Chapter 6

Heather endured the pain as she limped toward the elevator with a hand on the wall. Her ankle hurt so badly that she was barely moving faster than a snail.

It was long past dinnertime, and she was starving. She pulled out her phone and wanted to ask her best friend, Ivy Lane, whether she would be home tonight and what she was having for dinner.

"You're too slow!" Suddenly, Tyrone's impatient voice rang out.

Heather looked up to see him standing before her. His gaze was a little dark as he frowned down at her. Hadn't he already left?

"I waited for you for five minutes after calling for the elevator, yet you've only gotten this far. You're too slow!" he said coldly.

Oh, so he hadn't left. He'd just gone to help her call for the elevator. Heather had to admit she was surprised. Before she could return to her senses, he'd lifted her into his arms.

The sudden change made her instinctively wrap her arms around his neck and turn to look at him in surprise. Their faces were so close that her lips pressed against his cheek. It was as if she'd taken the initiative to kiss him! Heather's mind was boggled.

The sensation of Heather's soft lips pressing against his cheek made Tyrone's gaze darken. He stared into her eyes without saying anything, but his gaze made her heart race.

It took Heather a few seconds to gather herself. She quickly pulled away. She blushed as she said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Elkin! I didn't mean for that to happen. I didn't… I…"

She was beyond awkward. Naturally, Tyrone could tell she hadn't done it on purpose. Instead of saying anything, he grunted in acknowledgment and strode toward the elevator with her in his arms.

Heather's ankle did hurt if she applied any pressure on it, so she didn't insist on having him put her down.

It was her first time being carried in a man's arms like this, and Tyrone's toned arms were strong. She was five feet and five inches tall and weighed 100 pounds. People online would call her fat, but Tyrone carried her so easily that it was as if she weighed nothing. His steady embrace made her feel secure.

Heather stared dazedly at Tyrone's side profile. Suddenly, she found that she couldn't really understand him. He'd taken Anna's side earlier and made her apologize, yet he was helping her now. What was he really like?

Aside from the night they'd spent together, this was their first time being in such close contact. Tyrone's broad chest warmed her.

Heather gradually started feeling awkward. It was fortunate that everyone else had already gotten off work. Otherwise, the rumors about them would be set in stone if anyone were to catch them like this.

Soon, they were out of the building. Heather quickly said, "Thank you for helping me, Mr. Elkin. You can put me down here. I'll take a cab home."

Tyrone took in her blushing face. "Your ankle's badly injured. You need to go to the hospital."

She didn't want to trouble him, nor did she have money to pay any hospital bills. "I'm fine, really. I'll be okay after a night's rest."

"I don't want to have a cripple for a secretary. It'll affect my efficiency."

Heather was dumbfounded. She wanted to ask him whether she was important enough to affect his work. Among the three secretaries available, she was only in charge of preparing reports.

She'd never handled any important documents, and anyone else could do what she was doing. She was dispensable, and she'd been worried that she wouldn't be able to keep the job after completing her internship.

Tyrone didn't give her the chance to object. He brought her straight to the hospital. After the doctor checked her, he diagnosed that her ankle had simply been sprained. Her bones were fine, and she would be back to normal after a few days of rest.

It was already late at night once Heather finished dealing with everything. Heather sat on a bench in the lobby and watched as Tyrone collected her medication from a nearby counter. She didn't know how to feel about the situation.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Tyrone approached her with the medication.

Heather returned to her senses and smiled. "It's nothing."

Whenever she'd fallen sick in the past, she would've had to come to the hospital alone. This was her first time having someone care for her and collect the medication on her behalf—and it was Tyrone who was doing all this.

He didn't say anything else. He merely lifted her into his arms again. They left the hospital, and he drove her home.

The Maybach drove along the dimly lit roads. The light from the streetlights shone into the car. The occasional beams of light glided past Tyrone's handsome face. He looked so good that he was almost otherworldly.

"What do you wanna say?"

He suddenly asked as Heather looked at him for the third time.

She hesitated as she glanced at his wedding ring. "Thanks for taking me to the hospital, Mr. Elkin. I'll pay you back for the hospital bill."

In truth, she'd been thinking that it was only right for her to buy him a meal after he'd helped her. After all, neither of them had had dinner.

But upon further consideration, it was much too late for a meal, and his wife had to be waiting for him at home. It would be inappropriate for them to be alone together.

