Chapter 8

Miranda remembered that necklace fondly. In the third year that she was with Xavier, he got in the mood and took her to admire some valuable collectible jewelry, one of them being this diamond necklace before her. "You like it?" He wrapped her around his arms and excitedly introduced the necklace to her. "This is our family heirloom. Apparently, it's only passed down to a Schneider daughter-in-law… If you want it, you gotta work harder for it, Ms. Jennings." His brows and eyes were filled with teasing, his gaze profound as he looked at her. It felt like a playful remark, yet somehow, it sounded genuine. Unfortunately, Miranda took his words to heart. As such, she worked extremely hard all these years. "Do you like this, Ms. Jennings?" Yovanna became curious when she noticed Miranda's prolonged stare at that specific diamond necklace. "I don't know much about jewelry." Miranda snapped back to reality and smiled. "You're young and beautiful. I'm sure either one of these will complement your beauty." She was prepared to leave, but Yovanna stopped her. "Ms. Jennings." Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment as she apologized, "I'm sorry about what happened the other day. I shouldn't have played a matchmaker. Xavy has already lectured me about it, so please don't be mad at me anymore." She tugged at Miranda's sleeve and gazed pitifully at her. What a privilege it was to effortlessly tug at one's heartstrings simply by being young. Miranda maintained her formality. "I know you meant well, Ms. Yates. It's all just a misunderstanding." "Well, it's my insecurity to blame as well. Xavy is a capable man, while I'm just… me. I wouldn't have done such a thing if I weren't insecure." Yovanna smiled sweetly. "But Xavy said he's only doing it for the company's sake. He doesn't want the marriage alliance between the Grants and Fords to break off because of a member from Schneider Corp. What's past is past, and he'd never go back to an old flame…" Maintaining her smile, she asked, "What do you think, Ms. Jennings?" Miranda was momentarily stunned. It was futile to dwell on the past. Besides, why would she hit the same wall again after crashing into it once? "I think it's great." She answered softly, "You and Mr. Schneider are quite a match." With that, she turned around and left the office. Coincidentally, Xavier entered the room and brushed past her. He barely spared her a glance as if she were invisible. Instead, he walked toward Yovanna and embraced her. "Have you made up your mind?" Miranda pursed her lips and left silently. Once she exited the office, Wendy approached her. "When are you transferring to Evergreen?" "Not so soon. I have to secure the project with Shanridge Group first." With that said, it shouldn't take Miranda a long time. Once she finalized the collaboration, she could transfer to Evergreen Ventures immediately. Wendy cast a sympathetic look at her, prompting Miranda to ask, "What?" "You know what I saw earlier? I was delivering coffee to Mr. Schneider in his office earlier, and she happened to be there. "She was basically clinging to him, acting coquettish and saying something like: Promise me, Xavy, that you'll never talk to your ex again or even look at her. Or else, I'll get really, really jealous…" Wendy mimicked Yovanna's voice, coquettish and full of grievance, full-on teasing her. Taken aback, Miranda burst into a smile. "Good for her." It was only natural for a girl in her early 20s to develop a possessiveness born of the fear of losing someone. What was more, beauty was in the eye of the beholder. The type of girl Xavier liked might very well be just like her. Miranda's unfazed demeanor startled Wendy. She let out a faint sigh, lamenting, "I can tell you've completely moved on from Mr. Schneider." Miranda laughed, knowing she would rather spend her time and attention on other matters than love affairs. As the time for the business negotiations with Shanridge Group drew near, she finalized the time and location, then double-checked to ensure that the contract and proposal were flawless. The clock struck at 10:00 pm, and Miranda finally exited the company. Suddenly, she ran into Adrian Anderson, who was there to see her. "Hey, Miranda! Do you know how many projects Xavier has blocked from my family this month?" Adrian looked grim. The Anderson family had developed steadily over the years. While his stepmother, Metryl, was greedy, she had never dared to make a scene. But who would've thought that, after causing trouble for Miranda by provoking Xavier, she would end up running off to Eldoria to "unwind" after things went wrong? Adrian was extremely pissed. Miranda, on the other hand, stayed as cool as the wind. "So, why are you here?" "Everything happened because of you! Aren't you going to talk to Xavier about it and make him stop?" Adrian's gaze was full of hostility. He inched toward her and aggressively gripped her wrist before taunting her, "Or did you lose the privilege to leverage with him because he's gotten sick of you?" Xavier got sick of her… Her lips quivered at those words, which had been repeatedly thrown in her way since her separation from him. "You've come to the wrong person. I can't help the Andersons, nor can anyone change Xavier's mind. You Andersons had it coming. Instead of coming to me, why don't you spend your time looking for her?" That was Miranda's response after a momentary silence. The Andersons couldn't possibly be unaware of what Meryl had done. In fact, they might even have been secretly stirring the pot behind the scenes, perhaps trying to gauge just how much Miranda was worth. In the end, though, they found out that Xavier had already lost interest. Instead of getting what they expected, the Andersons ended up in quite a bit of trouble because of it, which was why they were furious at Miranda. By then, Miranda had somewhat gauged the situation and Adrian's motive. His expression shifted, and his grip tightened on her wrist. "Listen up, bitch. I don't care what methods you use. If the Schneiders cause us trouble again, I'll make sure you and your mother will never know peace!" Yet, she remained as calm as ever. "Your family has tied itself up in knots and brought this upon yourselves. What does it have to do with me? Even if you drag my mom to court, I won't even bat an eye. So, don't expect me to interfere with your family matters!" "Bitch, what did you just say?" Adrian was furious. He lifted his arm and was ready to slap her face, but a man suddenly stopped him. "Quite a temper you have there, Mr. Anderson." Miranda looked up and saw Xavier glaring coldly at Adrian, his gaze full of disdain and mockery. Why was he here? Before she could regain her composure, Adrian cowered and withdrew his hand, looking at Xavier. "Mr. Schneider, you're right on time. It seems that there have been a few misunderstandings between you and our family lately, causing a few interference in our company projects. "Why don't we talk this out now?" "No, there haven't been any misunderstandings." Xavier shielded Miranda and scoffed. "Why don't you tell Mrs. Anderson to grovel at the entrance of my company instead? Otherwise, when in business, you'll have to prove yourself."