Suddenly, I Am Rich

”If we didn’t have a bit of dirt on our hands,” he said lightly, ”we wouldn’t be sitting at this table.” Alistair chuckled at Ramon’s words.

More laughter followed after that. Each one was getting more comfortable with the others.

After ordering, their conversation changed. The topic moved from the upcoming elections to stories from the business world. With that topic, Gray became more interested and participative in the talk.

”You heard about the merger in the southern town, didn’t you?” Leonard asked. ”Three companies collapsed into one, and half the board was replaced overnight.”

”Yeah, it was brutal,” James replied, followed by a sigh. ”But I gotta commend Lim for that. It was clean, at least on paper.”

”Yeah, he got lucky with his lawyer. The other companies had no choice but to follow.” Ramon smirked at it.

”The real hot topic right now is the shipping consortium. Someone leaked financial reports, and now the investors are panicking.” Victor leaned back and chuckled at it.

”Yeah. That leak was too convenient. Someone definitely wanted the prices to drop.” Benedict laughed.

”Speaking of interesting news,” Victor smiled, ”have you heard about Jonathan Lancaster?”

A few of them raised their brows at the mention of the familiar name. Even Gray, who was about to take a sip from his wine, hastily stopped. He slowly brought his glasses down and looked at Victor.

His whole attention has been piqued.

”That old man?” Ramon muttered. ”What about him?”

James chuckled. ”I heard he’s been linked to a young actress. Apparently, they’ve been seen together more than once.”

”Whoa!” Benedict whistled softly. ”That’s unexpected.”

Leonard shook his head and frowned. ”At his age?”

”Hey, you already knew it,” Ramon laughed. ”Rich men don’t age. They change their companions. And he’s already a widower, so... it’s not like he’s doing anything illegal.”

”I guess I have to commend him,” Victor said with a shrug. ”He still has the energy, I see.”

”More than that. He still has the charm.” James laughed.

Benedict leaned forward, clearly interested. ”Did you hear who the actress is?”

Victor shook his head. ”I heard she’s not a big name yet. They said she’s a rising one. Been getting small roles lately.”

”How young are we talking?” Leonard frowned a little deeper.

James raised two fingers. ”Early twenties.”

They all whistled at that.

”That’s... impressive.”

”Or questionable,” Leonard muttered.

”Either way, it’s newsworthy.” Benedict laughed.

”And you know that Jonathan Lancaster never does things halfway,” Victor added. ”If this becomes public, it’s going to be all over the media.”

The men chuckled and exchanged knowing looks with one another.

”Yeah,” he said. ”That’s... something.” Gray also forced a small laugh and lifted his glass.

But inside, his thoughts were far from happy. He was actually bothered by it. He couldn’t help it, especially since he had met the man.

’I wonder if Chloe knew about this,’ he thought. The wine suddenly started tasting bitter in his mouth.

The waiter arrived not long after that. He was pushing a trolley that contained all their meals.

”Pardon me, gentlemen.” The waiter respectfully greeted them as he disrupted their talk.

One by one, the dishes were placed down. The rich smell of steak, roasted vegetables, and warm bread slowly filled the air. For a moment, the talk paused as everyone looked at the food in front of them.

”Finally,” Ramon said with a satisfied smile. ”All this talking made me hungry.”

”Let’s eat before the food gets cold.” Leonard picked up his utensils.

The other men agreed to it. With the food, the atmosphere became lighter and more casual.

”This restaurant is good,” Benedict commented after a bite. ”It has much better than the last place we went to.”

”I told you this restaurant doesn’t disappoint.” Alistair nodded

”I guess our Alistair here has good food choices,” James said. ”If you lose the election, at least you can open a restaurant business.”

They laughed at that.

Gray ate quietly, though he joined the conversation from time to time. He nodded when needed and laughed when someone joked. Slowly, their dinner went on.

While close to finishing their meal, Ramon raised his glass.

”Well then,” he said, ”since we are all here, I think it’s only right to say this in advance.”

Everyone’s eyes flew to him.

”Congratulations, Alistair,” Ramon continued. ”Our future Mayor, or maybe something even higher in the future.”

Leonard laughed and lifted his glass as well. ”Yeah. We might as well get used to the title now.”

”To Alistair!” Benedict added.

”May your campaign be smooth, and your enemies few,” James smirked.

Victor chuckled. ”And may your friends stay rich.”

The table erupted in laughter as glasses were raised by everyone.

”To Alistair!”

Alistair shook his head, waving his hand lightly.

”Alright, alright,” he said, though his smile was clear. ”You’re celebrating too early.”

”Look at our mayor here. Modest as always,” Leonard muttered.

But behind those teasing remarks, it was obvious how Alistair liked every teasing he got. He loved the praise, the attention, and the confidence in their voices. It made him at ease, and confident that he would win this election again.

Alistair lifted his own glass in the end.

”Then I’ll accept it for now,” he said calmly. ”And I’ll make sure your support won’t be wasted.”

”Let’s toast!” Their glasses met in the middle of the table.

”To Alistair!”

Another round of laughter followed after that.

”You know, Alistair, you owe us a celebration party once this is all over.” Leonard leaned back, clearly in a good mood.

A big one.” Ramon nodded.

”Only if I win,” Alistair replied, though the corner of his lips lifted. ”I don’t celebrate empty victories.”

”You will,” James said confidently. ”With this table backing you, it would be strange if you didn’t.”

”Exactly,” Victor laughed. ”The city already belongs to you.”

Everyone laughed again at that. All of them looked confident about the outcome, except for Gray.

’Enjoy it,’ he thought quietly as he watched the satisfied expressions on their faces. ’Because I won’t let this end the way you expect.’