It was only four o'clock in the afternoon, and David Carter's phone kept ringing, call after call coming in. Most of what William Harris heard were invitations for David Carter to dinner. As soon as work hours ended, David Carter left; everyone knew his evenings were always packed with activities, and there were simply too many people wanting to treat him to a meal.

Watching David Carter walk out the door, Brian Brooks also headed outside. He always carried himself in an unhurried, easygoing manner. As for this old colleague, the office staff, whether intentionally or not, regarded him as someone dispensable. Aside from being able to write large calligraphy with a brush, he really didn't have any particular skills, and his writing wasn't especially impressive either.

“Old Brooks, today Michael Reed said he’s treating us, you can’t leave,” Henry White stepped forward to stop Old Brooks.

“Haha, I have things to do at home. You young people go have fun, I won’t join in,” Old Brooks generally didn’t take part in the younger crowd’s activities.

“Old Brooks, that’s not giving us any face. Michael Reed is treating, you really shouldn’t skip it,” Henry White always spoke to Old Brooks this way, never showing the slightest respect for the older colleague.

“Old Brooks, come with us,” Michael Reed had no choice but to say. At this point, he was truly fed up with Henry White.

“No, really, I have things to do. You all go ahead,” Old Brooks didn’t stop, heading straight out the door.

Seeing Old Brooks had left, Michael Reed suddenly remembered he’d only invited everyone to sing karaoke, not to dinner, and immediately felt frustrated—looked like he’d have to cover both after all! At this point, there was nothing more he could say.

Jessica James, however, didn’t say a word, as if none of it had anything to do with her.

Since Huan Cheng Township was close to the county seat, they hailed a taxi, and the four of them quickly arrived in town.

It seemed Henry White was deliberately trying to mess with Michael Reed, leading everyone straight to the most upscale restaurant in town, “Red Lantern” Gourmet House.

When William Harris saw they’d come to this restaurant, he started to think less of Henry White—this guy really was something else, going all out to set someone up. At the same time, William Harris became wary of Henry White; he’d have to watch out for this guy in the future.

This restaurant was extremely expensive; under normal circumstances, a meal would never cost less than five hundred, and with all the extra charges, the total would be quite a sum.

Sneaking a glance at Little James, the pretty girl’s face was calm and unreadable; you couldn’t tell anything from her expression.

“Misjudged her!” For the first time, William Harris realized that Little James was not ordinary—this woman was far from clueless, she was formidable!

Sure enough, Henry White ordered quite a few high-end dishes, and even a bottle of expensive liquor. If William Harris hadn’t stepped in to stop him, this meal would have cost a fortune.

Michael Reed was also trying to save face in front of the beauty. Watching Henry White set him up, he could only grit his teeth and endure it, already harboring a grudge against Henry White.

After all the dishes were ordered, Little James waited until the waitress had left before saying, “Brother Michael, you’re really going all out treating us today. Why order so much food? Maybe we should send some back?”

Though his heart was bleeding, Michael Reed kept a big smile on his face and said, “It’s fine, the whole point of treating everyone is to make sure you all eat and have a good time.” At this point, backing down would really make him lose face in front of the beauty, so Michael Reed was determined to keep up appearances no matter what.

Sure enough, this woman wasn’t a kind soul either—why didn’t she say anything before the dishes were ordered, and only make a casual remark after? William Harris suddenly felt sorry for Michael Reed; it looked like he didn’t stand a chance.

William Harris was afraid their infighting would drag him in, so he didn’t say a word the whole time.

However, what William Harris didn’t expect was that Jessica James had no intention of letting him off the hook.

“Brother Harris, I’ll toast you with a cup of tea. Since you have an injury on your head, you can use tea instead of wine,” Little James said, after toasting Michael Reed, and then turned to William Harris. Her gaze was full of gentle affection, making it seem as if she had a bit of a crush on William Harris.

Seeing Henry White looking a bit unhappy, William Harris could only smile wryly to himself—this little woman really loved to stir things up!

“Thank you, thank you!” William Harris quickly raised his cup of tea. Anyway, he’d already said before coming that he wouldn’t drink alcohol because of his head injury, so drinking tea was fine.

“Brother Harris, you’re the person I admire most in the office. You handle everything, and I want to learn from you. Please give me lots of guidance.” After saying this, Little James cheerfully downed the wine in her own small glass, her cheeks instantly turning an incredibly alluring shade of red.

Damn it! William Harris cursed inwardly. That was clearly meant to make the other two see him as a rival—admire him the most, and say he handles everything? That’s vicious!

Sneaking a look at Zhang and Huang, sure enough, both their faces looked very unpleasant.

Why did she keep making him the target? William Harris knew he wasn’t likely to be the object of Little James’s secret affection—there had to be something else going on here.

He finally managed to get through the situation, burying himself in his food while pondering Little James’s motives.