Kneeling for a Second Chance Novel

---- Chapter 281 Valeria watched Zion leave. She had barely sat down for ten minutes , and dinner had not even been served at their table yet. Yet, she had to ask the waiter to pack it up so that she could bring it home instead. When she returned home, she found that the door across her apartment was wide open with the housekeepers and some installation workers moving in and out of the house. Upon seeing her return, a housekeeper smiled and greeted her, "Good evening, Ms. Neal." Valeria nodded and glanced at the open door across from her house.

The unit was being renovated , and the workers were carrying in furniture one after another. She initially bought a unit here at Bay View because of the balcony's 60-foot sea view, the three-bedroom layout , and the two elevators serving two apartments per floor. The floor plan was great, the field of vision was excellent, and the view of the sea stretched as far as the eye could see. The apartment across from hers had always been unoccupied, but it seemed that someone was finally moving in.

The next morning, Valeria arrived at work and immediately ---- received news that the Grant Group had issued a statement denying the rumor about the free collaboration with Reiya Design. Kayla spoke up, "Reiya Design probably never expected their plan to backfire so badly. Now, they're going to hold a new bidding conference next Thursday evening." Nancy added, "If it were not for Reiya Design spreading the rumor of them collaborating for free, the rest of the design firms would not have dropped out of the bidding. "Tt doesn't really affect a giant corporation like Grant Group, of course.

Yet, it's a big deal for smaller companies like us. "Would a giant corporation that invested 30 billion dollars in the project really need to beg a random design firm like Reiya Design for free? Even if Reiya Design had won the bid, it would have been a disgraceful win." Willow placed her hands together , asking, 'Does that mean that we'll still have a chance to make it? Let's hope that we win the bid." Nancy's eyes were sparkling. "Oh my god, if we actually win the bid-Ms, Mendes? Ms. Neal? Please?" Valeria glanced at Kayla. Kayla adjusted her glasses and tapped the table lightly.

"If we win the bid, every single employee who has participated in the project will get double the bonus this month." ---- Thursday soon arrived. Both Valeria and Kayla headed to the Grant Group's headquarters in Broburgh City. Within the conference room situated on the top floor of the building, Sebastian sat at the head of the table, while officials from both the Arts and Culture Bureau and the Tourism Bureau sat at the side. Sebastian looked down to check his watch. It was exactly 10: 00 am-exactly the meeting time.

He swept across the meeting room, pausing for a moment on Valeria's beautiful face. A total of 20 design firms had attended the meeting. They would draw a number at random to give a presentation one after another about their fashion design concepts , ranging from their themes, inspirations, details, and demonstrations. The presentation screen soon showed a medieval -inspired dress, and Sabrina, the chief designer of Reiya Design, stood up to give her presentation. Sitting beside Sabrina was Queenie. Queenie glanced at Valeria once and then quickly averted her gaze.

It was not just Valeria, but Kayla noticed Queenie as well. Kayla then leaned over to Valeria and whispered, "Didn't ---- expect Queenie to quit and join Reiya Design to work for Sabrina." Valeria studied the green dress on the screen. It had a deep V neckline, a sash by the waist engraved with patterns inspired by the medieval era, as well as green roses. The design was rather conservative and chaotic at worst. The roses at the waist sash stole the focus from the medieval designs, failing to highlight its inspirational roots.

As for the sleeve design of the dress, Valeria and Queenie had worked together at L&M Design Studio for three years, so she could immediately recognize Queenie's style. Kayla recognized it as well and felt sorry for Queenie. Queenie might not bea genius, but she did have a style to call her own, However, ever since she joined Reiya Design, her designs had become painfully conservative and bland. Sabrina soon finished her presentation and sat back down. Reiya Design was the 10th presentation , and following their turn was a brief intermission.

Sabrina walked straight over to Valeria and Kayla, her high heels clicking across the floor. She stared at Valeria's face and said, "What a coincidence. You're here too. I didn't expect to run into you here." Reiya Design was supposed to have the absolute advantage in this project. However , once Sabrina herself leaked the rumors that they ---- were working for Grant Group free of charge, the rumors exploded within the industry in no time.

She thought that it was guaranteed she would secure the contract, but the other design firms pulling out of the conference had ended up causing a major disruption. She even received a call from Wendy telling her that she had ruined everything. If not for Wendy pulling the strings to smooth things over, with the help of her ties to the Grant family, Reiya Design would not have been allowed to re-enter the bidding conference. Sebastian himself would have them thrown out of the competition immediately. Kayla smiled politely, but she remained seated with no intention to stand up.

"What a coincidence. I didn't expect that we'd meet again, too, Ms. Lawson. We should catch up over a meal sometime." Sabrina replied, "I'm quite busy lately. If you wish to have a meal together, let's book a time in advance. I'll do my best to make time for it for the sake of our friendship." Kayla just smiled back at Sabrina, but she was already rolling her eyes in disbelief within her heart. Before long, the second half of the meeting began.