Chapter 158: Chapter 158: “Jessie Sterling, You Can’t Bully People Like This.

Cheryl Stuart took a sip of her cocktail. “What I want is also very simple: Miss Sterling’s approval. To me, that is the most valuable exchange.”

Cheryl Stuart made no attempt to hide her ambition from Jessie Sterling. She knew it would be pointless to try, and would only make Jessie think she had ulterior motives. It was better to be forthright. This way, she might even have a better chance at a mutually beneficial partnership with Jessie Sterling.

Jessie Sterling raised an eyebrow, surprised by Cheryl Stuart’s words.

Cheryl Stuart went on to explain, “My old agency is promoting a new talent. The rumor is that Nina Walsh has a powerful backer. I know I can’t compete, so I’ll inevitably have to step aside. The company’s pie is only so big, and one more person means they’ll be cutting into my share. I’m not okay with that, so I’m preparing to strike out on my own.”

“But don’t you already have Boss Hudson’s backing?” Jessie Sterling asked.

With the capital of Port Caldoria’s Hudson family, it wouldn’t be difficult to ensure an actress could flourish in the entertainment industry.

Cheryl Stuart’s expression seemed to stiffen for a moment, then she said, “If I had to rely on a man for everything, I wouldn’t be in this position right now, would I?”

Jessie Sterling couldn’t help but be impressed with Cheryl Stuart all over again.

“You’re not like most people,” she said.

She was used to seeing people in her social circle with actors and actresses in tow. Many of them thought they had hit the jackpot, and it wasn’t uncommon for them to grow arrogant with the attention, but people like that rarely lasted long.

How could one maintain a lasting advantage just by relying on a partner’s favor? Besides, it might not even be favor—just a fleeting sense of novelty, or the thrill of conquest.

In this world, those who marry into wealthy families and truly cross the class divide are exceedingly rare. The ones who manage it have to sacrifice even more than students who fight their way into an Ivy League university.

The wealthier people are, the less likely they are to be fools. They’re shrewder than anyone.

Cheryl Stuart said, “I’ll take that as a compliment from Miss Sterling.”

“It was meant as one,” Jessie Sterling said.

Although she herself didn’t have much ambition, she really liked ambitious women.

Jessie Sterling understood what Cheryl Stuart was getting at. If Cheryl wanted to secure her position with Boss Hudson long-term, youth and beauty alone weren’t enough. The entertainment industry was constantly producing new talent; there would always be younger, more beautiful women. To remain by a man’s side, you had to make him see your value—to prove you were indispensable.

The more successful Cheryl Stuart became in the entertainment industry, the greater the sense of accomplishment and conquest Boss Hudson would feel when he brought her to business functions. If Cheryl could persuade Jessie to invest, it would mean that, to some extent, she had a direct line to Jessie herself.

Her Apex Films might not catch the eye of major financial tycoons, but the Sterling and Morgan families behind her were not to be underestimated.

At the end of the day, Cheryl Stuart wanted to leverage her name.

And for Jessie, it was a can’t-lose proposition. She’d get a surefire investment, and Cheryl Stuart could help mentor her new talent, shortening the company’s growing pains. It was a good deal all around.

Jessie didn’t overthink it. “Go ahead and send the script and the contract to my assistant’s email.” She gave Cheryl her contact information.

This was a clear signal that Jessie was willing to consider it. Cheryl Stuart’s eyes lit up with a smile. She took the initiative, raising her glass and clinking it against the lemonade by Jessie’s hand. “To a successful partnership.”

“To a successful partnership.”

That evening, Victor Morgan came to pick Jessie up. In the car, he listened as she told him about her potential collaboration with Cheryl Stuart. He then carefully walked her through some of the finer details of the investment.

Jessie nodded along, unable to resist turning to grin at him. “You’re pretty useful after all, President Morgan.”

Victor gave a dry laugh. For a fleeting moment, he desperately wanted to ask her, ’If I’m so useful, why do you never talk to me about having children?’ It wasn’t that he couldn’t understand her perspective, but it seemed Jessie would rather discuss their relationship with her friends than with him. He felt a pang of frustration.

But before the words could escape, his rationality took hold again.

“Oh, right, the wedding banquet is tomorrow,” Jessie said. “Let’s go out shopping in the afternoon.”

Victor replied, “Okay, sure. Where do you want to go?”

“To the mall, to look at baby things,” Jessie said, seemingly oblivious to how this might land with Victor. She continued on her own, “Lynn’s pregnant. You probably didn’t know, hahaha, I just found out today myself. I’m going to be her baby’s godmother, so I have to get her a little something, right?”

Victor froze. He stared at the traffic light ahead, which had just turned red. It was a long light, over a minute. He let his foot off the gas and gently pressed the brake, the car gliding smoothly to a stop at the crosswalk. Despite the slow crawl, his hands couldn’t help but tighten on the steering wheel.

“Okay,” Victor nodded.

Jessie, however, couldn’t help but feel excited talking about it.

Being pregnant yourself and your best friend being pregnant are two completely different things.

Ever since Lynn told her the good news, her mind had been filled with images of buying lots of cute little clothes and dresses for the baby.

’A soft, warm little bundle to play with… just thinking about it is so exciting!’

She already had a hard time resisting the urge to spend money on dress-up games; the thought of getting to cuddle a real-life baby made Jessie even more eager to splurge.

Just as Jessie was mentally planning what to buy for her future goddaughter, Victor’s voice suddenly came from beside her.

“You really like kids?” Victor asked.

Jessie’s train of thought was broken. She shook her head. “Not really. They’re too noisy. It’s fine to play with them once in a while, but that’s it.”

The words Victor had been about to say—that if she liked them, they could have one too—died on his lips.

Jessie wasn’t particularly interested in the topic of children, but she hadn’t missed the implication in Victor’s words.

Instead of letting the topic drop, she asked, “Do you like them?”

Victor said, “I haven’t been around them much. I don’t really know.”

After he said that, the car fell silent.

The silence lasted until they returned to the old Sterling estate. After they went up to the third floor and Victor stepped into the room, he immediately turned, pressed Jessie against the back of the door, and shattered the quiet with a forceful kiss.

Her lips tingled from his kiss, and her fingers trembled faintly. “What are you doing?”

Victor didn’t let her go. He had her completely caged in his arms.

Victor’s breathing was heavy. He kept his head lowered, not letting Jessie turn on the room’s lights.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck. “Jessie,” Victor said, his voice muffled. “You can’t be this cruel.”

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