Defying Fate: The Unstoppable Eileen



Early in the morning, Ableson was rudely awakened by the ringing of his secretary's phone call.

He sat up abruptly as he listened to the voice on the other end, his voice filled with a stunned disbelief. "What did you say?!"

Sarah was also jolted awake by the commotion.

"What's the matter?" she asked, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

Ignoring her, Ableson quickly changed his clothes while talking on the phone. "Hadn't we already agreed? What did the people from A&T say? Another meeting? What for? The project was already confirmed, we've already invested our money..."

Sarah could tell something was wrong. Helping him with his tie, she asked, "Ableson, what's going on?" Frustrated, Ableson pushed her away without a word. Sarah stumbled and fell backward onto the floor.

Without so much as a backwards glance, Ableson grabbed his coat and stormed out of the room.

With a worried expression, Sarah quickly scrambled up from the floor and dialed another shareholder of the company on her phone. The person on the other end didn't pick up until after a while, his voice grumbling. "What's the matter? It's too early and my wife is still here!" Sarah's voice was icy. "You think I want to call you? What happened with A&T's project?"

The man was taken aback. "A&T? What could possibly... wait, I have another call coming in."

The call paused for a moment.

Then, the man's voice returned. "I can't talk right now, something did happen with A&T, I have to rush to the office for a meeting. Bye."

"Wait!" Sarah tried to stop him, "Our money is in this project..."

"Click!" The call was cut off. Sarah stared at the phone, fuming.

Meanwhile, in a small hotel in the countryside.

During breakfast, Egbert kept sneaking glances at Eileen across from him.

Eileen, having her soup, noticed his stares and asked, defiantly, "What are you looking at?"

His brow furrowed, "Have you been crying?"

Eileen burst into laughter, a peculiar sound as her voice was hoarse from crying the night before.

"I cry? What do I have to cry about? I'm laughing my head off! I'm so rich now!"

Egbert's frown deepened. Eileen, however, focused on finishing her meal, ignoring him.

After breakfast, they started their journey back to the Capital. On the plane, Eileen put on an eye mask to sleep. Just as she was drifting off, she felt someone place a blanket on her. Knowing it was Egbert, she didn't make a sound or move.

After a while, she felt someone stroke her hair, and then she heard Egbert's sigh. "When will you finally trust me..."

Eileen thought his words were strange. She already trusted him a lot, so much so that she pretended not to know he had installed a tracking bug in her phone.

Yes, she knew whether or not there was a GPS in the computer. Because the computer was not Egbert's, it was Josephine's.

She had just been teasing Egbert yesterday, merely helping him find an excuse for something that should not be mentioned. And yet, Egbert felt that she didn't trust him. He was a hard man to please... With these thoughts, Eileen turned over, deliberately turning her back to Egbert as she fell asleep.

For the next three days, Eileen stayed at the Reed family's estate, not leaving even once.

It wasn't until the fourth day, early in the morning, that Eileen decided to go out.

Egbert, sitting on the sofa, watched her get ready. "Going out?"

Eileen replied, "Yes."

Egbert frowned, "And you think you can just waltz out like that?"

While putting on her shoes, Eileen said, "I told Josephine. She agreed."

Egbert commented, "You should know that her word doesn't really matter."

Eileen looked up at Egbert, shrugged and said, "Funny, she said the same thing." With that, she opened the front door and left.

Egbert was left sitting on the sofa, speechless.

When Eileen arrived at the office, Ophelia was already waiting for her.

She pointed to a box on the sofa as Eileen entered, "Your evening gown."

Eileen opened the box, gave it a glance, and said, "Thanks."

Ophelia asked, "What party are you going to? Would you like Janice to accompany you?"

Eileen declined, "No need. It's just a private party among friends."

Ophelia frowned, considering. Then she advised, "Remember not to accept drinks or food from strangers. Do you have enough money? I'll transfer a thousand to you. Don't eat anything that could potentially be harmful."

Eileen watched as Ophelia pulled out her phone to transfer money. Suddenly, Eileen stood up and rushed over to Ophelia, hugging her tightly. Ophelia was nearly knocked off her feet and had to grab onto the desk for support. "What's wrong with you?"

Eileen, holding onto Ophelia, planted a big kiss on her cheek and said, "Ophelia, I'm rich."

Ophelia stared at her, perplexed. Eileen giggled, picked up the box with the evening gown, and dashed out of the office.

At 6 p.m., at a club.novelbin

In the dazzling and luxurious banquet hall filled with elegantly dressed guests.

The host of the party was on stage, microphone in hand, giving a speech.

Outside the banquet hall, Eileen, dressed in a black strapless evening gown, took out an invitation from her clutch and handed it to the receptionist. The receptionist checked the invitation and respectfully ushered her in.

Entering the hall, Eileen saw the host was still speaking on stage.

She scanned the crowd, her gaze indifferent and aloof.

And then, there he was, Ableson, standing at the front of the crowd, whispering with a top executive. This was Eileen's first encounter with Ableson since her rebirth.

Perhaps due to the distance, Ableson seemed small to Eileen, a stark contrast from the monstrous, intimidating figure she remembered.

A waiter approached, bearing a glass of Cabe Sauvignon. Eileen picked up the wine and headed to the lounge area nearby.

After a while, the host's speech finally concluded.

"Zack, how about we continue our discussion over there?" Ableson suggested to the executive beside him.

"Well, Mr. Lopez, I'm aware of your current predicament, with the A&T deal falling through and Apex Synergy Group's stock plummeting. But I don't think I can be of much help. You should seek someone else," Zack responded unapologetically.

Ableson rushed to defend himself, "It's just a minor internal hiccup, our stock will recover soon, and our losses from the A&T deal are minimal..."

"Minimal?" Zack laughed, "The Lopez family sure knows how to throw their weight around. An $80 million working capital, holding up all ongoing projects, and you call this minimal? If Apex Synergy Group is as powerful as you claim, why bother partnering with a small enterprise like mine?" Ableson's face darkened, "Zack, don't be so..."

"Mr. Lopez," Zack brushed him off, "let me give you a tip. I've heard that A&T pulled out because they rerouted their funds to another financial bid. That's the first issue. The second is, your stock price plummeted immediately after the A&T deal was blocked, even before the news hit the press. I don't believe there was no market manipulation involved."

Ableson knew he was targeted, but he hadn't found the culprit yet.

"Mr. Ableson," Zack continued, “Are you aware the Vice Chairman is attending today?"

Ableson blinked, "Which Vice Chairman?"

“Who else but Blake Lopez, Vice Chairman of the headquarters of Lopez Group?" Zack responded with a tinge of sarcasm.

"Blake?"

Zack sneered, "You really are out of the loop. You know that this party is hosted by Laird of White River Enterprises, and you're here seeking opportunities, but did you know Laird and Blake were college buddies? Look, there he is."

Ableson followed Zack's gaze and sure enough, he spotted Blake amidst the bustling crowd.

Blake was technically Ableson's nephew, but being from the main family, Ableson, part of a distant branch, barely had the privilege to associate with

him.

Ableson hesitated, should he ask Blake for help?

Thinking of his company's current predicament, Ableson gritted his teeth, ready to take the plunge.

But at that moment, he noticed that while Blake was talking to Laird, he was glancing towards the lounge area. Following Blake's gaze, Ableson's eyes widened.

Eileen! What was she doing here?

Looking at Eileen and then back at Blake, a thought struck Ableson. Regardless of why Eileen was here, Blake was clearly interested in her. If he could get Eileen in Blake's bed, he'd surely win Blake's favor!

Eileen wasn't a Lopez by blood, there was no kinship to deter Blake. A beautiful woman naked in front of a man, which man could resist?

The more Ableson considered it, the more feasible the plan seemed. Without further ado, Ableson headed towards Eileen.