Chapter 22

The woman stared at me, then snatched the juice. "Thanks, Miss Vance." "No worries," I said, smirking as I grabbed Yvaine's arm and pulled her away. Behind us, the chatter faded. Yvaine hissed, "Your stare just turned her skin fifty shades darker." I chuckled. "I know their type. Quick to talk behind your back, but frozen when you look them in the eye—especially in public." We drifted towards the dessert tables—two twenty-meter feasts of cakes and champagne. With no threat of juice sabotage, I snagged a mini éclair and shoved it in my mouth. The gossiping ladies lingered nearby, their eyes darting between us and their empty glasses. Wisely, they shifted focus and moved on to the Laurent family's heir. "A few years ago, the Laurents didn't even acknowledge that grandson of theirs. Didn't give him a single share. Nothing." "And yet he went overseas and built his own company. Bigger than Laurent Global Holdings, from what I've heard." "Yeah, and I heard Edouard Laurent got seriously ill s