Chapter 34

Joshua didn’t mind the little things. He just thought back to the last time he wrapped his arms around Shermaine’s waist—it was soft and comfortable. Now, holding her hand, he noticed it was just as soft, delicate even.

He mused, "Even her hand feels so soft, the other parts of her must be the same. Despite being so soft, this woman can cause a lot of trouble when she gets mad."

After they left the hospital, Shermaine said, “I’m hungry.” She bought soup for Lily but hadn’t gotten anything for herself. She hadn’t had time to eat, so she decided to wait until everything was handled before eating.

“What do you want to eat?” Joshua asked.

She replied, “Beef stew.”

Twenty minutes later, they were at the restaurant. Joshua sat across from Shermaine, watching as she spooned a mix of meat and veggies into her mouth, one bite at a time.

Joshua didn’t usually eat with women, except for family dinners. And even then, the women in his family were always poised, delicate eaters. The younger ones either dieted or were picky, never really tucking in for a big meal.

But watching Shermaine eat, he felt there was something oddly satisfying about it, like it made him hungry just by watching.

Maybe it was the spice, but her lips were flushed, as if coated in some glossy lip balm, tempting and appetizing. Her eyes gleamed with satisfaction, and her smile radiated a genuine joy.

She glanced up and asked, “You want some?”

Joshua called over the waiter. “One more orange juice, please.” It was for Shermaine–her glass was almost empty. He wasn’t a fan of drinks, and water was more than enough for him.

The waiter replied, “Sure thing, sir.”

Joshua slipped off his coat and casually draped it over the back of his chair.

Even though the AC was on, the warmth from the hot dishes on the table made him loosen his tie and unbutton two buttons on his shirt. He looked relaxed but still had that effortless elegance.

Good thing they were in a private room. The screen blocked the view from the rest of the restaurant, or else they’d probably be the center of attention.

With Joshua now joining her, Shermaine ate with more gusto. It was a lot more fun to eat with someone else.

By 10 PM, they were back home.

Joshua said to her, “When you shower, don’t let your right hand get wet.”

Shermaine nodded. “Got it. Goodnight.”

He said, “Goodnight.”

After her shower, Shermaine came out in a slip dress, looking a little seductive. Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders, framing her delicate collarbones.

Her legs were slender and straight. The soft glow of the room made her seem almost like a fairy, especially with that mix of purity and allure on her face.

Though it was autumn, the room had a built–in climate control system, and despite the persistent rain, the air inside felt warm and cozy.

Shermaine sat on the chair, one leg propped up, a thin blanket draped over her legs. The laptop was booting up, and she slowly sipped on the strong liquor Joshua had given her.

Once she finished her drink, she got back to work. After all, this was a three–million–dollar job, and she wanted to get it done as quickly as possible to earn the money.

With her classes during the day, she couldn’t work on it while at school, so it had to be done at night. But if every day was as busy as today, this task wouldn’t be finished in ten days.

If Shermaine had checked out the International Tech Forum, she’d have seen that just today, one platinum–level expert had also taken on the same task, and she was already being talked about by everyone.

Becoming a platinum–level expert required continuously completing tasks and accumulating points. Once one’s points reached the standard, they’d be upgraded to platinum–level. In this forum, platinum–level experts were extremely rare.

Jaden was ecstatic because this platinum–level expert was always a mystery, but when she took on a task, it was always an S–level, and she had never failed. This time, they were all sure their project would make a breakthrough.

That expert’s ID was Dolcie Chapman, a woman from the Republic of Wallington, but her real identity was hidden.

No one knew who she was in real life, but she had a huge fan base on the forum. When she took the task, it sparked an immediate buzz.

A: [Since my goddess takes the task, no one else gets a chance.]

B: [Exactly, the three million dollars is definitely Dolcie’s. The other day, some clueless person took it on, and I thought they were a big deal. Turns out, they’ve only done D–level tasks. LMAO.]

C: [I know the person you’re talking about. She’s Boa Hanks. At first, I was going to diss her, but then I saw she used the name of the Empress, so I held back. Who can argue with the Empress’s fans?]

D: [The task is so difficult. I wonder how long Dolcie will take.]

Dolcie responded to the comment, saying she would need a month to finish the task.

D: [A month? That’s amazing.]

E: [The gold–level expert who took this task before would finish it in three months. Goddess is so impressive.]

Shermaine wouldn’t waste time in the forum after taking a task. She kept working until 1 a.m. and decided to go to bed.

As she was about to turn off her laptop, the firewall turned red, which meant someone was trying to contact her. Of course, they wouldn’t be able to break in.

A message popped up: [Milady, why don’t you respond to my messages?]

