Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance

At the end of the year, Molly was absolutely swamped with work. She sighed to her mentor, "Honestly, I'd take a pay cut down to $4000 a month just to have a chill job where I can coast. Forget the big bucks if it means going through this madness."

In the finance department, the usual workload was nothing compared to the year- end chaos, where you basically had to live at the office.

Kyle was constantly reminding everyone that every piece of data needed to be handled with the utmost care.

Molly understood the gravity of the situation. She was at her desk every day, completely focused, showing a level of dedication she'd never displayed before.

Her mom, Coleen, checked in on her a few times from downstairs. Seeing this, Kyle stepped outside and nodded to the CEO, "She's really committed."

Kyle nodded, looking at Molly with a fondness, "My apprentice, she's a bit of a procrastinator with the small stuff, always cutting it close. But when it counts, she gives it her all. The data she handed me the other day? She triple-checked it before passing it on."

"That's just her way. As a kid, she'd breeze through the little tests, but for the big ones, she'd be up all night crying, begging her brother to help her study."

Amid the hustle, Molly's phone buzzed. It was her nephew, suggesting a restaurant.

She glanced at the message, replied, and then tried to refocus on her data, "Wait, where was I?"

Moments later, in her office, Molly called her nephew, giving him a piece of her mind over the phone.

Leo answered calmly and hung up just as calmly.

Anya asked, "Chad, who was that? You picked up but didn't say anything."

Leo replied, "Oh, it was your aunt. She hung up before I could even say a word."

Later on, Leo forwarded Molly's restaurant recommendation to Mia. "Mia, can you suggest some must-try dishes? I'm taking her parents out for dinner."

Molly had a thing for checking out restaurants for their vibe. Mrs. Cedillo, on the other hand, was a real foodie, hitting up different spots simply for the love of goodnoveldrama

eats.

That evening, they went to the restaurant Molly recommended and ordered Mia's suggested dishes. Mr. and Mrs. Calder were thoroughly impressed with the choices.

After dropping the couple back at their hotel, Leo and Anya headed home.

As expected, the night included a chat about their daughter, "Leo's a really good kid."

Mr. Calder nodded in agreement, "He sure is. He genuinely cares about our daughter."

"She mentioned today that Leo is still hustling with his cybersecurity venture. Maybe we should invest?"

Mr. Calder replied, "You might not get it, but if Leo needed cash, he could raise billions just by asking. But he's determined to make it on his own. He wouldn't take the money."

Mrs. Calder nodded thoughtfully, then said, "I found it strange today; they're still in separate rooms. I thought by now they might have..."

"Don't even start! Our daughter is still unmarried. If he even thinks about it..."

Their son, Ash, was already asleep in their arms. Mrs. Calder whispered, "Why rush? Remember how eager you were, climbing through my window at night after you proposed in your twenties?"

"Let's not discuss the past with the kid here. Maybe we should move him to

another room," Mr. Calder suggested, still conscious of appearances.

Mrs. Calder looked down, "He's asleep."

"He might just be faking it."

Mrs. Calder: "..."