Chapter 1414: A little fat

Zoren couldn’t say he was particularly interested in these people. He already disliked them from the start—just because they had a job he wanted but couldn’t take. After all, Atlas wouldn’t let him retire to be with his wife, constantly reminding Zoren how suffocating he was.

Even so, this was quite intriguing.

"What’s his story?" Zoren asked out of pure curiosity, making Penny raise a brow. "I’m intrigued."

"Well." Penny shrugged. "He was like any other fresh graduate — optimistic, full of life, full of dreams. He graduated from Anteca University as the top of his class, despite working part-time jobs on the side for a lot of reasons. He was promising. But then, in his first job, he screwed up big time. Not the usual kind of mess, though. To make a long story short, he noticed an anomaly in the company’s cash flow and accidentally uncovered missing funds — tens of millions siphoned off to a paper company over the past ten years."

"Oh?" Zoren rocked his head. "Good eye. What’s the problem, then? I don’t think that’s him, messing up. He deserves a raise."

"Uh-huh. Normally, that would be the outcome." Penny rocked her head, her brows wiggling knowingly. "The problem? He reported it to the wrong person. Instead of recognition — or even just appreciation — Teddy ended up fired. Not because he was wrong, but because the accused had been with the company longer and had already built a solid network. He’s a victim of power tripping. Since then, he hasn’t been able to hold down a decent job. Every time he got hired, he was fired within days. His former company always interfered."

"He should have sued them."

"Renren, you’re just telling me you’re rich without telling me you are," she pouted. "Do you think he didn’t try? He did, but... this world is kind of screwed up. Whenever he tries, the case would be dismissed even before it reaches the court, and his reputation is tarnished through the mud. The more he tries, the deeper he falls. So, now, everyone thinks he’s just greedy and ambitious, who sues the company for some quick cash."

Penny smacked her lips and sighed. "But all’s fine now! As long as he doesn’t screw this up, he won’t get fired," she grinned, tossing the paper aside and turning to face her husband. "Enough about them. Let’s talk about us now!"

"Now we’re talking." Zoren nodded approvingly—only to pause when he saw Chunchun and Renny sitting across the couch, staring. He slowly turned back, only to hear the two of them purring.

"She said she wants to talk about me and her—Zoren and Penelope." He looked at the pets again. "Why don’t you two get some treats over there?"

"Renren! You’re being mean to them!" Penny frowned as she set her attention at their children. But as she studied them, she tilted her head. "Say... don’t they look a little... fat?"

"I don’t think so." Zoren eyed the two, who did seem wider than before. Yet, he still had the audacity to say, "They look fine to me."

Penny narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Husband, is this how you’ve been keeping them quiet? You’ve been bribing them with treats?!"

"..."

Zoren didn’t answer. He had been tossing them treats—more and more—to keep them from disturbing their mother.

"This cannot continue!" Penny huffed, grabbing his arm as she stood. "Come on, Renren. Let’s take a night walk. You need real exercise—and no, making love doesn’t count."

---

Meanwhile, at Finn and Nina’s place...

Since Finn got home late, the two were just now sitting down for dinner.

"You shouldn’t have waited for me," Finn said, smiling as he took his first bite. His eyes lingered on Nina. "If I’d known, I would’ve rushed home."

He knew she was supposed to be home late, so he had stayed behind to handle some backlogged work. After all, he still had a lot to catch up on since his accident. Not that he was pushing himself too hard—work just wasn’t as important to him anymore.

Nina forced a smile. "Well... I didn’t want to bother you."

"I told you. You’ll never bother me."

"I know, but still... spending time alone isn’t all that bad," she murmured, watching as he raised a brow before nodding in understanding.

Finn opened his mouth to say something but decided to drop it. It wasn’t important.

Nina forced another smile as they resumed eating, her gaze studying him. She hadn’t told him she’d been home all day. She hadn’t told him why she was home early. He had just started eating—she didn’t want to ruin his appetite.

"This is good," he said proudly. "Really good."

"Not as good as yours."

"For me, it’s the best."

"..."

Nina pursed her lips. This time, Finn noticed the hesitation in her eyes.

"Nina, is something wrong?" he asked, just as Nina uttered, "Finn, I have to tell you something."

Silence fell between them. They stared at each other, slightly surprised, before he spoke again.

"What is it?" Finn asked, his hand already reaching for hers. "Tell me, Nina."

Nina smacked her lips faintly, summoning the courage to say it. "I resigned."

"What?" His brows furrowed. "You resigned?"

"Mhm." She nodded. "I just thought... now that the family dinner is over and we got the blessings we wanted, I should focus on our wedding."

Finn studied her face, the worry in his eyes shifting into something else.

No way.

Nina wasn’t a workaholic, but she loved her job. She had always been happy doing it. Sure, office drama was inevitable, but she had always envisioned working there long-term.

She wouldn’t just quit because of a wedding. She could have taken a leave or adjusted her schedule. That was the classic Nina would do, and not resign.

"Did you get fired?" he asked under his breath.

She shook her head. "I’m not lying, Finn. I resigned."

"Why?" Bitterness flickered in his gaze. Deep down, he hoped his guess was wrong. "Why did you resign? Is it because of them? The Davis family?"

Nina bit her inner lip, hesitating. "I’m not sure if it’s them, but... I just don’t want others suffering because of me."

"I see." Finn released her hand, pushing himself up. When he met her eyes again, a layer of frost had settled over them. "I’ll be back."