Joshua heard Victor’s voice and turned to look at Xylia.


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    There was a puzzled look in his eyes, as if to say, ‘So this is your way of helping me get revenge–he couldn’t quite believe it.


    Xylia shed him a smile, slipping out of his arms and starting to eat.


    Joshua leaned back on the couch, his gaze gentle as he watched her eat, the curve of his lips never fading.


    The voice on the other end kept going.


    “Mr. Garcia, I’m in. About the deal–could you please ask Ms. Sadler not to pull out?” Victor’s tone was practically begging.


    Joshua’s reply was ice–cold: “I don’t need your deal.” He didn’t even wait for Victor to react before hanging up.


    Xylia knew Joshua was just ying the fool, so she didn’t bother paying attention to how he replied.


    But the memory ofst night popped up–she’d been so worried about him, while he just sat back like an audience member, watching her scramble all over the ce.


    It honestly left her feeling more than a little irritated.


    Seeing Joshua reaching for the sweet and sour ribs, Xylia was quicker–she beat him to it and nabbed the very piece he’d set his eyes on.


    Joshua’s hand froze midair, and he turned to Xylia, whose expression was anything but subtle.


    She had ‘I’m mad at you‘ written all over her face.


    Honestly, she was more cute than intimidating, cheeks puffed out and all.


    Joshua reached for the stir–fried veggies next, but Xylia was quicker–she snatched them away before his


    chopsticks even got close.


    The grin on Joshua’s face just got bigger.


    ‘Guess I better give her my best apology right now, Joshua thought.


    He even grabbed another rib and set it on Xylia’s te, ying up the whole “sorry” act. “Don’t be mad. I shouldn’t have kept stuff from you. I’ll punish myself–just in rice for lunch, no dishes!”


    But when Xylia saw Joshua actually digging into nothing but in rice, her heart softened and a pang of guilt


    hit her.


    She stole a nce at Joshua, noticing how seriously he kept to his word, eating just in rice and nothing else, looking surprisingly pitiful.


    <b>9:11 </b>Wed, Oct <b>1 </b>


    She huffed, “You’re totally doing this on purpose, aren’t you?*


    “I’m genuinely sorry,” Joshua replied, utterly solemn.


    To show he meant it, he held up three fingers, making a little pledge right there at the table.


    His dark eyes couldn’t have looked more sincere.


    Xylia just sighed, feeling totally defeated.


    With a little reluctant care, she reached over and gave him some veggies.


    “If you ever make me worry like that again, I’ll just ignore you,” she threatened, pouting


    Joshua knew Xylia could never actually let him suffer, no matter how mad she pretended to be


    He just grinned and nodded, “Alright.”


    After they finished eating, Xylia suddenly remembered something and asked. “Even if you’re just pretending for outsiders, Garcia Group is actually losing real contracts. Are you still okay for cash?”


    She recalled that just a few days back, she’d asked Joshua to wire a cool fifty million to someone.


    Without missing a beat, she pulled out her phone, ready to send him some cash.


    “Dividends from Sadler Group just came in this month. Let me send you some money,” she offered.


    Joshua reached out and stopped her from transferring the money. “You really think I’m hurting for money?”


    Xylia looked him straight in the eye, her expression earnest.


    She nodded all seriousness.


    “Sure, you’ve got a cushy background, but with the way you’re handling things, it feels like you’re in this for the long haul. Money’s always good to have–why not stash a little extra just in case?”


    Joshua couldn’t help but chuckle at how serious she looked.


    He reached over, turned off her phone screen, and pulled her into his arms.


    “Rx, sweetheart. Your boyfriend is loaded. Even if I ever find myself t broke, I’d never hit you up for cash,” he teased her softly.


    “Why draw a line between your money and mine?” Xylia shot him a yful re.


    She never saw the point of splitting finances with Joshua. After all this time, she refused to just sit back in his shadow, always the one being protected.


    She wanted to do her part and be someone Joshua could rely on whenever he needed support.


    Joshua reached out and gently pinched her cheek.


    <b>9:11 </b><b>Wed</b><b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>1 </b>


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    “We don’t need to keep things separate. If I ever really need help, I’d turn to <b>my </b><b>wife</b>,<b>” </b>he said softly.


    Xylia took his hand in hers without saying a word.


    Joshua paused for a moment, then grinned, “I’m freeter. Want to hang out this afternoon?”


    Xylia turned him down gently.


    “Sorry, I’ve got something to take care of. I need to catch up with Josie about some studio business.”


