Hope Crawls Through Ruins by Kain Rwan Vale 133

Chapter 133 

Shepard always got things done fast. 

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In just a few days, Dreamscape Corporation was founded, with riana as the main shareholder and Shepard as the legal 

person. 

He would handle all the legal responsibility. 

The registered address of Dreamscape Corporation was inside the Carter Group. Shepard cleared an entire floor, dedicating it entirely to Dreamscape Corporation’s staff. 

He had his own reasons. 

From now on, Briana would be going not just to the Dreamscape Gallery but also to Dreamscape Corporation. 

He could see her anytime, just by taking the elevator down. 

Briana handled all the paperwork and procedures with Shepard 

She was running around like crazy. When she finally paused, she realized Charles hadn’t answered her call after the party, nor had he gotten back to her. 

It was like he had vanished without a trace. 

Thinking about all the warnings Shepard had given her, Briana felt a rising sense of unease. 

She stood there, looking at Dreamscape Corporation, then glanced over at the general manager’s office. 

She wanted Charles to be the general manager. After all, he was the only person she truly trusted. 

Even if Charles didn’t get anything done, having him in the company was necessary. 

Briana hurried over to the floor–to–ceiling window, her heart pounding as she called Charles. 

Luckily, he picked up this time. 

“Hey, Briana, what’s up?” Charles called out loudly. “What’s going on? I’m busy right now.” 

It sounded loud over there, with lots of talking and cheering. 

“Where are you?” Briana asked. “Can you come over?” 

“Sorry, I can’t. I’m out of the country right now,” Charles said. 

“Abroad?” Briana asked, surprised. 

Charles said, “Yeah, after that investment dinner, I headed abroa the very next day to work on a cross–border deal.” 

Before Charles could finish, he turned to the people around hinand said, “Hang on. Let me take this call.” 

Briana frowned. “Which country are you in? What kind of deal e you working on? Who’s with you over there?” 

“I’ll talk to you later. I’m really busy right now. Gotta go,” Charles said, sounding rushed. 

“Wait, Charles,” Briana said, but before she could finish, the line went dead. 

Charles hung up almost instantly. 

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Briana called Charles again, but he didn’t answer. 

Briana muttered to herself, “Men are unreliable, even if it’s my own brother.” 

“Really?” Shepard’s voice came quietly from behind her. “Am I unreliable?” 

Honestly, no man could be more reliable than him. 

Briana jumped and turned around abruptly. “When did you get here? You didn’t make a sound.” 

“I came in while you were on the phone,” Shepard replied. “You were too focused.” 

“Charles is out of the country, and I have no clue what he’s doing It was noisy there. When I asked him a couple of questions, he just said he was busy,” Briana muttered, feeling annoyed. 

“Out of the country?” Shepard asked, surprised. 

“Yeah.” Briana frowned. “He said he’s working on some international deal or something.” 

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She looked at Shepard. “Do you think something has happened to him out there? Didn’t you say his friends were trouble?” 

“Don’t worry,” Shepard replied. “Leave it to me. I’ll handle it.” 

Briana froze for a moment. She remembered seventeen years ago, at her parents‘ funeral, Shepard holding her hand and saying, “I’ll always be here for you.” 

Those words had carried her through seventeen years, a spiritual anchor she couldn’t let go. 

And now, Shepard stood before her, confidently and calmly saying, “Leave it to me.” 

He seemed like the same person he had been before, but Briana was no longer the girl she used to be. 

“Don’t you trust me?” Since Briana stayed quiet, Shepard stepped forward, closing the distance between them. “Give me ten minutes. I can pinpoint exactly where Charles is.” 

He was curious to see who was behind Charles’s so–called international trip, pulling all the strings. 

He hoped it was Henry because if he could catch Henry messing up, it would shatter any hold he had on Briana’s heart. 

However, if it turned out to be Eric behind all this, that would be a whole different story. 

“What do you think?” Shepard murmured. He bent down, lowering his head, his breath brushing against Briana’s cheek. 

Briana instinctively leaned away, trying to avoid him. 

She thought, “This is the office. People will see us! 

Shepard reached out and wrapped his arm around Briana’s waist pulling her in. “Why are you dodging me?” 

She immediately tried to wriggle free. “Someone could walk in any second.” 

“So what?” Shepard said, completely unfazed. 

His lips brushed against her cheek, and it felt like he would kisser the next second. 

Briana didn’t even dare to breathe. 

She thought that this was just so Shepard. Ever since he’d shown up at the courthouse with a bouquet of roses and swept her off her feet, he’d been acting completely differently. 

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He was no longer cold and aloof as before. He had become unusally attentive to her. 

Sometimes, Briana even wondered if he wanted to secretly kill Hr. 

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“Aren’t you supposed to be tracking Charles down?” Briana said, uickly changing the subject and pressing her hands against his chest. “I also want to know where he is and what he’s doing. Nothing must happen to him.” 

“Sure, I can check.” Shepard said. 

Briana glanced away, too flustered to meet his eyes. “Then go chick.” 

Shepard teased, “Briana, that’s not really how you ask for a favor you know.” 

She blinked, a little lost. “What exactly do you want from me?” 

“What do you think?” Shepard said, his gaze never leaving her. 

Briana held her breath, staring at Shepard’s lips, so close she could almost feel them. 

For a moment, she was captivated by those beautiful lips. 

She thought, ‘Wait, does he want me to kiss him first before he checks on Charles? No, I can’t do this. 

“Looks like you’re not that desperate to find your brother, huh?” Shepard teased, raising an eyebrow. “Maybe I just won’t bother.” 

He started to turn away, making it obvious he was about to walk off. 

“Wait.” Briana quickly grabbed his arm. “Check it. I really want to know.” 

Shepard stopped in his tracks. 

Briana quickly said, “How about I cook dinner for you tonight?” 

She thought, ‘That should work, right? I’m really showing some incerity now.‘ 

However, Shepard just replied, “There are chefs at Carter Estate. 

“I’ll do it myself. It tastes different,” Briana said. 

“Honestly, I’d rather have something else,” Shepard drawled, pausing for effect, his tone full of mischief. 

Briana bit her lips, hesitating. 

Honestly, she couldn’t bring herself to kiss him. Being kissed was different from doing it herself. 

Just thinking about Shepard and Vivian made her uncomfortabl 

Suddenly, Shepard’s phone started ringing, breaking the silence between them. 

Shepard took his phone out of his pocket. 

Being so close, Briana saw Vivian’s name on the screen. 

All the romantic tension between them disappeared, and Briana snapped back to her senses. 

She thought she could bombard Charles with a few more calls. I was a minor matter, not something that required Shepard’s help. 

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Shepard answered the call. “Hello?” 

“Shep, can you come to the hospital for a bit?” Vivian’s voice was soft, a little shaky. 

“What’s going on?” Shepard asked. 

Vivian whispered, “I’m at the OB–GYN.”