Chapter 217: Chapter 215: My Dreams Are All About You

Five minutes later, Yates Donovan received a message from Mia Grant.

Kitty: [No need to look for me. I just remembered I left something at the Hughes’ place. I’ll head back on my own once I grab it. Your plane hasn’t taken off yet, so you should go.]

Yates Donovan frowned slightly and called her directly.

On the other end, Mia Grant hesitated for a moment before answering.

"I left on my own."

"I know," Yates Donovan said.

’She was too smart for that. If she’d been taken by force, she would have found a way to signal him.’

’They were so close; she’d had plenty of opportunities to make a sound and get his attention.’

That was why he hadn’t given chase.

The line went quiet. Mia Grant rubbed her nose sheepishly. "What you said earlier made a lot of sense. I was really listening."

"You’re right, I’m no savior. But if there’s something to be gained from this, I figure it’s worth a shot."

Yates Donovan chuckled. "Sometimes I really think you and Silas Grant act just like siblings."

"Vile capitalists."

"Suit yourself. You didn’t have to run off, you know. You could have just said you’d changed your mind. It’s not like I was going to knock you out and haul you back, right?"

"Hard to say."

Yates Donovan let out another laugh, and Mia Grant smiled in response. "Go on, head back."

"You should worry about yourself instead."

Yates Donovan didn’t agree.

"But you sticking around here isn’t exactly a good thing for me."

"Oh?"

She sighed, her tone playful yet earnest. "A man... you’ll affect the speed at which I draw my sword."

"Is that so? Well then, should I take my people away with me too?"

"Absolutely not!" Mia said, flustered. "You can leave, but everyone else has to stay."

’They were her escape plan.’

Yates Donovan clicked his tongue. "Wouldn’t you feel safer with me around?"

"Pfft." Mia laughed. "You’re giving yourself too much credit. What’s the difference between you and a ticking time bomb? So just hurry up and go back."

Yates Donovan was silent for a few seconds, but he didn’t press the issue. "Alright, you tell me to leave, so I’ll leave. You’re the one with all the authority, after all. In ancient times, you’d be Empress Wu—who would dare defy you once you’ve given the order?"

Mia hummed in response, telling him he was dismissed.

"Wait."

"Do you remember the nightmare I mentioned on the phone yesterday?"

Mia blinked. "Are you going to tell me about it?"

"Nope."

"..." Mia choked. "Then why did you bring it up?"

"I just wanted to pique your curiosity."

"..."

"Stay safe. I’ll tell you when you get back."

Mia was dying of curiosity, but she put on a show of disdain. "Who cares? It’s just a dream... As if no one else has them."

"How could my dreams be as mundane as anyone else’s? My dreams are all about you."

"..."

Mia broke out in goosebumps and cursed him a few times over the phone.

Yates Donovan rubbed his cheekbones, which were aching from his smile.

When the call ended, he slowly lowered his hand from his cheek. He lifted his gaze, and his expression was terrifyingly grim.

Mr. Payne used the location tracker to find him, running up to his side, out of breath.

"Sir! Sir! Why are you here alone? Where’s Miss Grant?"

Seeing the look on his boss’s face, Mr. Payne’s heart dropped, and he immediately feared the worst. "Did the Hughes Family catch up? We got held up by their men on the way here; otherwise, we wouldn’t have been this late."

"Are you hurt?"

"They wouldn’t hurt Miss Grant. She’s still useful to them, after all. You don’t have to worry too much. Let’s get out of here for now."

Yates Donovan’s expression remained neutral.

Mr. Payne sighed to himself and began to earnestly reason with this stubborn mule. "Sir, this isn’t Jynsia. Whatever you’re planning, even if you won’t consider your own safety, you have to think about Miss Grant."

"If you’re dead set on taking her away today, we’ll have to declare open war on the Hughes Family. The price of that would be putting Miss Grant in an even more difficult—or dangerous—situation."

"That doesn’t seem like a wise decision."

"Why don’t we wait a little longer? We have people stationed near the Hughes estate. I also found out that Mr. Keller’s men gave Miss Grant a gun to protect herself in a critical moment. In other words..."

"She went back on her own," Yates Donovan finally cut in, his tone impatient with the rambling.

Mr. Payne froze, not processing it for a second. "Why?"

Yates Donovan shot him a sideways glance. "The moment someone has a weakness, they give others a handle to grab onto."

Mr. Payne looked like he only half-understood. "But Miss Grant... doesn’t seem to have any weaknesses."

"Could it be Dr. Hughes?"

The moment the thought occurred to him, the more Mr. Payne analyzed it, the more sense it made. "It must be Dr. Hughes! Miss Grant likes him so much, Mr. Hughes must have used that to his advantage!"

Yates Donovan knit his brows, looking Mr. Payne up and down. "Sometimes I truly don’t understand how someone with your level of emotional intelligence managed to get this job."

"..." Mr. Payne felt his professional competence was facing an unprecedented challenge. "It might not be nice to hear, but it’s the truth."

"He’s the only possibility."

Yates Donovan suddenly let out a laugh, as if in exasperation.

"Tell me..."

He crossed his arms and turned to face Mr. Payne. "Has it ever occurred to you... that maybe she did it because of me?"

Mr. Payne: "..."

’Someone needs to take his meds.’

The other man’s silence said it all.

Yates Donovan smirked. "It’s the end of the year. You should really find a new job in the new year."

Yates Donovan turned and walked away. Mr. Payne scrambled to follow him. "Sir! I was just kidding! It’s you, it’s you! It was all because of you!"

"That’s what I thought just now, I just didn’t dare to say it. I was just afraid you’d feel guilty and blame yourself!"

Yates Donovan: "Trying to backtrack now? Too late."

Glancing at the direction they were heading, Mr. Payne asked uncertainly, "Are you really going back?"

"What else?"

Yates Donovan wasn’t an idiot.

It was unlikely that Mia Grant had gone back simply because she was tempted by some sort of profit. That might have been a factor, but not a significant one.

The main reason she chose to go back was him.

He’d said it before: they were cut from the same cloth.

Some things didn’t need to be said aloud to be understood.

And maybe that was exactly why she’d had a change of heart.

—

It was true. Mia Grant did regret her decision.

At first, she really had wanted to rely on Yates Donovan to escape her current predicament, especially after his moving "sales pitch."

But in the moment she saw Mr. Payne calling him over and over, she’d suddenly changed her mind.

It seemed she had dragged him into a huge mess.

She had always believed that Yates Donovan had no corruption value, which meant she didn’t have to feel burdened around him.

Of course, back at the very beginning, when they were both just playing games with each other, she would have definitely continued to use Yates Donovan.

But now...

She didn’t know if it was because of that dream, or for some other reason.

Whatever. She’d just chalk it up to a sudden attack of conscience.

After all, he always said she had no conscience.