Adam remained silent, his expression revealing nothing of his thoughts. Nikki had no idea what he was thinking.

“Mr. Alvarez, it really was me that night. I gave you my first time—”

Before she could finish, Adam accelerated, and the car sped off.

“Mr. Alvarez!”

Nikki stood there, her heart filled with a mixture of relief and fear. She was terrified Adam might have discovered the truth.

At that moment, two men in black suits appeared, grabbed Nikki by the arms, and dragged her away.

Nikki screamed, “Who are you? Let me go!”

“Get in! Ms. Tate wants to see you.”

The men roughly shoved Nikki into a black car. Inside, Nikki looked up and saw Carly sitting across from her. Carly’s delicate, beautiful face was cold and hard as she stared at Nikki.

Nikki’s heart sank. She had heard of Carly. Everyone in Mercity knew Carly was Adam’s beloved. Celine was just his unloved wife, someone Nikki had no reason to fear. Carly, however, was a different story—someone truly intimidating.

“M… Ms. Tate, hello,” Nikki stammered.

Carly gave Nikki a slow, scrutinizing look. “So you’re the woman who spent the night with Adam? I heard he’s poured a lot of resources into you lately, making you quite the rising star.” Carly sneered. “Since you seem to enjoy sleeping with men, why don’t I send you to a red-light district to take on clients full-time? What do you think?”

Nikki trembled uncontrollably. “No, Ms. Tate, please.”

Carly looked at Nikki as if she were a bug. She couldn’t believe the drug Adam had inhaled that night had ultimately benefited this lowly woman. The thought of this woman in his bed made Carly want to make her disappear.

Carly subtly nodded to the two men. “Take her away.”

“Yes, Ms. Tate.”

The two men stepped forward to grab Nikki.

Nikki realized she was facing someone ruthless. Her face turned pale, and she hurriedly dropped to her knees. “Ms. Tate, you’re mistaken. The woman who was with Mr. Alvarez that night wasn’t me. It was Celine!”

Carly froze. “What did you just say?”

“Ms. Tate, I only pretended to be Celine. The woman who shared that night with Mr. Alvarez was Celine. She gave him her first time.”

Carly gasped, disbelief etched on her face. That night… it was Celine? Celine had slept with Adam and consummated their relationship? No wonder Celine had taken the birth control pills and fainted from a severe allergic reaction. It wasn’t because of Nathan; it was because of Adam.

How could this have happened? Why Celine?

A wave of burning jealousy surged through Carly, shattering her composure. She clutched her chest, her heart aching with rage.

At that moment, Lucy entered the car. “Carly, are you okay?”

“Mom, did you hear that? That night… it was Celine!”

Lucy’s expression darkened, her fury building. No matter how hard they had tried to prevent it, Celine had still slept with Adam.

“Carly, calm down.”

“How can I calm down? Celine had a relationship with Adam! It was her first time! And look at Nikki, pretending to be Celine. Do you know how many resources Adam wasted on her? Those should have belonged to Celine. I can’t even imagine what Adam will do once he finds out the truth.” Adam had already developed a soft spot for Celine. If he discovered she had given him her first time, how would he react?

Carly dug her nails into her palms, but felt no pain.

Lucy’s gaze fell on Nikki, who was still kneeling. “Is this all you can do? If you can’t handle Celine, then there’s no reason for you to stick around.”

Nikki hurriedly responded, “I can! I’ve already thought of a new plan to deal with Celine!”