"Is she still inside?" Richard asked, glancing over at Smith, who stood beside him.Smith turned to him. "Yes, Mr. Richard, she's still in the room. They're likely discussing something important between them. You don't need to worry, they should be done soon."Richard smirked sarcastically. "I'm not so sure. Do you know why? I have a feeling that my father is talking about something that might make her hesitate to marry me. You know, he's capable of that."Smith shook his head. "I don't think so, sir." He turned away, organizing the files scattered around the table. Richard had been busy with work just moments ago, and even now, he was still occupied. Still, he had taken a break because he couldn't stop thinking about what Rachel and his father might be discussing inside.He was confident the conversation was serious. That thought made him anxious, worried that his father might say something to offend Rachel, and there was nothing he could do to defend her."I'm sure Mr. James wouldn'
The long-awaited day had finally arrived, the engagement celebration of Rachel and Richard. The event was held in a luxurious hall, with numerous guests invited to attend. At the front lobby, luxury cars lined up one after another as guests arrived.“Oh my gosh, look at this! How could Mr. Richard overlook me? If only he saw me, I’m sure he would’ve chosen me to be his fiancée,” one of the girls, walking with her friends, complained as they entered the venue.Another woman beside her glanced over, her expression laced with sarcasm. “What are you talking about? Clearly, he wouldn’t pick someone like you.”“But Rachel isn’t that great, either, is she? She’s not impressive at all. I’m from a respectable family too, and I have an amazing personality. I just didn’t manage to catch his attention first,” she continued to complain.The woman at her side laughed and shot her a sideways glance. “Maybe you’re better than her, but that’s probably why Mr. Richard was too overwhelmed to meet you. D
“This crowd is really draining me,” Rachel said, glancing at Richard. The two stood on the balcony, gazing at the night view.They exchanged a deep look, trying to understand each other without words, before turning their gaze back forward. Both seemed equally exhausted by the crowd they had just faced.“They swarmed around you like bees, saying things they don’t truly mean,” Richard smiled, lowering his gaze.He found it ironic how their words were the opposite of what they felt. Richard wasn’t trying to be narrow-minded or accuse them, but the truth was, most of them were exactly like that.With all his interactions, Richard realized that people often say sweet things just to make small talk, not because they mean it. He was confident that only a few of them genuinely felt happy about their engagement, while the rest were merely attending because they had to, not wanting to miss out on the event.Most of them showed up only for their own business interests, as it was important for t
"Mr. Richard?" They all stared at Richard in shock, clearly panicking. "Wait, Mr. Richard, you misunderstood! This isn't what it looks like!" The woman tried to explain, waving her hands in frustration.Richard looked at them coldly as he strolled toward Rachel, standing by her side. His eyes fixed on them. "Which part did I misunderstand? I saw and heard everything clearly. You cornered her and tried to bully her all together."The woman waved her hands nervously and tried to approach Richard. "No, sir, that's not true. We weren’t doing that; we were just trying..." She glanced at her friends. We were trying to get some help," she said, then anxiously looked back at Richard. We were just worried about you.""Yes, sir, we’re afraid this woman is taking advantage of you. We didn’t want you to be disappointed or deceived by her," her friend chimed in, trying to explain and win Richard’s trust.They had no intention of apologizing for their behavior towards Rachel. Instead, they tried to
*Chapter 205** Richard's POV "What happened? Wasn't that Melody's voice?" Rachel turned to the side, scanning the area. The voice screamed loudly for help, and Richard, who heard it, quickly looked around to find the source. He glanced at Rachel, who was holding his hand. Their eyes met, and from her gaze, Richard understood that Rachel wanted him to check on Melody, who might be in danger. "I'll check on her," he nodded at Rachel, and the two of them ran toward the direction of the voice. They found Melody being forcefully grabbed by two men. The men were big and intimidating. Melody was struggling to free herself from their grasp. Seeing the situation, Rachel panicked, clearly worried about Melody being cornered by the two men. She pushed Richard forward. "Please do something! They might harm Melody." Nodding and patting Rachel's arm to reassure her, Richard stepped forward to confront the men. "What do you think you're doing to her?" He pulled Melody behind him, placi
Chapter 206After saying that to Rachel, Melody left her and hurried over to Richard, realizing that he had finished dealing with the men. "Are you okay?" Melody asked with deep concern.Richard nodded, trying to gently brush away Melody's hand. "Yes, I'm fine." He glanced back at the two men lying on the ground, ultimately defeated.The men groaned in pain, their faces bloodied and bruised, with several bones broken. Richard had done this intentionally, teaching them a painful lesson. He had broken their fingers and wrists, the very hands that had grabbed Rachel so roughly. Richard had considered doing worse—like breaking their legs, gouging out their eyes, or even snapping their necks—but he refrained. A scene like that would have made Rachel scream in horror and might have left her traumatized. So, he let them off with only a severe warning. But if they crossed paths again, there would be no mercy.Melody gazed at Richard’s face and touched his bruised temple. "Oh no, you're hurt.
"As long as you're still engaged, I have no reason to back off. I still have a chance to get closer to him and catch his attention. Besides, you were the one who told me that you weren't interested in him. You reached out to me first, and I'm sure the man you were talking about was him." Melody brought up their conversation from a few weeks ago.Rachel stared at her, panting with frustration. She was distraught and couldn't believe what she was dealing with in Melody."It hasn't even been a month since you last talked about him, so it's impossible that there's anything more between you two," Melody said, clearly doubtful.Rachel shook her head, denying it while trying to calm herself."Maybe this is just a business alliance between two large companies through marriage. If he finds someone he loves— I mean, if he suddenly falls in love with me—your engagement could be called off, right? Doesn’t he deserve to find someone he truly loves? I’m sure you’re not so narrow-minded as to block
“So, you heard it? You listened to our conversation?” Rachel turned around as soon as Melody’s car disappeared from her view. She didn’t expect Richard to have overheard and witnessed her embarrassing argument with Melody.At that moment, Rachel wished she could disappear. She didn’t want to face him after such a humiliating scene. Fighting over him like that made her feel exposed as if she had shown a shameful part of herself.Richard nodded. “Yes, I saw it. So what? Are you embarrassed?”Rachel was stunned. “You’re asking me? You’re asking if I’m embarrassed?” Today had been a long day, filled with emotions she could barely control. “Of course, it was embarrassing, Richard. No woman wants her partner to see her in such a humiliating situation. It was awful for me.” She scrunched up her face and covered it with her hands.Richard laughed heartily for the first time in a while, clearly finding the situation amusing. “No, it wasn’t embarrassing at all.” He gently grabbed Rachel’s hands