Mobid Holdings hadn’t been a popular brand among consumers until a few years ago. It had lingered around the 5th or 6th place without any popularity, but it shot up to second place after Ryan joined the company.
The scene Ryan faced when he first started was dismal. New employees were struggling under rotten management. After solidifying his own position, Ryan cut away the rotten parts and worked hard to make a fresh start with new promotions.
Thanks to the new card launched with a focus on marketing to the 2030 generation, they were able to achieve the current success.
“Of course, that’s the expected result since I came here for that.”
“How’s your sister-in-law doing?”
As Lincon’s obsession with marriage grew day by day, Ryan had confided in Luis about the stress of wasting time on meaningless matters.
At that time, it was Luis who first hinted at the idea of a contract marriage. It was a joke, but it was good advice for Ryan.
He hadn’t formally introduced Alice to Luis yet. They had only crossed paths a few times when she visited the company. Still, Luis had always asked about Alice since Ryan got married.
“She’s doing well.”
“From a different floor?”
As soon as Luis finished speaking, he burst into laughter.
He hadn’t drunk much, but he was clearly tipsy.
“Oh, I’m tearing up. I can’t believe there’s actually a woman who doesn’t even glance at Ryan Iglis. After all those times sneaking in at dawn and diving into bed, you’ve never crossed the line even once.”
Luis pretended to wipe away non-existent tears. When Ryan told him to stop laughing, Luis exaggeratedly laughed even more, and Ryan shook his head.
“I made the proposal because I knew she was that kind of woman.”
Even upon reflection, Alice was the perfect partner for Ryan. She willingly agreed to all the conditions he wanted. She even went so far as to register their marriage.
He had worried that after getting married, Alice might change her mind and start getting close to him, but that worry was unnecessary. She was, in fact, perfectly fulfilling the contract.
“So, when are you going to have the housewarming party?”
“Stop with the housewarming talk; it’s not a real marriage.”
“Does your sister-in-law cook well?”
“I don’t know; I’ve never eaten her food.”
“Haha, it seems your sister-in-law really doesn’t like you. She hasn’t even made you a meal once?”
Luis burst into laughter again, clearly enjoying himself.
“We’ve never eaten together privately.”
“What? You’ve never even been to a common restaurant together? Wow, I guess I was a fool to expect anything!”
“What were you expecting, man?”
Ryan’s words made Luis stammer, and he raised his voice, veins popping in his neck.
“Your indifference is so obvious; how long do you think you can keep deceiving your grandfather? It’s sad to see your sister-in-law struggling alone.”
Was that too harsh?
No matter how loveless the marriage was, hadn’t he been too busy drawing lines with Alice?
Thinking about it, he had never been warm or expressed gratitude to Alice, who had become the perfect partner.
There was no way Alice would like someone like him.
In fact, he felt more and more that he had been trying to act indifferent, and a wave of guilt washed over him.
Luis was right. The reason Lincon, who was quick-witted, was deceived by their act was that Alice had treated him well. Even he thought it wouldn’t be strange if Lincon figured it out tomorrow.
“You told me to live separately in a contract marriage, right? Why are you suddenly talking about meals?”
“I didn’t think you two would really just be living separately! You need to get a bit closer.”
Luis’s nagging continued for a while longer.
***
When Alice returned home, she turned on the living room light, thinking Ryan hadn’t arrived yet.
“Ah!”
But as soon as she turned on the light, she was startled by the dark figure sitting on the living room sofa and screamed.
“Vice President! You’re home?”
“Haha,” Alice laughed awkwardly.
In truth, she wanted to ask, “Why are you here?” but that didn’t seem like something to say to the homeowner, so she swallowed her words.
“Are you just coming in now?”
As soon as Alice saw Ryan, Olive’s advice came to mind.
“Is there something difficult? Just suggest having a meal together to get to know each other.”
Olive had said that asking to eat together wasn’t a big deal, but…
“Vice President, have you been out somewhere?”
Alice realized that she wasn’t drunk yet.
She lacked both the courage and the spirit to borrow from the alcohol.
She was worried that if she wasn’t careful, it might seem like she was interested in him.
She was concerned that Ryan might misunderstand and make things awkward between them.
What if their marriage ended up being uncomfortable?
