Worship The Ground You Walk On

The shopping mall had a grocery store under the first floor. Kim let Claudia sit here, and she went away to buy ice cream.

The store here served a unique flavor. It was so popular that there was always a long line waiting outside the store. It was what Kim must have every time she came. Claudia sat there alone. Many thoughts and ideas came to her mind when she was idle. Those things kept surging in her heart, disturbing her inner peace. She was fully indulged in her thoughts and didn't even notice that somebody else showed up beside her. When the tall man sat next to her, she was startled. "Why are you sitting here alone?"

She relaxed when she saw Scott's familiar and handsome face. His smile was so shiny and his action so gentle. He was the most graceful and gentle man that Claudia knew.

Claudia paused for a second, before she could react, Scott said, "Are you here all alone? Is there something bothering you?"

Claudia sometimes got panicked having Scott around because of the man's alert eyes. They were as calm and unpredictable as the ocean; but on the contrary, he could easily capture and read other people's thoughts and eye expressions. He could get straight to the point.

"I heard that you are going to get a divorce, is that true?"

The question made Claudia nervous again.

The divorce was still in the air, but the news had been spread across the whole town.

The Crawford Family couldn't wait to kick her out. She wondered if she's really that incompetent...

"You have done so much for him, but look at what he has done to you! Claudia, it's time for you to wake up from your daydreaming! Ben is not the one for you! You should leave him! The sooner, the better!" Scott said in a low voice. It was echoing in her mind.

She had heard similar things many times, but neither of those was as thought-provoking as this one.

It was indeed a marriage that existed only in name. She wondered if she really had no way to save it.

"Why wouldn't you listen to me?"

Scott was nearly begging her. His eyes were still gentle; however, the closer they were, the more nervous Claudia felt.

She hadn't had a close connection with Scott. They had known each other since they were young, but all they did was greeting each other when they met. He didn't even know since when he had been attached by every move of hers.

That was what Claudia was curious about, too.

She moved aside out of manner, and then she signed, "Mr. Palmer, my marriage is my own business, thank you for your concern, but that was really unnecessary."

He smiled and then said, "I'm doing this just for you! You're excellent and you doesn't need to devote yourself to a man like that."

Claudia shook her head and chuckled. Then she signed, "I'm not as good as you think. I felt really flattered that you described me with 'excellent"."

"Oh, come on." Scott replied quickly. His sultry eyes were staring at him.

It seemed he had seen through all that she tried to hide behind those eyes.

Men like him always gave away a dangerous aura. Claudia wanted to get away from him.

"It has been ten years since Ben took over the Crawford Group. In the past ten years, the group met two financial crises and one commercial dispute. They were all settled nicely in the end. Many outsiders give credit to Ben, saying that he was young and promising... I'm one of the few people who know the power behind his back."

Scott and Ben didn't see each other eye to eye since they were young. They don't hate each other. It was just because the two had similar strong personalities and equal ability. "A great man cannot brook a rival," that saying was even truer when it came to the financial world.

That was why Scott paid more attention to Ben than anyone else.

The more he watched, the more clues he had found. Even Ben didn't know how the Crawford company had sailed out of the crisis. He didn't know who was helping him. That was a mystery. Scott had done a careful investigation. He couldn't believe it in the first place, but he had to accept the fact when the final result came out.

His meaningful gaze was fixed on Claudia's face. He continued with his deep voice, "Nobody knows that a mute and seemingly weak woman is a hidden financial trader. Claudia, your professional skills have surpassed many experts."

Since she was a child, she had a strong talent for math. She had been enduring humiliation for all these years, and she could only let off her anger and hatred by reading books. She had more than one doctoral degree and had strong working ability in business.

Many large companies would kill for a talent like her, but Ben was totally unaware that a super talent had always been beside him.

Claudia looked so surprised. Her secret had been exposed. A chill was crawling along her bone.

"Leave him for me. I will upgrade whatever he has offered you, and I'll give you more things which he can't give you."

Scott promised and grabbed her hand with his big warm hand.

The subtle move was immediately noticed by Claudia. She drew back her hand on the table and tried not to make any contact with him.

Scott's hand reached out and touched nothing, but he didn't seem embarrassed at all. He smiled and was about to say something. Just by then, a woman's gentle voice came from behind...

"Claudia..."

She looked up and saw Hanna coming over, along with a tall man standing beside her.

It was Ben. His cold gaze skimmed Claudia and Scott, and his expression became complicated. Then the suspicion in his eyes disappeared. His attractive face was taken over by sullen.

Scott didn't react much when he saw Ben. He stood up slowly and greeted the two indifferently, "What a coincidence, Mr. Crawford and Miss Lewis!"

Hanna felt a bit embarrassed. She walked to Claudia and whispered to her, "Claudia, please don't get this wrong. Ben and I are not doing what you think..."

"Tell us what she's thinking."

Kim's voice came along from afar. She was holding two cups of ice cream. As she walked closer, she looked askance at Hanna and Ben.

"Ben and Claudia discussed their divorce just days ago, and as Ben's ex-girlfriend, you immediately invited him out and go shopping with him," Kim said as she looked at the shopping bag in Hanna's hand. She was scorning and jeering. "Your clumsy denial would only result in self-exposure. Hanna, you did this again and again. I'm impressed by your scheming strategy."☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