    Even though she wasn’t in Norhill, she couldn’t rely entirely on Josie to handle everything at work.


    It was only right to shoulder her share of the responsibilities.


    Joshua looked a little disappointed.


    But he wasn’t about to get in the way of her work.


    “Alright, you do your thing here this afternoon, and I’ll just kick back with some games,” Joshua shrugged, trying not to sound too bummed.


    “Is that really okay?” Xylia asked, sounding a little unsure.


    ‘I’m hogging his desk for work, and the real owner’s just sitting here ying games?‘ she thought, feeling slightly embarrassed.


    “What’s the big deal? Company’s dead quiet these days, anyway. We’ll hang out till quitting time and split–<b>no </b>biggie,” Joshua shrugged.


    ‘Seriously, does Joshua even clock out like a normal employee?‘ Xylia chuckled to herself, finding it hard to imagine.


    She didn’t protest any further. iming Joshua’s desk as her own, she pulled up a video chat with Josie and jumped right into work mode.


    When Connor heard that Sadler Group had pulled out of their deal with Garcia Group, he was pretty stoked.


    He figured Kaden must’ve been scared off by Richard’s tactics.


    But then he found out that a few small businesses that had shed with Joshua a couple of days ago were now being targeted by Sadler Group.


    It didn’t take long for Connor to figure out that Xylia had to be behind it.


    <b>‘</b>Is she really that head over heels for Joshua?‘ Connor muttered under his breath. ‘She used to keep business. and personal stuff miles apart–now she’s using her position to throw her weight around? When did she <b>learn </b>to be such a bully?‘


    Fuming, Connor mmed the stack of papers down onto his desk.


    Richard, sitting across from Connor, <b>was </b>looking downright sour.


    A couple days ago, he’d tried to hit up Xylia–only for her to t–out block his number.


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    He hadn’t been snubbed like that in forever, for a second, he couldn’t even wrap his head around it.


    Damn, when was thest time someone shredded my ego this hard? Richard thought<i>, </i>feeling seriously


    bruised.


    “If she’s so dead set on helping Joshua, then let her<i>, </i>Richard said, his voice carrying a dangerous edge.


    Connor frowned at him. “What are you getting at?”


    “None of your business,” Richard shot back coolly, “Just keep your eyes on Garcia Group. I’ll clear out every obstacle–including anyone who tries to get in our way?


    Connor had a hunch Richard meant Xylia when he mentioned “anyone getting in the way?


    His chest tightened. Leave Xylia to me–I’ll make sure she gets what’sing to her, Connor thought grimly.


    Richard’s eyes fixed on Connor, icy and downright chilling, filled with a cold lethality. <fn0378> Content originallyes from fι?dnοvel</fn0378>


    Even someone as unreadable as Connor actually felt the murderous vibe in the air–he had to admit, for a split second, it got to him.


    But he simply responded with a slight frown.


    Connor spoke up, his tone steady. “She’s my ex–wife, after all. No one knows her better than I do. If anyone’s going to deal with her, it should be me.”


    “You think you can tell me what to do?” Richard’s voice was cold, almost threatening.


    “It’s just a suggestion,” Connor countered, his eyes never leaving Richard’s.


    He didn’t back down or show even a flicker of fear–instead, he met Richard’s gaze, steady andposed.


    After a long stretch of silence, Richard finally gave a faint chuckle, breaking the tension.


    “Alright, we’ll go with Mr. Ford’s n,” he said, his tone cool and controlled.


    Connor breathed a sigh of relief and walked out of Richard’s office.


    Once Connor was gone, Holt moved over to Richard’s side.


    “Boss, are we really gonna do what Connor says?” Holt asked, a bit doubtful.


    “That guy’s fucking nothing!” Richard spat, sounding seriously pissed off.


    Richard cursed under his breath, clearly annoyed as hell.


    “That self–important asshole. So what if Xylia’s his ex–wife? If he actually knew her, he wouldn’t have screwed things up so bad that she’s not even angry at him anymore–they’re just total strangers now.”


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    Holt kept his head down, sensing the tense vibe in the room–he couldn’t help feeling that something was off with the boss today.


    Richard whipped around to re at Holt, his eyes cold and sharp.


    “Go look into that Josie Dunn–yeah, the one always sticking close to Xylia. Dig up any dirt, see what weaknesses she’s got. Since Xylia’s decided to y hardball first, I’ve got no problem getting nasty right back,” Richard said, voice low and menacing.


    Holt got his orders and left to take care of it.