Chapter 2
I wanted to laugh hearing that. I nudged Evelyn’s foot with my shoe tip.
“What status do you have and what status do I have? Me, be your secretary?”
“How come your dad doesn’t even know what his own son-in-law does for work?”
Before I finished speaking, a man eating sunflower seeds nearby spat a mouthful of shells in my face.
The whole room burst into laughter.
“You gold-digging homewrecker, you didn’t even bother to find out how wealthy your target is?”
“Do you know who Evelyn is? She’s a billionaire boss and CEO, with mountains of companies under her, not to mention countless luxury cars and mansions.”
“See this hotel? This huge, luxurious wedding venue - it all belongs to our Evelyn!”
“And Lucas is even more impressive.”
“Not only does he help Evelyn manage all those companies under her, he’s also closed I don’t know how many major deals for her, increasing the value of Evelyn’s company by hundreds of millions in one go, directly propelling it into the ranks of the world’s top 100.”
Lucas helps Evelyn manage the company, Closes deals for her, Increases her company’s value, pushing it into the world’s top 100?
When in reality it was me who invested hundreds of millions of my own pocket money into her company time and time again,
It was me who leveraged my parents’ connections to build her network everywhere,
It was me who endured countless wine-soaked business dinners to negotiate one deal after another for her,
It was me who stayed up countless nights guiding her step by step, and even had to personally take over and complete work that should have been hers due to her extremely narrow vision and utter lack of experience.
Without my help, how many generations would it take for Evelyn - a poor country girl who couldn’t even afford college tuition - to achieve today’s success through talent and hard work alone?
Someone who couldn’t stand my arrogant attitude advised Evelyn:
“If you ask me, you’re just too lenient with your employees. What kind of secretary has the guts to come cause trouble at your wedding?”
“If I were you, I’d fire him on the spot to teach him a lesson about overreaching.”
Voices of agreement rang out across the banquet hall.
Evelyn looked at me as if she really was reprimanding her subordinate.
“After causing such a scene, there’s no way I can keep you on as my secretary.”
“But considering you’ve worked for the company for so many years, even if you haven’t made major contributions, you’ve at least put in the effort. I’ll transfer you to a branch office instead of completely ruining your livelihood.”
“If you still don’t know what’s good for you, don’t blame me for firing you.”
Her actions won a round of applause.
“Evelyn really lives up to her reputation as a big boss. She’s so magnanimous, willing to give even this kind of man a chance.”
But I was not grateful at all. I even let out a cold laugh.
“Fire me?”
“Why don’t you try firing just me then? I’d like to see how you fire me.”
Someone immediately mocked me sarcastically.
“I guess someone like him wouldn’t be afraid of getting fired.”
“Even if he gets fired, he can still go sell himself. How much money can he make as a secretary anyway?”
As soon as those words were spoken, everyone had meaningful expressions on their faces.
The shirtless, greasy man looked at me lustfully, almost drooling.
“Not bad body, little brother. Are you up for anything? How much for one time?”
“Uncle can’t give you as much as those bosses, but at least give me a discount since I’m a friend of the Bridges family, yeah?”
I glared at Evelyn, my expression terrifyingly dark.
“Evelyn Bridges, are you really going to keep hiding our relationship to the bitter end, just watching them humiliate me like this?”
Evelyn paused for a moment, but ultimately turned away.
“Lucas is my husband. I have a clear conscience when it comes to him.”
“As long as you leave now, we can let bygones be bygones.”
Lucas had a smug look on his face.
“Brother Ryan, I know you’re upset that after causing such a scene, you’ve ruined your own reputation but gained nothing.”
“Normally, someone as magnanimous as Evelyn probably wouldn’t mind if you tried to blackmail her for some money. But you really shouldn’t have come to make trouble on our wedding day.”
“Even though you’ve slandered Evelyn like this, she still hasn’t fired you. Hasn’t she been kind enough to you? Don’t you have any conscience?”
As he spoke, Lucas shed tears of distress for Evelyn.
Evelyn quickly pulled out a tissue to wipe his tears.
I was furious watching them put on this act. I raised my foot and kicked Lucas hard in the lower back.
Lucas cried out in shock, falling straight into Evelyn’s arms.
“Ryan Shaw, have you gone mad?!”
Seeing Lucas get hit, Evelyn’s eyes blazed with fury. She lunged forward and slapped me hard across the face.
I collapsed onto the dining table, not only getting covered in soup and grease, but also suffering large patches of scalding burns due to my light summer clothing.
Evelyn not only ignored this, but pulled Lucas into her arms and yelled at me harshly:
“Apologize to Lucas right now, or this isn’t over!”
Lucas’ eyes were full of smugness.
I endured the excruciating pain, barely managing to prop myself up with my arms.
On my exposed arms, the red, grotesque burns seemed like a gaping bloody maw, silently yet viciously mocking my so-called love of these past few years.
The burning sensation from the wounds intensified, but my voice grew increasingly cold:
“Evelyn Bridges, you hid your relationship with Lucas Gray and dated me for three years; then on the day of our destination wedding, you married him at the hotel I gave you; now you’re even making me apologize to him?”
“Is it because I’ve given you everything you wanted all these years that you think you can walk all over me and step on my head? Do you believe I can’t make you lose everything in an instant?”