Chapter 22:

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As soon as Caden finished speaking, Gerry's eyes snapped open. It took him a few seconds to process that Caden was standing next to him.

Eyes wide, Gerry removed his headphones and asked, confused, “When did you get here?”

"Right now, actually."

Caden had arrived late, so Alicia had already finished recording the song. There was no way she was going to perform it again just because he had walked in. Not that it mattered, Caden wasn't particularly interested in music. He was there to have fun, nothing more.

But Gerry's reaction was something else entirely. "It's exactly what I imagined; in fact, more than I expected. No wonder he can compete with you for the top spot. He's very talented, Caden."

Caden studied him, intrigued. Gerry, a man rarely impressed, especially when he came to other artists, seemed unusually enthusiastic.

“Oh, yeah?” Caden replied, his tone deliberately nonchalant. “I guess I’m going to lose our bet.”

“You better get that groundwork ready for the handover,” Gerry joked with a smirk as he handed the lyric sheet to Caden. “Don't feel too bad about missing the recording session. Here, check out his lyrics instead. Maybe you can learn a thing or two from his lyrics.”

Caden picked up the piece of paper and scanned the page silently. He let out a sigh, raising an eyebrow. “I thought your movie was about Transformers fighting zombies. Why are the lyrics so… heartfelt?”

“What?” Gerry's mood changed instantly. His bright eyes narrowed, irritation creeping into his tone. “Zombies”? Really? It's a heartwarming sci-fi movie. Didn't I send you a copy? Haven’t you seen it?”

“Oh, I don't watch cartoons,” Caden replied nonchalantly.

animation! It's

moment, the door creaked and

and stared. The warm light from the recording booth spilled into the room, casting a soft glow over his

massaged the pain in her back, her voice calm but tired. “Mr. Hopkins, let's wrap things up for today. If anything comes up, don’t hesitate to get in

this, Gerry looked

an exclusive rooftop restaurant downtown. Would you like to join us for dinner,

hesitated, a flicker of discomfort crossing her features. But declining the invitation would not

the passenger seat, while Alicia and Caden shared the backseat. Without saying anything to each other, they gravitated toward their respective windows, the space between them just wide enough to park

He was looking for photos of expensive and hard-to-find properties. Smiling brightly, he even showed a few to Caden. “What do

tone cold. “Why don't

it,” Gerry joked without missing a beat.

of these,” Gerry said, completely at

You don’t want

quickly stiffened, pretending to be absorbed in

say anything, but his gaze lingered for a moment

however, remained in her seat. “Mr. Hopkins,” she called with an apologetic smile, “come in. “I

“There's no hurry. When you're ready,

"Thank you."

gave him a quick glance before heading to the entrance. Beside him, Gerry strolled casually, recounting the latest showbiz gossip

of nowhere, Caden stopped dead

left my phone in the car. Go ahead. I'll catch up with

suspicious glance at the sleek vehicle parked behind them. His eyes

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