Trading My Ex for His Uncle



"Mr. Hackett, I look forward to working with you," Tom said.noveldrama

After finishing their conversation, Gabriel left first.

Over half an hour passed before Tom finally stepped out of the private room.

Turning a corner, he bumped into Brandon and Valarie.

Brandon had his arm around Valarie's shoulder, and both of them were smiling.

When they saw Tom, their smiles faltered.

Valarie averted her gaze, pretending not to see him, while Brandon's expression cooled. He greeted, "Mr. Genge, fancy seeing you here. What a coincidence."

"Indeed," Tom replied with a slight smile.

His gaze lingered on Valarie's indifferent profile, a mix of frustration and longing flickering in his eyes. At his sides, his hands slowly clenched into fists.

There was a time when Valarie's eyes had been filled with him, her heart wholly his.

Now, she wore that detached expression whenever she saw him. Watching her smile sweetly at another man while sparing him not even a glance felt like being pierced repeatedly by needles.

Noticing Tom's gaze, Valarie frowned and stepped back deliberately, hiding behind Brandon.

"Brandon, we should go, or we'll be late," she said, her voice calm but firm.

Brandon nodded. He had plans to meet friends and had decided to formally introduce Valarie to them.

"Alright," he said gently, then turned to Tom. His tone was polite but distant. "Mr. Genge, we have plans, so we'll take our leave. Please excuse us."

If not for the collaboration between the Sumner and Genge Groups, Brandon wouldn't have bothered with pleasantries.

In fact, he had been contemplating severing ties with the Genge Group entirely. With so many companies in Saintornia, continuing this partnership seemed unnecessary.

"Sure," Tom replied, his voice calm but his eyes darkening.

Tom watched as they walked away, his gaze filled with shadows and obsession.

Valarie didn't look back—not even once. It was as though she didn't care anymore, as though she didn't need him anymore.

Memories of their sweet moments together surged through his mind, each one cutting into him like a dull knife, the pain suffocating and unrelenting.

Meanwhile, Brandon led Valarie into a private room where four people were already seated-three men and one woman. They were Brandon's childhood friends.

One by one, they introduced themselves.

The steady-looking man on the far left was Yale Radford. Next to him was Jayden Gilmour, sporting a mischievous grin. Beside Jayden sat Michette Snowden, and on the far right was the aloof Nolan Lowe.

On their way over, Brandon had already told Valarie about his closest childhood friends and their unbreakable bond.

With a warm smile, Valarie introduced herself gracefully, "Hello, everyone. I'm Valarie Weir."

"Valarie, we've heard so much about you! It's great to finally meet you. You're just as beautiful as the photos," Michelle said with enthusiasm. Ever since Brandon had fallen head over heels for Valarie, his friends had heard plenty about her.

Initially, they had assumed his

interest would fade due to their six-year age gap. To their surprise, he had pursued her relentlessly for years-and finally succeeded.

UMS

"Thank you," Valarie replied, her tone modest but sincere.

She sat beside Brandon.

When Brandon noticed her drink was chilled, his brows furrowed. Without hesitation, he called over a server to replace it with a room-temperature

one.

A flicker of amusement crossed

Michelle's face as she teased, "Brandon, you've changed! You never used to be this considerate. I guess having a girlfriend really makes a difference."

Valarie lowered her gaze, the faintest smile curving her lips.