Suddenly, I Am Rich

”Really, Boss?” Joel asked again, just to make sure he heard right. He seemed eager to know whether Gray was actually saying the truth or not.

But Joel’s reaction only made Gray chuckle. Honestly, in Gray’s eyes, the man looked like a kid who had just been told he was getting exactly what he wanted.

”Yeah. Mara’s already working on the plans.” Gray nodded to reassure him.

The moment those words left his mouth, Joel’s eyes widened slightly.

”Miss Mara is handling it?”

”Mm.”

”Wooohhh!” Joel let out a low whistle. ”Well... if it’s her, then it’s definitely going to be big!”

”Yeah,” Gray smirked faintly. ”That’s exactly what I’m worried about.”

Joel laughed at that. The two of them know that when Mara’s excited, she tends to overdo things. Well, at least it’s on a positive note.

The two of them resumed walking, moving farther down the aisle as they continued to talk.

”So what exactly are the plans, Boss?” Joel asked curiously. Now that they were talking about it, his curiosity has been piqued.

Gray slipped his hands into his pockets as he walked.

”Well, we’re still finalizing everything,” he replied. ”But we’re planning to make it more than just a simple staff gathering. We’ll throw a party for everyone.”

”Oh?” Joel immediately straightened at that. At the back of his mind, he was really excited about it! He knew that everyone deserved to experience it, so he was thankful that their boss was kind enough.

”We’re also planning a full anniversary celebration for the store, not only for the staff. I’ll let you see our stocks and finances to see which items we can have on discount and bundles.”

The more Gray talked, the brighter Joel’s expression became.

”Seriously?”

”Yeah.”

”Boss...” Joel looked genuinely stunned. ”You’re really going all out.”

Gray shrugged lightly. ”It will be my first ever anniversary with the store.”

Months ago, he was just a broke guy. Now that he had almost everything, he wanted it to mean something.

”Hmm...” Gray glanced at him.

”Mara suggested adding a raffle too.”

”For the customers?”

”Yeah.”

”What kind of prize, boss?” Joel’s jaw dropped slightly.

”We’ll see,” Gray smirked. He was still thinking of partnering up with different brands for it.

’Oh well, I’ll ask Mara for opinions about it,’ Gray remembered. Now that he was talking about it with Joel, all sorts of ideas were also starting to form in his head. It seemed like it wasn’t only they who were excited, but he too.

Joel smiled at that before his expression turned more thoughtful.

”If that’s the case, Sir, then I shall prepare the staff ahead of time,” Joel muttered as he looked around the store.

Gray lightly nodded at that.

”I’ll tell our general manager to start checking our inventory and everything. We shall send the list to you in 3 days.”

”Alright. I’ll look forward to it.” The corner of Gray’s lips rose to a small smile at that.

Gray simply nodded.

”I’ll look forward to it.”

”Yes, Boss,” Joel replied immediately.

The conversation moved on after that, but Gray couldn’t help the small smile that remained on his face. As they continued walking through the aisles, he occasionally glanced at Joel from the side.

The man was still visibly excited. They were touring the store, and Joel was still giving him updates on what had changed, but every now and then, Joel would suddenly mention another idea about the celebration.

”We should probably prepare additional stocks too.”

”Oh, and maybe we can ask suppliers if they want to sponsor a few prizes.”

”Actually, we should also prepare for higher customer traffic during the promotions.”

Gray listened quietly as Joel continued rambling about it. Eventually, he couldn’t help but chuckle.

Joel immediately looked over at him.

”Boss?”

”Nothing.” Gray shook his head lightly. But in truth, he was feeling somewhat proud. His eyes stayed on Joel for a brief moment.

Months ago, Joel had only been managing this single branch. Back then, he was capable, but still rough around the edges.

Now?

He had become completely different. Not only was he handling this branch well, but he was also overseeing operations between both stores as their head director.

His pure hard work led him here, and Gray appreciated that.

Without people like him, the past few months would’ve been far more difficult for him, especially when he was busy solving things with Alistair.

There were times when Gray had been occupied with investigations, meetings, investments, and countless other problems. Yet the stores continued operating smoothly without any problem.

A large part of that was because people like Joel were holding things together for him. He was blessed to be surrounded by good employees.

”You’re doing good work, Joel,” Gray just said all of a sudden.

”Huh?” Joel blinked at it.

Gray slightly smiled before tapping Joel’s back.

”I mean it.”

The man froze for a second. Then he awkwardly scratched the back of his head.

”Boss...” he muttered, looking embarrassed again.

”I’m serious.”

For a moment, Joel didn’t know what to say. The compliment clearly caught him off guard because it was too sudden. Eventually, he managed to smile.

”Thank you, Boss.”

The two continued walking after that.

Gray’s gaze swept through the store as they moved from one section to another. After explaining everything, he let Joel continue with his work. Meanwhile, for him, he chose to stay.

As he looked around, he saw customers pushing carts through the aisles while employees moved around stocking shelves and assisting people. The place felt alive since there were currently a lot of people shopping around.

However, his attention went to an elderly woman who was standing in front of one of the shelves with a confused expression on her face. She kept looking between two different products.

Without another word, Gray walked toward the woman. Since he’s here, might as well work too.

”Hello, Ma’am,” he greeted politely.

The old woman turned slightly. ”Oh?”

”Do you need help finding something?” Gray muttered kindly.

The woman smiled awkwardly.

”Uh... Actually, yes.” She held up two cleaning products.

”I’ve been standing here for five minutes trying to figure out which one is better. My husband usually shops, but he’s been sick, so he can’t go out.” The old woman sighed as she explained.

When Gray heard, he just smiled. A familiar feeling set into his heart.

”Of course, Ma’am. Let me help you.”

Who would have thought that he would actually miss working like this?