Riyana and Lily both turned their heads at the same time.
Lily was already a little drunk. The lights above the table looked slightly blurred to her, and the noise around felt distant. Still, she recognized them instantly. Her eyes widened when she saw David standing beside Jabco.
The two of them together was the last thing she expected.
“What are you two doing here?” Lily asked, her voice slow but sharp enough to carry.
David and Jabco exchanged a brief look. Then David stepped forward and, without any hesitation, bent down on one knee in front of her.
“Mrs. Hardison,” he said calmly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, “you’re drunk.”
As he spoke, he gently reached out and brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face.
Lily narrowed her eyes at him. She didn’t like the way he was acting, didn’t like the way he suddenly appeared and took control like this. But to everyone’s surprise, she didn’t correct him.
The moment those two words left David’s mouth, the table went dead silent.
People stared at Lily as if she had suddenly grown another head.
“Mrs. Hardison?”
“Did he just say that?”
“She’s married?”
“To David Hardison?”
Whispers broke out instantly, spreading like fire.
Riyana noticed Lily’s expression and couldn’t help smiling faintly. Lily looked annoyed, almost ready to explode, but there was no real resistance in her eyes. Riyana knew Lily kept her distance from David, but it was also clear that David had no intention of backing off. Calling her his wife in front of so many people was bold, almost reckless.
And very David.
He was drawing a line. Loud and clear.
“Mr. Hardison.”
John stood up from his seat and walked toward them, his expression carefully polite but his eyes filled with surprise. He clearly hadn’t expected this either. Still, his businessman instincts kicked in fast. This was an opportunity, and he wasn’t going to miss it.
David straightened up and turned toward him.
“Hello, Mr. Brown,” David said smoothly, reaching out his hand.
John shook it at once, his smile polite but tense. “It’s an honor to meet you.”
David nodded slightly, then his eyes shifted sideways.
He glanced at Jabco.
Jabco was standing there quietly, his expression unreadable. But his eyes weren’t on Lily. They weren’t on David or John either.
They were on Riyana.
And Riyana wasn’t looking at him at all.
She sat calmly, her hands resting on her lap, listening to the conversation as if nothing here concerned her. It was as if Jabco didn’t exist.
David caught that detail immediately.
Interesting.
“Hello, Mr. Grey,” John said, turning toward him. “I’m John Brown, CEO of Northstar Media.”
Jabco shook his hand firmly, his movements controlled and unreadable. If David was showing respect to this man, Jabco wasn’t careless enough to act otherwise.
“Hello, Mr. Brown,” Jabco replied.
His eyes stayed on John for only a moment before drifting back to Riyana. His expression darkened slightly. She sat there calmly, as if they were complete strangers, as if there wasn’t years of history between them.
Being ignored like that irritated him more than he wanted to admit.
One of the girls sitting near Riyana leaned closer and whispered, curiosity clear in her voice.

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