"Oh, and didn''t the family discover several new mineral deposits recently? Send me the assessment reports for the gold, diamond, and jade mines. I''ll pick a few to give to Star to y with."


    Pick a few mines to give Star to y with?


    Harold couldn''t believe what he was hearing. Other men gave their sweethearts gold, diamonds, and jade. Joshua was giving her the entire mine.


    He truly was the man who had it all. No wonder Joshua couldn''t be bothered with the so-called treasures at auctions. He had the source, cutting out the middleman entirely.


    "Also," Joshua added, as if another thought had just urred to him, "give Star the casino in Yorston as seed money for her projects. Her business is just starting out, and she''ll need a lot of capital. Pick out a few other prime properties to give her as well. She rarelyes to Aetheria, so her wee gift can''t be shabby."


    Harold was practically numb. Right. Ste rarelyes to Aetheria, so of course, Joshua wants to give her his entire fortune. Of course, for Joshua, these gifts were trivial. But it wasn''t wise to give Ste too much at this stage, lest it attract the attention of the other Gardners and bring disaster upon her.


    Still, Joshua was clearly willing to move heaven and earth for Ste.


    ...


    The next day, Ste and Joshua went to visit a private ind.


    Ste once again witnessed the staggering wealth of the Gardner family. They controlled nearly eighty percent of the industries in Aetheria, so almost every ce they visited was owned by the Gardner Group.


    Ste couldn''t help but feel that the service staff were almost excessively enthusiastic toward her. Perhaps this was the secret to the Gardner family''s sess?


    Ste sat on a beach chair, enjoying the sea breeze and the sun. She closed her eyes, rxingpletely. It had been a while since she''d felt so at ease, away from the schemes and conflicts of Solmaris.


    The climate in Aetheria was perfect, not too hot or too cold. Even the ocean breeze was gentle. Perhaps because the Gardner family was so incredibly wealthy, the tesort experience here was on par with any top tourist destination.


    She''d have to bring Abby Murphy here for a vacation when she had the time.


    Her thoughts drifted, and she gradually fell asleep.


    She didn''t know how much time had passed when she felt a strange gaze on her. She slowly opened her eyes.


    The first thing she saw was a handsome, cold face.


    Ste froze for a few seconds, thinking she was dreaming.


    The man hadn''t expected her to wake up, and he didn''t have time to hide theplex, unreadable emotion in his eyes.


    Ste shot up. "Leonard, what are you doing here?!"


    Before Leonard could speak, another tall figure strode over to Ste''s side. "Star, are you alright?"


    Joshua was holding two sses of freshly squeezed juice. He had seen Ste asleep and went to get her a drink for when she woke up. This was Aetheria, Joshua wasn''t worried about her safety. But he never imagined that Leonard, clinging like a leech, would have the nerve to follow them here.


    Joshua suppressed the rage rising within him. He curled his lips intoa smile that didn''t reach his eyes. His gaze was icy glinting with


    murderous intent. "Leonard,


    seems you have a death wish."