site. If not, let’s drop this matter."