Tyrone gave her a sideways look. Her gaze was too guileless and naive—she genuinely didn't know that men always had ulterior motives for lending a helping hand.

He turned back to look at the road and said casually, "If you were to get into a fight with everyone who spread a rumor about you, you'd die of exhaustion. Physical violence is the stupidest way to resolve an issue."

Heather was taken aback. She asked in surprise, "You know about that?"

She didn't know how he'd learned about the rumors—perhaps he'd overheard them himself. The thought of the things people were saying about them made her angry again. "They crossed the line by saying that you and I—"

She caught herself in time as she thought about the rest of her sentence. Tyrone glanced at her. Heather didn't know whether her eyes were playing tricks on her, but she seemed to catch a hint of amusement in his gaze.

She blushed. They both knew what the rest of the sentence was about. After all, the rumors wouldn't mean anything if there was nothing between them. Yet it just so happened that they'd slept together that one time.

They both thought of certain scenes from their night of passion. The car was so quiet that they both felt something amorous fill the atmosphere.

Heather couldn't take it. She secretly took a deep breath before feigning calmness and switching the topic. "I was too mad at the time, so I couldn't stop myself from acting."

Tyrone glanced at her legs, then said, "They have the right to say whatever they want. You, on the other hand, are only giving them something to hold over your head by getting physical. If Anna were to use today's incident to sue you for assault, you'd be in trouble."

She knew his words made sense but couldn't help muttering, "I couldn't act like I didn't hear anything, could I?"

She looked like a pushover, but it seemed she had quite a fiery temper. Tyrone said, "Hold yourself back next time and find a chance to secretly make your move. You're colleagues—you have plenty of chances to get revenge."

Heather gaped at him. She thought that she'd heard him wrong. "Mr. Elkin, you…"

"What? Do you think I'm too crafty?" He raised an eyebrow. That made him look rather roguish.

He was much too crafty! She thought he was telling her not to get into fights so it wouldn't affect the company's reputation; she hadn't expected him to teach her to be so sly!

Every boss hoped their subordinates would know their place and toe the line so the company wouldn't be affected, yet he was teaching her to get back at someone in secret. He was probably the only company president in the country who'd do something like this!

Heather pursed her lips. "No, I just didn't expect you to say something like that."

"Well, have you committed what I've said to memory?"

"Yeah." Since she and Anna had already gotten into a fight today, she didn't intend to do anything to the others who'd badmouthed her. That was if they didn't do anything to piss her off again, of course.

Still, she had to admit Tyrone was right. Getting into a fight had been too rash. In any other company, she most likely would've been fired. Fortunately, Tyrone had looked past the matter and let her off the hook.

…

Heather stayed in an old neighborhood. It was far from the city center, but at least it was cheap.

The Maybach pulled over at her apartment building. She unbuckled her seatbelt and said politely, "I'm feeling much better now, Mr. Elkin, so I can head upstairs on my own. You won't need to go through the trouble of helping me."

Tyrone looked at her as he stroked the steering wheel. "Is it because it'd be inconvenient for me to head in there with your boyfriend around?"

The amorousness of his tone was so obvious that it'd be impossible for any adult not to catch it. Heather was taken aback.

Tyrone had taken good care of her tonight, and her mind had definitely entertained the possibility of him being interested in her in that way. At the same time, she'd worried she was looking too deeply into it. Now that he'd brought the subject up, she decided to clear the air.

"I don't have a boyfriend. Mr. Elkin. The night we shared is now a thing of the past. if we continue spending time with each other, it'll hurt your wife. That wouldn't be a good thing. I'm grateful for your help, though, and I guarantee I'll work hard to repay you for it!"

Tyrone was married. She hadn't known about that before selling herself to him, so she'd slept with him. She'd already done his wife an injustice once.

Now that she knew the truth, she had to keep her distance. She couldn't allow anything else to happen between them.

Her rejection was obvious, and her tone was so respectful that she only needed a curtsy to complete the act.

This was Tyrone's first time having a woman reject him so thoroughly and directly. He didn't feel embarrassed or anything; all he did was look at her with his lips pressed into a straight line. He didn't say anything.

Heather felt like it'd be rude for her to leave without him having said anything, so she sat there and watched him silently.

Just then, a phone rang. It broke the silence. It was connected to the speaker via the car's Bluetooth, and the call was automatically answered. A woman's gentle and joyful voice rang out. "Babe!"