Attracted By My Ex-wife
Chapter 268 Meeting Ryan

In the exhibition hall.

The exhibition hall, with its gigantic screen, had always been a favorite place among celebrities.

Nicholas stayed off to the side, where there were fewer people. It was here where he quietly had his coffee. He appeared cheerful enough, but the truth was that he was carefully studying his surroundings.

It had been an hour. He had been there since nine o'clock, and the person he had been waiting for had not arrived.

"Mr. Nicholas, won't Ryan be coming?" the assistant asked.

Nicholas only waved his hand slightly. "Just wait. He'll be here."

He thought that he was a good judge of character and he believed that Ryan wouldn't miss the chance to work with him.

"Okay."

At ten-twenty, an attractive man walked toward them. He had a tall figure and a handsome face, but his eyes were mysterious.

Upon entering the room, Ryan slowed down. He looked around and finally spotted Nicholas.

He strode over and asked, "You wanted to see me?"

The confidence in his tone hid his uncertainty. He did not know a lot about Nicholas.

"Yes. Sit down, and let's talk," Nicholas said, waving a hand.

After some hesitation, Ryan took a seat. Nicholas smiled. Everything was going exactly as he had expected.

"May I know who you are? Since you want to work with me, at least tell me your name. Otherwise, I'll have reason to doubt you and your intentions," Ryan said lightly.

He knew from years of experience that the person in front of him was not an ordinary man. Nevertheless, he was not afraid.

"I'm not a celebrity. My name's Nicholas Si. It's nice to meet you." He offered a handshake, but Ryan didn't take it. "I've never heard of your name. Which company do you work for? And what's your goal here?" he asked indifferently. "CY Group," Nicholas responded.

Ryan froze in clear shock.

"How are you related to Kim Li?" he asked once he was able to calm down.

Although CY Group was not that popular, it could not be underestimated.

"I only work for Kim. But now, I want to do something on my own," Nicholas said casually.

Ryan studied him quietly. He knew that what the other man needed doing was not simple.

"Mr. Nicholas, you are a great man, but I'm not interested in what you plan to do." He stood up and turned around.

He realized what Nicholas meant. 'Perhaps Nicholas needs something from me that could help him achieve his goal,' Ryan thought. In terms of planning, CY Group was a company with strange means. It wasn't new to going against business ethics, but it got things done.

At least in his opinion, CY Group didn't do anything wrong, but others disagreed. Even upon the mere mention of the company, there was often a noticeable change in people's faces.

"Wait. I know you're not interested, but Mr. Ryan, I heard that you are involved with the fiancee of AN Group's CEO?" Nicholas casually placed a hand on the table. He had a knowing smile on his lips and a playful look in his eyes.

Ryan turned to face him immediately.

"What are you going to do?" His voice had turned cold. Upon realizing that Nicholas knew about him and Anne, he grew nervous.

The tension was palpable. It seemed that a fight could break out at any second.

Nicholas smiled again. "Mr. Ryan, you're getting ahead of yourself. I won't do anything to harm you, but I think we need at least a chance to have a good talk. What do you think?"

Ryan reluctantly sat back down. He tried to look casual as he studied the other man tentatively.

"Tell me. What are you going to do?"

In the AN Group

The board meeting was on-going. A dozen people surrounded the huge black conference table and listened attentively as Kevin spoke.

Today, he wore a black suit with a matching slim shirt, which only brought out his cold demeanor.

The AC was on full blast and was freezing everyone's fingertips off, but this was nothing compared to how cold Kevin made them feel.

"What do you think?" he asked somberly.

He hadn't been around lately, and for everyone, that was a source of relief. However, nobody expected him to suddenly turn up and hold the board meeting.

"We all support you," said a man who had been working for the company for many years.

The past few years had shown how gifted Kevin was at his job. A few years prior, the company had gone through a few setbacks. Now, with Kevin taking charge, the company had recovered. Its profits had gone up. Everyone benefited from it and had forgotten how much they had suffered before.

"Really, Tom? This is the answer you're giving me?" Kevin lashed out at the man.

All of a sudden, the room grew even colder. No one dared to speak.

In the company, Tom Zhang had seniority over Kevin. Additionally, given their age difference, Kevin should be calling him Uncle Tom.

