Chapter 6

“It’s fine. She’s generous and not that petty. Think of it as a welcome gift from me. Rachel is really good at what she does. If you work with her, you’ll learn a lot,” William said, his voice full of concern for Samantha.

From a distance, Rachel overheard his words, and her heart sank.

Generous?

In William’s eyes, she could give up everything–the project, her design work, even her mother’s last wish. And now, she was even giving up her husband. She could feel the weight of her own humiliation, even without looking in the mirror.

“Rachel Lloyd, how did you end up like this?” she asked herself quietly.

Just then, a teasing voice interrupted her thoughts: “I wondered why you suddenly wanted to work with me. Turns out, your husband has found someone new.”

Rachel jumped back in shock. Her heel slipped, making her lose her balance and start to fall backwards. Her mind raced, fearing the worst. But in the next moment, steady hands gripped her waist.

For a moment, she was relieved that Tyler at least seemed a bit compassionate. But then, she saw the mocking smile at the corner of his lips, and his hands suddenly left her waist.

Rachel couldn’t believe it—he was playing with her.

In that split second, a burst of strength flowed through her. Just as she was about to hit the ground, she grabbed onto the edge of Tyler’s suit jacket. His deep eyes showed a flicker of surprise before he reluctantly caught her again, pulling her back.

She stumbled into his hard, firm chest. Looking up with a frown, she was met with his intense, unreadable gaze.

“Are you trying to use me as a cushion?” he teased.

Rachel couldn’t stand this man, especially after the way he had played with her. She pushed against his chest, trying to create some distance between them.

She couldn’t admit it was intentional, so she muttered, “It was just a reflex. I’m sorry, Mr. Hunt.”

If it weren’t for him messing with her, this near-disaster wouldn’t have happened.

Rachel clenched her fists, trying to stay calm. She still needed him for the Oasis Project. For now, he was like her only lifeline!

She took a deep breath, letting the tension leave her body, and forced a smile back onto her face. “Mr. Hunt, you must believe me now, right? I’m not a spy sent by Lewis Enterprise. I really want to work with you.”

Tyler tucked his hands casually into his pockets as he lazily replied, “Who knows? Maybe you and your husband are just playing me.”

Rachel pursed her lips tightly. This man had a trust issue the size of a mountain. She imagined any woman who married him might never even get a chance to talk to another man.

She smiled wider, trying to stay patient. “Why would I bother? Besides, we both know you could uncover the truth with one phone call. You’ve got that kind of reach.”

Everyone at Nevalis University knew about Samantha and William’s past relationship.

After a moment, Tyler spoke again, his tone reluctantly serious.

“If you’re determined to work with us, let me make one thing clear. Once this project is under LS Enterprise, William will eventually find out about you. Once that gets out, it will cause a scandal for us at LS Enterprise. Who knows…”

He paused, leaning slightly closer to her. His warm breath brushed against her ear as he whispered, a dark chuckle escaping his lips.

“People might say you and I are in this together. Do you think you can handle that kind of accusation, Mrs. Lewis?”

Rachel stiffened, the weight of his words hitting her hard. She understood exactly what he was saying. If she pushed too hard now, she could burn everything down. But as long as she could finish the project before leaving, the gossip wouldn’t matter.

Slowly, the tension in Rachel’s face began to fade. She knew what she had to do.

“That’s hardly your concern, Mr. Hunt. You’re a businessman. As long as this project turns pure profit, nothing else should matter,” she said.

She could tell Tyler wasn’t the type to fear William’s wrath. The man had an air of confidence that made him seem unafraid of anything or anyone.

With a faint smirk, he dropped his scrutinizing gaze and slumped back into his signature lazy posture.

“Hey,” he called out to her.

Rachel looked up at him. “Yeah?”

His eyes moved past her, landing on the other side of the room. His voice took on a playful tone as he added, “Your husband seems to be staring right at us.”

Rachel froze. She quickly turned her head, and sure enough, William was looking straight at her. The moment their eyes met, they both froze. William’s face showed a flicker of surprise when he saw Rachel, but when his gaze landed on Tyler next to her, his expression darkened.

Samantha completely missed the odd look on William’s face as she cheerfully came over to greet Rachel.

“Rachel, what a coincidence! If I had known you were coming, I wouldn’t have joined William. Oh, but don’t misunderstand. I just came along as a favor because he didn’t have a plus-one.”

Samantha seemed a little flustered as she gestured toward Rachel, her face turning pink as she nervously stole a glance at her. Her eyes showed signs of discomfort, and Rachel couldn’t help but feel like some kind of a wicked stepmother, as if she had been deliberately bullying Samantha.

Just then, William seemed to snap out of his thoughts.

He walked over and took Rachel’s hand. “I thought I told you to rest at home. Why did you come out on your own?”

For a moment, Rachel couldn’t tell if he was concerned or blaming her. She kept her face neutral and said, “Remember I told you about the bracelet I designed for my graduation project? I heard it’s being auctioned off today. Since you’re busy with work, I decided to just take a cab and come.”

When Samantha heard that, she instinctively tried to hide her wrist. However, Rachel’s eyes landed on her wrist.

“Ms. Judd, how did you end up with that bracelet?” she exclaimed in surprise.

Samantha tried to hide it, but Rachel grabbed her wrist, revealing the soft blue bracelet to everyone.

Tyler had taken a seat when William and Samantha came over. He leaned back in his chair, his arms crossed, clearly enjoying the scene unfolding.

The atmosphere grew tense.

Rachel then looked directly at William, raising her voice as she said, “I get it now. You secretly bought it and wanted to surprise me, right?”

William was momentarily stunned, but then nodded along with her. “Yeah, I thought I’d swing by after my meeting and pick it up for you. That bracelet’s been sitting around for so long, so I thought I’d have Samantha try it on for you.”

Rachel smiled widely, her eyes sparkling. “I knew it! You really went through all that trouble, huh? But since I’m right here, I can try it on myself.”

Samantha’s face turned pale with a mix of anger and embarrassment. Though she was clearly fuming inside, she couldn’t say anything. Rachel extended her hand, and Samantha reluctantly removed the bracelet and gave it to her.

Rachel put it on her wrist, making sure to flaunt it in front of William and Samantha. She shook her wrist slightly. “How does it look?”

“It looks great,” William replied patiently, as he always did.

Then, Samantha suddenly spoke up, her voice soft and sweet as she asked, “Wait, isn’t this man Mr. Hunt? How did you end up with him, Rachel? I thought our company wasn’t working with LS Enterprise?”