Regret Came Too Late (Grace and Ethan)

Alice was so furious her chest heaved with every sharp breath. She shot a murderous glare at Grace, who stood in the middle of the crowd.

Ethan was right next to Grace. His presence was imposing and ice-cold. No one dared to stand in front of him, so they all lingered behind. With Grace at his side, they looked like the perfect pair.

Alice's hand, which was hanging at her side, slowly curled into a fist. She could taste blood in her mouth.

She had once sworn to take away every ounce of happiness that belonged to Grace. But now, all anyone could do was sing Grace's praises while she was nothing more than a bitter fool on the sidelines.

Quentin stood beside her, keeping up his air of self-importance as he waited for Grace to come over and acknowledge him. But the photo session was nearly done, the reporters were packing up, and Grace still hadn't spared him so much as a glance.

Quentin was on the verge of losing his cool when someone asked, "Quentin, aren't you going to say something to Grace? What is she doing here representing Henderson Group? If she had come on behalf of Lambert Group, you would've had this bid in the bag! You must be out of your mind for not valuing such a capable daughter and even letting her work for the competition."

Hearing that, Quentin was so furious he almost choked. He just couldn't wrap his head around how Grace, who used to be completely useless, had changed so much. And to make things worse, Alice-the daughter he had put all his faith in- had made a complete mess of things this time.

He stepped forward, ready to say something to Grace and maybe get some face time with the officials. In business, politics sometimes played a role. People had to show respect to the right people if they wanted their company to thrive.

Brookfield might be a small place, but it had produced some heavy hitters who now held high-ranking government positions. They weren't people he could afford to ignore.

But he had barely taken a step when Alice's choked voice reached his ears. "Dad, am I just a stepping stone for Grace to climb even higher?"

Quentin froze and turned around sharply. "What are you talking about?"

"Isn't it obvious? I was the one who thought of joining the Farm Support Project, and Grace just tagged along. I pulled the all-nighter on the live stream and came up with a way to keep the apples fresh. But in the end, all the credit goes to her. I... Never mind. I guess there's no point trying to compete with her."

As she spoke, she turned away like she had lost all hope.

Quentin rushed after her. "Are you saying Grace took credit for your work?"

"So what if she did? She just threw money at these farmers to win them over. I gave her a million dollars not too long ago. She has probably burned through all of it by now. But don't say anything. Everyone sees her as a hero right now. If word got out that she bribed them, it would drag the entire Lambert family through the mud."

Quentin was fuming. No wonder the farmers had welcomed Grace with open arms. She had used the Lambert family's money to buy their support, all to benefit Henderson Group. She was nothing but a traitor to her own family, a disgrace of a daughter!

The person who had first called Quentin over saw he was about to leave and asked, "Aren't you going to say something to your daughter?"

Quentin's expression darkened with irritation. "I don't have a daughter like that. She's a shame to this family."

The guy was stunned. How could Grace be a "shame to the family" when she had pulled everything off flawlessly? He saw that Quentin and Alice were already in the car and found himself at a loss for words.

As a father, Quentin hadn't offered Grace so much as a word of congratulations. Instead, he treated her like she was beneath him. That had to sting.

But Grace didn't seem to care in the slightest. Once she confirmed that Henderson Group had secured the bid, she turned to Ethan and said, "Congratulations, Mr. Henderson."

A flicker of amusement flashed in Ethan's eyes like a passing breeze, leaving ripples in its wake. "I'll give you a raise when we get back."noveldrama