Chapter 188

Ollie made a dismissive gesture. "What's the point of opening the door? You'll just disrupt my business talk with Miss Rowland."

The assistant withdrew his hand.

Thea chuckled, a glimmer of mischief in her eyes. "Thank you very much, Mr. Windrow." She slipped into the private room, peeking out to see the people outside enter, ask a few brief questions, and then leave.

Once they were gone, Ollie impatiently showed her the door. "You'll be leaving now, Miss Rowland, correct? I assume I don't need to invite you to stay for dinner."

Thea remained calm, pulling out her phone. Her tone was perfectly open. "Due to certain special circumstances, I won't be attending public events much going forward. So, we'll need to exchange contact information." Ollie's eyes narrowed with an amused smile as he studied her. "You look so young. I have to wonder just how long Sparkle Rocks will hold out under your management."

Thea raised an eyebrow. "You won't be disappointed. After all, you've done business with us for years, and I'm sure this partnership will continue. Mr. Windrow, here's to a successful collaboration." As Thea walked out, Ollie absentmindedly fingered the ring on his index finger, lost in thought.

His assistant murmured, "The new president of Sparkle Rocks really is named Thea, but I never met her. That woman didn't look like a president. Could we have been deceived?"

Ollie chuckled softly. "And if she did deceive us, so what? Is there anyone in Silvercreek who'd dare to mess with me?"

A faint trace of Thea's fragrance lingered. Ollie's lips curved into a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Interesting. Send someone to Key Biscayne to dig into Thea's background. Find out if she's connected to the Rowland family I'm thinking of."

"Yes, sir," the assistant nodded quickly.

When Thea returned, her phone was flooded with notifications. Messages from Sparkle Rocks employees asked why she hadn't attended dinner with Ollie. She gave a casual excuse, saying she hadn't felt well and would reschedule.

One senior executive criticized her in the group chat, calling her rude and irresponsible for leaving them to negotiate with Ollie alone, adding that she clearly couldn't handle the role.

Thea shot back, "I only recently took over Sparkle Rocks. So, are you telling me that before I arrived, Sparkle Rocks was a mess? The company pays you all quite well. Is that just so you can eat for free and do nothing? If you think you're not up to it, message me privately, and I'll happily show you the door."

Her words silenced everyone, but Thea knew resentment likely lingered. What puzzled her was that Sparkle Rocks had operated smoothly for over two decades. Surely, if Joshua had known about internal issues, he wouldn't have handed it over to her. "Something doesn't add up," she thought.

Chapter 188 (Continued)

Today's incident was a reminder. Thea knew she couldn't reveal her real identity yet. She'd have to be patient and wait for the bigger fish to surface. She wasn't worried about Ollie betraying her; if he'd wanted to, he would have done so today. In fact, he might even be hoping for more chaos at Sparkle Rocks.

Thea decided she needed an actor to temporarily stand in for her. Then her phone buzzed with a video call from Joyce. Thea hadn't been able to reach Joyce and had been worried. "Joyce, where are you right now?"

Joyce appeared flawlessly made up and elegantly dressed, though her expression was weary, and her eyes were faintly red. She'd hidden it well.

Thea frowned, about to ask about the event, when Joyce said, "Thea, could you come back for a while? I'm getting married."

"Getting married?" Thea froze. "When did this happen? I never even heard you had a boyfriend."

Joyce's lashes trembled. She forced a weak smile, but sadness and unease betrayed her. "It was from a recent matchmaking meeting. Both sides were pleased, so we decided to get married," Joyce explained.

"Who's the groom?" Thea's heartbeat quickened. Joyce was definitely being forced into this.

Shaking her head, Joyce replied, "I can't tell you yet, but you'll know when you come back. I want you to be my maid of honor."

Thea said gently, her heart aching, "Wait for me."

Joyce hurriedly ended the call, crying.

The door creaked open. Max, tipsy, staggered in. Noticing Joyce wiping away tears, his face darkened with anger. He seized her wrist. "What are you putting on an act for? You pushed your parents to arrange this marriage, and now you're trying to act innocent?"

Joyce lifted her head, her face streaked with tears, but her gaze was steady and defiant. "I pushed my parents? Are you kidding? I know you don't want to marry me, and believe me, I don't want to marry you either." Max laughed coldly, releasing her. "Thea's just like you, always pretending she doesn't want something, yet scheming to get it. You're both cunning and ruthless. It's no wonder you two are friends."

Joyce shoved Max. "Stop talking nonsense! You can insult me, but leave Thea out of it. She's given you people so many chances, and it's you who couldn't appreciate them. You're not worthy to be her family!"

Enraged, Max grabbed Joyce and pushed her toward the bed, pinning her down. Joyce was terrified. "Let me go!"

Max's face was menacing. "We held our engagement banquet today, and you're now officially my fiancée. Anything I do with you is perfectly legal."

"You bastard! Stop!" Joyce was furious.

Max's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID, his expression changed instantly. He got off Joyce and answered the call.