“I–It was Samantha.”
Tyler sneered. “Well, at least you’re honest. What else did Samantha say?”
“She said if I could get some spicy photos of the two of you, she’d give me a bonus.”
Tyler raised a brow. “How about you come inside now? I’ll help you stage a few.”
“N–No need for that.”
Now that he’d been caught, he wouldn’t dare actually ask Tyler for anything outrageous. He knew perfectly well why Samantha was offering so much money.
It was because this man wasn’t just anybody. If it were some average guy, she’d never offer that kind of cash. That was the key point.
“How much did she offer you?” Tyler asked.
“Seven grand,” the guy said nervously, raising seven trembling fingers.
Tyler thought for a moment. “I’ll give you twenty one thousand. Photograph her instead.”
The guy looked stunned. “Twenty one grand?”
He’d never seen that kind of money in his life. Most of the time, his jobs only paid a few hundred, and maybe a couple grand at
most.
Nobody had ever offered him this much.
“Yeah. Just follow my instructions. You’ll get the full amount. And don’t worry, it won’t affect what you’re getting from Samantha. I’ll delete a few photos. You can still give her something.”
“Okay, whatever you want. I’ll shoot whatever you say.”
Tyler gestured with his finger. “Come here.”
After Rachel woke up, she quickly freshened up and even made breakfast since she couldn’t reach Tyler by phone.
She was just about to eat when Tyler walked in. He was humming a tune.
Rachel listened for a second. It sounded oddly familiar. Was she hearing it wrong?
Tyler was humming the theme song from an animated film. It was a children’s song.
She smiled reflexively. Did this man have a childlike heart? It was hard to believe. Someone so cold and aloof was actually humming a children’s song.
Tyler walked up to her. Before she could hide her smile, he caught it.
Hands in his pockets, he looked at her and asked, “Never seen someone sing before? Is that funny to you?”
Rachel’s smile froze. “Not really. It’s just that song and your whole persona don’t really match.”
Tyler sat down, grabbed the sandwich on the plate across from her and took a big bite without asking. He asked, “Then what do you think suits me? The River Flows East?”
Rachel instantly imagined the tune.
“The river flows east, and the stars in the sky point to the Big Dipper.‘
1/2
This was killing her.
As soon as she snapped out of it, she realized something.
Why did it matter what Tyler wanted to sing? If he wanted to sing, let him sing. It wasn’t her business.
She quickly composed herself.
“Sing whatever you want. Children’s songs are fine too.”
There was nothing wrong with having childlike innocence.
Tyler polished off the sandwich in a few bites.
“By the way, Samantha hired someone to secretly photograph us. The pictures are actually pretty good. Wanna see?” he asked.
The way he said it made it sound like it was the most normal thing in the world. It was as if someone just randomly snapped a photo of him on the street.
Rachel frowned instantly. She lost all her appetite.
“Aren’t you worried at all?”
Tyler took a sip of milk. “Why should I be? Do you think I’m scared of some gossip?”