Shermaine ignored the person. She simply shut down the laptop and went to bed.

Seeing the signal cut off, Roy, feeling rejected, called Henry. “What do I need to do to get Milady’s attention?”

Henry was irritated to be woken up, and he snapped, “Aren’t you the so–called heartthrob? Figure it out yourself. Don’t bother me again.”

Roy shot back, “Come on, do you have no conscience? This is important to me, and you’re acting like you couldn’t care less.”

Without a second thought, Henry hung up on him, offering no mercy.

The next day, as the first light of dawn broke, Shermaine stepped onto the balcony, taking in a deep breath. She only wore a slip dress, and she felt it was colder than yesterday.

The internet was buzzing about Ronnie and his group’s crimes. Shermaine didn’t bother to check the news. She thought getting them locked up was just the start. According to Joshua, these people had to be completely eliminated, or they’d just pop back up.

As soon as she entered the classroom, Summer asked, “Shermaine, did Sheila find you yesterday afternoon?”

Shermaine nodded. “She did.”

“Really? Did she hurt you?” Summer then noticed the bandage on Shermaine’s hand and immediately imagined Sheila picking on her. “Sheila’s way out of line. I thought she never picked on girls.”

Shermaine explained, “You’ve got it wrong. She didn’t hurt me.” In fact, it was a bit of a fight, and Sheila ended up in the hospital. She wouldn’t be out for at least a month or two.

“Good to hear,” Summer said, relieved. She held up her test papers and looked at Shermaine with hopeful eyes. “Shermaine, I had a lot of problems when I did homework last night. Can you help me out?”

Shermaine said, “Sure.”

She had tutored plenty of students before–mostly PhDs and master’s students, so high school was a breeze for her.

“Thank you, Shermaine. I’ll bring you snacks every day,” Summer said, glancing at the questions like they were her worst nightmare. But with Shermaine around, she started to feel hopeful again.

The entire day passed with Shermaine tutoring the entire class, answering every question. She felt it was tiring, and keeping this routine wasn’t a good thing. However, she still tried her best to tutor everyone and won their hearts.

She was so thorough, even the students who brought in extra–level questions were blown away by how easily she solved them. Everyone thought in shock, “Why on earth did the teacher assign her to the lowest–level class?”

Summer said, “Shermaine, we’ve got exams next week. You’re definitely going to ace them.”

Shermaine sipped her water and flashed a grin. “Sure, first place is in my pocket.”

Summer’s eyes went wide. She gave Shermaine a thumbs–up, clearly in awe. She screamed in her mind, ‘She’s so damn smart. I just can’t get enough of Shermaine.‘

Time flew by during class, and as soon as the bell rang, Shermaine headed straight to the hospital. Lily was drinking the medicine prescribed by Shermaine.

Lily suffered a lot in her life, so even the nastiest medicine didn’t faze her. When she saw Shermaine, she asked, “Sheary, the police didn’t give you a hard time last night, did they?”

Shermaine shook her head while checking Lily’s pulse. She could tell Lily was much better than the day before. She said to Lily, “You can leave the hospital in a couple of days. After that, just give up the rental house.”

Lily sighed, “But I don’t have enough money to rent a new place. I regret not taking the compensation from those rich wives.”

Shermaine replied, “Relax, the money’s already in your account.”

Lily had spent the entire day sleeping, unaware the money had already been transferred. She grabbed her phone to check and found over three million in her account.

She took a deep breath and asked, “If I take the money, will the police think I forgive them and let them off the hook?”

“The people who gave you the money weren’t the ones who did the worst, so feel free to accept it,” Shermaine said while peeling an orange. “By the way, what are you planning to do once you leave the hospital?”

“Well, I was thinking of getting a job.” Lily hesitated for a second and then added, “But now that I see the money in my account, I’m thinking of starting a business. Sheary, do you want to join me?”

Shermaine raised her eyebrows and asked, “What kind of business?”

“What about a cosmetics company?” Lily said. She’d been working in the beauty industry since high school and had built up quite a bit of experience. She’d always dreamed of owning her own beauty brand once she had the money to do so.

“Sounds good,” Shermaine replied.

Lily’s face lit up with excitement, but then she got serious. “But if the products aren’t good, we probably won’t get far.”

Experience alone wasn’t enough to succeed in this industry. The market competition was fierce. For a small cosmetics company, survival was extremely difficult without either unique products or heavy investment to build brand recognition.

This wasn’t a problem to Shermaine, and she replied with a smile, “Don’t worry about that. I’ll handle the R&D. I’m a little busy lately, so I’ll push it back a bit. Once you’re discharged, you can register the company and start looking for a place.”