After the divorce, he begged

Chapter 272

“Can you ask Aunt Kate to helpkeep this under wraps?” Rebecca sent Jessica a voice message. “Don’t

retract or post anything. Just keep delaying it.”

“That's exactly what we were planning to do,” Jessica said, almost matching Rebecca's thoughts. “Just watch out

-if they've gotten in touch with Mom’s company, chances are they'll try reaching out to other media companies

too.”

Rebecca replied, “I know.”

‘Whoever’s behind this probably has no clue about my connection to Aunt Kate. If they did, they wouldn't be

handling things this way,” Rebecca thought.

‘Looks like they're avoiding the media in Honnala on purpose and picked a company from Jelasburg instead.

Probably because they're worried Mr. Sebastian Quinn or Mr. Guzman would catch on, Rebecca analyzed.

With that in mind, Rebecca reached out to the boss of the top media company in Honnala.

When the boss found out it was her, she suggested they meet up. They arranged to meet in a private room at a

high-end restaurant. When Rebecca pushed the door open, she found the heiress of the Pierce family waiting for

her.

For a split second, Rebecca froze.

‘Hold on, wasn’t | supposed to meet the boss here?’ Rebecca thought, a bit thrown off.

“No need to look so surprised. That media company is mine,” Charlotte said with a graceful smile, looked

Rebecca up and down without hiding it, her tone relaxed. “I just prefer to let others handle the day-to-day

stuff.”

“I know,” Rebecca replied. She'd looked into it herself over the past couple of weeks.

She chose this company not just because it dominated Honnala, but mainly because the Pierce family was the

power behind it.

As one of The Big Four Families, the Pierce family liked to stay out of the Quinn family’s . That meant

things were at least fair for her.

Charlotte arched a brow, a faint smile on her lips. “You figured it out, huh?”

Rebecca sat down opposite her. “I'm just surprised you're the one meeting me.”

Up until now, she'd only spoken with the company’s official boss, and he was the one who set up this meeting.

“Simple. | wanted to meet you,” Charlotte replied, completely upfront as she sized up Rebecca's serious

demeanor. “Plus, | was curious to see what the infamous daughter of Amelia is really like.”

“Well, here | am,” Rebecca shot back, never one to waste words. “So, can we talk business now?”

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Chapter 272

Charlotte's brows arched slightly.

It seemed she hadn't expected Rebecca to be so straightforward.

Rebecca shot her a confused look.

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“You really married Jeffrey?” Charlotte kept her gaze locked on Rebecca, her tone nonchalant. “He actually went

for someone as boring as you?”

“And you're really the boss of Starlight Media?” Rebecca fired back, throwing the squestion at her. “That's

not very professional.”

Charlotte’s smile grew even wider.

Rebecca looked even more confused.

“Are you always this adorably clueless?” Charlotte teased.

Rebecca just stared at her, totally speechless.

Charlotte chuckled. “Even cuter now.”

Before Rebecca could get confused again, Charlotte jumped in. “You know what? I'm starting to like you. How

about we just becfriends?”

“If you're cool with it, we're friends already,” Rebecca replied.

Charlotte raised an eyebrow. “Honestly, | thought you'd say something like, ‘Isn't this kind of rushed? We only

just met and barely know each other.”

Rebecca went quiet.

‘That's basically what | was thinking,’ Rebecca admitted to herself.

Jessica always said, when you're out there, don’t be too honest-just play along and say what suits the moment.

Unless it’s spelled out in black and white, relationships at the table are whatever you want them to be.

“So, what brings you here?” Charlotte cut straight to the chase.

“I want to strike a deal. If any gossip aboutstarts surfacing online for the tbeing, | need your team to

hold it down,” Rebecca said. She was flying solo for now, so she had to handle everything herself. “Nyour

price.”

Charlotte gave her an amused glance. “Any price at all?”

“I'm fine with something above the market rate,” Rebecca replied.

Seeing how earnest Rebecca was, Charlotte couldn't help but let out another laugh.

Rebecca was a bit puzzled-she figured all her words so far had been nothing but sincere, no mind games, just

12:07 Thu, Oct 9

Chapter 272

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straight-up honesty.

