Love's Change of Heart

Chapter 82

The neighborhood held the dinner at a famous local restaurant. When Leanna arrived downstairs, she saw Harry waiting for her by the entrance. The latter noticed her arrival and waved at her. "Leanna, over here."

"Sorry I'm late, there was some traffic on the way here," Leanna said after she walked over to Harry.

Coyly, Harry had his hand on the back of his head, as though he was still embarrassed over what happened the night before. "It's fine, don't worry about it. President Pearson and the others still haven't arrived yet. It's cold outside, so let's go in first."

Harry then took her into a private room filled with other upper-ranked leaders. After he introduced Leanna to everyone present, his direct leader laughed and said, "I've heard Harry mention Miss McKinney before this. As expected, she's really a beauty." Saying that, the man patted Harry's shoulder and said softly enough for only Harry's ears, "You're real lucky, kid."

Hearing his leader's remark, Harry smiled sheepishly. The rest of the leaders in the room, who had heard of Leanna, began complimenting Harry as well, saying that he was young and had a promising future.

In such a situation, Leanna couldn't bear to refute this fact in front of the leaders even though she had already made things clear with Harry. Hence, she casually remarked, "I also think he's a good man."

As soon as she made that remark, the room became silent. Harry's direct leader immediately went over to the door and said, "President Pearson." The rest of the leaders followed suit and gave their greetings as well with only Leanna staying still in silence.

Aidan remained indifferent to the leaders and finally laid his eyes on Leanna.

Noticing this, one of the leaders said, "President Pearson, she is one of the residents of Underwood Lane, Leanna, who is also Harry's neighbor."

Aidan only grunted in acknowledgment before he passed her by. The leader who spoke up cleared his throat and followed suit. "President Pearson, please have a seat here."

At the round table, Aidan would naturally be seated at the head position of the table with the highest- ranked leaders sitting to his left. With ranking as the order of seating, Leanna sat next to Harry.

During the meal, Harry noticed Leanna hadn't moved her utensils, which was why he kept putting food on her plate. "Leanna, you should try this. This is one of the most famous local dishes here. It's very delicious."

Leanna turned her head to him and smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Saying that, he put another type of dish on her plate. "This is delicious too. Here, give it a try."

Unsure whether it was her own delusion, Leanna was uncomfortable, as she felt a pair of cold eyes on her. However, when she took a glance at the room, Aidan was talking business with the people next to him with his usual indifferent expression. She lightly touched her nose in self-reproach. How could I have imagined for that man to be looking at me, she thought.

Just then, Harry's immediate leader said, "Harry, you shouldn't be solely entertaining Leanna. Everyone

here is watching, you know?" Although he was criticizing Harry, he was teasing him in actuality.

Harry then stood up with a glass in his hand. "I'm sorry for this, everyone. I will punish myself with a toast." Saying that, everyone somehow joined in the toast as well.

Throughout the dinner, Leanna stayed seated and was in a daze halfway through. Just then, a voice said to her, "Leanna, here. A toast to you."

Coming back to her senses, she turned her attention toward the direction of the voice to find a man looking at her. Just as she was about to speak, Harry interrupted, "Zack, unfortunately, Leanna can't hold her alcohol well. I'll drink in her stead."

Perhaps the man known as Zack had a little too much to drink, as he said, "Ah, what's so interesting in drinking with a man? Leanna, I do not wish to make this difficult for you too, so just drink one glass with me. I won't bother you after this."

When Zack raised his glass, Leanna said gently, "I'm sorry, but since I'm pregnant, I can't have any alcohol."

As soon as Leanna said she was pregnant, everyone at the table made eye contact with one another. Only Aidan remained still with no visible changes in his usual expression. Some had even whispered to another, "That fast? Harry's got some moves…"

Leanna then said, "However, I will toast to you all with this tea in place of alcohol."

With that, no one in the room could find fault with Leanna. As a result, the lively atmosphere died down.

Just then, an indifferent male voice said, "I heard that both your parents are teachers, Mr. Mills?"

Hearing that voice, Leanna almost spat out the tea she was drinking.

Not knowing why that business tycoon put him in the spotlight, Harry nodded hurriedly. "Yes. My parents have been teaching for many years back in our hometown."

Aidan then sighed deeply. "It's good that your parents are teachers, as the children they raise would turn out to be just as selfless as Mr. Mills who is part of the pillar of the nation."

Due to his nervousness, Harry couldn't process what Aidan had said and could only understand the man was complimenting him. Then, he replied bashfully, "You flatter me, President Pearson. I don't deserve such praise."

With a smile, Aidan gently held the glass in front of him. "No need for such modesty. You are worthy of such praise. What do you think, Miss McKinney?"

Leanna kept her calm, as she knew that man would come at her like this. Calmly, she replied, "Harry is excellent even though he's still so young. He's indeed much better than some that hold a holier-than- thou attitude while being domineering to everyone."

As soon as Leanna said that, the room fell silent once more. However, compared to the silence from before, the silence this time was a suffocating one. Although she didn't point out who she was describing, everyone in the room felt that it was inappropriate to be saying such a thing on such an occasion. NôvelDrama.Org exclusive content.

Just as everyone held their breath and fully anticipated Aidan to rage, Aidan sneered, "Miss McKinney is such a beauty. Too bad that doesn't hold true for her mouth."

"Thank you for the compliment, President Pearson," Leanna replied.

The crowd in the room became speechless at how Leanna completely disregarded the latter part of Aidan's sentence. Just how mentally strong is she to manage that? With the atmosphere growing heavier by the second, some of them braced themselves and tried to bring up topics of their own to diffuse the situation.

After three rounds of toast, Leanna left for the restroom, as she saw the crowd hadn't the intention to disperse yet.

Seeing her leaving the room, Harry followed suit and said, "Leanna, it's getting late. Why don't I take you home first?"

Leanna turned back toward Harry. "Is it okay for you to just leave?"

Scratching his head coyly, Harry replied, "I'll come back after sending you home. They won't be wrapping up anytime soon."

With a smile, Leanna said, "Don't worry. I'll just head home by myself. You just stay here and accompany them."

Harry knew that it would not be a good idea for him to just leave now, and so he nodded in affirmation. "Then, please send me a message when you get home."

"Alright."

"Say, Leanna." Harry stopped her once more. "You were being so bold just now. Aren't you afraid he would be angry?"

Leanna replied indifferently, "Even if that man gets angry, he'll only give a few words of criticism at most. I doubt he would do any more than that in front of others. You also needn't worry about the partnership since that man has always been profit-oriented. These small grievances wouldn't amount to anything in his eyes."

After listening to her explanation, Harry stared at Leanna blankly. "How are you so sure?"

"Aren't all businessmen like that? For that man to come so far out here from Highside only shows how important this project is to him."