Chapter 97: Chapter 97: Attending the Annual Meeting

Victor Morgan had known for a while that Jessie Sterling was going to attend her website’s event. The 24th and 25th happened to fall on a weekend this year, so he had a rare opportunity to have breakfast with her.

Victor had a bowl of savory soy milk, with a meat-stuffed sesame flatbread on his plate. Jessie, unable to stand an entirely savory breakfast, had ginger milk curd, along with a small steamer basket of crystal shrimp dumplings, crab roe buns, and water chestnut cakes prepared by their housekeeper.

But Jessie couldn’t finish it all. The steamer baskets the cook used were about the same size as those at a dim sum restaurant, with each holding just two or three shrimp dumplings or a single bun.

She only took a couple of bites of each item, placing the rest onto Victor Morgan’s plate.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to drive you?” Victor Morgan asked.

Jessie nodded while stuffing a piece of water chestnut cake into her mouth. “You can just stay home. My editor didn’t say we could bring guests…”

After saying this, she seemed to have a thought and looked up at Victor Morgan. “Do you really want to go?”

A conflicted look crossed her face. “I can ask my editor right now, if you want?”

Victor Morgan was speechless. ’I spend most of my days in meetings. Outside of work, I’m usually at some banquet or another. Why would I ever want to go to a small website’s annual meeting?’

“Don’t worry about it.” Victor Morgan ate the shrimp dumpling Jessie had put on his plate and wiped his mouth. “Go and have a good time. If you get bored, you can call me. There’s a long, narrow stretch of road on the way to Sanctum. Are you absolutely sure you don’t need me to take you?”

Jessie waved her hand dismissively, looking rather smug. “Hey, I got my license as soon as I turned eighteen, you know? I even have an international one! I can drive anywhere!”

Seeing her in such high spirits, Victor Morgan decided not to rain on her parade.

“The keys to the cars in the garage are in the foyer by the elevator,” Victor Morgan added as a final reminder before she left.

“Got it.”

The cars Victor Morgan kept for Jessie in the underground garage were almost all sports cars. There were also a few SUVs, but they weren’t her style. In the end, Jessie chose a Valhalla in racing green.

Lynn Jennings had the same car, just in a different color.

Jessie had test-driven it a few times before. Compared to McLarens, she had a better feel for the Aston Martin.

Not long after pulling out of their courtyard home with the navigation set for Sanctum, Jessie understood why Victor Morgan had repeatedly asked if she wanted a ride.

The navigation’s voice prompt was remarkably considerate—

“Narrow road for nearly one kilometer ahead. Please drive with caution.”

Jessie realized this kilometer of “narrow road” was entirely composed of old alleyways. Not only were they one-way streets, but their sides were also crowded with street vendors, lending them a bustling, earthy vibe.

Jessie was speechless.

’A sudden wave of regret washed over her.’

She pressed her lips together, remembering how she had puffed out her chest at the breakfast table and boasted to Victor Morgan about her international driver’s license.

’Wouldn’t it be a total loss of face to call Victor now?’

KNOCK, KNOCK—

Someone rapped on her car window.

Jessie turned her head and saw a man standing outside in a beige sweater and casual pants.

It was the loungewear Victor wore at home.

Jessie rolled down the window, and Victor Morgan’s voice floated in.

“Doing okay?”

Victor had followed her out because he’d been worried. He wasn’t particularly concerned about her scratching the car, but he worried that if his “little highness” got frustrated, her very first work event—one that was all her own—would be tainted by bad memories. So, after a moment’s thought, he had come out after her.

Just as he’d expected. It was a public holiday, and their home was just a street away from the old palace district. The area was swarming with tourists, making it nearly impossible for Jessie to navigate the Valhalla through the congestion.

Jessie moved over to the passenger seat and mumbled, “What are you doing out here?”

“I was worried, so I came to check on you.”

Jessie was speechless.

Victor glanced in the rearview mirror. “Aethelburg’s alleys have been renovated, but the lanes aren’t standardized. Plus, to protect the many century-old trees in the area, the roads have been encroached upon, making for poor driving conditions. It’s perfectly normal to struggle if you’re not used to driving here. When there’s less traffic, I’ll take you through a few times. Once you’re familiar with the route, you can drive it yourself.”

As he spoke, he skillfully maneuvered around an old man’s cart selling roasted sweet potatoes up ahead.

“Most of these vendors are locals who’ve lived in the communal courtyards here for ages,” Victor explained. “They’re used to taking up space in the road, so you have to be extra careful. Honking won’t do much good.”

He seemed determined to convince her that the problem wasn’t her driving, but the complexity of the road itself.

A small smile played on Jessie’s lips. “So how am I supposed to get back tonight?”

“Call me. I’ll come pick you up,” Victor replied without a second thought. He then glanced at her. “Or did you want to try driving back on your own?”

Jessie said, “I was just worried you might be in a meeting. What if you’re out with your friends?” On their wedding day, she’d met several of his close friends and learned that the supposed workaholic did, in fact, have a social life.

“You come first.”

Jessie laughed. Then, while he was stopped at a crosswalk, she leaned over and planted a kiss on his cheek.

MWAH—

Victor, however, just frowned slightly. “Sit properly.”

Jessie was in too good of a mood to bicker with him.

Though it was only a three-kilometer drive, the stop-and-go traffic stretched the trip to nearly twenty minutes.

Manhui had certainly spared no expense. From the car, Jessie could already see a large LED screen at the main entrance announcing the annual event, flanked by congratulatory flower arrangements.

It all looked very official.

Victor drove into the underground parking garage and was about to pull up near the elevators when Jessie directed him to park in an out-of-the-way corner.

“Okay, I’m off,” Jessie said once the car was parked. She waved to Victor and hopped out.

Victor nodded. He waited, not moving, until she had vanished from sight before slowly driving away.

Many authors were attending the Manhui event, and Jessie had already spotted several of them by the parking garage elevators.

However, everyone else seemed to have come in pairs or groups. Not recognizing anyone, Jessie stood quietly off to the side, but her ears were perked, listening in.

An elevator arrived, and the five people waiting stepped inside.

Just as the doors were about to close, a shout echoed from outside. “Hold the door! Thank you!”

Being closest to the control panel, Jessie instinctively held the “door open” button.

A moment later, a figure rushed inside in a flurry.

Surprisingly, despite her rushed entrance, the woman looked quiet and elegant. Her curly hair was pulled into a half-up style, and she wore a long, white, fox-fur coat over an ankle-length black dress.

“Thank you so much,” Yvonne Rhodes said, looking at Jessie as she caught her breath.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep