The Secret Heir Return To Wealth And Love

After Jacob returned, he stirred up a storm for a good half a month.

Far off in H City, Rosalynn and Hilaria occasionally got wind of Jacob's latest exploits through various channels.

"Just yesterday, some old geezer, already retired mind you, rang me up and gave me an earful about that Strand whippersnapper," Hilaria chuckled to Rosalynn as they walked in the glow of the setting sun, "The kid's been back less than a month and he's kicked up such a storm, poaching one of that old man's star players from his grandson's team! Everyone's been waiting for him to slip up, for his operation to spring a leak now that he's ruffling feathers, but the speed at which he's recruiting is just jaw-dropping."

"President Strand has always been formidable, just never keen on stepping on toes before," Rosalynn remarked.

Her insights into Jacob dated back to before she quit her secretarial gig.

It was during a snafu with a Bane Corporation project when Wayne got tangled up in another case and was stranded in R Country.d2This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

Wayne had Rosalynn fly back home first. He intended for Rosalynn to give it a shot, and if she failed, he'd step in remotely.

To her surprise, upon returning, she found the situation nearly resolved, with Jacob at the helm.

Rosalynn kept her thoughts to herself at the time, but upon closer examination of how Jacob handled things, she had to admit it was nothing short of slick.

Over time, Rosalynn came to realize something - Jacob probably grew too comfortable playing the gentleman; he disliked competing for things.

If he and someone else were eyeing the same prize, he'd gracefully concede out of decorum, provided the other party wasn't on his bad side.

"You know, Erica's departure turned out to be a blessing," Hilaria said sincerely, "Jacob's an incredible friend, but as far as partners go, he's far from ideal. Erica spent sixteen years of her youth transforming him."

"Thank goodness for Larkin."

"Exactly, fate works in mysterious ways. Despite the decade Erica and Jacob were entangled, you put Erica beside Jacob and then beside Larkin, and anyone can tell she and Larkin are the real deal," Hilaria's eyes twinkled with mirth, "Just seeing them together warms my heart."

What Hilaria didn't voice was her occasional pang of longing for her own darling granddaughter to let go of Wayne and set sail for new horizons, just like Erica. And that Evan Lockner was a catch.

"I ran into Evan's mother on a business trip," Hilaria suddenly shifted the topic, "She poured her heart out to me, fretting over Evan's bachelor status."

"Evan's got his hands full with the family business right now; he's in no rush," replied Rosalynn.

"The kid's pushing thirty."

Rosalynn didn't bite.

Hilaria glanced at her and shook her head with a hint of resignation.

Max had been thriving lately.

Just the other week, Grandpa and Granny Ramay made a brief return to H City from their travels, visiting no one but Max at Moonlit Lake for a few days.

Max was visibly upset. For days, he stuck close to them. After they left, he lost his appetite for a while.

Ivy was beside herself with worry. Every day, before and after school, she'd sit with Max, coaxing him to eat.

It was only in the past couple of days that he regained his zest.

At that moment, he was sneakily plotting an ambush on Calvin.

Everything was changing.

What hadn't changed was Max's vivid memory of Calvin using his beloved chicken leg for compost, always scheming for his poultry vengeance. Since Ivy's river incident, Calvin treated Max like royalty, enduring his antics and worrying only about the possibility of old injuries flaring up. He made sure Max was well-fed and pampered.