The older man felt embarrassed upon being addressed this way.

Kevin had shown him great disrespect by doing this, but at the moment, Tom Zhang did not dare to speak.

"I'll go over this and think of a better plan," he said with his head down.

None of the others present dared to speak up for him. They were afraid of getting involved.

"I think everyone has been too lax recently. How about I send you abroad so you could see how busy they are over there?" Kevin had raised his voice, and his expression had become much colder. "The plan is ready. We will be actively carrying it out. If any problem comes up, we shall revisit this." In the end, it was Sam who put everyone's minds at ease.

His mother was supposed to facilitate this meeting, but she had not been feeling well. She had recently transferred her shares to him, and he didn't have the heart to make his mother suffer. "That's all for today. Meeting adjourned." Kevin's voice remained cold.

It was like the group could breathe again. In two minutes, everyone except for Sam had cleared the room.

"You were ferocious today. Look, you scared everyone," Sam said after the people had left.

Kevin snorted.

"I think everything has been too good. When it's time to reap the profits, they all show up. When something bad happens, they all hide and refuse to work," he said in a depressed voice.

"The truth is, you can just buy all those shares back. Not having to manage these people will save you a lot of trouble," Sam explained.

Kevin frowned. "You think I don't want to? The problem is, my grandfather is too soft. He cares about all the shareholders to an appalling degree. If I disregard their feelings and take their shares back, I'm afraid it'll enrage him. Anyway, AN Company won't care about such a small amount of money. Just let them be. The most important shares are still ours, so I don't have to worry too much."

Sam smiled upon hearing this. "No wonder you're the richest and most intimidating president. What you said scared me."

Kevin could feel Sam making fun of him. "Get out!" he barked at him.

"By the way, have you found out who that man was?" Sam asked out of the blue. Whenever he thought about Anne, he could not help but bring her up somehow.

At times, this made Kevin feel jealous. In a way, he had gotten used to it. The logical part of him knew that it was just Sam's concern as a doctor.

"All I know is that he's just gotten back from overseas," Kevin said as he rubbed his forehead.

"Then what else have you accomplished after looking into this? I already knew that about him since the day of the accident.

Aren't there any new developments?" asked Sam.

"No," Kevin answered abruptly.

He looked out of the window as he thought about how to solve the problem.

"I'm going back. You stay here until you get off work." With that, he walked out of the meeting room.

Sam watched him as he walked away. 'He always leaves so quickly that I never get the chance to refuse,'

he thought, feeling a little helpless.

In the East Mountain Villa

The sun was setting. Its rays peaked through the thick green forest. Soon, it would be dark.

When Kevin got back, he didn't see Anne.

"Did Anne go out? Haven't I told you that she's frightened and that she can't be wandering around for some time?" His voice was so cold that the servant trembled. "We don't know. She was here just now. We didn't see her go out." The servant tried to lower her voice for fear that he would get mad.

Kevin immediately combed through the entire villa looking for her. Finally, he found her on the second-floor balcony.

"Anne, wake up," he said, nudging her gently. The tension in his face disappeared when he spotted her.

"What's wrong?" she asked as she looked up at him.

"Don't sleep here. The sun is about to set, and it's getting cold. Go get some rest in the bedroom. You'll sleep better there," he said.

"I'm fine right here," said Anne calmly.

All of a sudden, Kevin bent down and picked her up. Her eyes widened, and she let out a scream.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

"I'm carrying you to bed," he said indifferently. Without another word, he headed to the bedroom with her in his arms.

When they got to the bedroom, he gently set her down on the beige sheets. Instinctively, she sat up, but she was taken aback when he kissed her. Her whole body grew stiff.

Fortunately, the kiss did not last long. After a few deep breaths, Anne said unhappily, "That was too far."

How could he go in for a kiss just like that? For a moment, she had been so scared that she didn't know how to respond.

"Oh, was it? I just wanted to get you back for hiding out on the balcony. What if it comes to a point where we can't replace you?" Kevin said worriedly.

"You know I'll be back when I wake up." Anne lowered her voice as she tried to defend herself.

He grew furious. "What if you catch a cold?"

"It's not that easy to catch a cold. You think too much," she said helplessly.

Eddy's voice broke through the silence that followed, and Anne's face brightened. "It's Eddy. I'll go to check him."00