Ice and Fire

Chapter 952 A Bad Hunch

"What do you say? Do you want to hear some dirty words?" Greg asked, looking at her furtively. This

time, he was not afraid. If Violet got angry, she would need to punish everyone - Lawrence, Tim, Mike

and him. Greg doubted she would do it though, so he was not worried.

"Greg, you really deserve a good lesson from me," Violet said, gnashing her teeth together. She was

beyond irritated.

"Huh. You, my wife, are too harsh on me," Greg tut-tutted, shaking his head. He continued looking at

his cell phone and avoided her gaze.

Violet didn't know what to do with her husband. He was quite a handful.

Time passed by.

At eight o'clock that night, Tim and Alice arrived at Oriental Hotel.

"Why aren't Violet and Greg here yet?" Alice could hardly wait and was a bit restless.

"We should be patient. Lawrence and Mike haven't arrived either." Tim said calmly. He was in no hurry.

"You are right. We are quite early." Alice looked around the lobby, finding that it was empty of other

guests. They had booked the entire hotel.

Suddenly, Alice spotted Lawrence, who was not far away from them. She immediately waved at him,

saying, "Lawrence! We are here."

Lawrence saw the pair and walked over to them.

"Violet and Greg haven't arrived yet. I'll call them up and ask where they are right now," Alice said,

about to take out her cellphone. Lawrence sat down.

"No need. They will probably be here in a couple of minutes," Lawrence said, glancing down at his

watch. "It isn't eight o'clock yet," he added.

"Well, I got impatient so we arrived early. Waiting around for someone is so boring," Alice complained,

rolling her eyes.

"Ho-ho! So there is something that can wear you down?" Mike said from afar. He was here too.

His loud voice drew the attention of the three and they turned to look to him. Mike wore a suit and had

brought Amanda with him.

As Amanda sat down next to them, she nodded to Lawrence and Tim, greeting them politely.

"Alice! Long time no see," Amanda said. Her smile was breezy and sincere.

"Hello, Amanda," Alice replied. Amanda was being friendly to her, so she saw no reason to be hostile.

Mike looked around, his brows knitted in confusion. "Where is Violet? We informed them that we'd be

here, didn't we?"

"Relax. I'm sure they are already on the way. Maybe they're stuck in traffic," Tim said.

"Okay, we'll wait for them and have some chitchat then. When Violet comes, we'll celebrate her return,"

Mike suggested.

Meanwhile, Violet and Greg got out of their car at the entrance of Oriental Hotel. Greg handed over the

car keys to the security guard and walked over to Violet. She took his arm instinctively as they stepped

into the lobby together.

"Mr. and Mrs. Xiao, nice to see you both! Mr. Tim is already here. Please follow me," a staff member

said, gesturing them to walk with him.

"Darling, Tim manages this hotel, doesn't he?" Violet asked her husband. Her gaze swept her

surroundings as she marveled at the intricate decoration of the hotel.

"You know it," Greg replied, grinning.

"Wow. Tim must be outstanding. His management is excellent," Violet praised Tim, still gawking at the

decor. Unbeknownst to her, Greg's expression turned dark.

He looked at Violet's profile, scowling. "Do you think it is proper of you to praise another man in my

presence?" he asked, his tone bitter.

"Why not, what's wrong with it? I think it's absolutely fine," Violet said deliberately, rousing his jealousy.

She avoided Greg's eyes as he glared at her.

"Just wait. See how I'll torment you in bed tonight," Greg said. The corners of his mouth curved up.

Only in bed could he be the master.

"Greg, are you threatening me?" Violet questioned him, trying to sound confident, even as she shivered

at his words.

"What do you think?" Greg retorted, just as he saw Alice and the others not far away from them.

Violet too saw Alice and shook her hand away from Greg's arm. She strode toward her friend, smiling.

"Wait. Where are you going?" Greg asked, astonished. How could she just leave him alone like this?

"I don't want to be with you. I want to be with Alice," Violet replied, her voice already distant.

"Violet, what were you guys up to? Why are you so late?" Alice asked Violet as soon as the latter sat

beside her.

"Hey, there are two minutes left to eight o'clock! We aren't late," Violet jerked her watch in front of Alice,

proving to her that she was on time.

"Violet, didn't you see me? Why haven't you said hello yet?" Mike asked, snickering.

"Mike, it's not your turn yet. You are too impatient," Violet said to him indifferently. She noticed there

was a woman beside Mike. She was smiling at her, but Violet had never seen the woman before.

She wore simple make-up that brought out her beauty. Her black evening dress and exquisite white

skin were equally entrancing.

"You haven't changed much. Just as naughty as you used to be," Mike observed, sniffing. He had been

snubbed and didn't know what else to say.

"Who is the lady with you?" Violet asked, gesturing to the woman in front of her.

"She is sitting with Mike, so who do you think she is?" Greg said ironically, coming to stand beside

Violet.

Amanda smiled at them politely. "Hello, I am Amanda. Nice to meet you. May I call you Violet, just as

Mike does?" she asked.

