Chapter 1349: Daylight robbery

There was only one thing Penny could say:

"Oh... wow." Penny cleared her throat, acting a bit surprised at what had brought Jessa and Allison to the Prime Group. At least her mothers weren’t here for a short office tour—or any love problems. They had actually come to Penny’s office for business.

Penny could tell, considering Jessa had worn her most expensive dress, bag, and heels, paired with a thick black fur coat—in the middle of spring. Allison’s attire was a little more toned down, but she had always been the elegant type, even without trying.

"How much?" Jessa arrogantly raised her chin, adjusting her sunglasses on her head. "Just name the price so we can write you a check."

Allison smiled subtly. "Penny, don’t worry about the amount. We came here for business, not as your mothers. So, you don’t have to worry about any discounts."

"That’s right." Jessa nodded. "I don’t need a discount. I’m rich—filthy rich—your Uncle Lester just doesn’t know."

What an upgrade!

This was what character development truly was.

"Well..." Penny scratched her cheek, still processing the situation—not their dilemma, but the entire picture.

After all, Penny already had men watching Nina to protect her if needed. She was doing it for free. But now, Jessa and Allison wanted Penny to do exactly the same thing—for a price. It didn’t feel right. But at the same time, she couldn’t just blurt out that she was already aware of Nina’s biological mother’s existence.

"Mom, Aunt Jessa, actually..." Penny ran her tongue across her cheek, watching as Jessa arched a brow while Allison patiently waited for her to continue. "If we’re going to do this formally, you can’t just come here and write me a check."

"What?!" Jessa gasped. "Then what should we do?"

"Well, you’re going to fill out a form—more like an application—stating the type of services you’d like. My people will sort and review it, and if they deem it acceptable, they’ll send it to my office for approval. Once approved, either I or Uncle Wild will negotiate the terms," Penny explained, making it sound much simpler than it actually was.

Jessa and Allison exchanged glances before Jessa asked,

"Why do we need to do that? We’re your guardians."

"But you said you came here for business and not as my parents."

"Shhh!" Jessa hushed, putting a finger to her lips. "Penelope, stop talking back to your elders."

Penny pursed her lips, noting Jessa’s arrogance and how she always claimed to be all about business—yet inevitably fell back on family ties when things didn’t go her way.

Good riddance.

"Penny, how long would it take if we did all that?" Allison asked, lacking Jessa’s shamelessness. "Do you think the form will reach your office by the end of the day? If so, can we schedule the meeting for tomorrow, first thing in the morning?"

Penny blinked, looking at her mother innocently—even though she was about to break Allison’s heart.

"Mom, the form might reach my office, but I’m afraid it won’t be tonight or tomorrow—three months at the latest."

"Three months?!" Jessa snapped, jumping from her seat. "Little beggar, you do understand this is an emergency, right?"

"I know, but you’d be surprised how many ’emergencies’ people have before you."

"What kind of business is this?!" Jessa scoffed. "Emergencies are called emergencies for a reason! They require immediate action!"

"That’s why we have the police for immediate action." Penny bit her tongue, feeling more conflicted. Not that she was saying she wouldn’t help them—she was already helping Nina—but she didn’t have the heart to just offer everything for free. They would be angry if she did.

Besides, Penny didn’t recall ever telling these two the full details of what she did. All they knew was that she ran a business—that was it.

"Forget it!" Jessa waved her off, sitting back down. "We’re skipping that using our family privilege."

Allison sighed but ultimately agreed with Jessa. "Would it burden you, Penny, if you gave us priority?"

"Not really," Penny mumbled, flinching when Jessa clapped her hands.

"See! If it’s not a problem, then why the long wait?"

Penny sighed again. "Auntie, the wait isn’t some business tactic. We carefully select our clientele so the company won’t get caught in any future political disputes."

If Zoren Pierson was already considered legendary in the business world, then Penny’s other clients were even more influential. And if not for Penny knowing Zoren was her Thursday guy, there was a very high chance his application would’ve been rejected—not because she thought less of him, but because of the complications surrounding the Pierson family.

The Pierson Family might be a business family, but they do have strong political ties.

"Fine, fine. You have your reasons." Jessa waved dismissively. "This is about your sister, so just give us a number."

Penny pursed her lips as Jessa pulled out her checkbook and pen.

"Auntie, since this is about Nina, you don’t have to—"

"Penny." Allison’s voice was firm. She waited for Penny to meet her gaze. "We already skipped the line. At least let us do this to protect Nina."

"That’s right," Jessa added. "We’re doing this as mothers so that lying vixen can’t get close to her."

There were other ways to keep that woman away—like a restraining order—but Penny understood that would put Nina in a situation none of them wanted. So Penny remained quiet for a moment, thinking of a reasonable price.

If she told them the real cost of security assistance per day, they’d surely get angry.

"Well, before I give you a number, I need to know for how long. My security services depend on duration," she said, buying time to lower the price.

"For as long as we can," Allison answered firmly. "We’re not sure, but how much would it be for a year?"

"A year?" Penny hummed. "That would be around a hundred thousand a month—"

"A hundred thou—Penny! Are you trying to rob us?!" Jessa gasped. "This is daylight robbery!"

Penny jolted as Jessa’s voice thundered through the office. Her eyes widened in horror.

’Too much?’ Penny wondered. ’But that’s less than one percent of what Renren pays me every month.’ And Penny had a long list of clients willing to pay even more for her services.’

"Penny, I know your eyes sparkle when money’s on the table. You got that from me. But do you think we were born yesterday?" Jessa huffed, hands on her hips. "That’s more than half our restaurant’s monthly income!"

"Oh." Penny cleared her throat. "Actually, we have an ongoing promo this month. If you avail it now, the price will stay the same until the contract ends."

"How much?" Allison’s expression grew serious, hands clasped as she hoped it was something they could afford.

"It’s uh..." Penny scratched behind her ear. "It’s going to be five..." she trailed off at their expressions. "A thousand."

"A day?" Allison asked.

"No, for the whole month." Penny smiled. "My company does this yearly, and you’re very lucky to have come at the right time."

Jessa and Allison exchanged glances—Jessa still looking unconvinced—but since this was for Nina, they turned back to Penny.

"Fine," Jessa said. "Let’s do two thousand. Allison and I will split. You don’t have to thank us."

Allison smiled and nodded approvingly, as if encouraging Penny not to thank them. Then she pulled out her checkbook to write post-dated checks.

Penny, on the other hand, pursed her lips and sighed.

’Well, I do it for free anyway. So... charging them 0.01% of the actual price isn’t that bad. And they’re happy, so it’s a win-win situation.’She mentally shrugged, smiling brightly as she received their checks.