She Left She Thrived She’s Worth Billions novel Chapter 156

"How thoughtful of you."

Pleased by Gabriel's praise, Evelyn grinned from ear to ear.

"I genuinely want to be your friend, Mr. Whitmore. After it's done…"

Evelyn couldn't finish her sentence.

The red wine was now streaming down from the top of her head, dripping down her face and all over her dress.

Evelyn was speechless and utterly stunned.

In front of her, Gabriel held the crystal wine glass, a smile on his face as he poured its contents onto her head.

"Ms. Hale, if you ever dare to bully my sist— Ms. Royce again, I'll hire people to pour red wine on your face every day!"

After emptying the entire glass on Evelyn's head, Gabriel let out a disdainful scoff and turned, striding coolly out of the hall.

Many people had witnessed the scene and, after their initial shock, began whispering and pointing at Evelyn.

Evelyn didn't know what to do.

She stood frozen, casting a pleading look at Dominic, only to see him staring at her with profound disappointment, as if blaming her for embarrassing him again.

But Evelyn felt incredibly wronged, on the verge of tears.

She was just trying to give Gabriel an idea! Why would he treat her like this?

From a distance, Melanie was also taken aback to see Gabriel pour wine on Evelyn's head.

Did Gabriel have some private feud with Evelyn?

Tilting her head, Melanie couldn't figure it out.

After leaving Luminara Hall, Gabriel couldn't resist calling Preston, recounting the entire wine-pouring incident.

"Bro, what do you think? Impressed by how cool I was?"

Recognizing that Gabriel was looking for credit, Preston offered some praise.

"Mm, well done."

"Just well done?"

Gabriel felt Preston's praise was a bit lacking.

After a brief silence on the other end, Preston's calm, magnetic voice came through.

"Next time you threaten someone, you can be a bit more forceful."

"For example?"

"For example… you could use a shard of broken glass to slash her face."

Gabriel stopped in his tracks.

***

After the reception, Melanie did indeed return to the Hale Health Center with Dominic.

However, they weren't alone; Gregory was also there.

After listening to Melanie's detailed explanation of the project proposal, Gregory decided to promote her from Project Manager to Vice President of the company, second only to Dominic, and put her in charge of all negotiations with Adrian Mercer's workshop.

"But Dad… this project is so big. I can't guarantee I can close the deal. Maybe it's better to leave it to Dominic…"

Before Melanie could finish, Gregory waved his hand dismissively.

"Don't be modest. This project is perfect for you. You wrote the proposal, and you helped improve Adrian's equipment. I believe that if you handle the negotiations, Adrian will prioritize us, assuming the terms are comparable."

"Well… Dad has a point… but…"

Melanie appeared hesitant and cautious.

"What if I fail to secure the deal…"

"Don't worry. If you can't, Dominic and I will figure something out. We won't blame you."

With Gregory's reassurance, Melanie let out a sigh of relief.

Of course, this entire performance was an act.

Only by feigning reluctance could she earn Gregory's trust and prevent him from suspecting that she and Adrian Mercer had been in cahoots all along.