"A long time ago, an old friend," she said vaguely.
"Do you need something from him?" Raymond keenly sensed her evasion.
Melinda couldn't continue to fabricate and could only respond with a vague "Hmm."
Raymond's face suddenly darkened, and he stared at Melinda with piercing eyes. "Melinda, remember this: if you ever need anything, instead of asking those irrelevant people, come directly to me. At least I can guarantee that I will never do anything excessive to you."
Melinda secretly thought to herself, hasn't he taken advantage of her enough? But on the surface, she just responded perfunctorily, "Okay, got it."
The more Raymond thought about it, the more he felt he couldn't let that man off easily. Just then, the car phone rang.
The control screen displayed the name "Emily." He glanced at it but didn't answer.
Melinda also saw Emily's name, and a trace of disgust flashed in her eyes.
The phone kept ringing, but Raymond had no intention of answering it.
"Why don't you answer? What if your girlfriend Emily has something urgent?" Melinda asked deliberately.
"Emily is not my girlfriend. We're just friends," Raymond clarified.
"Oh! You mean the kind of friends who have slept together?" Melinda mocked.
Raymond's face instantly turned ugly. He glared at her and asked hoarsely, "Do you mind that I slept with Emily?"
Melinda retorted, "Why should I mind? Who you sleep with has nothing to do with me."
Her words made Raymond's face even more unpleasant, and the atmosphere in the car became awkward and heavy.
Melinda nervously glanced at him. Under the streetlights, his handsome face and still neat shirt made her admit that Raymond was indeed perfect and flawless.
As the car approached her neighborhood, Melinda finally breathed a sigh of relief. She sincerely thanked him again, "Mr. Thomas, thank you so much for tonight."
Raymond domineeringly ordered, "In the future, if you encounter such things, you must come to me first."
Melinda remained silent.
What kind of logic is this! But now was not the time to dwell on it; she needed to get home quickly, so she could only agree.
"Okay, I remember."
Raymond watched her get out of the car with deep eyes. Every time she left, he felt an indescribable reluctance.
He furrowed his brows tightly, feeling a surge of inexplicable irritation.
He took a deep breath, trying to calm his inner turmoil, but found himself increasingly unable to resist her.
Watching Melinda's figure disappear behind the neighborhood gate, Raymond's car slowly drove away.
Just then, Emily's call came through again.
Raymond took a deep breath and answered the phone, "Emily, what's wrong?"
"Raymond, I'm so scared." On the other end, Emily's voice was tearful, as if she had been greatly frightened. "I just had a nightmare. Can you come over and keep me company?"
Raymond frowned slightly. He had just dropped off Melinda and didn't want to go out again: "I'm a bit busy right now. I'll send someone else to keep you company, okay?"
"No! I don't want anyone else; I only want you!" Emily's voice suddenly became agitated.
"Only you can make me feel safe, Raymond. Please, come and keep me company!"
Raymond was silent for a moment, his voice low and firm, "Emily, be good. I really don't have time right now."
Emily knew that if she continued to make a fuss, Raymond might get annoyed: "Alright then, I want a set of jewelry to match the white dress I just bought."
"Okay, sure." Raymond agreed without hesitation.
For him, compensating with material things seemed easier than making up for emotional shortcomings.
Just half an hour ago, Emily had learned that Raymond had gone to rescue Melinda. At that moment, she wished she could kill Melinda immediately. However, she knew that to deal with Melinda, she had to plan carefully.
So, she pretended to be the man from back then, threatening Melinda not to call the police. She thought that by doing this, she could control Melinda firmly.
However, she didn't expect Raymond to care so much about Melinda.
"Melinda! How dare you compete with me for Raymond! I'll make you pay." Emily said through gritted teeth.
Her eyes were filled with venom and hatred, as if she wanted to devour the entire world.
At this moment, she had completely fallen into a state of madness.
The next morning, when Raymond entered the office, he saw Emily already sitting on the sofa, her outfit clearly meticulously prepared.
However, for Raymond, these superficial luxuries were not enough to attract his attention. He valued a person's inner qualities more.
"Raymond, you're finally here." Emily stood up, her eyes filled with deep admiration.
Raymond nodded slightly and pressed the intercom, "Bring the gift over."
A trace of disappointment flashed in Emily's eyes. It turned out that the gift was not personally chosen by him but by his assistant, Stuart.
Soon, Stuart came over with a set of exquisite jewelry and handed it to Emily.
"Ms. Lowe, this is a gift prepared for you. I hope you like it."
Emily opened the box, and the diamond necklace set sparkled under the light, with impeccable design and diamonds.
She smiled slightly, "I like it very much, thank you."
However, when she looked up at Raymond, she found that his gaze seemed to be elsewhere, thinking about other things.
"Raymond, I booked a restaurant for tonight. Let's have dinner together!" Emily tried to break the awkward atmosphere.
Raymond frowned slightly. He had an important engagement tonight that he couldn't cancel, "Emily, I have an engagement tonight and can't accompany you."
"But I really want to have dinner with you." Emily's voice carried a hint of pleading.
"Next time." Raymond's voice was gentle but carried an undeniable firmness.
Emily could only nod helplessly.
She looked at him with some reluctance, then turned and left.
Every time she came to him full of joy, she always left disappointed.
Raymond treated her well, but it was only in material terms. The emotional connection she wanted was something she could never get.
Meanwhile, Melinda had also returned to the office. She felt an inexplicable sense of irritation and couldn't concentrate on her work. She got up and went to the restroom, only to overhear two female colleagues whispering.
"Did you hear? Melinda went out with Mr. Thomas at noon to get promoted to supervisor. She might have even booked a room with him!"
"She's so shameless. Poor Tenley, having to deal with such a disgraceful opponent."
Melinda's face grew increasingly grim as she listened to these harsh words from her cubicle.