Chapter 11

"She's…" Simon was thinking of a way to introduce her.

"President Zachary, you’ve forgotten to bring your female partner in with you," said Sharon, who was being halted, in a somewhat grievant tone.

Simon raised his brows. 'Female partner?'

"Let her in," said Douglas.

Douglas' slightly dull yet sharp gaze began to examine Sharon. He had never seen a lady once appear beside his son for many years. 'Could it be that this girl is special?'

Sharon was delighted when she got the green light. She smiled and walked into the scene with her head held high.

"Nice to meet you, Director Zachary,” she greeted him politely. Douglas merely kept eyeing her with a sharp gaze. This made her nervous.

She averted her own eyes and noticed that Simon's cold eyes were staring at her. Her heart began thumping quickly, and she evaded his gaze. She dared not meet his eyes.

'Perhaps he's mad?'

"Simon, is she your partner?" Douglas' looked at his son suspiciously. The latter was rather silent.

Simon kept his eyes on Sharon, but he did not say a word. The silent atmosphere became extraordinarily tense.

Sharon could feel her heart beginning to beat erratically. She felt a tingling sensation on her scalp as she was being stared at by him. She started thinking to herself, 'What if he denies it? Should I ignore everything and rush straight into the hotel?

'No, if I rush straight in, I'll be chased out in no time as someone who has come to cause havoc.

'Then… my only choice is to be with Simon. I must be his partner!'

She summoned up her courage and hooked arms with Simon before smiling. "Call me Sharon. President Zachary said he’d make me his partner for tonight." Her heart was beating hard. She could not imagine herself having the guts to spout such words to Douglas.

When Sharon finished speaking, she raised her gaze to meet Simon's pitch black and deep eyes. She felt extremely guilty.

She was not confident. Additionally, shame would not be the only thing she felt if he ended up shoving her away.

Simon squinted his black eyes as if she had piqued his interest. He continued to stare at the lady's face that showed a bright smile like a blossoming flower. 'What is she up to?'

At that moment, Howard came out to greet the attendees. He immediately walked over when he saw them.

"You've arrived, grandpa," he spoke while looking at his uncle and grandpa at the same time. Suddenly, he saw the lady beside his uncle, Sharon Jeans!

Howard's pupils shrunk. 'Sharon?'

He stared at her hands that were holding his uncle. 'What a b*tch. Since when did she seduce my uncle?'

"Uncle, what is she doing here?" Howard glanced at Sharon coldly.

Douglas spoke up first, puzzled, "What's wrong? Do you happen to know your uncle's partner as well?"

"Partner?" Howard raised his tone. 'Why would uncle take her as his partner?'

'It has to be Sharon, this shameless lady. She used some underhanded method to spellbind my uncle!'

"Young Master Zachary, I heard that tonight’s banquet is for your wedding anniversary. I came to congratulate you." Sharon wore a smile on her face, but her eyes were gleaming coldly.

Her mind kept rewinding the words Doctor Collins had said. 'It was Young Master Zachary who gave me the order to stop your father's medical treatment!'

The grip of her hands that were holding Simon tightened without her even realizing it. Her eyes were no longer able to suppress the anger that was dwelling within her.

Simon sensed a change in her. He lowered his head and saw the exasperated look on her face. He could not help but feel curious by this. 'Why do I keep thinking that she doesn’t just hate my nephew?'

"Huh… then thanks a lot!" Howard said through gritted teeth.

"Can we enter the place now?" Sharon quickly retrieved her anger. She smirked and stayed still beside Simon as she looked right into Howard's gaze.

Howard clenched his fists. 'I can't allow anything foolish thing to happen on this occasion. Not to mention, especially in front of grandpa.'

He suppressed the anger within him and evaded her gaze. He spun around and said to Douglas, "Grandpa, I'll escort you inside."

Sharon let out a sigh of relief as she watched them enter the hotel. Fortunately, Douglas did not suspect her.

However, Simon did not stop staring at her. Thus, she forced herself to continue smiling at him. "President Zachary, aren't we going to enter as well?"

Simon squinted his eyes, inched nearer to her ear, and then asked with his deep voice, "What are you plotting, huh?"

Things had come to this point; she could not back off. She could only bet on it. Therefore, she blinked her eyes and looked at him. "To be honest, I'm your nephew's ex-girlfriend. Today, I'm sincerely here to congratulate him."

He looked at her with sharp eyes. She felt as if her heart was being clenched. 'I guess he won't believe what I say?'

Just when Sharon thought he was going to summon security guards to have her dragged out the next second, his long fingers grabbed her by the chin. Then, his deep eyes met hers, and it was as if he was able to see through her mind.

"That's all?" The man playfully pursed his lips.

At that split second, Sharon felt like he was trying to suck her soul out of her. Fortunately, she managed to control herself.

She suppressed the guiltiness within her and smiled at him. "That's all to it."

The man stared at her for a few seconds only to reply in a non-hurried manner, "Then I hope you'll do your best as my partner tonight."

"Of course," she replied immediately.

Simon's eyes began to gleam with a sense of thrill. He knew that she was lying, but he also wanted to know what was she up to.

Hence, he permitted her to hold his hand and brought her into the scene.

Sharon silently let out a sigh of relief. 'No matter what's going through his mind, at the very least, I’ve been allowed to enter.'

The party ballroom was luxurious. Many well-mannered guests had come to congratulate them.

"Take it slow, dad," Fiona Lionel said to Douglas as she took a few steps toward him.

Then, she looked at her son, "Howard, you should go have a look at Sally. She's pregnant now and needs someone beside her."

"Grandpa." Sally showed up by herself. She was wearing a prestigious gown that gave off the aura of a noble person.

"You came as well, uncle?" Sally noticed the handsome man enter the scene behind them.

However, the next instance, when she saw the lady beside Simon, the smile on her face immediately faded. 'That is… Sharon Jeans?!'