Chapter 68
Josephine smiled, glancing down at the slender hand covering hers.
She used to love holding hands with him. Gideon's hands were long, broad, and warm.
Unlike hers—she'd always run cold year-round due to her condition.
"What are you smiling about?" Gideon studied her face.
Josephine shook her head. "Nothing. Since you're being honest, I'll be honest too. I'm not agreeing to this."
"Why not? When the company's reputation takes a hit, it doesn't just affect me. As my wife, we rise and fall together. You'll be affected too."
He didn't understand. She seemed completely indifferent to him and to the company's reputation.
This wasn't his Josephine.
His gaze held such unfamiliar disappointment. Josephine pulled her hand back, discreetly wiping it against the fabric under the table, erasing a warmth that didn't belong to her.
What she'd once treasured now felt so ordinary.
That kind of warmth? A heating pad could give her the same thing.
Did she really crave the warmth itself? No. She'd cherished the pure love behind it.
"Precisely because I'm your wife, I'm giving you time to handle this yourself. Anyone else would have already dragged you to court."
This incident wasn't enough to bring down Starlight Group, nor enough to completely destroy Gideon's reputation as a Getty heir. But giving him a solid blow? That was plenty.
"Our bet didn't include a clause about me solving your problems. The person who caused the mess should clean it up. Isn't that reasonable?"
"If Lorelei had that kind of capability, I wouldn't be here groveling."
He felt helpless, too.
Lorelei simply didn't have the skills.
He couldn't help comparing the two women. If it were Josephine...
She'd actively solve the problem, immediately calm the panicking employees, stabilize the company's stock price and reputation—not just sit at home waiting for him.
No, if it were Josephine, the theft never would have happened in the first place.
Gideon said quietly, "Jojo, we're married. There's no need to make this so ugly. I announce our relationship publicly, the theft accusation falls apart, then you resign from the Getty Group and come to Starlight. I'll make you VP. From now on, we'll be equals, managing the company together. Since you have a gift for research, I can also arrange for you to assist Frank—nominally an assistant, but with full access to all resources. How does that sound?"
Josephine looked at him, then suddenly asked, "Is Lorelei still working at the company?"
"I already let her go."
Oh. She went home to nurture the pregnancy.
Josephine nodded in understanding. "Sorry, I can't agree. I also don't want you announcing our relationship. I don't want anyone knowing I'm your wife."
"Why?" That most sensitive nerve in Gideon's heart got plucked again. "You don't want people knowing about us—you want to claim you're single?"
What was she planning? Looking for someone else?
Was it because of Cedric?
Seeing the possessive rage swirling in his eyes, Josephine grabbed a spoon from the table and threw it at him. "Are you sick in the head? Your company's in the middle of a public trainwreck. You want to announce our relationship now so I can get dragged through the mud with you? The Getty family's been hounding me about having kids—you know that. You want me to go from dealing with your family's baby pressure to facing heat from the entire internet?"
Gideon was struck speechless. His momentum deflated as he ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "I'm sorry. I was being stupid. I didn't think about that."
He had this feeling of losing his grip on her, desperately wanting to capture her again, hold her close.
"Handle your own mess. I'm absolutely not letting this go." Josephine's expression turned icy. "I work at the Getty Group now. Our positions are opposed. If we announce our relationship at this moment, it'll trigger all kinds of speculation. I don't want to deal with those rumors. Besides, Lorelei's the one who screwed up. I'm seeing this through to the end."
Her phrasing was artful.
If she'd said outright that she'd pursue this to the bitter end, Gideon would've exploded like a firecracker. But she'd prefaced it with her reasoning.
Gideon felt unhappy, but couldn't exactly blow up at her. "So you're just leaving me to twist in the wind?"
"Who told you to let a wolf into your house? Whatever consequences come from that, you've got to deal with them yourself."
Josephine finished the last of her coffee. Before leaving, she reminded him, "Our bet clearly stated that if I won, you'd transfer the Clearwater Ridge house to me. When you're free, we'll go handle the paperwork."
Gideon didn't like how that sounded.
Handle the paperwork... Without context, it almost sounded like they were going to file for divorce.
"You want the Clearwater Ridge house? It's yours. We can go transfer it right now."
"Let's go then."
Josephine genuinely loved the Clearwater Ridge property—great location, and super close to the Getty Group Building. Only a ten-minute drive to work each day.
She was practically bouncing when they processed the transfer.
Gideon cooperated fully.
When they walked out of the property office, Josephine immediately headed for her car.
Gideon grabbed her wrist. "The house may be in your name now, but you can't keep living at Clearwater Ridge. Don't forget—Evercrest Manor is your home."
With the house secured, Josephine didn't want to waste time arguing, but she gave his arm a perfunctory pat anyway. "Alright, got it. You should hurry back and handle your company crisis. Look at those dark circles under your eyes. You haven't slept properly in days, have you?"
She was totally gloating.
Gideon thought she was concerned about him. He touched the skin under his eyes, half-joking, "Well, you haven't been by my side lately, refusing to take care of me..."
He was a grown man. Couldn't he take care of himself?
Josephine internally rolled her eyes but kept her expression serious. "I'm swamped with work right now. Can barely take care of myself, let alone someone else. You should get going."
Gideon watched her car pull away.
Back at the office, his assistant immediately rushed over. "Mr. Getty, did Mrs. Getty agree?"
Others might not know, but the assistant had personally witnessed Gideon and Josephine's loving relationship. He'd assumed Josephine would agree.
"She refused."
The assistant was shocked. "Why? If Mrs. Getty helps you, she's helping herself too."
Gideon said nothing.
The assistant suddenly thought of something. "Mrs. Getty didn't... find out about Ms. Kelly, did she?"
The only reason he could think of for a woman who deeply loved her husband to change so drastically was discovering her husband's affair.
But Gideon was certain. "Impossible."
His Josephine—if she knew about this, she definitely wouldn't be so calm. She'd yell, she'd throw a fit, she might even hit him. But she'd never divorce him.
She couldn't bear to let him go.
It wasn't like he'd never made her angry before. But whenever he played pitiful and coaxed her a bit, she'd stop being mad.
Gideon shook his head, dismissing these thoughts. The pressing matter was handling the company situation. "Contact the renovation crew that did the office."
"Yes, sir."
The assistant didn't understand why they needed them, but he didn't ask questions and went to handle it.
After the Getty Group meeting wrapped up, everyone gradually dispersed. Cedric asked Josephine to stay behind.
"If you want to file a lawsuit, the Getty Group's legal team can assist you."
Josephine's eyes lit up. Starlight Group also maintained an excellent legal team. The only ones who could match them were the Getty Group's lawyers.
"Great. I'll reach out to them if I need to."
She paused, suddenly remembering the original reason she'd gotten close to Cedric and joined the Getty Group—wasn't it precisely to access his legal team for her divorce case against Gideon?
She swallowed. "Mr. Getty, there's actually something I'd like to ask your help with."