Rise of the Rich and Powerful Jamie Ashford

Chapter 16

Jamie smiled up at the incredibly gorgeous young woman as he took her hand, feeling the warmth of her slender and incredibly smooth palm.

Seeing their held hands, Kennedy immediately showed concern. “Hey, my dear, don't go out holding hands like that, okay? I don't want to have to deal with another complaint from your future….”

Sonia stomped his high heels in anger, cutting her father off. “Dad, Tyson is and will never be my future husband! I absolutely refuse! Besides, if Mr. & Mrs. Crooks say anything, just inform them that Jamie is now being backed by a subordinate of the Ashford family. I'd like to see if they'd dare mess with him.”

She ignored her father's babbling as she pulled Jamie right out of the room, followed by the Ashford bodyguards.

Jamie couldn't help but smile waly at Sonia. He didn't know she could be this daring.

A minute later, the guests were surprised when they saw Sonia guiding Jamie back on deck by his hand. Of course, the daring Sonia ignored everyone's face, including that of the Reynold brothers, Seth, Danny, and especially Tyson.

Sonia walked straight to the table meant for her and Stacy alone. Together, all three sat down.

Stacy glanced at Jamie and Sonia. “Okay, what is going on here? 

Before Sonia could say anything, her father walked up and got on the stage. He then proceeded to narrate everything that Jamie had told him.

The Reynolds brothers, Stacy, Meghan, Amanda, Olivia, Seth, Danny, Tyson, and even Stacy were all taken aback by this revelation.

Kennedy Goodwin happily welcomed Jamie to the event, making it clear to everyone that they were not allowed to cause any trouble with the Ashford subordinate’s representative.

With any doubt cleared, Kennedy got off the stage and the birthday party continued smoothly, but things were no longer the same.

Sonia is the birthday party host, and yet, Jamie has suddenly become the center of attraction. An orphan student of HU was now suddenly being backed by a subordinate of the Ashford family.

The same guests who had doubted Jamie's presence were now trying to strike up a conversation with him.

Unfortunately for them, the five Ashford bodyguards made it hard to get to that table which was occupied by Jamie, Sonia, and Stacy.

As for their peers, they could only look at Jamie with a great degree of awe and an even greater degree of jealousy and hatred.

For a minute, Amanda began to question if she made the right choice leaving Jamie for Nathan. But she quickly reminded herself that Jamie could never be as rich as the Reynold family.

At Sonia's table, Stacy asked to check out the customized Falcon Supernova iPhone 6 Pink Diamond Edition, and Jamie obliged.

“Jamie, how did you afford a freaking $79 million phone?!”

Jamie shook his head with a light chuckle. “I didn't. The Ashford subordinate gifted it to me, amongst other things.”

Sonia and Stacy shared a glance before asking at the same time. “What else did he give you?!”

Jamie decided to keep an air of mystery. “Don't worry, you'll find out eventually.”

Stacy raised an eyebrow. “Wait! Doesn't that mean you now have a bit of money in your account, right?”

Jamie nodded his head. If these people knew that he had at least $10 billion in his bank account, they would be shocked. He's currently the richest amongst his peers at this party.

Despite not being allowed near Jamie's table, the Reynold brothers, Seth and Danny, bombarded Jamie with questions from a distance, but it all went unanswered. 

They were infuriated that Jamie was treating them like air. They were suddenly getting a taste of what it feels like to be looked down upon by someone you've always looked down upon. 

In order to console themselves, they assured one another that this support Jamie was receiving from the Ashford subordinate was only temporary. In the end, power will only stay loyal to power. 

In other words, it was only a matter of time before Jamie lost his support, and by then, they'd be ready to remind him where he truly belonged.

Jamie ignored any bad vibes he was getting from his haters, choosing to chat away with Sonia and Stacy and enjoy the good mood tonight. 

Stacy even made a FaceTime with Billy Carson to update him on everything that happened. Of course, Bully was super shocked to see his best friend, Jamie, looking so spiffy in such an exorbitant outfit.

What everyone got away from tonight: Jamie Reynolds is now on a totally different level.

Tyson, unable to bear the good atmosphere he was witnessing between Jamie and Sonia, attempted to pull her away.

If it had been any other situation, Sonia would have been left with no choice but to go with whatever Tyson said, as she wouldn't want to offend the Crooks family. 

After all, the $800 million Goodwin family could not afford to mess with the $7 billion Crooks family.

But tonight was different. First of all, Tyson couldn't even get to Jamie's table as it was well guarded by the five Ashford bodyguards, who Tyson couldn't afford to offend.

This, Tyson had to awkwardly stand at a distance while trying to call Sonia over to him, which earned him a few discreet disdainful glares from the guests. 

But to make matters worse, Sonia simply smiled apologetically at Tyson. “Sorry, Tyson, but as the birthday host, I just can't leave Jamie all alone. Offending him tonight would be no different from offending the Ashford subordinate himself. Are you willing to take responsibility for any fallout that occurs later?”

Tyson felt his heart lurched to his throat at those words. Compared to a clan worth $53 trillion and a business empire worth $85 trillion, the Crooks family worth $7 billion can be crushed over a thousand lifetimes without lifting a finger.

Tyson simply couldn't do anything to separate Sonia from Jamie. And though the two were not doing anything scandalous or specifically romantic, the mere smiles that they were giving each other, coupled with how incredibly relaxed Sonia looked around Jamie, activated Tyson's insecurity.

Tyson simply can't remember a time Sonia didn't look somewhat tense around him. This reality made him bitter and he murmured to himself as he walked away.

“Congratulations, Jamie Reynold. You've officially made it to my list of enemies. You better watch your back from now on. Nobody messes with one of Hollywood's top treasures and gets away with it. I'll make you regret the day you ever met Sonia.”

At that point, Tyson left the party with his parents, no longer wanting to stay. 

As much as Tyson's parents wanted to complain, they understood that Kennedy Goodwin couldn't do anything as Jamie was under the Ashford subordinate tonight.

Thus, the family of three left the party with stifled hearts, especially when they witnessed Sonia giving Jamie the honor of being the first person that she slowly danced with at this party.

That night on the yacht, Jamie happily chatted away with Sonia and Stacy. He even took turns dancing with the beautiful ladies, knowing that neither the Reynold brothers nor his buddies would dare bother him.

Amanda felt a mix of jealousy and anger as Jamie unexpectedly showed up and gained the spotlight in the presence of 70 high-profile guests.

An hour later, Jamie received a text message from Tom Yates, his personal assistant:

[Young Master, it's time. Your grandfather is waiting for you.]

Jamie sighed. It was time to head to the Maldives and officially meet the patriarch of the Ashford family, also known as his paternal grandfather.