Rural Belle & Three Heirs

When Grant said he wanted to take Chloe to school himself, she thought she must have heard wrong. Was he nuts? She came to school for freedom, to do her own thing, and to meet guys outside the Martin Family. If Grant was her daily chauffeur, how was she supposed to make any friends? No way, she had to shut this down.

With a face only a mother could love, Chloe approached Grant and tried to talk him out of it. "Grant, you're swamped with work; no need to waste time on me. Liam took the car, so I'll hop on the farm truck. I'm not exactly a beauty queen, so no need for the daily drama. I'll get to school on my own, okay?"

Grant, buried in his work, looked up from his computer and stared at Chloe. His gut told him there was more to her reluctance about him taking her to school than met the eye.

He was curious to see what she was up to.

Grant shut his laptop, glanced at Chloe, and said, "I don't care about your looks. Eat your breakfast and get ready to go."

Chloe was at a loss for words.

With no other option, she slowly finished her breakfast and reluctantly got into Grant's car.

Soon, they were on their way to Quest University. Chloe closed her eyes, trying to fake being super sleepy.

Grant saw right through her act.

He frowned, looked at Chloe with her eyes closed, and asked, "I heard you talking last night about wanting to get the Davis Group and the Gibson family to work together?"

He was talking about Tony's family. Last night, Tony had stood up for Chloe but got humiliated, which she couldn't stand.

Tony was Zara's cousin, and since Chloe and Zara were besties, it was like someone messing with her own family. Plus, Tony had her back, and since she was new in Sovereign City, she needed to build her own crew. Chloe blurted out, "Hey, what if the Davis Group teams up with the Gibson family? It could be a win-win situation, right?"

Grant smiled at her reasoning.

He reached out and gently patted Chloe's head, then said, "Smart girl, already thinking about building your own power base?"

Grant's sudden touch startled Chloe, who was pretending to sleep. She immediately opened her eyes, nervously looked at Grant sitting beside her, and quickly scooted away from him.

Seeing Chloe's scared expression, Grant chuckled to himself. He always saw her as bold and fearless, but even she had her moments of vulnerability. It amused him that a simple touch could catch her off guard. When they arrived at Quest University, Chloe jumped out of the car the moment it stopped. Grant watched her run off with a big smile.

He casually told Stanley, "Stanley, keep an eye on Miss Davis. I don't want a repeat of last night's incident."

"Got it," Stanley replied, quickly grabbing his phone to handle it.

Chloe jogged to her classroom, feeling like she was sneaking around. After sitting down, she discovered that the two unfamiliar faces were new transfers after asking her classmate Tammy Turner. Chloe wasn't one for gossip.

But one of the new students looked oddly familiar. Before she could figure out why, he walked over to her. "Chloe."

Hearing her name, Chloe looked up to see a tall guy smiling at her. She was puzzled-who was he, and why did he look familiar? Despite her birthmark and moles, he recognized her and called her by name. "Who are you?" Chloe asked, confused.

"My name's Philip Cook. We were in the same high school class, remember? I got recommended to a foreign university in our senior year. It's only been a few days, and you don't remember me?" Philip complained, sounding a bit hurt. Chloe's memory clicked. She vaguely recalled a classmate named Philip from high school. However, she struggled with faces and her grandpa's caution about hanging out with boys had blurred her recollection of him. "Oh, right, Philip! What are you doing at Quest University?"

"I like the environment here, and I like this major. What a coincidence you're here too. How about we grab dinner after school?" Philip invited her enthusiastically.

Meeting a familiar face in a new city was a stroke of luck for Chloe, so she happily agreed.

Their laughter soon caught the attention of some girls in the class. They couldn't understand why the handsome new guy, Philip, was ignoring all the pretty girls to hang out with Chloe. Did he have some weird taste? After school, Chloe waited at the gate for Philip to come out for dinner. Just then, Liam's car pulled up in front of her.

Remembering how he had to kneel all night because of Chloe, Liam's hostility was even more obvious.

He told the driver to lower the window and said to Chloe, "Ugly girl, what are you standing there for? Get in the car and go home."

Despite Liam's night of kneeling, Chloe still had no good feelings towards him.

Chloe wrinkled her nose at Liam and said disdainfully, "You go by yourself. I'm not getting in your car."

Hearing Chloe refuse, Liam frowned. "Are you sure you don't want to get in my car? Ugly girl, don't regret it," Liam warned, pointing at her.

Chloe rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and shot back, "It's just a crappy car. Do you think the Davis Family doesn't have one? Regret? I won't regret it!"