?Chapter 523:


    Bruce remained silent but fully grasped what Farris was getting at.


    “We can’t count on Corrine anymore. In the meantime, take a step back and think carefully. What else can we gain from the Burgess family?”


    Farris stood up and slowly made his way toward his room.


    “True skill lies in making the most of what’s avable.”


    Bruce froze, staring nkly at Farris’ retreating figure.


    After sending Carl off in his car, Corrine headed straight to Brighton Group. The unusually smooth ess to the CEO’s office caught her off guard. When she arrived at Nate’s office, she walked in and sank onto a sofa.


    “You knew I wasing, didn’t you?” Her voice carried a subtle usation.


    Matias, who had been briefing Nate on some reports, immediately picked up on the shift in atmosphere. He set the documents down and quietly left the room.


    Nate stood up and strode toward Corrine. Without a word, he wrapped an arm around her waist and effortlessly pulled her into his embrace. His deep, enigmatic gaze softened slightly, a flicker of warmth surfacing in his expression.


    “What exactly do you want to ask?” Nate inquired, his voice low.


    Corrine tilted her head, meeting his stare. The intensity in his dark eyes made her throat tighten for a second, but she steadied herself.


    “What’s the deal with this marriage arrangement between us?” she asked.


    “Why had I never heard a single word about it before?”


    “Carl didn’t exin?” Nate’s long, slender fingers idly yed with hers, his touch light and deliberate.


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    Corrine shook her head.


    “Grandpa said he wasn’t clear on the details either.”


    The entire situation had blindsided her. Even though her grandfather hadn’t provided many answers, she could tell he had seen thising for a long time.


    Nate’s lips curled into a faint smile, his voice low and smooth as he said, “You’re going to be mine sooner orter. Does it really matter how it all began?”


    “Of course it matters.” Corrine’s eyes sharpened with seriousness.


    “I’m the one being dragged into this, and yet I had no clue. If I hadn’t stumbled upon it today, who knows how much longer I would’ve been left in the dark?”


    A thought suddenly clicked into ce.


    “You didn’t orchestrate this from the start, did you?”


    Had he known exactly who she was since the beginning and deliberately approached her?


    “Meeting you was never part of the n.”


    Nate hade to Lyhaton to call off the marriage arrangement with the Ford family, never anticipating that everything would spiral out of control after meeting Corrine. She was the unforeseen variable in his carefullyid-out life—the unexpected force that threw everything into chaos yet somehow brought him a lot of joy.


    “Nate, tell me the truth. Are you keeping something from me? This whole arrangement hase out of nowhere, and no matter how I look at it, something feels off.”


    She hesitated, her thoughts tangled. How could she have lived for over twenty years and never once heard about a supposed marriage arrangement?


    And then there was her grandfather. It seemed that he disapproved of this arrangement, yet something told her he was bound by an obligation he couldn’t refuse.


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