Chapter 275: Three Women, One Play
Seeing his blushing face, Anne chuckled mischievously.
She wrapped her arms around his waist, her hand sliding down to give his firm butt a pat. "Don’t worry, I promise I won’t say a word."
’How could she possibly bring something like that up at a party?’
’She might be shameless, but Evan Ford still had his dignity!’
After preparing the ingredients, Anne took the hot pot out of the cabinet and put the soup base in ahead of time.
She sent Evan Ford downstairs to buy drinks.
Evan Ford had expensive taste. He went out and came back carrying a case of red wine.
She had never tried drinking red wine while eating hot pot before.
"Sophie likes beer with her hot pot."
Evan Ford put the red wine in a corner of the kitchen and thought for a moment. "Then I’ll go downstairs and get a case of beer."
"I’ll go with you."
She linked her arm through Evan Ford’s and went downstairs with him.
As they were carrying a case of beer out of the supermarket at the entrance to the complex, two cars drove in one after the other. Evan Ford immediately recognized the red supercar as Alaric Blackwood’s.
"He sure is quick when it comes to freeloading a meal," he teased.
Anne laughed, pointing at the car behind the red supercar. "That’s Midas’s car. I recognize it."
Evan Ford raised an eyebrow. "Why do you always call Nina Halloway ’Midas’?"
"Because she’s my goddess of wealth!"
Before, when she was working on film sets, she catered to unknown extras. She worked herself to the bone every day for just a few bucks. If Nina Halloway hadn’t taken a liking to her and taken her under her wing, who knows when her life would have ever improved. As for the large, single-floor apartment she lived in now, that was something she never would have dared to dream of.
On top of that, her younger brother was now Nina Halloway’s boyfriend. She truly felt that Nina was their family’s benefactor, single-handedly lifting the two of them to new heights.
She pulled Evan Ford along, quickening their pace as they reached the entrance of the apartment building.
The two luxury cars had just found parking spots.
Alaric Blackwood got out of his supercar and gestured with his chin toward Evan Ford, who was carrying the beer. "Need a hand?"
Evan Ford shot him a look. "No."
Alaric smirked, strode over to the passenger side, opened the door, and led Sophie Shaw out of the car.
From the other car not far away, Nina Halloway was whining that she didn’t want to walk, so Ethan Austin had to carry her out.
She was wearing a fluffy white coat, her long hair flowing. Languid and pampered like a white cat, she was draped softly over Ethan Austin’s shoulder.
"What a delicate little princess. She even has her own human-powered ride."
Alaric Blackwood made a sarcastic remark. ’At least his sister was tormenting someone else now instead of him,’ he thought. ’That’s good too.’
’Jaden could never handle a sister as pampered as her. Only someone with Ethan Austin’s good temper would do whatever she asked and unconditionally spoil her.’
The group squeezed into the elevator.
A couple of snores broke the silence. Everyone stared at each other, and their gazes finally landed on Nina Halloway, confirming she was the source.
Ethan Austin awkwardly patted Nina Halloway’s leg. The woman grunted, tightened her arms around his neck, and buried her face in the crook of his neck to continue her rendezvous with the Sandman.
’It was his fault for wearing her out so thoroughly before they left.’
’She had been clamoring about not wanting to move or come out, but he was the one who insisted on bringing her. And this was the result.’
"Sorry about that. Nina had a bit of a big workout today and is tired out," he offered, giving a seemingly reasonable explanation.
Standing next to him, the sharp-eyed Anne spotted a hickey on Nina Halloway’s neck and immediately understood what was going on.
She nudged Ethan Austin’s arm with her elbow and gave him a knowing look.
He cleared his throat and asked, feigning seriousness, "Sis, is anyone else coming? Or is it just us?"
"No one else."
"And Mr. Ford is...?"
"Let me introduce you. This is your brother-in-law."
Ethan Austin’s eyes widened. "What?"
’How could this be so sudden!’
Evan Ford nodded at him with a polite smile. "Hello, brother-in-law."
"..."
Ethan Austin was a little peeved. He sized up Evan Ford, then heard Alaric Blackwood snort. He turned to him. "What are you laughing at? I have a brother-in-law, and so do you."
The smile on Alaric Blackwood’s face froze.
"Speaking of which, among all of us, Alaric’s seniority has just dropped to the lowest," Evan Ford said, deliberately picking a topic Alaric wouldn’t want to hear.
Alaric Blackwood sighed, a look of utter despair on his face. He turned and hugged his wife, burying his handsome face in Sophie Shaw’s shoulder and lamenting, "This is all your fault. I was clearly the most senior, and now I’m the lowest."
Sophie Shaw scratched her head. "How is this my fault? I’m not the one who gave you an older sister."
Alaric Blackwood was left speechless.
The elevator reached their floor, and they all filed out.
Anne ran ahead to open the door.
After ushering her guests inside, she busied herself with putting the hot pot on the dining table, along with the side dishes and meat for dipping.
The six of them fit perfectly around the table and began to eat in a lively atmosphere.
Nina Halloway had been dazed with sleep, but the fragrant aroma woke her up. She picked up her chopsticks and began to eat heartily.
"Nina, weren’t you planning to open a studio?" Sophie Shaw asked.
Nina Halloway nodded. "We’ll see after the New Year."
’She wanted to rest a while longer and put on some weight.’
"If you open a studio, count me in."
Hearing that Sophie Shaw wanted to join, Anne raised her hand, wanting to join as well. But then she remembered she’d bought shares in Heart of the Ocean and was tight on cash, without much to her name, so she reluctantly lowered her hand.
"Anne, you want to invest too?" Nina Halloway asked.
Anne said honestly, "I do, but I don’t have the money."
"You can invest when you have the money."
Nina Halloway said while eating, "Since you’re all so optimistic about my studio, why don’t we go big and just open a talent agency?"
’She considered her current age. In a few more years, she would likely retire from the industry.’
’In the entertainment world, there were very few roles for female stars over thirty. The industry was extremely unfriendly to older women. Rather than wait until she had no roles left to film, she might as well cultivate a new generation of artists and become a boss herself.’
Sophie Shaw and Anne exchanged a look, thought about it, and both nodded.
"Then it’s settled."
Nina Halloway put down her chopsticks and picked up her wine glass. "Come on, a toast to our careers as women."
Sophie Shaw and Anne quickly raised their glasses and clinked them with Midas’s.
The three women suddenly launched into a discussion about their future career plans, leaving the three men unable to get a word in, just staring at each other blankly.
"Sophie, how’s your company doing lately?"
"I’m planning to invest,"
Nina Halloway said magnanimously.
Sophie Shaw nodded furiously. "Very well, everything’s normal."
"Then I’ll transfer you a hundred million to start."
Sophie Shaw’s eyes widened. "A hundred million?"
’That’s so much!’
Nina Halloway nodded with a straight face. "Is that too little?"
"No."
"Don’t tell me a hundred million will make me the largest shareholder in Heart of the Ocean, will it?"
"..."
Sophie Shaw didn’t say anything, but that was indeed the case.
Alaric Blackwood had previously said he would invest in her company, but there had been no movement from him yet.
She immediately turned on Alaric Blackwood, shooting him a sidelong glance. "Didn’t you say you were going to support my career?"
"I will, I absolutely must support my wife’s career."
"Then may I ask, Mr. Blackwood, where is your investment? How come I haven’t seen a single dime of it yet?"