The Alchemists

They then discussed tomorrow's Christmas party at the St. Laurent Hotel ballroom.  Finland was relieved because it seemed that the girls had stopped talking about the big boss. Her ears could no longer stand their gossip.

"Tomorrow we will leave the office early because all employees are given the opportunity to get ready for the party. We are planning to go to the hair salon before attending the event so we can look our best," Ruth said. "Will you bring your family tomorrow, Finland? You told me you have a child… are you going to take your child with you?"

"Uh, yes... but because my child is still very young, I will not stay long at the party as we must go home early," Finland replied.

She had discussed this with Caspar and they agreed that Finland should come with Aleksis for half an hour and socialize with her office friends so as not to be considered anti-social and to build good relations with them.

After about 30 minutes, she would take Aleksis home to Lauriel and then return to the event with Caspar about 15 minutes before Billie's concert.

"Ohhh... how old is your child?" Priyanka asked enthusiastically. "Does she have a father to care for her...?"

"Yes, but it is a bit complicated, sorry, I can't tell you right now..." Finland answered, starting to feel uneasy. She did not like to lie, but with her current situation, it would be very awkward if her identity were to be uncovered. She only wanted to work and study at the company. She didn't want to attract any attention.

Her office friends thought Finland was experiencing severe personal problems and was separated from her child's father, so they did not force further inquiries. Such situations were quite common in America.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be nosy. It would be nice to meet your child tomorrow night." Ruth patted Finland's shoulder warmly.

"Thank you..."

Finland spent the rest of her time in the lounge making databases and contacting information brokerage firms to conduct long-distance interviews with several informants from Indonesia in the industry that was being researched.

She wanted to complete the assessment for Trengginas no later than next week because after the company Christmas party, there was only one week of work left before the long Christmas, Hanukkah and New Year holidays. The last working day was December 20 and employees return to work on January 3.

[Honey, I can't go to the 30th floor today, I have to meet the governor. We will meet at home tonight. Ivan will take you home.]

Caspar sent an SMS to Finland when the girl was fervently making her report.

[Er, it's fine, I can take the subway. I've never used the public transportation in New York before. I really want to try it out and see the famous Grand Central Station.] Finland answered.

[Uhm... you really want to take the public transportation...?]

Caspar was about to nag, but then he realized that Finland and himself had very different lifestyles and preferences. Finland liked to walk everywhere, as long as the distance was still under 3 km. She also enjoyed taking the public transportation when she was in Paris with Jean.

That was also one of the reasons why Caspar fell in love with her; the girl was not spoiled and was very simple. Finally, Caspar relented.

[OK. You can take the subway. But please be careful. I will send Ivan and Jadeith to take care of you from afar.]

A smile engraved on Finland's lips. She understood why Caspar was so determined to protect her. She was her husband's weakness. After what happened to Aleksis two months ago, they had to be more careful.

[Of course. Thank you.]

Finland was always cautious and not careless because she did not want to worry Caspar, She was happy because she could still enjoy her usual carefree routine, even with the bodyguard provided for her.

She had experienced how Caspar's bodyguards really guarded their privacy and never looked conspicuous and annoying. The only moment when Finland saw them appear was when people were taking pictures of Caspar when they were queuing at Liao Fan's chicken rice restaurant in Singapore, the cheapest Michelin-starred Restaurant in the world.

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