Once a Love Fool Now a Leading Lady (Kylie rehbein and Axel Bowen) novel Chapter 5

When Gresham heard her words, he sighed with a mix of envy and admiration. "Mr. Bowen is lucky. Having someone like Ms. Rehbein on his team explains why his business is so successful."

Kylie smiled politely. "You give me too much credit, Mr. Pascall. Compared to Mr. Bowen, I respect you even more. You built everything from the ground up."

It was the kind of polite talk people said over drinks, but Gresham still felt flattered. Her words lifted his mood.

"I enjoy working with you, Ms. Rehbein," he said warmly. "Talking with you always feels easy. Here, let me toast to you."

"You have liver problems. I'll drink this one for you," Kylie replied quickly. She lifted her glass. "I'll finish mine. You can take it slow."

Gresham laughed. He liked straightforward people. Kylie's style suited him well.

Once she drank, he leaned closer and advised, "Don't push yourself too hard. I'll only sign this project with you. No one else will change my mind."

"Thank you, Mr. Pascall," Kylie said with a grateful smile. She poured him another glass.

But Gresham noticed her face looked pale. Concern showed in his eyes. "Ms. Rehbein, are you sick? You don't look well."

"I'm fine," she answered quickly.

"Do you want me to have my driver take you to the hospital?"

Kylie was about to decline when a knock came at the door.

A waiter stepped in. "Mr. Pascall, Mr. Bowen found out you're dining here. He asked me to bring you this wine."

Gresham glanced at the bottle in the waiter's hands.

Romanée-Conti. An expensive gift.

But what puzzled him more was—if Axel was also at the Regal Hotel, why wasn't he here with Kylie?

Before he could ask, Axel walked in with Rhea.

"Mr. Pascall, do you like the wine?" Axel greeted him casually, his eyes sliding right past Kylie.

He wore only a crisp white shirt, perfectly tailored to his frame—fitted just right, not too loose, not too tight. It gave him a sharp, refined look.

As for his jacket?

It was draped over Rhea's shoulders, a display of closeness he didn't bother to hide.

The cruelest part was that Kylie had been the one who picked that jacket out for him.

"This is a thoughtful gift, Mr. Bowen. How could I not like it? And this young lady is ... "

Gresham's eyes shifted to Rhea, who had walked in with Axel. Instinctively guessing what their relationship was.

When a man gave his coat to another woman, there was no mistaking the meaning.

Almost unconsciously, Gresham looked toward Kylie.

She appeared calm, but her face was paler than before.

"Let me introduce you," Axel said. "This is Rhea Malone, Director of Investment Division Three. And Rhea, this is Mr. Pascall of Pascall Group, one of Vortex's oldest partners."

Rhea stepped forward, smiling as she extended her hand. "Mr. Pascall, it's a pleasure. I look forward to working with you."

"Ms. Malone, the pleasure is mine," Gresham replied politely.

Pascall Group had worked with Vortex on several projects, so they knew a bit about how the company operated.

Investment Division 3 had only been around for less than a year, and its director's seat had always stayed empty. Everyone assumed it was being saved for Kylie.

After all, she had been the one running Division 3's projects for the past year.

Even while juggling two roles, she pushed the division performance to the top of Vortex. Naturally, she put in more work than anyone else.

But in the end, all her effort just paved the way for someone else to take the reward.

Even Gresham, an outsider, felt sorry for her.

"By the way, Mr. Pascall," Axel said smoothly, "from now on Ms. Malone will be your contact for this project with Vortex. I wanted to bring her over so you could meet her."

At that, Gresham frowned. "But Ms. Rehbein has been my contact from the beginning. This sudden change ... "

Axel didn't care. "Kylie is just a secretary. Ms. Malone was away before, so Kylie stepped in to handle things. Now that the rightful lead is back, the project naturally goes to her."

He added quickly, trying to reassure him, "Don't worry, Mr. Pascall. Ms. Malone holds a PhD in finance from Woton University and worked at one of the top international banks. I personally recruited her to Vortex with a high salary. Her abilities are beyond question."

Gresham wasn't worried about her skills. What bothered him was how unfair this seemed to Kylie, who had poured so much into the project.

And now Axel handed it off like it was nothing. As an outsider, even he found it hard to watch.

But Kylie's reaction was surprisingly calm.

Axel introduced Rhea personally, making it clear he wanted to pave the way for her and protect her.

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