“You know, people probably say you're not really cut out for business,” Charlotte teased, thoroughly amused. It

had been ages since she'd run into someone this genuine. “Your brothers, they're sharp as knives, but you?

You're almost too honest.”

“Don’t you realize? Honest folks like you are easy targets in this industry.”

“That might be true with other people, but with you, | can be straight,” Rebecca replied. She’d looked into

Charlotte's reputation beforehand-if she hadn't, there's no way she'd cin talking so openly.

Charlotte arched a brow. “Is that so?”

Rebecca's answer was firm. “Yes.”

“Alright, then hand over 3 million, and I'll handle this for you,” Charlotte said, casually resting her chin on her

hand.

“Deal,” Rebecca replied instantly.

Charlotte raised her brow higher. “You're serious?”

Rebecca pulled out a contract from her bag and handed it over. “Words alone don’t count. If you want to be sure,

let's sign the agreement right here.”

Charlotte took the papers, flipped through them with practiced ease, and once she was satisfied, signed her

nbriskly. Then she slid the contract back to Rebecca. “Your turn.”

She couldn't help but wonder if Rebecca, the supposed princess from the Quinn and Guzman families, was really

as earnest as she seemed.

Rebecca accepted the contract and signed her nwithout a moment's hesitation.

“All done,” she said, passing one copy back to Charlotte. “The money will hit your company’s account

tomorrow.”

“First tI've ever signed a contract before the food even arrives,” Charlotte said, her tone as laid-back as

ever. She reached out to shake Rebecca’s hand. “Working with you is refreshingly straightforward.”

Rebecca replied with a polite smile, “Pleasure doing business with you.”

Charlotte replied with a soft smile, “Likewise.”

Before long, the dishes started arriving one after another.

Watching Rebecca sit there eating all quiet and polite, Charlotte seriously wanted to reach out and give her fluffy

head a little ruffle. She couldn't help but think, ‘How is someone this adorable and interesting not originally from

Honnala?*

“Rebecca,” Charlotte called with her gaze still on her.

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Chapter 272

Rebecca glanced up. “Yeah?”

Fe

Charlotte tossed out, almost like small talk, “So, is it true you and Jeffrey split up?”

Rebecca nodded. “Yeah”

There was nothing to hide about it.

Charlotte asked, “Why?*,

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Rebecca set her chopsticks down, looked up at Charlotte, and threw the question right back: “Why haven't you

tied the knot, then?”

Charlotte shrugged. “What's the point of getting married?”

Rebecca shot back, “Sanswer.”

Charlotte raised an eyebrow, pushing a little further. “If marriage is so pointless, then why did you go and marry

Jeffrey? Didn't you two have a kid together?”

Rebecca smirked. “That's exactly why it feels pointless to me-been there, done that.” She was already switching

to whatever answer would get her through the conversation.

When Rebecca obviously didn’t want to elaborate, Charlotte let it slide.

She could tell Rebecca was just brushing her off.

But that's just how Rebecca is-even when she’s playing dodgeball with the truth, she acts all earnest and

straight-faced about it. If you didn’t know better, you'd totally fall for it.

The meal was laid-back, none of the usual bragging or brown-nosing-just the easiest, chillest business dinner

Rebecca and Charlotte had ever sat through.

When Rebecca went to settle up, Charlotte finally got down to business. “You do realize the price you offered is

two to three times higher than the going rate, right?”

“I know,” Rebecca said clearly, not bothered at all.

If she'd been dealing with Starlight Media's official boss, Rebecca would've handled things differently.

No way would she have cin with her real offer up front-she’d have played it cool and acted like she was still

negotiating with a few other firms.

But with Charlotte, none of those games were necessary.

“So you know, and you're still willing to pay? Got money to burn or something?” Charlotte asked, totally casual.

“Part of it’s my payment,” Rebecca replied, meeting Charlotte's gaze with a calm smile. “The rest? Consider it a

token of sincerity-or, if you like, a little ‘hello’ gift.”

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Chapter 272

Charlotte let out a laugh.

The next second, she slipped on her sunglasses, her whole vibe calm and unhurried.

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“Since you cin with such a thoughtful welcgift, I'm taking this job-and trust me, I'll make sure you're

more than satisfied,” she said.

“Appreciate it,” Rebecca replied, smiling-she knew when Charlotte made a promise, she meant it.

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