Amanda was aware that the woman in front of her was the daughter of the Chu Family. She was

Lawrence's younger sister and held everyone in the palm of her hand.

Chu Family held the reins of the city. If they were the rulers of this kingdom, then Violet was its Queen.

"Of course. You are Mike's friend, so we are friends too," Violet replied to her, smiling back. Amanda

came here with Mike so it was obvious that they were in a relationship. There was no reason that Violet

should maintain a distance from her. "May I call you Amanda?"

"Yes," Amanda said in delight. Violet's comment to Mike had made her worry that it would be hard to

get along well with the Chu heiress. But it seemed that Violet was quite warm and amiable. 'No wonder

everyone pampers her. She must be special, ' Amanda thought.

"Hey," Violet blurted out, turning to Mike suddenly, "Amanda is so beautiful, why don't you marry her

quickly?"

The question embarrassed Mike, making him splutter. He turned to look at Lawrence and said, "Your

brother is still single. As we're in the same age, I'm not in a hurry."

Lawrence's eyes cut to him. 'Why is he using me as an excuse?' Lawrence thought, annoyed. He

glowered at his friend in disdain.

"Say that again?" Lawrence hissed, the threat obvious in his tone.

"What I said is true. Our two younger sisters are married now. But you are still single and because of it,

I have to remain unmarried too," Mike said dramatically. Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

"Don't worry about that. My parents have come back. They'd want to get Lawrence married as soon as

possible," Violet said, grinning.

As soon as Violet finished speaking, the rest of them, excluding Amanda, stared at Lawrence in

astonishment. Lawrence stared back. His girlfriend, Aria, was a simple girl. She was from an ordinary

family. However, Lawrence was the heir of Chu Family and was born and brought up in luxury. The

differences between them were plain to see.

The air seemed to freeze, but Violet didn't understand why. "What's wrong?" she asked, puzzled. "Did I

say anything wrong?"

"No, no. We are just curious about who his girlfriend is? He is so critical of everyone," Alice said

quickly, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"I am just wondering who this competent girl is, who has succeeded in charming Lawrence and is going

to discipline him now as his wife," Greg said, trying to diffuse the embarrassment. He was ready to

come to Violet's aid at any time.

"Darling, my brother is excellent. Who he needs is a wife, not a teacher," Violet said to Greg, shuffling

closer to him.

"Looks like it," Greg replied.

"His marriage is in the hands of my parents. It's beyond my control. Lawrence, do your level best to

convince them," Violet said, shrugging. She felt helpless about her brother's situation.

"Violet, come and visit my store whenever you are free. I have recently arranged for a lot of high-end

fabrics. I'd like to design a dress for you," Alice said.

"That's great! Thanks, Alice. I have been wanting a dress just like the ones on trend right now..." Violet

began discussing fashion with Alice rather eagerly.

The four men present stood around, feeling bored. They dared not butt in and bother the two queens,

lest the two of them get irritated with them.

Lawrence kept to himself, aloof. It didn't matter to him what they were talking about. Even when Violet

discussed his marriage with the others, the expression on his face had remained cold and remote, as if

the topic at hand had nothing to do with him. Only this way could he cover up what was eating him from

the inside. There were things that needed to be dealt with but he had no idea how to handle them.

What he cared most about right now was JS Group. Uncle Derek said he was going to hand over the

company to Lawrence. He and his father were in talks. Lawrence wondered at the outcome of it.

They spent the time laughing and joking around. Even Amanda, who was far too elegant and ladylike,

chortled with laughter under Violet's influence. She cracked jokes with the group of friends, feeling right

at home.

After dinner, Tim drove away with Alice.

"Brother, Greg and I are also leaving. Please come back home early, otherwise mother would worry

about you," Violet said to Lawrence.

"Yeah. Be careful on the road. Call me if there is anything important," Lawrence said to his beloved

sister.

After Greg and Violet left, Mike walked up to Lawrence.

"Are you okay? You look tensed tonight," Mike commented. He knew Lawrence well. He kept calm and

aloof, but Mike could read him like a book.

"I am fine," Lawrence said, looking away. His eyes landed on Amanda, who was waiting outside for

Mike beside his car.

"Haven't you told your family the news yet?" Mike asked him. He was sure that neither Lawrence's

parents nor Violet knew about Aria, Lawrence's girlfriend.

"Mike," Lawrence started, turning to look at him.

Mike stared at him, not saying a word. He waited for Lawrence to continue, who sighed.

"We shouldn't concern ourselves with that at present. What we should worry about is the JS Group,"

Lawrence said, anxiety looming in his eyes.

"What is wrong with JS Group?" Mike furrowed his brows. "Did your parents come back for the

company's sake?"

Lawrence shook his head. "Uncle Derek has asked me to manage the company," he continued.

"What?" Mike was astonished. He couldn't believe his ears. "JS Group is quite powerful. It can't be

transferred to you that simply."

"I have a hunch that I'm going to be facing a lot more problems than that."