He Swore He Hated Seafood, So Why Did His Lips Taste Like Oysters? - Chapter 41: Chapter 41

Next day, our neighbor called—Grandma was sick.
Kieran dropped his important meeting without a word and drove me straight there.
Grandma was stubborn—refused to move in with us.
Said with my parents gone, someone had to watch over the family home.
"And now she's sick and I can't even take care of her."
Kieran took my hand.
"She'll be okay. Don't worry."
He stayed the whole time, handling appointments and prescriptions.
Afterward, he squeezed my fingers.
Smiled gently: "Let's get married. Then we can convince Grandma to move in."
Something warm hit me, made me say yes.
Looking back? Girls get impressed way too easily.
Seriously—couldn't I have handled all that myself?
Though I'll give Isabelle credit—sabotaging our marriage license was actually smart.
Otherwise we'd be getting divorced finally.
—
Next morning at the office, my phone buzzed.
Clingy Boyfriend: [Just landed. I need to see you RIGHT NOW."]
I shot back: [Wage slave's gotta work. Tonight?]
He sent a pouty face emoji.
I couldn't help smiling.
My coworker whispered, "Savannah, you're about to get fired and you're grinning?"
"Mr. O'Connor's letting his little mentee take over your lead planning job."
Isabelle?
I'd worked my way up from Kieran's assistant to project lead through pure skill.
Before, this would've crushed me.
Nobody likes getting replaced by some nepotism hire.
Good thing I was already planning my exit.
My colleague felt bad. "HR tried fighting for you—said Isabelle's barely a year out of school while you've got real experience."
"But Mr. O'Connor said..."
"He said you just have a few more years, but Isabelle's got that fancy overseas art degree."
Kieran was being petty. Yesterday's fight, today's revenge.
"So what's the good news?"
Emma was practically glowing. "Ever heard of Liam Cross?"
I nodded. "Tech world's golden boy. Came from nothing, self-made billionaire legend."
True—back in college, Kieran would talk about Liam with genuine respect.
"Cross isn't like me," he'd said. "I had family money. He built everything himself. That's real talent."
I laughed. "What's that got to do with me?"
My colleague was bouncing. "We might land his planning contract. Insane money, plus it'll look amazing on your resume."
Now I was interested. "What kind of project?"
"His proposal ceremony at month-end."
I blinked. "Proposal? He's getting married next month. Already has top planners for the wedding."
"Apparently his first proposal was too rushed. Wants to do something meaningful."
"Rich people problems. We don't need to understand—just get paid."
Fine.
In the conference room.
Isabelle decided on her own to get everyone bubble tea.
"Mr. Cross, you're so young—you must love trendy stuff, right?"
"Savannah was going to serve plain coffee. So funny—that's what my dad's generation drinks."
The legendary Liam Cross sat back in his chair, lips pressed together.
Sharp features, intense eyes, totally intimidating vibe.
He ignored Isabelle completely, glancing at me.
"Cup of coffee, thanks."
Isabelle looked mortified, pouting.
Kieran smoothed things over. "No worries, I'll drink the bubble tea."
Trying to save face in front of the executives, Isabelle really went all-out presenting her proposal.
Actually pretty decent content.
But Liam wasn't having it.
"Too idealistic."
"Got anything else?"
My coworker pushed me forward. "Savannah's got a great concept."
He nodded. Even Kieran didn't object.
I got pushed forward reluctantly.
Liam listened to my whole pitch in silence.
Then shot me down just as brutally: "Too basic. Not suitable."
Isabelle visibly relaxed.
I pushed back: "Mr. Cross, you don't speak for your fiancée. I think she'd love it."
Kieran gave me a weird look.
Suddenly Liam laughed.
When people who don't laugh much actually do, it makes everything awkward.
Nobody could tell if he was amused or pissed.
"I'm the one proposing, not the other way around."
"If she already knows, where's the surprise?"
Then completely dismissed me.
He leaned back in his chair.
"Timeline's tight, but I won't half-ass this for my girl."
"Mr. O'Connor, can you handle this personally?"
Ah. So that's what this was really about.
Kieran considered it. "I'll be honest, Mr. Cross—my girlfriend and I are planning our own wedding soon."
He looked meaningfully at me.
Both Isabelle and I froze.
Liam slowly turned to him, eyebrow raised. "Is that so?"
Kieran kept it professional. "But don't worry—I'll make time to ensure your proposal goes perfectly."
"By the way, who's the lucky lady?"